WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

New England Patriots

The Patriots began the game with a very balanced offensive attack that they sustained throughout. Tom Brady led them downfield on three scoring drives in the first half. And Corey Dillon punctuated those two of those drives with touchdown rushes. Adam Vinatieri made a successful field goal attempt on the other. Brady was rarely pressured and finished the game with 17 completions of 26 attempts for 315 yards and 1 touchdown.

Corey Dillon was able to break tackles and find holes against the Chiefs' defense. He rushed for 98 yards. In spite of that, he did lose a fumble on the Chiefs' 5 yard line that subsequently led to a touchdown for Kansas City.

Deion Branch returned to play in his first game since week 2 and was the favored target of Tom Brady. Branch finished the game with 6 receptions for 105 yards on his 9 targets, including a 26-yard touchdown reception. In comparison to Branch, the rest of the Patriots' wide receivers, Troy Brown, David Givens, and David Patten combined for only 4 receptions for 76 yards. Patten was not even targeted until the second half of play.

Daniel Graham was more of a factor in the Patriots' passing game than he has been in recent weeks. He made 3 receptions for 83 yards, one of them a great 48-yard reception. And while he caught everything that was thrown to him, he was only utilized in the first half of play.

Kansas City Chiefs

It was the inability of the Kansas City Chiefs to stop their opponents that led to the loss in this game, as has become the pattern for them.

Offensively, they played very well. Trent Green started the game perfectly completing his first 9 passing attempts. He connected with Eddie Kennison for a 65-yard touchdown pass, the longest pass of the season for Green. Green finished the game with nearly 400 yards.

It was a very good night for both Kansas City Chiefs' wide receivers. Johnnie Morton reached the 100 yard mark with his 5 receptions for 107 yards, the second time this season that he has done so. Eddie Kennison was just shy of 100 yards with his 3 receptions for 99 yards. And 2 of those receptions were for touchdowns.

Derrick Blaylock started his second game in place of Priest Holmes. But unlike last week, Blaylock struggled to sustain any sort of rushing attack for the Chiefs. He was very limited in his ability to break holes and was often stopped short. His longest rush for 14 yards did not come until the fourth quarter. Blaylock was a factor in the passing game though and made 5 receptions for 33 yards. One of those a key 14-yard third down conversion that led to one of Eddie Kennison's scores.

WHAT YOU OUGHT TO KNOW

New England Patriots

QB: Tom Brady (17-26-315, 1 TD, 5 for -1 rushing) Brady efficiently and smartly led the Patriots. Though the first two touchdown scoring drives finished with rushing touchdowns, it was Brady's passing that put them in that position. To open the second half, Brady completed a 26-yard touchdown reception to Deion Branch. This came after a 46-yard pass to David Patten. Brady was clearly pleased to have Deion Branch back in the lineup and Branch received 9 of Brady's targets in the game.

RB: Corey Dillon (26-98, 2 TD rushing, 1-20 receiving on 1 target, 1 fumble lost) Dillon rushed in easily to score his 5-yard touchdown. Unlike his Chief counterpart, Dillon had plenty of rushing room, and finished with 98 yards. In the second quarter, Dillon had an 8-yard run to the 1-yard line; but he was stopped short of the goal line on his second carry. The third time was the charm and Dillon rushed in to score his second touchdown of the game. Dillon turned a short screen catch into a 20-yard gain. Dillon fumbled inside the 10-yard line, turning the ball over.

Kevin Faulk (1-1 rushing) Faulk was not a factor in the game; he limped off the field in the fourth quarter.

Patrick Pass (2-17 receiving on 2 targets) Pass made the first reception of the game, a short 7-yard reception.

WR: Deion Branch (6-105, 1 TD receiving on 9 targets) Branch played in his first game since week 2. His first reception for 17 yards gained a third down conversion during the Patriots' opening drive. He had a second 17-yard reception in the second quarter of play. Branch made a short catch and broke tackles to score his 26-yard touchdown.

David Givens (1-3 receiving on 5 targets) Givens had a deep pass intended for him broken up during the opening drive of the game. Givens was targeted in the end zone, but the pass was underthrown. In spite of his 5 targets, Givens mustered 1 reception for only 3 yards.

Troy Brown (2-27 receiving on 2 targets) Brown made his first reception near the end of the first quarter. As is becoming the norm, Brown also saw time playing on defense.

David Patten (1-46 receiving on 3 targets) With Deion Branch back in the game, Patten found himself as the odd man out. Patten was targeted deep with Brady's first pass of the second half, but couldn't make the reception. Two plays later, Patten was targeted deep again and this time jumped to make the 46-yard reception.

TE: Daniel Graham (3-83 receiving on 3 targets) Graham caught every pass that came his way. He caught a floating pass to gain 27 yards. He made a great 47-yard reception in the second quarter and the Chiefs had trouble tackling him.

Christian Fauria (1-14 receiving on 1 target) Fauria made his first reception for 14 yards late in the fourth quarter.

K: Adam Vinatieri (3-3 XP, 2-2 FG) Vinatieri made a 37-yard field goal in the second quarter. He made a 28-yard field goal attempt very late in the game, effectively putting the game out of reach for the Chiefs.

Pass Defense: Though the Patriots came away with the win, Trent Green still threw for nearly 400 yards and 2 touchdowns. Green had plenty of time to make decisions in the pocket. He was sacked twice in the first half of play. Rodney Harrison intercepted Green in the end zone at the end of the first half. Asante Samuel was injured late in the game, going up against Eddie Kennison. Willie McGinest sacked Green during the Chiefs' last drive of the game. The sack turned the ball over on downs, sealing the victory for the Patriots.

Rush Defense: The Patriots' rush defense did not give any room for Derrick Blaylock to run and Blaylock only rushed for 58 yards on his 19 carries. Just a hair over 3 yards per carry.

Kansas City Chiefs

QB: Trent Green (27-42-381, 2 TD, 1 Int, 1-6 rushing) Green started the game perfectly, completing his first 9 passes for 148 yards and a touchdown strike to Eddie Kennison. His lone interception was thrown at the very end of the first half. He was attempting a pass to Tony Gonzalez in the end zone. On the drive after Corey Dillon's fumble, Green was waiting in the pocket, and hit from behind. He fumbled the ball but it was recovered by the Chiefs. He continued to lead the Chiefs downfield and finished with a second touchdown pass to Eddie Kennison.

RB: Derrick Blaylock (19-58 rushing, 5-33 receiving on 7 targets) Blaylock started the game slowly, only rushing for 6 yards during the first quarter of play. He was unable to find any running room at all. He did make a big 1-yard rush to convert on 4th and 1 near the end of the first half. Blaylock made a 14-yard run in the fourth quarter, his longest of the game. He did finish the game with 58 yards but it took him 19 carries to get that. Blaylock was effective in the passing game. In the fourth quarter, he made a 14-yard reception on 3rd and 11 that extended the Chiefs' drive which finished with Kennison's touchdown.

Tony Richardson (1-7 receiving on 1 target) Richardson made a short 7 yard reception in the fourth quarter.

Priest Holmes remained out this week with his knee sprain.

WR: Eddie Kennison (3-99 receiving, 2 TD on 11 targets) Kennison ran past Earthwind Moreland along the sidelines to pull in a reception and ran to score a 65-yard touchdown. Kennison made an 8-yard catch in coverage. Kennison juggled and dropped a deep target in the second quarter. Kennison was fairly quiet until the fourth quarter when he again beat Moreland to score a 26-yard touchdown. Kennison was targeted on the subsequent 2 pt. conversion attempt, but the pass was broken up.

Johnnie Morton (5-107 receiving on 7 targets) Morton made a 17-yard reception, but was 2 yards short of gaining a first down. He made a 36-yard reception out of the slot. Morton beat Moreland as well with a 17-yard reception. On the very next play, Morton was targeted deep, but dropped the ball. Even if he had caught it, it would have been for naught, as Kansas City was called for a holding penalty.

Dante Hall (3-32 receiving on 4 targets) Hall saw his first target in the end zone. He made a 19-yard reception in the third quarter.

TE: Tony Gonzalez (7-86 receiving on 9 targets) The Patriots were making a clearly concerted effort to keep Gonzalez out of the Chiefs' game plan, especially in the red zone. And still the tight end made 7 receptions for 86 yards. Gonzalez made a 22-yard reception over the middle during the first drive for the Chiefs. And he was the target on Green's interception.

Jason Dunn (3-17 receiving on 4 targets) Dunn played a minimal factor in the game. One of his receptions was a short 3-yard catch.

K: Lawrence Tynes (1-1 XP, 2-2 FG) Tynes converted a 44-yard field goal attempt on the Chiefs' first drive.

Pass Defense: The Chiefs sacked Tom Brady on the first play of the game, a play action fake. It was the only sack of the game, and for the rest of the game Brady seemed to be rarely pressured. Though they held Brady to only one touchdown pass, he did throw for 315 yards against them.

Rush Defense: Corey Dillon rushed for yards and 2 touchdowns against the Chiefs. They were able recover Dillon's fumble at their own 5-yard line. It was their second fumble recovery of the season and led to Trent Green's second touchdown pass.