Quarterback Tom Brady finished the regular season with an NFL-record 335 consecutive pass attempts without an interception, and broke his own 2007 TD to INT ratio record with 9:1 and was named NFL MVP.
Four days after the Patriots' playoff loss against the Baltimore Ravens, defensive coordinator Dean Pees announced that he would not seek to renew his contract, which expired at the end of the 2009 season.
After a Patriots three-and-out, the Bengals continued their comeback, marching 74 yards in 12 plays, scoring on a 28-yard touchdown pass from Palmer to Chad Ochocinco, trimming the deficit to a manageable 31–17.
The Jets cashed in after a Patriots three-and-out, racing 70 yards in 6 plays, scoring on a 2-yard touchdown pass to Jerricho Cotchery (with a successful 2-point conversion), taking a 21–14 lead.
After forcing the Patriots to punt, the Jets marched 63 yards in 8 plays, aided by a 23-yard pass interference penalty on Darius Butler, scoring on a 1-yard touchdown toss to Dustin Keller, widening the lead to 28-14 midway through the fourth quarter.
at Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts Hoping to rebound from their loss to the Jets, the Patriots returned to home ground for an AFC East match against the Bills.
Aided by another good return by Tate, the Patriots raced 74 yards in under two minutes on the opening drive of the second half, scoring on a 35-yard touchdown bomb from Brady to Moss, increasing the lead to 24–16.
The Dolphins drove to the Patriots 29 on their next drive, but after a 7-yard sack by Ninkovich, attempted a 54-yard field goal, but the kick was blocked Chung with Kyle Arrington returning it 35 yards for a touchdown, increasing the lead to 34–14.
The Ravens went on a 15 play, 86-yard marathon drive, taking over 8 minutes and converting two third-and-longs, reaching the Patriots 8, but were forced to settle for a 26-yard field goal by Billy Cundiff.
The Chargers recovered the onside kick at the Patriots 40 and raced 60 yards in just 5 plays, scoring on a 1-yard touchdown run by Mike Tolbert trimming the deficit to just 23–20 with just over four minutes remaining in the game.
The Chargers then stormed to their own 27, setting up a game-tying 45-yard field goal attempt by Brown, but guard Louis Vasquez was flagged for a false-start, moving the ball back 5 yards.
After both teams punted, the Steelers drove 59 (aided by a 38-yard pass interference call on Brandon Meriweather) yards to the Patriots 8-yard line, but Reed missed a 26-yard field goal.
After a Colts punt, the Patriots put together a 15 play, 87-yard drive, culminating with Brady throwing an 8-yard touchdown pass to Hernandez, increasing their lead to 14-0 early in the second quarter.
The Colts answered right back, engineering a 12 play, 73-yard drive, scoring on an 11-yard touchdown pass from Manning to Reggie Wayne(who made a fantastic catch) 0:08 left in the first half, trimming the deficit to 21–14.
After forcing a quick three-and-out, with help from an unnecessary roughness penalty on Tully Banta-Cain, the Colts raced 58 yards, with Manning throwing his 4th touchdown of the night, again to White, trimming the deficit to just 31–28 with 4:46 remaining in the game.
The Colts forced another quick punt and got the ball at their own 26-yard line with 2:25 remaining, giving Manning a chance to pull off a miracle comeback against the Patriots for a second year in a row.
at Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts Coming off their win over the Lions on Thanksgiving, the Patriots returned home for a highly anticipated Monday Night Football game with the 9-2 New York Jets with the outright lead in the AFC East on the line.
Starting at their own 43, the Patriots raced 57 yards in 6 plays, aided by a pass interference penalty on Eric Smith, scoring on a 1-yard touchdown run by Green-Ellis, increasing the lead to 10–0.
On the very next play, Jay Cutler tossed a 1-yard pass to Johnny Knox, but Devin McCourty stripped him, with Guyton recovering and returning the fumble 35 yards for a touchdown, increasing the Patriots lead to 21–0.
It didn't matter though, because it took three plays for the Patriots to reach their own 41 and then Brady found Deion Branch for a 59-yard touchdown pass (with a missed extra point), making the score 33–0 at halftime.
Three possessions later, the Packers marched 82 yards in six-and-a-half minutes, scoring on a 1-yard touchdown pass from Flynn to Greg Jennings, giving them a very surprising 17–7 lead late in the first half, but the momentum instantly swung back to New England.
The Packers receive the 2nd half kickoff and on the fourth play of their first possession, Arrington intercepted a short pass from Flynn and returned it 36 yards for a touchdown, giving the Patriots a 21–17 lead.
After Sam Shields returned the ensuing kickoff 21 yards to the 31, the Packers countered, engineering a 13-play, 69-yard drive, taking just under six minutes off the clock, and scoring on a 6-yard touchdown pass from Flynn to John Kuhn, re-taking the lead 24–21.
The Patriots engineered a 7 play, 78-yard drive on the opening possession of the second half, with Brady throwing a 10-yard touchdown pass to Crumpler, turning the game into a 31-0 blowout.
On the Patriots first drive, Tom Brady threw his first interception since week five of the regular season, which linebacker David Harris picked off and returned 58 yards before tight end Alge Crumpler made a touchdown saving tackle at the 12-yard line.
But after a 5-yard run by Danny Woodhead, Crumpler dropped a pass in the end zone and then Brady was sacked by Shaun Ellis, forcing them to settle for Shayne Graham's 34-yard field goal to give them a 3–0 lead.
In the second quarter, a third down sack of Brady by Drew Coleman forced New England to punt from their own 16, and Jerricho Cotchery returned the ball 5 yards to the Patriots 49-yard line.
But Chung fumbled the snap and was tackled on his own 25-yard line, and the Jets converted the turnover with Sanchez' 15-yard touchdown pass to Edwards with 33 seconds left in the half, making the score 14–3.
Two plays later, Sanchez threw a high pass for Santonio Holmes, who managed to catch the ball and land his in the end zone while falling out of bounds, giving New York a 10-point lead two minutes into the fourth quarter.
Brandon Tate returned the ensuing kickoff 23 yards to the 41-yard line, sparking a 59-yard scoring drive that ended with Brady's 13-yard touchdown pass to Branch with 24 seconds left.