Nearly a month after a soul-crushing loss to the Kansas City Chiefs called Tom Brady's longevity into question, the New England Patriots put an exclamation point on their fourth consecutive win.
In the Pats' 51-23 victory over the Chicago Bears, Brady threw for 354 yards and five touchdowns.
More impressive than that, the veteran quarterback completed 30 passes in 35 attempts.
Three of Brady's scores came courtesy of tight end Rob Gronkowski, who received all nine of the catches on which he was targeted for 149 yards.
Wide receiver Brandon LaFell and tight end Tim Wright made the other two touchdown catches, with LaFell receiving for 124 yards.
Notably absent from the equation was Julian Edelman. Brady's primary target through the first seven games of the season made just one catch after being targeted four times, accounting for three of the quarterback's five misses.
Bears quarterback Jay Cutler's numbers were solid, completing 20 passes in 30 attempts and throwing for three touchdowns against one pick. But two of those touchdowns came after the Pats took a 45-7 lead in the third quarter.
New England Patriots
Midseason pickup Jonas Gray, a former undrafted free agent signed off the practice squad to fill the void left by Stevan Ridley's injury, served to diversify New England's offense even as Brady fired the ball all over the field. The rookie running back ran it for 86 yards.
Mainstay Shane Vereen contributed out of the backfield and a weapon for Brady, with 22 rushing yards and 23 receiving.
More to come.
