GAME TIME: 4:25 p.m.
TV NETWORK: CBS
TV ANNOUNCERS: Jim Nantz and Phil Simms
RADIO NETWORK: Anchored by WBZ-FM (98.5 The Sports Hub)
RADIO ANNOUNCERS: Gil Santos and Scott Zolak
ALL-TIME SERIES BETWEEN THE TEAMS:Broncos lead Patriots, 27-18 (including playoffs).
LAST MEETING: Patriots 45, Broncos 10 on Jan. 14, 2012 at Gillette Stadium.
OF NOTE . . .
Last season the Patriots beat the Broncos 41-23 on Dec. 18 in Denver during the regular season and 45-10 at Gillette on Jan. 15, becoming the 13th NFL team to score 40 or more points against the same team twice in the same season. The Patriots are the first team to score 40 points two times in a season against a non-division opponent since the Oakland Raiders did so against Tennessee in the regular season and AFC Championship game in 2002.
Tom Brady has a 2-5 record against Denver as a starter in the regular season and 3-6 overall. The Broncos are the only team against whom Brady has a losing record.
Brady is 8-4 in head-to-head matchups with Peyton Manning, though he has lost three of their last four meetings.
New England Patriots
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
With one touchdown pass against Denver, Tom Brady will extend his streak to 37 straight games with at least one touchdown pass and break a tie with Brett Favre (36) for the third-longest streak all time.
Brady has 48 career 300-yard games in the regular season and needs one more to tie Warren Moon (49) for seventh place all time.
If Brady passes for 300 or more yards against Denver, it will be the third time in his career that he has had at least a four-game stretch of 300-yard games. His career best is five straight 300-yard games in 2009. The NFL record is held by Drew Brees, who had nine consecutive 300-yard games (2011-12). Brady has thrown for 300 yards or more in seven of his last eight regular-season games.
Stephen Gostkowski (7-of-10 from 50 or more yards) needs one more 50-yard field goal to tie Adam Vinatieri (8-of-17) for most 50-yard field goals in Patriots history. Gostkowski has two 50-yarders so far in 2012 and can become the first Patriots player with three 50-yard field goals in a single season.
Jerod Mayo can extend his streak to four straight games with 10 or more tackles, which would tie his career high after recording 13 at Tennessee, 11 vs. Arizona and 11 at Baltimore. Two times in 2011, he had four-game stretches with 10 or more tackles.
Wes Welker (31) needs one more touchdown reception to break out of a tie for seventh place with Troy Brown on the Patriots all-time touchdown reception list.
Welker (14) needs one more 10-plus catch game to tie Andre Johnson (15) of Houston for the most 10-plus reception games among active players. Reggie Wayne also had 14 10-plus reception games.
The Patriots have had two straight games with two receivers reaching 100 yards. It is the fourth time in team history that the team has had back-to-back games with two receivers at 100 yards. The Patriots have never had three straight games with two 100-yard receivers.
The Patriots will be looking for their first back-to-back games with a 100-yard rusher since Laurence Maroney in 2007.