Patriots vs. Ravens 2013, Week 16: New England blows out Baltimore, playoff races get tighter

Then it was everyone else:

• NFL Week 16: Updates, GIFs and scores | Playoff picture

• NFL Week 16: Updates, GIFs and scores | Playoff picture

• Peyton Manning breaks Tom Brady’s TD record

Brady went 14-26 passing for 173 yards and one touchdown against the Ravens. He has had an impressive year this season despite ever-reshuffling cast of pass catchers due to injuries. Through 15 games, Brady has thrown for 4,222 yards, 24 touchdowns and 10 interceptions.

At 11-4 overall, the Patriots are hoping to lock up a first-round bye and hold off the 11-4 Cincinnati Bengals who just clinched the AFC North on Sunday.

Tom Brady has a really great life. He’s won three Super Bowls. He’s unmistakably one of the best quarterbacks of all time. He has a wife, which means he has found love, and that is nice regardless of whether said wife is incredibly famous for being very attractive. And today, his Patriots dominated the Ravens in a 41-7 win.

So how come he can’t find anybody to give him a high-five?

Julian Edelman was a PPR star again, racking up seven catches for 77 yards.

The Ravens opened as 1½-point favorites, according to Oddsshark.com. They failed to cover by losing.

It’s nice to see so many players getting their shots in at Ray now. It’s something we never really saw while Lewis was playing.

I wonder why.

Vereen has been used as New England’s pass-catching back this season, hauling in 43 receptions before Sunday’s action. A testament to his role in the offense, Vereen caught a career-high 12 passes for 153 yards two weeks ago in a win over Cleveland. The former Cal standout has 580 yards from scrimmage and two combined touchdowns.

• NFL Week 16: Updates, GIFs and playoff pictures | Clinching scenarios

No tackle, no contact at all, just ... WHOOPSPLAT for Joe Flacco:

Hey, these things happen. Don’t be so hard on yourself:

Brady was NOT HAPPY with having to burn a timeout in the first half against the Ravens. It wouldn’t really matter because he would go on to throw a TD pass to Shane Vereen on the very next play. Like any good leader he took his frustration out on his offensive coordinator, as one does.

Tom Brady. What a competitor. What a leader. As Skip Bayless called him earlier this week, “impossibly humble.”

Thompkins, a rookie out of Cincinnati, has started eight games for the Patriots this season and played in 11, catching 32 passes for 466 yards and four touchdowns, ranking fifth on the team in receiving yards. Solder, a third-year player out of Colorado, has not missed a game in his NFL career, and started every game over each of the past two seasons.

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Game Date/Time and Location: Sunday, Dec. 22, 4:25 p.m. ET at M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, Md.

TV schedule and distribution map: CBS; The506.com

The Ravens have traveled an interesting road this season. The team started off in a hole but has quickly climbed out and is now in control of its own destiny. Still, the Ravens numbers remain among the worst in the league, especially on offense. They rank 25th in scoring (21.1 points per game) and are 29th in rushing yards and total yards.

Jason Butt of Baltimore Beatdown is a huge fan of what Tucker has been doing this season:

The Ravens have turned their season around with four straight wins and could clinch a sixth straight playoff birth with a win and a little help. It shouldn’t be a surprise that the Ravens have made their run thanks to a strong defense and an offense doing just enough to get the job done. It’s the Ravens’ way, and it seems to work pretty good for them.

Our SB Nation experts are leaning towards the Pats with Ryan Van Bibber, Jason Chilton, Stephen White and Matt Ufford picking them to win. Joel Thorman and David Fucillo think the Ravens will win their fourth straight over the Pats. The experts over at CBS Sports are even more split, giving a slight edge to Baltimore. All but one expert at ESPN picked the Ravens, so maybe they know something we don’t?

Currently, both teams are holding on to playoff spots, but neither has clinched a spot. The Patriots are in good position to win the AFC East and possibly secure a first-round bye. New England will clinch the division with a win on Sunday or a Miami loss this week. The Pats can clinch a first-round bye with a win and losses by Cincinnati and Indianapolis.

The total for the game opened at 44.5 points which is well below the 47.5 points per game the two offenses combine to average. Defensively, the teams allow a combined 42 points per game. History says the under is the best bet. The total has gone under in seven of Baltimore’s last nine home games and six of New England’s last nine road games.

Flacco has proven to be very durable throughout his six-year career, never missing a game. The Delaware University product has been struggling at times this year, throwing 18 touchdowns against 17 interceptions. He is trying to lead his Ravens back into the playoffs, which he can do with two wins over the final two weeks.

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