It's not often you'll hear the Patriots say they are satisfied with a win.
New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) makes a call against the Denver Broncos during an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 18, 2011, in Denver.You won't often hear any variation of the word "satisfaction" coming out of the New England Patriots' locker room.
Gain 622 yards against the Miami Dolphins? "We could be better." Beat the Kansas City Chiefs by 31? "We didn't finish strong enough."
But after Sunday's 41-23 win over the Broncos in Denver, the Patriots finally have a performance they can be pleased with.
"It was a very satisfying day," quarterback Tom Brady told WEEI during an interview Monday. "You play a team that's won six straight and you go on the road in a very important game –basically for the course of the season, to really clinch a title, regardless of what the Jets would have done yesterday. So, there was a lot at stake and we knew going into the week and we prepared hard."
New England improved to 11-3 with the victory and will have the inside track to the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs if the Pittsburgh Steelers (10-3) lose Monday night against the San Francisco 49ers.
So, they should feel good about what they accomplished. In their season-long quest for a complete 60-minute effort, they finally found one Sunday.
The game started brutally and appeared lost as Denver gashed the New England defense for 167 rushing yards in the first quarter, but the Pats displayed a great deal of mental toughness and quickly rebounded.
Safeties coach and defensive play-caller Matt Patricia scrapped his initial game plan and the team's 4-3 alignment, switched to some more closely resembling a 3-4, and held the Broncos to 68 rushing yards the rest of the game.
That shift changed the complexion of the game.
"We were in a little more odd spacing to try to keep the leverage on the formation," coach Bill Belichick said after the game. "They gave us a lot of shifting early in the game, a lot of shifting and motion, so we were able to settle down for a combination of reasons. One of them was just to balance out the defense and help us a little bit."
And the offense did its part by keeping its foot on the base throughout the contest, something that has been an issue in recent weeks.
The Patriots scored on five of its first six drives, and quickly struck back in the fourth quarter with a touchdown after Denver quarterback Tim Tebow, known for his late-game miracles, marched down the field and attempted to claw his way back in the game with a touchdown that made it 34-23.
"To come out of it with a victory," Brady said, "I think everybody in the locker room was really pleased."
With their next two games against Miami (5-9) and Buffalo (5-9), there are few obstacles that should prevent the Pats from making a run at home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, so those feelings of satisfaction shouldn't soon evaporate.
But with defensive end Andre Carter, who leads the team with 10 sacks, likely headed to the operating table for season-ending quad surgery, nothing is guaranteed beyond that.
That's a problem for later in the week, though. For now, at least, the Patriots remain satisfied.