Broncos End Remarkable Streak; Patriots Home Underdog for 1st Time Since 2005

The New England Patriots are underdogs at home next Sunday, which is peculiar considering they are 7-2 and perfect at Gillette Stadium this year. Well, it is even more astounding when you consider this is the first time they will be underdogs at home since 2005. 

That tantalizing tidbit was tweeted out by ESPN betting analyst RJ Bell: 

Anyone who has heard Bell on the radio, delving into the betting particulars with the likes of Colin Cowherd, knows that he is full of wonderful stats and intriguing angles. 

Well, the sports betting expert delivered a wealth of tweets in regards to the Patriots fall from their comforting home-favorite streak: 

Being a Rams fan, this one is particularly harsh, although completely expected: 

And here it is in graph form for all of you who enjoy pretty colors: 

And really, this is a testament to how well things are going for the Denver Broncos at the moment. They are the odds-on favorites to take the Super Bowl with the Patriots not far behind: 

Now, of course, it should be noted these are early numbers for what should be a magnificent matchup next Sunday between the Broncos and Patriots from Foxboro. 

First, the Patriots will take on the 6-3 Carolina Panthers on Monday night—no easy task. We assume the night's clash will move the line, perhaps in favor of New England. 

As for the Broncos, they solidified their claim as one of the league's best teams amid a season filled with parity. Peyton Manning and the rest of the Denver squad welcomed the previously spotless Chiefs and handed them their first loss of the season, 27-17. 

One last thing to note: The Patriots aren't all that impressed with terms like favorites and underdogs. Pro Football Talk's Mike Wilkening recently thumbed through Marc Lawrence’s 2013 Stat and Log Book and revealed an interesting fact: The Patriots are successful underdogs. 

Wilkening found that, prior to Monday's game against Carolina, the Patriots have been underdogs five times since 2010, and have won four of them outright and beat the spread in all of them.

If you want to take anything away from all of this, it's that the Patriots have been a pretty darn good team for a long time, but you already knew that.