Patriots vs. Colts: Score and Twitter Reaction from 'Sunday Night Football'

Sunday Night Football was supposed to be about Tom Brady vs. Andrew Luck, a certain Hall of Famer vs. one of the league's brightest young stars.

Well, someone forgot to tell Jonas Gray.

The New England Patriots rookie running back bulldozed his way to 199 yards and four touchdowns, leading Bill Belichick's squad to a dominant 42-20 win over the Indianapolis Colts.

The performance put Gray, who began the game with only 131 career rushing yards, into the Patriots record books all by himself:

Belichick and defensive tackle Vince Wilfork understandably had nothing but praise for the 24-year-old, who was promoted from the practice squad just a month ago. Fox Sports Live and Peter Schrager of FoxSports.com captured their post-game words on the powerful running back:

"

"He's a smart, hardworking kid. Good power. Runs hard." -Bill Belichick on Jonas Gray #NEvsIND pic.twitter.com/4A4Gqf4P0m

— FOX Sports Live (@FOXSportsLive) November 17, 2014"

Luck threw for 303 yards and two touchdowns, but the Colts defense—outside of a pair of takeaways—had no answer for the Patriots. That continued a concerning recent trend for Indy, as Sports Illustrated's Chris Burke pointed out:

This one figured to be about the passing game, as Brady entered the contest on a sweltering pace. He had tossed 20 touchdowns and just one interception in his last five games.

However, it took a mere two quarters for him to double the latter number.

Under immediate pressure on a pair of play-action plays, he twice forced off-balance throws that were easily picked off. Sports Illustrated's Greg A. Bedard criticized Brady for the second unnecessary throw, which came late in the second quarter in his own territory:

Fortunately for the Pats, it didn't matter with the way their running game was clicking. Running powerfully through some big holes, Gray racked up 100 yards and two scores by halftime to carry the Pats to a 14-10 lead.

WEEI.com's Mike Petraglia praised the rookie's violent, downhill running style:

Belichick and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels had no intention of changing up the game plan. On New England's first two drives after leaving the locker room, 10 of the first 18 plays were runs to Gray, who continued to carve out huge chunks of yardage.

By the third quarter, he surpassed even his best game from college, as USA Today's Paul Myerberg noted:

Gray's third touchdown run late in the third quarter made it 28-13, but the Colts didn't go away. Luck orchestrated a 13-play, 80-yard touchdown drive, culminating in a one-yard toss to offensive tackle Anthony Castonzo. That made it a one-score game, 28-20, with 13 minutes and 32 seconds remaining.

The big man proceeded to give the world an early Christmas present with his touchdown celebration:

Once again, though, New England responded in methodical fashion. Brady—who looked much sharper in the second half—and Gray combined to march right back down the field, and the rookie ultimately punched the ball in a fourth time.

That created one of the more unbelievable stats of the week, courtesy of Pro Football Focus' Mike Clay:

A Pats win, of course, wouldn't be complete without a memorable moment from Rob Gronkowski, and he provided just that midway through the fourth quarter. The big tight end caught a short pass from Brady and proceeded to stiff-arm two defenders to the ground before rumbling into the end zone for a 26-yard score.

Yahoo Sports' Pat Forde probably simplified it best with one word: unfair:

Fortunately for Indianapolis, which is now just one game ahead of the Houston Texans in the AFC South, its schedule isn't very daunting with home games against the Jacksonville Jaguars and Washington Redskins on the horizon.

The Pats, meanwhile, will put their balanced offense to the test against the Detroit Lions next week before a trip to Lambeau Field against an equally red-hot Green Bay Packers squad.

It's a difficult stretch, but the Patriots proved Sunday they are still finding new ways to roll through the NFL at a breakneck pace.