Colts vs. Patriots: What We Learned in New England's 31-24 Win

The score wasn't exactly what Las Vegas had in mind, but the New England Patriots have faded down the stretch plenty of times this season, and gave up 21 fourth-quarter points to the inept Indianapolis Colts' offense on their way to a seven-point win.

Of course, the score was nothing indicative of how the game went, and though there were problems defensively in the fourth quarter that should be addressed, the Patriots were able to hang on for what really mattered—the win.

Erik Frenz is the co-host of the PatsPropaganda and Frenz podcast. Follow Erik on Twitter.

Patriots Still Starting Cold

It didn't look good from the very beginning for the Colts, as they shot themselves in the foot with a holding penalty and ultimately went three-and-out on their opening drive. They were able to stop a marching Patriots offense, though, and held them to a field goal.

After that, it looked a little scary. Dan Orlovsky was 7-for-8 on the ensuing drive, a 19-play, 68-yard, 10:19 drive that resulted in a field goal when the Colts got called for a false start on 3rd-and-goal from the one. The Patriots went on to score 28 unanswered points before finally giving up a touchdown in the fourth quarter. 

And that, my friends, is how a team gets to 0-12.

Rob Gronkowski Is a Monster

I say this every week, but he proves me right every week. 

And this week, he scored three touchdowns. One was a lateral that was re-scored as a rushing touchdown, and thus Gronkowski still has not yet broken the record for receiving touchdowns by a tight end in a single season. He has, however, tied the mark with Antonio Gates and Vernon Davis, who both have 13.

Gronkowski has proven uncoverable this season, specifically in the red zone. Indianapolis simply decided not to cover him on the receiving touchdown, and barely put a finger on him when he ran a lateral in for a score.

Further food for the "monster" talk: On his second touchdown, Gronkowski spiked the ball from five yards inside the end zone, and it traveled to the 26-yard line for a net of 31 yards, according to NESN's Jeff Howe via Twitter.

The Running Game Belongs on the Side of a Milk Carton

Okay, when the offense is putting up 30-plus points a game, talking about New England's lack of a running game may be nitpicking.

Still, the Patriots would be best to find that ground game before the playoffs if they want to make a stretch run.

They averaged just 3.43 yards per carry, which is particularly low considering Indianapolis' 31st-ranked rush defense gives up 4.2 yards per carry.

With Brady throwing for almost 300 yards and multiple touchdowns every week, it hasn't mattered. Still, it couldn't hurt to find that running game to take some of the pressure off of Brady, which has especially been a problem for the team in January.

Jerod Mayo Has Big-Play Ability

Jerod Mayo has caught a lot of flack for a lack of big plays. He answered the bell on Sunday, albeit an interception off a Dan Orlovsky pass. That was his first career interception.

He was also in the backfield for a huge hit on Orlovsky in the fourth quarter, which forced an errant pass.

It will take a little more than that to convince some of his critics that he's a "playmaker", but Mayo's interception was a step in the right direction.

The Patriots Still Can't Cover 20-Point Spreads

As pointed out by Kerry Byrne of Cold Hard Football Facts, the New England Patriots have had five spreads of more than 20 points in the past five seasons, with four of them coming in 2007.

All five times, the Patriots have failed to cover.

It looked as though they might cover early in the fourth quarter, as the Patriots held a 28-point lead, but three touchdowns down the stretch put a damper on New England's hopes of ending that streak.

The performance of the defense down the stretch is exactly what has come to define the Patriots over the past few seasons, and today's fourth quarter typified that. In the end, a failed onside kick was enough to put an end on the game.