The Albany Gazette - Patriots on brink of playoffs after Giants rout

Patriots quarterback Draye Maye threw two touchdowns and finished with 282 passing yards from 24 completions as New England improved to a league-best 11-2 at the top of the AFC East.

The Patriots' 10th straight victory provided further evidence of the six-time Super Bowl champions' renaissance under new coach Mike Vrabel, a veteran of the trophy-laden Tom Brady-Bill Belichick era.

The win leaves the Patriots within touching distance of returning to the postseason after missing out on the playoffs over the past three seasons.

The Patriots' remarkable success this season also comes after back-to-back 4-13 campaigns in 2023 and 2024.

"We've been trying to give these fans something to cheer for and that's what we've done," Maye said.

"Ten in a row and we've still got some work left to do.

"We've got great coaches, we believe in this team a lot. I think we can do some things down the road, but we're taking it one week at a time and looking forward to a bye week," Maye added.

New England's latest win was all but sealed with a dominant first-quarter performance which saw Vrabel's side motor into a 17-0 lead thanks to a 94-yard punt return touchdown from Marcus Jones followed by a Kayshon Boutte touchdown from Maye's three-yard pass.

The Patriots were all but out of sight by half-time, with New York's hopes of a fightback after Darius Slayton's touchdown slammed shut as New England rattled off 13 unanswered points.

Maye found Kyle Williams for a 33-yard touchdown completion and Andy Borregales slotted two field goals to put New England 30-7 up at the break.

New York grabbed a late consolation touchdown from Devin Singletary in the fourth quarter, before Borregales' fourth field goal completed the Patriots' scoring.

(D.Sanchez--TAG)