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FOXBORO, Mass. — New England Patriots quarterbacks have attempted 216 passes this season. Opposing defenders have caught exactly zero of them.
Through seven games, the Patriots are the only team in the NFL that has yet to throw an interception. The Minnesota Vikings fell from that list Sunday when Sam Bradford was picked off once in a loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
How impressive of a stat is that? Well, according to Elias Sports Bureau, New England is only the third team in modern NFL history to begin a season with seven interception-free games, joining the 1960 Cleveland Browns and 2008 Washington Redskins. (The Redskins’ streak ended in Week 9, while the Browns made it to Week 11.)
Oh, and Tom Brady was only on the field for three of those games. Backups Jimmy Garoppolo and Jacoby Brissett combined to throw 115 passes without a pick during Brady’s four-game Deflategate suspension.
So, yeah, it’s impressive.
Some additional Monday notes:
— Speaking of Brady, the Patriots quarterback leads the league in completion percentage, quarterback rating and yards per attempt this season and ranks third in yards per game.
He also ranks 14th in passing touchdowns with eight despite having watched more than half of New England’s first seven games from his couch.
— The Pittsburgh Steelers didn’t sound to pleased about the way they defended LeGarrette Blount on Sunday.
Blount, a former Steeler, rushed for a career-high 127 yards and two touchdowns in the Patriots’ 27-16 win.
— One of the primary Patriots storylines this week involves kicker Stephen Gostkowski, who’s now missed five kicks (three field goals, two extra points) in seven games this season.
“We’ve just got to be as positive as we can be with Stephen,” special teams captain Matthew Slater said Monday. “You don’t want to say too much, but you also want to let him know that we continue to have faith in him, continue to believe in his ability to perform and that we wouldn’t trade him to anyone.
“So I’m just going to be as positive with Steve as possible and try to be as normal as possible. I think when you start trying to act too differently and say things differently, it just makes it even a little bit stranger. We’re going to be positive with him and prepare for Buffalo.”
— In Buffalo, the Patriots on Sunday will face a Bills team that handed them their only loss of the season back in Week 4.
Like the Steelers, the Bills are known for having one of the NFL’s rowdier stadium atmospheres.
“With Buffalo, they are a confident team,” Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman said Monday on WEEI’s “Ordway, Merloni & Fauria.” “They are going to be in there and treat this game (importantly). Any time you go to Buffalo, it’s always a very tough environment. Bills Mafia is going crazy. There’s beers being thrown. There’s freaking everything going on over there. It’s going to be a tough environment.”
The Patriots haven’t lost in Orchard Park since 2011, but the Bills gave them a game there last season, scoring 19 points in the fourth quarter before falling 40-32.
Thumbnail photo via Jason Bridge/USA TODAY Sports Images