Once again, in less than a year's time, the New England Patriots lose in a game against the Denver Broncos they should have won. A game that was on home turf, a game where the stars and fans were aligned in their favor.

Yet, the Patriots, once again, give the game away, despite a great effort on part of the defense in keeping the game close for four quarters.

However, the story doesn't end there, as the officiating played another crucial role in this loss, especially in the third quarter where, I'm sure, fans in Denver had to be scratching their heads.

So, let's not waste any time and get into this subject of QB Tom Brady being depressed about not having WR Deion Branch to throw to anymore...

"Hey Tom... It's time to quit Deion and move on... This is the NFL, you need to suck it up, and complete passes."

On Sunday night, Brady threw 31 of 55 for 320 yards with no interceptions, which to most sounds impressive, but I was there with the masses and Tom Brady was "shook."

But let's not put the blame all on Tom either. This team took a gamble on a greedy wideout, who IMO, was hoping the play of WR Chad Jackson during preseason would put pressure on Branch to shut up and play. However, Jackson simmered on the injury report week after week helping Branch push his issue to a head.

Now that Chad is here, it seems he may be this generation's Terry Glenn. He may just be the next candidate for my "suck it up rant." Jackson showed promise for this team against the Jets, and this week he showed nothing as a matter of fact he wasn't even active.

And what is going on with TE Benjamin Watson (5 for 54)? Week 1 and last weekend he dropped key passes that would have been a sure six points, but for some reason he has a case of the dropsies when he's wide open. He can make all the acrobatic, tight coverage receptions he wants, but when you start dropping open field passes with no coverage your stock tends to drop.

Which is something Brady doesn't need when he's has to count on Troy Brown (4 for 41) to be his number one receiver.

And please hold the applause for WR Doug Gabriel (6 for 65) who seemed to be a savior for a receiving corps. By the time he made an impact the Broncos were well ahead, and very much in control of the game, with a secondary that was playing off the receiver to let the clock tick away knowing the Pats needed two possessions to win the game.

Which now brings me to the running game… A game that had been a monster the last two weeks came to an end when RB Corey Dillon (5 for 16) left the game with an arm injury, forcing Laurence Maroney (12 for 18) to take the bulk of the carries looking like a rookie because at times he seemed hesitant to hit the holes. I must give him credit whereas he was more of a threat when receiving (5 for 61).

The defense played a tough game, and you have to expect the fact that they can't always make plays on days when the offense isn't putting the ball in the end zone. However, you can't let the defense entirely off the hook. This Pats defense can lay teams out, but they have some flaws, and that is giving up the big plays on third down week after week, not forcing as many turnovers (despite Saturday's refs), and not pressuring the QB again. I don't think Jake Plummer's back saw the grass once.

As for the weak link in this chain... Special teams! Two weeks in a row, the special teams allowed their opposition to block a crucial FG attempts. This is something that needs to be addressed.

Now it's time for me to move on to the refs for this game...

Is it me or is there some hatred against the Patriots by the referee association? How do the Broncos get the breaks when they are almost 3,000 miles away from home?

Despite the poor offense, the third quarter of Sunday nights game had the feel of "us against the world" when the referees seemed to single-handedly change the momentum of the game.

The Pats had all out pressure on RB Tatum Bell on a first and ten on the Broncos three yard line late in the game, when Bell, in trying to avoid the surging D, clearly stepped back into his own end zone when he was tackled for, what should have been, a safety. But, it was ruled forward progress that was capped off with a generous spot for a one-yard gain.

Then there was the Denver play that was ruled an incomplete pass when the player clearly turned and made a football move before he was hit and fumbled the ball away into the Pats possession.

There were other, but the game is done, and you can't cry over spilt milk when someone left the container hanging off the rack to begin with.

Next week the Pats have the Bengals on tap, and this was a game that I predicted they would lose,. After their win over the Steelers, my thoughts have not changed, unless Tom Brady does some serious looking in the mirror.