Considering Tebow was able to have success throwing the ball on one of the league’s premier defenses a week ago, going up against a New England unit that’s been glaringly submissive all throughout this season should be no sweat, right? Don’t count on it. The well-coached Patriots will learn from the Steelers’ mistakes and aren’t about to let Thomas have one-on-one matchups the talented young receiver can exploit, and the big plays that fueled Denver’s first-round upset won’t be nearly as prevalent even though New England will give up its share of yards. Stopping the opposition may be the Broncos’ greatest concern this weekend, however, as there’s little question that the Patriots have the more efficient and experienced of these two offenses. As the team that’s also less likely to make the big mistake, New England seems to stand a pretty good chance of erasing its recent run of playoff misfortune.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Patriots 37, Broncos 24
Current Odds: Denver +13.5

Denver: 8-8 SU, 7-8-1 ATS
New England: 13-3 SU, 9-6-1 ATS

Denver most recently:
When playing in January are 3-7
When playing on turf are 4-6
After outgaining opponent are 4-6
When playing outside the division are 5-5

New England most recently:
When playing in January are 6-4
When playing on turf are 8-2
After outgaining opponent are 8-2
When playing outside the division are 8-2

A few trends to consider:
Denver is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games on the road
Denver is 17-5 SU in its last 22 games when playing New England
Denver is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games when playing on the road against New England
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Denver’s last 7 games when playing on the road against New England
New England is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of New England’s last 5 games
New England is 15-2 SU in its last 17 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 11 of New England’s last 14 games at home

Some content comes from both Sports Network and Chalk