FOXBORO, Mass. — Cyrus Jones and Matthew Slater should buy Chris Hogan a steak dinner this week.
Or two.
After special-teams blunders by Jones and Slater on Monday night helped turn a runaway Patriots win into a nailbiter, a 79-yard scoring strike from Tom Brady to Hogan helped put the Baltimore Ravens away for good in 30-23 New England victory at Gillette Stadium.
1 play. 79 yards. TOUCHDOWN! #BALvsNE https://t.co/swBZd4eXkq
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) December 13, 2016
The touchdown was the longest of Hogan’s career, and it put Brady over 400 passing yards for the ninth time in his 17-year NFL career. Just three quarterbacks in NFL history have recorded more 400-yard passing efforts than Brady.
The Patriots held the Ravens to a field goal on their next possession, with cornerback Malcolm Butler stopping Dennis Pitta just shy of the first-down marker on third-and-3. New England recovered the ensuing onside kick and was able to drain the final 121 seconds to secure their 11th victory of the season.
Thumbnail photo via Stew Milne/USA TODAY Sports Images