Final, Patriots 33-8: And that will do it.
It was all Patriots in this one, as New England breezed past the Oakland Raiders en route to a blowout win at Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium.
Tom Brady completed 30 of 37 passes for 339 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions to lead the Patriots’ offense, and their defense held its opponent below 20 points for the sixth consecutive game.
The Patriots now return home to take on the Miami Dolphins next Sunday before embarking on a three-game road trip.
Fourth quarter, 2:34, 33-8: A nearly six-minute Raiders drive ends in a turnover on downs. Oakland has no timeouts remaining, and Brian Hoyer is coming in to close this one out for the Patriots.
Fourth quarter, 8:15, Patriots 33-8: The Patriots have scored on six consecutive drives, ending their most recent one with another Stephen Gostkowski field goal.
New England has punted just once today.
Fourth quarter, 11:43, Patriots 30-8: The Raiders finally are on the board.
After Oakland successfully challenged a 27-yard completion to Cordarrelle Patterson, Derek Carr found Amari Cooper for a 9-yard touchdown pass. Carr then hit Michael Crabtree in the back of the end zone of the ensuing two-point conversion to cut New England’s advantage to 22 points.
It was the first touchdown the Patriots had allowed in 70:23 of game time.
Third quarter, 2:03, Patriots 30-0: Stephen Gostkowski’s third field goal of the day — this one from 40 yards out — extended the Patriots’ lead.
Dion Lewis continues to run the ball well. He’s now up to 57 yards on nine carries.
The Mexico City altitude has claimed another Patriots player, as Danny Amendola now is questionable to return with dehydration.
Third quarter, 7:04, Patriots 27-0: The Patriots initially forced another Raiders punt, but after Kyle Van Noy was called for running into the kicker, Oakland opted to go for it on fourth-and-1.
That didn’t work out, either, as New England smothered Jazime Olawale behind the line of scrimmage, resulting in a turnover on downs.
Cornerback Stephon Gilmore left the game to receive treatment for dehydration, according to the Patriots. Johnson Bademosi, who played well while Gilmore was sidelined with a concussion, replaced him.
Right tackle LaAdrian Waddle is back in the game for the Patriots.
Third quarter, 7:04, Patriots 27-0: Runs of 11 and 10 yards by Dion Lewis and a 16-yard completion to Brandin Cooks brought the Patriots into (distant) field-goal position, and Stephen Gostkowski nailed one from 51 yards out to extend New England’s lead.
LaAdrian Waddle took a hit to the back of the knees on one passing play and was slow to get up, with Cameron Fleming finishing out the drive at right tackle.
Third quarter, 11:01, Patriots 24-0: Nothing doing for the Raiders on their first possession of the second half. The Patriots will take over on their own 20 following another Marquette King punt.
Third quarter, 14:06, Patriots 24-0: It took all of three plays for New England to add to its lead.
After completing a 5-yard pass to Dion Lewis and a 6-yarder to Danny Amendola, Brady uncorked a 64-yard bomb to Brandin Cooks, who breezed into the end zone after toasting Obi Melifonwu.
Cooks now is up to 133 receiving yards on five catches.
Halftime, Patriots 17-0: Stephen Gostkowski nailed a franchise-record 62-yard field goal through the thin Mexico City air as time expired in the first half.
The Patriots, who have dominated thus far, will receive the kickoff to open the second half.
Second quarter, 0:33, Patriots 14-0: The Raiders’ most promising drive of the afternoon ended in disappointment thanks to some tremendously poor ball security by Seth Roberts.
Roberts caught a pass inside the Patriots’ 10-yard line but failed to tuck the ball as he battled for extra yardage. Marquis Flowers punched out the exposed pigskin, and Patrick Chung pounced on it to give the Patriots possession.
One positive note for the Raiders: They were running the ball effectively earlier in the drive.
Second quarter, 5:23, Patriots 14-0: This is just too easy for Tom Brady.
More than halfway through the second quarter, Brady is 18 of 21 for 173 yards and two touchdowns, the second of which came on a dart to Danny Amendola on third-and-goal from the 5.
Brady opened the drive by connecting with Brandin Cooks on a 52-yard bomb.
The Raiders’ secondary has been no match for Brady and Co. thus far.
More good news for the Patriots: Safety Patrick Chung appears to be OK after being shaken up on the previous drive.
Second quarter, 8:55, Patriots 7-0: Derek Carr hit Jared Cook for 26 yards on the Raiders’ longest play of the day thus far, but Oakland again failed to put points on the board.
Patrick Chung, who was in coverage on Cook on the play, was slow to get up one play later and spent the rest of the drive on the bench. Losing him would cause significant issues for the Patriots, who are thin at safety behind Devin McCourty, Chung and Duron Harmon.
Second quarter, 13:35, Patriots 7-0: Tom Brady completed his first 12 passes before missing Brandin Cooks on a deep route on third-and-5, resulting in a Patriots punt.
The 12 straight completions to start a game set a new regular-season record for Brady, who has picked the Raiders apart with short-to-intermediate passes.
One thing to watch: Cameron Fleming replaced LaAdrian Waddle at right tackle during the drive and allowed a sack to Khalil Mack. It’s unclear whether Waddle’s break was injury-related or due to some sort of rotation.
First quarter, 1:47, Patriots 7-0: The Patriots now have more interceptions this quarter (one) than the Raiders do all season (zero).
Derek Carr tried to hit Johnny Holton with a pass deep down the left sideline, but the ball bounced off the back of Jonathan Jones and into the waiting arms of Duron Harmon, who hauled it in for the pick.
Trey Flowers also applied some nice pressure on Carr earlier in the drive.
First quarter, 4:09, Patriots 7-0: A fantastic first series for the Patriots resulted in the game’s first touchdown.
Tom Brady was a perfect 9-for-9 for 61 yards, including two third-down completions to Danny Amendola and a 15-yard touchdown pass to Dion Lewis.
Running back Rex Burkhead did cough the ball up during the drive, but Dwayne Allen pounced on it, and New England retained possession. Given how long Mike Gillislee was stapled to the bench after his fumble against the New York Jets, we might not see Burkhead back on the field for a while.
First quarter, 11:16, 0-0: The Raiders picked up one first down on the game’s opening drive, but a drop by Seth Roberts on third down forced them to send the punting unit out.
The Patriots will take over on their own 13 after a strong punt by Marquette King.
Stephon Gilmore has shadowed Michael Crabtree thus far, with Malcolm Butler matching up against Amari Cooper.
First quarter, 15:00, 0-0: The Patriots won the opening coin toss and chose to defer. It’ll be Raiders ball as we get things started in Mexico City.
3:45 p.m.: Based on reports out of Azteca Stadium, it appears Ted Karras will start at center today in place of the ill David Andrews.
There was some question of whether Karras or right guard Joe Thuney would fill Andrews’ spot. This will be Karras’ first career start at center.
3:07 p.m.: The Patriots’ defense again will be without defensive tackle Malcom Brown and cornerback Eric Rowe this afternoon.
Brown and Rowe both are inactive after being listed as questionable. Running back Mike Gillislee also will sit out as a healthy scratch for the second consecutive week.
Defensive end Cassius Marsh is active after missing last week’s game with a shoulder injury. He was listed as questionable, as were tight end Martellus Bennett and Danny Amendola, both of whom are active, as well.
With Marcus Cannon and David Andrews unavailable, rookie offensive lineman Cole Croston will be active today for the first time in his NFL career.
Oakland, meanwhile, will be without starting cornerback David Amerson and starting right tackle Marshall Newhouse, both of whom are inactive.
2:05 p.m.: Some scenes from in and around Azteca Stadium:
10:15 a.m. ET: Buenos días, fanáticos de los Patriotas.
In just a few hours, the New England Patriots and Oakland Raiders will square off at Azteca Stadium in Mexico City. It’s the Raiders’ second trip to the home of Mexican soccer in the last two years and the Patriots’ first since 1998, when they played the Dallas Cowboys in a preseason game.
New England is riding a five-game winning streak but is dealing with injuries at several positions, most notably along the offensive line. Center David Andrews (illness) and right tackle Marcus Cannon (ankle) both have been ruled out, meaning Ted Karras and LaAdrian Waddle will assume spots in the starting lineup.
Wide receivers Chris Hogan and Matthew Slater also will miss today’s game, and five other Patriots players are listed as questionable, including tight end Martellus Bennett and defensive tackle Malcom Brown. The final game-day rosters will be announced just before 3 p.m. ET.
Kickoff is set for 4:25 p.m. ET, but be sure to check back here throughout the day for all your pregame updates and analysis.
