Patriots Are Playing Like Champions

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — The gray division championship T-shirt hung in the locker behind Tedy Bruschi. The New England Patriot linebacker preferred to look ahead.

“I just don’t want one T-shirt,” he said. “I want two more.”

Getting conference and Super Bowl championship shirts seems possible after New England dominated one of its toughest opponents of the season, beating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 28-0, Saturday.

Tom Brady threw three touchdown passes in his 85th consecutive start despite being listed as questionable with a left shin injury. The defense sacked Chris Simms seven times and held its third straight opponent under 200 yards.

And the Patriots (9-5) clinched the AFC East title for the fourth time in five seasons.

“It’s huge for us. We haven’t really played a good game against a good opponent with a good record,” tight end Christian Fauria said. “We needed to keep winning and trying to get better in December.”

After Dec. 1, the Patriots are 3-0 this season and 18-3 in the regular season since 2001. But in their previous three wins this year, they beat the lowly New Orleans Saints, New York Jets and Buffalo Bills. Their other two wins this season against above-.500 teams came on last-minute field goals.

The two-time defending Super Bowl champions don’t have to worry about their division in the remaining regular-season games against the Jets and Miami.

“Until someone beats them in the playoffs, they’re the best team in the NFL,” Simms said.

New England got its first shutout in 36 games, and won for the fifth time in six games after going 4-4 in an injury-plagued first half of the season.

They scored on the game’s opening possession when Brady threw a one-yard pass to tackle Tom Ashworth, the first career reception for the five-year veteran who was eligible on the play.

Corey Dillon made it 28-0 early in the fourth quarter on a two-yard pass from Brady as Tampa Bay, which had allowed the third fewest points in the NFL, gave up its second most of the season.

The Patriots’ defensive front seven is healthy and playing aggressively, a bad combination for Simms, who had been sacked 19 times and thrown 212 passes going into the game. He was 21 for 34 for 155 yards Saturday.

The Patriots shut down an outstanding runner for the third straight week. Tampa Bay’s Carnell “Cadillac” Williams gained 23 yards in 14 carries. Williams entered the game with 924 yards rushing.

Brady set a career-high with 3,888 yards this season after completing 20 of 31 passes for 258 yards.