Denver defense in gear

FOXBOROUGH -- Yes, it was Jake Plummer's passing for 256 yards, Tatum Bell's crunching runs for 123 yards on 27 carries, and many more sparkling features from the Denver Broncos' offense that stalled the Patriots in their 17-7 loss at Gillette Stadium last night.

But even more, the Denver defense shut down the New England offense for the first three periods by stopping the running game that had led the Patriots to their opening two wins of the season.

The Patriots' scoring drive in the fourth quarter, built on a no-huddle, shotgun offense, hampered the Broncos' ability to stunt on the line as they had through most of the game. But in the first three periods, neither the power running of Corey Dillon nor the breakaway speed of Laurence Maroney was effective against the quickness and mobility of Denver's defensive line.

By the end of the third quarter, the Patriots had just 45 rushing yards on 20 carries, and Dillon, who did not play in the second half because of an arm injury, was held to 16 yards (five attempts).

Maroney had 18 yards on 12 carries for the game, though he ended up with 61 receiving yards on five catches.

``I was extremely happy that our guys were able to step up and stop their running game," said Denver coach Mike Shanahan. ``They have so many weapons over there that being able to contain them was a real key to our game."

One of the most crushing plays Denver pulled off came at 3:37 of the second quarter when Stephen Gostkowski's attempted field goal was blocked. That play not only denied New England its first score, but set up a six-play Denver scoring drive, making the Domonique Foxworth block the start of a 10-point swing.

The Patriots' lone score was the first touchdown Denver has given up this season, and to Denver cornerback Champ Bailey, the first was tough.

``We played well on defense," said Bailey. ``We have all year so far. It's hard to play well on the road, especially against a team like this. Those guys can do a lot of things well, so it feels good to make some big plays against them.

``I hated [giving up that first score], but they're going to make some plays over there. They have a lot of good players."

Denver's defensive front was able to slip several blocks on the line and get to the running backs. Perhaps Denver's most important statistic was holding the Patriots to a third-down conversion rate of just 4 for 16, or 25 percent.

The Broncos, on the other hand, converted 44 percent of their third-down attempts.

The Patriots' net rushing total was a lowly 50 yards on 21 carries for an average of 2.4 yards, well below the team's 4.1 average entering last night's game.

``The first two games, we knew they got over 100 yards rushing and they could pound the ball," said linebacker D.J. Williams. ``But we knew if we played our brand of football, it would be tough on them."

Linebacker Ian Gold said the defense started at the line of scrimmage. ``Right up front on the defensive line," he said. ``They had the heart to hang in there, and make it all possible. Without those guys up front, we wouldn't be able to fly around out there like we did."

Stopping quarterback Tom Brady (31 for 55 for 320 yards and 1 TD) for most of the game, said Gold, ``was just a matter of the execution we bring onto the field."

Shanahan said that as the game progressed, he altered his defensive schemes to counter some of the adjustments the Patriots made. Without talking specifics, the coach said, ``We saw them making some changes and we made our changes. It's a little bit like a chess game out there. I'm just glad we were able to play our best game to date.

``You have to really step up to beat a team like this and I think we did that tonight."