text: On the opening drive of the second half, an 85-yard Patriots drive ended in another Brady touchdown run, this one from 2 yards out. The Redskins committed their fourth turnover of the game on their next possession, as Vrabel strip-sacked Campbell for the third time in the game; this time Colvin recovered the fumble and returned it 11 yards for a touchdown to increase the Patriots’ lead to 38–0. The Redskins managed to reach the Patriots’ 13-yard line on their next drive, but on fourth down, the Redskins could not convert and turned the ball over again. The Patriots began their next drive where they left off, going 88 yards on a 14-play drive that spanned into the fourth quarter. It was finished on a 2-yard touchdown reception by Welker that grew the Patriots lead to 45–0. Following a Redskins punt, on the Patriots’ next series, Cassel replaced Brady. A 21-yard pass from Cassel to Gaffney gave the Patriots their 33rd first down of the game, a new single-game franchise record. Two plays later, Cassel ran it in for a touchdown from 15 yards out, and the first rushing touchdown of his career, increasing the Patriots’ lead to 52–0; the touchdown was the longest rushing touchdown by a Patriots quarterback in more than 20 years. The Redskins then drove 63 yards and scored their only points of the game on a 15-yard Chris Cooley touchdown reception. Third-string quarterback Matt Gutierrez replaced Cassel on the next possession, a three-and-out. The Redskins then punted back to the Patriots to end the game. The Patriots’ 52–7 win gave them an 8–0 record heading into a Week 9 matchup against the 7–0 Colts.  It also made Brady only the second quarterback to defeat the other 31 teams at least once; the Colts’ Peyton Manning was the first to accomplish the feat, having done so earlier that day.
  Week 9: at Indianapolis Colts