Passage: The Patriots' home opener was a rematch from the 2006 divisional playoffs, against the Chargers on Sunday Night Football. For the second consecutive week, the game began with a touchdown on the Patriots' first series: this time, Brady hit Watson for a 7-yard touchdown pass to give the Patriots a 7-0 lead. On the first play of the ensuing Chargers possession, their first, linebacker Rosevelt Colvin intercepted a Philip Rivers pass, but it did not translate into points for the Patriots as Gostkowski then missed a 41-yard field goal attempt on the Patriots' resulting series. After a Chargers three-and-out, the Patriots capped off a 10-play, 75-yard drive with a 23-yard Moss touchdown reception, putting the Patriots ahead 14-0. Colvin then added a sack and forced fumble to his game statistics, as he strip-sacked Rivers after the Chargers reached the Patriots' 34-yard line and defensive lineman Vince Wilfork recovered the fumble for the Patriots' second forced turnover of the game. On the Patriots' next drive, which spanned into the second quarter, Brady was strip-sacked by linebacker Shawne Merriman at the Chargers' 29-yard line, but Brady recovered his own fumble to retain possession for the Patriots. Six plays later, a 24-yard Gostkowski field goal extended the Patriots' lead to 17-0. After a Chargers three-and-out, the Patriots were pushed back to their 10-yard line after another Merriman sack of Brady. The Patriots would punt back to the Chargers, but on a 3rd-and-1 from the Patriots' 37-yard line, Rivers was intercepted by linebacker Adalius Thomas, who returned it 65&#160;yards for a touchdown, giving the Patriots a 24-0 lead. The Chargers were unable to get past midfield on their next drive and punted, giving the Patriots the ball at their own 20-yard line with just under three minutes to play in the first half. A 25-yard defensive pass interference penalty on Chargers safety Marlon McCree would help the Patriots reach the Chargers' 26-yard line, but Brady was intercepted by safety Clinton Hart at the Chargers' 10-yard line. The Chargers then ran one play to end the half. Receiving the kickoff to begin the second half, the Chargers embarked on a 16-play, 72-yard drive, reaching Patriots territory on a 22-yard third down reception by tight end Antonio Gates. Ten plays later, fullback Lorenzo Neal caught a 1-yard touchdown pass from Rivers to put the Chargers on the scoreboard at 24-7. The Patriots responded by going 75&#160;yards on seven plays, taking a 31-7 lead on a 24-yard Moss touchdown reception, his second of the night. Three plays later, Rivers was intercepted by Patriots safety James Sanders at the Patriots' 38-yard line, but the play was nullified by a 37-yard defensive pass interference penalty on Hobbs. Rivers completions of 19&#160;yards to wide receiver Malcom Floyd and 12&#160;yards to running back Michael Turner helped put the Chargers in the Patriots' red zone, where Rivers completed a 12-yard touchdown pass to Gates on the second play of the fourth quarter to cut the Patriots' lead to 31-14.. On the ensuing kickoff, Chargers wide receiver Kassim Osgood forced a fumble of Hobbs after a 31-yard return that was recovered by Chargers cornerback Quentin Jammer at the Patriots' 31-yard line. However, Rivers was sacked twice for losses of 10&#160;yards each on the next two plays, the second of which was a strip-sack by Colvin that was recovered by offensive lineman Kris Dielman; the Chargers punted on 4th-and-30. Starting from their own 9-yard line with more than 13&#160;minutes remaining in the game, the Patriots did not surrender the ball back to the Chargers until there was less than four minutes left in the fourth quarter. This 15-play, 91-yard drive culminated in a 3-yard touchdown run by running back Sammy Morris, extending the Patriots' lead to 38-14. The Chargers could not convert a first down on their next possession, giving the ball back to the Patriots to end the game as they improved to 2-0.
Output: How many touchdowns did the Patriots score in the first half?