Coming off their win over the Chargers, the Broncos traveled to Foxborough, Massachusetts to face the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. The Patriots got on the scoreboard first, with a 49-yard field goal by placekicker Stephen Gostkowski. The Broncos grabbed the lead later in the first quarter, with running back Ronnie Hillman rushing for a 1-yard touchdown. However, the Patriots then reeled off 24 unanswered points. First came a 29-yard field goal by Gostkowski early in the second quarter. Then, on the second play of the Broncos' next possession, Patriots' defensive end Rob Ninkovich intercepted Broncos' quarterback Peyton Manning, and the Patriots capitalized five plays later, with a 5-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Tom Brady to wide receiver Julian Edelman. This was followed by Edelman returning a punt 84 yards for a touchdown and a 5-yard touchdown pass from Brady to running back Shane Vereen just before halftime. On the Patriots' first possession of the second half, Brady was intercepted by Broncos' cornerback Bradley Roby, and six plays later, Manning connected on an 18-yard touchdown pass to tight end Julius Thomas to narrow the gap to 27-14. However, the Patriots added to their lead, with a 45-yard field goal by Gostkowski, followed by a 10-yard touchdown pass from Brady to wide receiver Brandon LaFell. The latter score came after a Manning pass intended for wide receiver Wes Welker bounced off Welker and was intercepted by cornerback Brandon Browner. The Broncos attempted a rally, with Manning connecting on a 15-yard touchdown pass to Hillman. However, the Patriots put the game out of reach early in the fourth quarter, with a 1-yard touchdown pass from Brady to tight end Rob Gronkowski. The Broncos' offense drove deep into Patriots' territory on two of their next three possessions, but turned the football over on downs each time. Tom Brady improved his head-to-head record against Peyton Manning to 11-5.. How many touchdowns did the Patriots score in the second quarter?