(Reuters) - Tom Brady and the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots snapped the Kansas City Chiefs' 11-game winning streak with a 27-20 victory on Saturday to reach the AFC championship for a fifth consecutive season.
The Patriots, who had a first-round bye, looked to be back at full strength and nothing like the team that lost four of six games heading into the playoffs as they pulled ahead early and never looked back.
Brady tossed two touchdowns and rushed for another, Rob Gronkowski caught a pair of TDs to erase any injury concerns and receiver Julian Edelman ended a two-month absence from a broken foot to put New England at full strength.