The New England Patriots overcame a strong first half effort from the Cincinnati Bengals to score an important 35-17 win in Tom Brady’s return to Gillette Stadium.

It certainly wasn’t a pretty afternoon for the Patriots. As is the hallmark of Bill Belichick coached teams, however, New England made key adjustments at halftime and asserted itself in the second half, taking advantage of costly miscues by the Bengals to move to 5-1 on the year.

It was an important win for Tom Brady and company, who travel to Pittsburgh next Sunday to take on a Steelers team that will be out for blood after an embarrassing Week 6 road defeat at the hands of the Miami Dolphins.

The Patriots now find themselves firmly ahead in the race for a first-round playoff bye, and potentially home field advantage throughout the playoffs. Upcoming road games against Pittsburgh and Buffalo, however, will continue to test a team that, thus far, has shown that it responds well in the face of adversity.

Here’s a quick breakdown of what went right, what went wrong, and what went off the rails in Sunday’s win.