Patriots Clinch AFC East

A day after becoming the first AFC team to clinch a playoff spot by beating the Houston Texans 27-6 last night, the New England Patriots have officially clinched the AFC East division.Oddly enough, the team New England can thank for the early Christmas present is the New York Giants, after they defeated the Miami Dolphins 31-24 on Monday Night Football.

Of course, New England would have most likely won the division as early as next weekend on their own, but now they've got it sewn up with three weeks remaining in the season.

The Patriots still have two divisional games left on the schedule however, as they head to New York to play the Jets in Week 16 and then end their season against the Dolphins in Miami in Week 17.

The division title is New England's seventh straight and the team's thirteenth since 2001. That, ladies and gentlemen, is domination.