10 Things We Learned Last Night
NFL. Here, in no particular order, are 10 things we learned about the Patriots in last night’s 38-35 win over the Giants:
1. When it comes to talking about the greatest teams in NFL history, the 2007 Patriots must be a part of the discussion. When New England gathered for training camp in the final week of July, it was universally agreed that it had a chance to do something special. But maybe the only people who saw a possible 16-0 on the horizon were the folks who work at One Patriot Place. And even then, it was something of a longshot. “It’s something that a lot of us thought was untouchable,” linebacker Tedy Bruschi told reporters last night. Last night, they took the final step, coming back from their largest second-half deficit of the season to beat New York in the Meadowlands. Quarterback Tom Brady ended up 32-for-42 for 356 passing yards and two touchdowns on the way to the win, while wide receiver Wes Welker added 11 catches for a game-high 122 receiving yards. As a result, they’ve become the first team in NFL history to complete a perfect regular season with a 16-0 record, an astounding feat in the salary cap era. After last night’s game, Head Coach Bill Belichick acknowledged they had accomplished something special. “It’s really exciting to be a part of this football team,” Belichick said. “I’m happy. I’m happy. You work all year to win every game, and to be able to win them all, it’s great.”
2. After a season full of jaw-dropping performances, last night’s 65-yard touchdown pass from Tom Brady to Randy Moss in the fourth quarter might have been the play of the year. Settling on your favorite Randy Moss catch this year is like picking your favorite Beatles’ album. There was the 51-yard touchdown to help beat the Jets in the season-opener, and the 45-yard thunderbolt of a touchdown catch over Buffalo’s Jabari Greer at Gillette Stadium. There were the two jump balls that turned into touchdowns against the Dolphins, and the one-handed reception over the middle against the Colts. But last night was Sgt. Pepper’s. With roughly 11 minutes left in regulation and the Patriots down 28-23, Moss and Brady just missed on a pass deep down the right sideline, with No. 81 appearing to simply drop the ball. (Afterward, both said Brady underthrew it.) That set up a key 3rd and 10 situation. “I had to redeem myself,” Brady said afterward. On the next play, redemption was his. He fired a clean 65-yard strike to Moss down the same sideline. The receiver gathered it in in stride and raced past safety James Butler for the score that gave New England a lead it wouldn’t relinquish. The touchdown pass was the 50th of the season for Brady (breaking Peyton Manning’s record) and the 23rd TD reception of the season for Moss (breaking Jerry Rice’s record). Who gets the record-breaker? “I really don’t know what were gonna do with the ball,” said Moss, who jokingly suggested they cut it in half.
3. For the New England offensive line to hold the Giants’ defense to just one sack — without the starting right guard Stephen Neal and starting right tackle Nick Kaczur — was impressive. The Patriots were able to use Ryan O’Callaghan at right tackle and Russ Hochstein at right guard most of the night, and, under the circumstances, they did as well as they could be expected. They were supported by tight end Ben Watson, as well as some hard work by the running backs, who, when they weren’t occasionally lined up on the outside, did their share of work when it came to pass blocking and blitz pickup. Brady got hit hard on several occasions, but the Patriots were able to stay out of negative yardage in the passing game most of the night. More importantly, they were able to keep Brady healthy heading into the playoffs.
4. After struggling for much of the second half of the Miami game, the New England offense was a lot more efficient yesterday. In the second half of last week’s game against the Dolphins, the Patriots’ offense was of sync and sluggish, failing to score a single touchdown over the course of a half for the first time all season and punting four times in the final two quarters. The bottom line was they appeared to be a team that was trying to set records instead of trying to play within the context of their offensive game plan. Last night was a much different story, as they were able to finish off a majority of their drives with scores. (They punted just twice all night.) They didn’t always have the payoff they were looking for — three of the seven scoring drives ended with field goals — but the four touchdowns (two on the ground and two in the air) more than made up for things.
5. Kevin Faulk must get his due. The scrappy running back — who took only three fewer snaps last night than starter Laurence Maroney — provided some of the biggest offensive moments for the Patriots. He caught eight passes for 64 yards, with three catches ending up going for first downs. The veteran also did a good job helping in pass blocking against the New York defense, connecting for a handful of nice chip blocks to buy Brady more time. New England will still continue to rely on Maroney (46 rushing yards, two touchdowns but just 2.4 yards per rushing attempt) for the bulk of the carries in the postseason, but Faulk proved again last night why he’s an invaluable member of the offense.
6. New England’s red-zone defense still isn’t where they want it to be. The Giants were able to score touchdowns in all four of their trips inside the 20 last night against the Patriots, with all four scores coming on Eli Manning touchdown passes — two to lanky wide receiver Plaxico Buress and one each to tight end Kevin Boss and running back Brandon Jacobs. After holding the last three teams to a combined 0-for-9 on red-zone touchdowns chances, it was a bit of a step back for the New England defense.
7. With the exception of the kick return team, the special teams unit appears to be set heading into the postseason. There’s one really ugly blip on the scoresheet that reads “Domenik Hixon, 74 yd kick return,” but other than that, it was a very good night for the New England special teamers. Kicker Stephen Gostkowski booted a pair of 37-yarders and a 45-yarder, and cleanly connected on all three extra point opportunities, no easy feat in the swirling winds of the Meadowlands. Chris Hanson punted twice, averaging 40.5 a punt. In addition, the Patriots successful converted its first two-point conversion of the season on a Maroney plunge early in the fourth quarter. And, last but not least, there was Mike Vrabel’s cover on New York’s fourth-quarter onside kick, sealing the deal with just over a minute to go.
8. Ellis Hobbs can still surprise you. From the second play from scrimmage for the Giants — when Plaxico Burress beat him on a sweet 52-yard over the shoulder grab — to when the two engaged in a shoving match that left Hobbs on his backside, the 6-foot-5 Burress loomed over the 5-foot-9 Hobbs much of the evening. New York was clearly interested in trying to exploit the matchup, as the two were going head-to-head much of the night, and most of Burress’ 84 receiving yards came at Hobbs’ expense. But with roughly 10 minutes left in the game, Hobbs jumped on a Manning floater that was meant for Burress, gathering it in and tip-toeing along the sidelines to register the game’s first turnover — and his first interception of the year — to set up the game-winning touchdown. On the night, Hobbs tied for the team lead in tackles with six, and ended up with a pair of passes defensed, including one in the end zone for Burress.
9. If the Giants can play like that in the postseason, there’s no telling how far they’ll get. With nothing to lose, New York played what was likely their finest game of the season. The Giants could have served as a speed bump on New England’s run toward regular-season perfection. Instead, they almost derailed the Patriots. Defensive lineman Michael Strahan was a terror, making life almost impossible for the New England offensive line. Manning ended up going 22-for-32 with 251 yards and four interceptions. And Burress and Jacobs played very well against the New England defense. If they could have put together a more efficient fourth quarter, they could have gone down in history as the 1985 Dolphins of their generation. But in the end, they came up short. “There is nothing but positives," Giants Head Coach Tom Coughlin told reporters after the game. “I told the players in playing this game everything would be positives, there would be no negatives, and that is how I feel. … I don’t know any better way to be prepared for the playoffs than to go against a team that was 15-0.”
10. Think you’re done with the 1972 Dolphins? They’re just getting warmed up. Several of the players from the 1972 Miami team were tracked down by reporters last night, and many of them wished the Patriots luck (including quarterback Bob Griese and tight end Jim Mandich). But the responses from some others were sadly predictable. “I do not believe they’ll go 19-0,” ex-Dolphins offensive lineman Bob Kuchenberg told The Associated Press. “I read somewhere where they were going to ‘eclipse’ our record. I think that’s a very careless and disrespectful term. We’re not being eclipsed. We’re being joined. Perfection is perfection.” Mercury Morris echoed Kuchenberg. “They haven’t won anything yet,” Morris told the Palm Beach Post. “They’ve created a mark for themselves going into the playoffs. Now it’s about the ability to play at a level that will allow them to win when they are marked people. … Coach Shula always said there are three seasons: the regular season, the playoff season and the Super Bowl. They won the first season. They have two more to go. This time, you lose, you’re out.”
Christopher Price is sports editor of Boston Metro and the author of “The Blueprint: How The New England Patriots Beat The System To Create The Last Great NFL Superpower,” published by Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin’s Press. He can be reached at cprice@metro-boston.com.
