Stats on Pats Weekly - Historic Season on the 1 Yard Line: New England 21, San Diego 12 Article by Raleigh Dugal, southcoast247.com assistant editor
You can look at Sunday afternoon's victory two ways.
In the context of this season, it was a tough game for the Patriots that saw their high-flying pass attack subdued by a mediocre San Diego secondary (with the exception of Antonio Cromartie). Tom Brady threw for just 209 yards, a couple of TDs, and three picks, nowhere near what he's done all season. Randy Moss was the kid on the back of the milk carton yet again. Meanwhile, mouthy Phillip Rivers had similar yardage but put some scary drives together with WR Vincent Jackson, giving the Chargers plenty of opportunities in the red zone without his heavy hitters (Tomlinson and Gates). At times New England's aging defense looked as tired as that fourth quarter in the RCA Dome a year ago.
Then again, Lawrence Maroney rushed for 122 yards, 100 of which were in the second half alone. The veteran defense, with key plays near the end zone by old stalwarts like Tedy Bruschi and Junior Seau, held a divisional champ to zero touchdowns in a conference decision. In spite of going minus one in the turnover battle, New England found a way to win—something we all saw snippets of in Baltimore and against Philadelphia, but were too caught up in the gloss of 56 point blowouts to remember. On Sunday, New England was playing Patriot football.
Sure, anywhere outside northern I-95 might call that "almost losing" but New England fans know better. The bend-don't-break philosophy is a real one. Belichick is a master at letting the opposition think they've gotten away with something until he snatches it out from under their nose. My gut reaction to New York's luck ridden victory (I'm not taking anything away from the Giants, but seriously that missed field goal should have cost them) was a little nervous. I don't like their momentum or confidence, or the fact that they're getting a rematch so quickly.
Cut and paste Lombardi Trophy here
But with a little more reflection, I don't see how you can spin things out of the Patriots favor. With the way the running game has broken out in the post-season, it's clear that Belichick has been playing part of his hand close to the vest for a while and should bust some new moves on perennial choke artists Tom Coughlin and mini-Manning. I have to give Eli credit since thus far he's pinched back his characteristic playoff dump, but how can you find a way to pick against a team who's 18-0? I'm not citing destiny or fate, but logic here (Attention: Bill Cower and Shannon Sharpe).
Maybe the most important edge New England has is that they've been the New York Giants before. In 2001 the Patriots stunned the nation by rallying to an 11-5 season and upsetting the 17 point favorite St. Louis Rams. After a sort of sophomore slump, the Pats put up two more championships, while their dull, gritty play earned little praise or respect from the national media. New England sure won't make the same mistake the Rams did in '01, trust in that. In the next two weeks New York state other haters are sure to rejoice in what some have called spotty play by the recent champs. Pats fans know it's just a return to the roots of what a Super Bowl victory will crown as one of the greatest dynasties in sports.
You can look at Sunday afternoon's victory two ways.
