KANSAS CITY, Mo. — At various points during this 2018 season, the Patriots:
• Were on their way to being the worst scoring defense under Bill Belichick
• Lacked enough weapons on offense
• Couldn't stop the run
• Looked old and slow compared to the hot new teams
• Couldn't win on the road
• Outside of Stephon Gilmore, couldn't cover anyone
And they featured a quarterback who, after skipping the offseason program at age 41, looked like he didn't want to take many hits or throw deep down the field.
That team is going to the Super Bowl. Again.
The Patriots obliterated any remaining boxes anyone tried to put them into this season.
Here's the thing: all of that criticism was valid when it was leveled. The Patriots earned that heat. It was up to them to prove they were still the perennial champs they've always been. And on Sunday, in a 37-31 overtime victory over the Chiefs in the AFC Championship at Arrowhead Stadium, they did that in one of the most hostile and pressure-packed environments you will ever see in any sport.
Especially that guy wearing No. 12 in the white jersey.
There were things that we've learned over the years with this team. We've learned we shouldn't pay attention to struggles in the first four games of the season, even if they drop to 1-2 in Detroit. We know the defense is going to struggle for a while, and then they'll be at least functional.
What have we learned this season?
The quarterback and tight end can vacation all over the world during offseason workouts. The Patriots can be terrible on the road in the regular season. And the Patriots can basically do whatever they want until the middle of December.
None of it matters. The Patriots have proved, by silencing 77,034 screaming red faces, that they can win in just about every way imaginable.
And it's because of Tom Brady.
Football is a funny game. There were 141 plays in this game, which featured more twists than a roller coaster at Six Flags. The Patriots made a lot. The Chiefs made some. Brady even threw two interceptions and had another of the game-killing variety called back due to penalty. There was a great defensive game plan by the Patriots that bottled up Tyreek Hill (one catch) and Travis Kelce (three). New England sacked Patrick Mahomes four times, yet he still kept making absurd plays. There were controversial flags, and missed calls. The Patriots owned the game with their offensive line, both in run blocking and protecting Brady.
Yet the game still came down to something simple: Brady having to make challenging throws against man coverage.
There were times this season when it looked like he wouldn't be able to do that. There were times he looked incapable of doing that.
Yet there Brady was, with childhood idol Joe Montana looking on inside the stadium, doing it throw after throw down the stretch.
With the Patriots trailing 28-24 with 1:57 left, Brady put on a clinic that harkened back to his Super Bowl comeback against the Seahawks.
Seven passes. All of at least 10 yards. All killers.
1:57 remaining: 25 yards to Julian Edelman. With Justin Houston bearing down on Brady, he unleashed a laser to Edelman, who caught the ball between three Chiefs.
1:30: 10 yards to Chris Hogan, who was on a milk carton for stretches this season. Brady throws a perfectly placed low throw that Hogan goes down and gets.
54 seconds, third and 5: A perfect fade down the sideline to Gronkowski against tight coverage. The ball was slightly underthrown, but Eric Berry didn’t see it and Gronkowski hauled it into his iron mitts like it was the last loaf of bread the night before a snow storm.
First play of overtime: 10 yards to Hogan. A strong out to Hogan right at the sticks.
Third and 10: 20 yards to Edelman. The dynamic duo again beats cornerback Kendall Fuller and Edelman absorbs a hit from Daniel Sorensen.
Third and 10: 15 yards to Edelman. Charvarius Ward takes his turn getting beaten across the middle by Edelman. Ward actually has good coverage, but Brady just beats him. After the play, Ward throws his hands up in disbelief.
Third and 10: 15 yards to Gronkowski. The final of three-straight third-and-10 conversions goes on a slant to beat Berry and Sorensen.
The Patriots had no margin for error. They were on football's version of a tightrope with millions watching.
Their Houdini did it again.
"He played great," said Belichick, who doesn't praise his quarterback like that very often. "They were playing a lot of man coverage, so it was either a gain or an incompletion. They played us a lot of man to man in the past part of game, and it was obvious."
Brady looked to be the happiest player on the field when Rex Burkhead plunged in with the game-winning score.
"When you have 70,000 people cheering against you, it is pretty sweet when you win on the road," Brady said. "It's a hard thing to do against the first-ranked team in the conference who has been playing well all year, and certainly playing well at home. We knew it was going to take a lot. It obviously took into overtime. It took some great plays and great conversions. I'm just proud of us getting the job done."
A win on the road in the biggest game of the season. Brady making classic dagger throws to make it happen. The Patriots just keep proving people wrong all the way to Atlanta, including Brady, in a season that has been anything but easy — yet the result remains the same.
"The odds were stacked against us," Brady acknowledged. "It hasn't been that way for a while, and it certainly was this year. We started off so slow. The last four games have been our best games."
Better late than never. The Patriots chose a decidedly new – and delayed — path this season, but it will end where almost all of their campaigns finish: yet another Super Bowl.
Greg Bedard is the founder, owner and lead NFL analyst at BostonSportsJournal.com
To continue reading, log into your account:
