Earlier this millennium, as Tom Brady's legend grew, we were told stories of the quarterback taking his offensive line out to dinner once a week, just to keep the men who protected him happy.

Brady probably should pick up the check again this week for the offensive line, which did an excellent job of protecting him in Sunday's AFC Championship game. But he should make an even grander gesture to the Patriots defense. Maybe offer to pay their mortgage or their kids' college tuition.

Sending Billy Cundiff a thoughtful card might not be a bad idea, either.

Brady's legend would have take a significant hit and the Patriots season would have ended Sunday if not for a resilient defense and Billy "Don't Call Me Norwood" Cundiff.

(And please, don't insult Scott Norwood by comparing Cundiff's choke to his miss in Super Bowl XXV. Norwood's kick was 47 yards on chewed-up grass. Cundiff yanked a 32-yard chip shot on pristine artificial turf. Norwood should be off the hook with everyone outside of the Buffalo area. He won't be, but he should).

Cundiff was in a position to tie the game Sunday because of New England's defense.

Admittedly, that can be taken one of two ways.

The Ravens marched up and down the field throughout the second half. Not counting the drive that started at New England's 28, courtesy of Danny Woodhead's fumble, they ventured into Patriot territory on three of four possessions. They gained 212 yards, converted six of nine third downs and scored 10 points.

But they also had their best player, Ray Rice, relegated to a minor role by a stout run defense.

More important, they had three chances to tie or take the lead in the fourth quarter thwarted at least in part by big plays from the pass defense. Those possessions ended once on downs, once on Brandon Spikes' interception, and finally, once on Billy Cundiff's date with sports infamy.

Through it all, folks from Norway to Norwalk were having flashbacks to the latter stages of the 2006 AFC Championship and Super Bowl XLII.

The funny thing is, as good as the defenses before those two epic collapses were, the Super Bowl champion Patriots won a lot of games the same way as the Patriots did Sunday. The final quarter would have had a 2001, 2003 or 2004 feel except for the fact that in numerous crushing losses over the last seven years the loyal Patriot rooter has been reprogrammed into thinking the defense will come up small when the pressure is highest.

Yet on Sunday, there was Vince Wilfork playing the role of Willie McGinest, getting in Joe Flacco's grill on several crucial plays.

There was Sterling Moore, an unheralded cornerback, this generation's Otis Smith perhaps, making a brutal tackle attempt on Torrey Smith's touchdown catch and run, then redeeming himself with two huge plays right before Cundiff ran onto the field — slapping a sure game-winning touchdown out of Lee Evans' grasp and then knocking down a pass at the 1.

There was James Ihedigbo, playing so poorly Patriot fans were either praying for him to suffer his weekly shoulder injury or praying for the return of Eugene Wilson, making a crucial sack on third down to limit Baltimore to a field goal after the Woodhead fumble.

And there was Spikes, making the same kind of interception Tedy Bruschi seemed to always make to clinch a playoff win.

It could well have been the game-clinching play if Brady was still playing like the old Tom Brady on Sunday.

Brady gave the best assessment of his performance during the postgame festivities. Credit him for his honesty if not for his judgment throwing the ball deep to a double-covered Matt Slater.

The Patriots were going for the jugular at that point. It's the type of play call they've made many times before, whether Charlie Weis, Josh McDaniels or Bill O'Brien has been the offensive coordinator.

But there was a time when Brady would drop back and weigh the risk/reward of that throw in that situation before uncorking it. Ever since Randy Moss put on a Patriots uniform, he's been much more likely to throw caution to the wind, sometimes even if it means throwing into triple coverage into the wind.

Yes, credit Baltimore's defense, especially in the red zone. But Brady's performance was laced with poor timing and poorer decisions, the two things that are usually among his greatest strengths.

And yet, in large part because the defense is playing its best football of the season, the Patriots survived.

Thankfully, they answered one annoying question by beating a team with a winning record. We don't have to hear about that anymore.

They also answered the question of whether they could win a big game without Brady at the top of his game.

If Brady keeps feeding his offensive line, he'll probably be back at the top of his game in Indianapolis. But it wouldn't hurt to at least pick up the check for the defense, too, just in case.