Randy Whitehouse

Patriots weather Phillys best shot

Two things we know after the New England Patriots won their third championship in four years by a field goal.

1. The less field goals are involved in the Super Bowl, the better.

2. Theyre not the greatest team of all time, yet, but the New England Patriots are the greatest pressure team, bar none.

Three times they have played in sports ultimate game, once as a heavy underdog and twice as heavy favorites. All three times, they have taken everything the opposition had to give and then some. All three times, their composure has been tested.

And all three times, they have been the ones holding the Lombardi Trophy at the end.

No other team has had to endure more heart-pounding moments in their postseason history. The Packers, Steelers, 49ers and Cowboys all had their moment or moments of truth, but none had their mettle tested like this team has in its most important games.

The last two times, the game-defining tests came in the fourth quarter. St. Louis and Carolina made comebacks that would have wilted many opponents except the cool and disciplined Sons of Belichick.

This time, the test came in the first half. The Patriots took the Eagles best shot and went into the locker room tied when they should have been down by at least a field goal.

Like coach Bill Belichick, who went to the wrong bench after coming out of the tunnel before the game, New England looked a bit disoriented in the early stages. Meanwhile, spurred on by a crowd that was overwhelmingly in their corner, the Eagles came out with an emotional edge perpetuated by Terrell Owens early involvement.

The defense had a hard time getting off the field, but fortunately for the Patriots, Donovan McNabb went into trick-or-treat mode, impossibly escaping the pass rush one moment then allowing the Pats to escape from the red zone with a terrible throw the next.

It was an uncharacteristic half for the Patriots offense. First, it couldnt make the Eagles pay for their turnovers, something the Patriots had done to the opposition all season. The vaunted Philadelphia blitz was doing what it was meant to do, throwing Tom Brady out of his rhythm.

Offensive coordinator Charlie Weis made the kind of adjustment I fear the Patriots will sorely miss next season and went to screen passes. But the drive that resulted stalled on a Brady fumble that may or may not have been recovered by the Eagles.

Then, what may have been the turning point. The defense held Philly three-and-out and left the offense with great field position. Brady bounced back like he so often has after making a crucial mistake and led the game-tying drive.

The game was far from over at that point, obviously, but one got the sense that Pats had taken Phillys best shot and would come out the aggressor in the second half.

Once Eugene Wilson went down with an injury late in the half, further depleting the Patriots secondary, it was clear the Eagles chances, and probably the game itself, was going to come down to one man McNabb.

McNabb is not overrated, but hes not Tom Brady, either. He threw the critical interception to Tedy Bruschi, then looked somewhat tentative on his final scoring drive. It ultimately resulted in a touchdown, but too much time had been wasted between plays.

It was one of those little things that makes the difference between losing one Super Bowl or winning three by a field goal.

Randy Whitehouse is a staff writer who can be reached at [email protected]