Just a few thoughts in the wake of New England’s Groundhog Day.
1) An emotional Terrell Owens defended himself late last night against charges of selfishness, saying that if Brett Favre had taken the field under similar circumstances, he’d be called a warrior. Much as I dislike the attention-starved T.O.’s act, he’s got a point. Playing on one leg, he pretty much equaled the outpout of the game’s MVP, Deion Branch. Had the Eagles sought to pass to Owens more often last night, it’s very likely T.O. would’ve been awarded the Caddy.
2) And with that car in mind, not to take anything away from Deion Branch’s huge game, but Tom Brady’s numbers were good enough to justify winning the MVP award for a 3rd time. Except, of course, he’s suing the sponsor of the award.
3) Much is being made today about New England having given up 300 + passing yards in each of their Super Bowl wins. As even Phil Muschnick will tell you, said yardage is often the byproduct of the opposition’s failure to establish a running game, if not being forced to air it out while trailing. Donovan McNabb can take solace in the Eagles having had a chance to win with less than a minute left, but had he or Andy Reid recognized the need to go into a hurry-up/no-huddle offense minutes earlier, the Syracuse grad’s chances of getting Philly into field goal range would’ve been much stronger.
I think a crucial aspect is how Charlie Weis outflanked and out-schemed Jimmy Johnson when it came time to set plans for the second half. After what was a draw in the 1st half, the Pats charging up the field on the first drive and scoring 7 was huge. Overall, my opinion was and is that the Patriots have a better more balanced team overall
but their coaching clearly schooled the Eagles. The Eagles are a team
that usually takes the upperhand in the 2nd quarter and finishes most opponents off by the late 3rd/early 4th and are not a team that has orchestrated many come from behind victories. But that is no excuse for the game clock management both at the end of the first half and during the final 7-8 minutes. Does anybody offhand know what the conversion rate is for onside kicks where the teams are lining up in the formation (as opposed to surprise OS kicks)
though I can’t answer that question, David Akers’ onside kick wasn’t the greatest.
I don’t think you can underestimate what it meant for Tom Brady to have Dillon and Faulk occassionally getting the job done. While the former didn’t have the big day I predicted, the new NE ground game was good enough to make a difference in a tight game.
Also, give credit to the pressure that the Pats put up front. They clearly outmuscled the Eagles offensive line. They wisely applied the pressure up the middle rather than trying than come from the outside where McNabbs elusiveness is most effective.