Tim Tebow, and the New England Patriots' four-year drought without a playoff win. If you were a New England Patriots fan or an NFL fan watching, reading or listening to sports media this week, one or both of those topics probably nearly sickened you to death.
But in the end, the game isn't won or lost in the media. We talk a lot because it's our jobs, and the players take the field for the very same reason.
In this world of 24-7-365 sports coverage, media outlets struggle to find things to cover every second of the day. When a topic like Tebow comes along, it's easy to take it a bit far. Especially when you account for the polarizing emotions centered around his religious beliefs.
That's why when he threw for 316 yards against the Pittsburgh Steelers, it surprised very few people that the media ran just as much with the symbolism of the number itself as the fact that it came against the league's No. 1 pass defense.
Still, the Patriots weren't buying into it.
"I think everyone focused on one player," said Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, according to Patriots.com, "and all week, we were focused on the entire Denver Bronco team."
Will those same people discuss the harrowing symbolism behind his 9-for-26 performance on Saturday night? That much remains to be seen.
As for Brady, "focused" might be an understatement. Brady was razor-sharp and on point all night, as the Patriots stormed out of the gate with a touchdown on their opening possession—a five-play, 80-yard beauty that ate just 1:51 off the clock.
We knew the offense was a machine, but the other talking point was that the defense would hold them back, and that the offense might run into some problems against a front seven for the Broncos that's gotten it done all season long.
If you had read some of the media coverage about the Patriots heading into the game, you might have thought this Patriots team went 9-7 and backed into the playoffs, instead of going 13-3 and winning home-field advantage throughout the postseason.
- The Patriots didn't beat a team with a record over .500 all season long.
- The Patriots went 1-2 against playoff teams (beat Denver, lost to Pittsburgh and New York Giants).
- The Patriots gave up the second-most yards in NFL history.
Guess the Patriots might as well not even take the field. Not to mention the talking points over their three straight playoff losses:
- Tom Brady had been sacked 13 times in three straight postseason losses, while going 81-for-135 (60.0 percent) for 719 yards, five touchdowns and four interceptions.
- Since taking a four-point lead with just over two minutes remaining in Super Bowl XLII, the Patriots had a lead in a postseason game just once, when they took a commanding 3-0 lead over the Jets in the first quarter.
- The two most recent playoff losses both came at home in games the Patriots were favored to win, much like Saturday's game against the Broncos.
A monkey off their back? That's putting it lightly. This monkey had grown into a bona fide silverback gorilla.
Brady was poked and prodded like a zoo animal on the topic all week, but did his best Bill Belichick impersonation by deflecting those questions and pointing out that this was a different team, playing a different game in a different season against a different opponent.
And in the end, he felt much different than he did after any of those previous playoff losses.
"You lose a few playoff games, and it's a very bitter way to end the season," said Brady. "It sits on your mind for quite a long time. For us to come out and play the way we did [and to] have a very solid performance in the most important game of the year is very gratifying."
With all that off their back, this is a win that the Patriots will surely enjoy, and Belichick is willing to afford them that.
"I'm really happy for the players," said Belichick according to Patriots.com. "I'm really excited for them. ... They worked hard, they put up with me, so they deserve this."
Erik Frenz is the co-host of the PatsPropaganda and Frenz podcast. Follow Erik on Twitter.
Lance Berkman Reegie Corona Juan Miranda Colin Curtis Kevin Russo Curtis Granderson
0 件のコメント:
コメントを投稿