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January 13, 2008

Tom Terrific

He completed the first 16 passes he threw, and overall he was an amazingly accurate 26 for 28, good for 262 yards, including three touchdown passes.

Tom Brady's only incompletions were a pair of drops, by tight end Benjamin Watson and by wide receiver Wes Welker.

For most quarterbacks, such a scintillating performance in a high-pressure playoff game would have had teammates reaching for as many superlatives as they could conjure up. But for the Patriots after their QB had led them past Jacksonville, 31-20, and into the AFC Championship Game next Sunday? Well, to paraphrase a Red Sox slogan, it was just a case of Tom Brady being Tom Brady.

Ho, hum. So what's new?

Okay, so maybe that's a bit of a simplification.

"That's what we've come to expect," said Watson, who was on the receiving end of two of Brady's TD tosses. "It's not like we haven't seen him play great in the playoffs before."

"That number 12, he's pretty good," chimed in veteran offensive tackle Matt Light.

Not that they take Brady for granted. And they have a great deal of respect for him.

"When you have a group of receivers that we have and him as the QB, this (type of efficiency) is not unexpected," said Light. "Tom and the (receivers, including the running backs) have worked hard all year. And Tom does a good job of avoiding the rush and making plays, which is something the guys on the offensive line really appreciate."

But 26 for 28, missing out on a perfect night only because of a couple of drops?

"That's why he's the MVP of the league," said Donte Stallworth, who hooked up with Brady for a key 53-yard pass and run play in the fourth quarter, leading to the final points of the game, a 35-yard field goal by Stephen Gostkowski.

-- STEVEN KRASNER

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 12:04 AM | Permalink