FOXBORO — Bring on the playoffs.
The Patriots’ regular season came to a frigid, merciful end Sunday at icy Gillette Stadium. Employing a hand-tied-behind-your-back game plan, the Pats went through the motions and still rolled the New York Jets, 26-6.
In truth, this regular season really ended two weeks ago in Pittsburgh. When the Pats stole one from the Steelers in the final seconds, they regained control of the American [...]
FOXBORO — Bring on the playoffs.
The Patriots’ regular season came to a frigid, merciful end Sunday at icy Gillette Stadium. Employing a hand-tied-behind-your-back game plan, the Pats went through the motions and still rolled the New York Jets, 26-6.
In truth, this regular season really ended two weeks ago in Pittsburgh. When the Pats stole one from the Steelers in the final seconds, they regained control of the American Football Conference and eased their route to defending their Super Bowl crown.
The last two weeks were mere formalities as AFC East also-rans Buffalo and New York traipsed into town. A week ago the Pats danced with the Bills for a half before pulling away for a 37-16 win. Then there was this odd, bone-chilling afternoon date with the Jets. The game kicked off at 13 degrees, the coldest regular-season contest in New England history. Wind chills were below zero and so was the intensity level from both teams and the frozen fans in the stands.
It was so cold that it’s really not fair to critique — or praise — either team. Give the Patriots credit for taking care of business, especially a defense that didn’t allow a third-down conversion (0-of-12) and let up just one rushing first down. Everyone is ready to look ahead to bigger — and hopefully a bit warmer — challenges.
“Now we get into that second part of the season, that new season where really everything else we've done doesn't really matter," said safety Devin McCourty. "It's all about how you play your next game and what better way to do it than in front of our fans in the comfort of everything. That's how we want it to be and that's what we've earned this year."
By the time the Patriots cashed in on a two-minute drill opportunity to close the first half with a 21-3 lead, you got the feeling that the Jets were cooked. Or frozen solid. The prospect of a season-ending flight back to Jersey and being tucked into their warm homes in just a few hours had to be pretty appetizing as the Jets came out for the second half. Everyone went through the motions the rest of the way with the Patriots doing their best to avoid injury. Rob Gronkowski, for example, played the majority of the game but Tom Brady never looked his way.
Asked afterward why Gronk wasn’t even targeted for a pass, Brady actually answered, “I didn’t know that. I didn’t notice.”
Okay then.
So now it’s on to the postseason for the Patriots. They’ve secured the AFC’s top seed in three of the last four seasons. The previous two times (2014, '16) helped smooth runs to Super Bowl championships and everyone is understandably thrilled they won’t have to board a plane for Jacksonville or Pittsburgh in the next few weeks.
“It feels great,” receiver Brandin Cooks said when asked about being the AFC’s top seed. “I think we have some work to do. We’re not where we want to be. That’s what practice is for and the great thing about it is we have one more chance to be able to go out there and play our best.”
The Patriots do own a to-do list over the next week as they wait and see who’ll be coming to Foxboro on either Jan. 13 or 14. Atop the list is getting some key players out of the trainer’s room and onto the practice field. There will be a lot of hand-wringing over the next two weeks about the sharpness of Brady heading into the playoffs. Don’t listen to the talking heads. Instead watch the Patriots’ injury updates. The Patriots won’t be going back to the Super Bowl with a pock-marked lineup. They played the Jets game without James White, Rex Burkhead and Chris Hogan. That’s why the offense was 4-of-15 on third down and Brady too often looked out of sync with his receivers. That and 10-degree temperatures.
Give Brady White and/or Burkhead to go along with the all-purpose wizardry of Dion Lewis and he’ll pull the necessary fire out of a talented running back group. The wide receiver corps is a different story. Brady should be thrilled he’ll have a healthy Danny Amendola in the playoffs but after that there are questions. Getting Hogan (who has a bum shoulder) back appears shaky so Brady clearly made a point of targeting Cooks all day long. The extra work came with uneven results. While Cooks caught a 5-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter and hauled in a nice 37-yard pass early in the fourth, the two also weren’t on the same page a few times. The prospect of adding Malcolm Mitchell to the playoff mix remains but Brady knows he’d greatly benefit by lining up with a few more weapons.
“It’s good to be in this position and a good week to see where we’re at and try to put our best out there,” Brady said. “It’s the playoffs now and there’s no looking past the next game. Whoever it is we’re going to have to play really well and hopefully being off this week can get us as healthy as we can be. I think that would help everybody.”
Asked about his recent play, Brady deflected the query by saying “football is a team sport. We’re 13-3 so that’s the best in the AFC and that’s what we’re playing for. That’s all that really matters.”
The Patriot defense has dramatically improved over the course of the season but don’t fool yourself. The Pats will need to hang a lot of points on the scoreboard to win playoff games. That's what they’ve done for a few months now as they've won 11 of their last 12 games. That's the chief reason they remain the favorites to defend as Super Bowl champs.
What’s not to like?