MIAMI -- The quarterback who can't throw deep hit the receiver
who's being overlooked for an 82-yard overtime touchdown.
And so the team that never wins in Miami beat the Dolphins in a draining
rock fight of a game yesterday, 19-13.
Thanks to that throw from Tom Brady to Troy Brown with 5:57 left in
overtime, the Patriots -- first left for dead when Lawyer Milloy was
released four days before the season opener and then really left for
dead when they lost a fleet of key defensive players --move into first
place in the AFC East with a 5-2 record that puts them just ahead of the
4-2 Dolphins.
It seems there's only one four-letter word that offends this team. Can't.
"Everybody's telling them it's too hot down here, everybody's telling
them they have too many injuries and they can't do this and they can't
do that and they didn't buy it," said Patriots head coach Bill
Belichick. "They just came down here and played their hearts out."
The Patriots poured everything into beating Miami yesterday. Even though
their wins over Tennessee and New York in the past two weeks were
studies in resiliency, this trip to Miami would be the key checkpoint to
the first half of their season. They started hyping themselves for it
before they had even toweled off from last week's win over the Giants.
They did all the things they had to do to put themselves in a position
to win -- keep Tom Brady upright, hold down Ricky Williams, be solid on
third down, minimize turnovers and penalties and keep the game close.
They did all that, but they still needed the unexpected to win. It came
in the form of a bomb from Brady to Brown.
"What a play," said head coach Bill Belichick. "What a play. We had a
couple of (deep) shots we were kind of holding back on. We missed one to
Deion (Branch) late in the fourth quarter. Tom was able to get a little
extra time when he flushed out of the pocket. He had good protection and
what a playmaker Troy Brown is."
Safety Sammy Knight had Brown in the right slot and he broke upfield on
a deep slant. Miami's other safety, Brock Williams, came to help, but by
then, Brown had broken past Knight across the field. Brady, who moved
outside after Matt Light blocked Miami defensive end Jason Taylor
inside, threw over Marion's head and Brown caught the ball near the left
numbers at the Miami 32 and scored. The little wide receiver finished
the day with six catches for 131 yards just three weeks after he
lamented that he was not getting the ball enough.
"They got us on the play action and Brady put it in the right place,"
said Knight. "Brown split us and Brady threw it across the field and
they made a great play."
"We were in a two-deep zone," explained Miami coach Dave Wannstedt. "I
don't know how long Brady held onto the ball, but he throws it on time
and he's not going to (complete it behind us). When a quarterback starts
scrambling sometimes the safeties or the corners have a tendency to
settle and the receivers will look back and that's probably what
happened."
"We gave him too much time up front," lamented Taylor. "I told Brock and
Sam it wasn't their fault. I didn't get a very good rush and he
scrambled to my side and threw a bomb so I feel very responsible for
what happened."
So much had to happen to put the Patriots in that position. From
withstanding two first-half turnovers (Miami managed a hard-fought 10
points off of those) to keeping Williams from taking over (94 yards on
27 carries buoyed by an 18-yarder), to a Richard Seymour blocking a
Olindo Mare field with two minutes left in regulation, to a missed
35-yarder by Mare in overtime and then a Tyrone Poole interception just
before the winning touchdown.
Seymour's field goal block was massive.
The Dolphins had driven from their 10 to the Patriots' 17 and consumed
9:03 of the fourth quarter in the process. They converted four third
downs and were in a position to survive if Mare could do what he usually
does -- convert.
"I saw it before it happened," said Seymour. "When we were out on the
field, me and Tedy (Bruschi) were talking. And he said, 'All right
Seymour, this is a big play for you here.' I said, 'All right, give me a
good push and I'll block it.' I saw where he was kicking it, looked back
at the goal posts, looked back down and the ball was snapped, Tedy gave
me a good push and we blocked it. It was one of those things that
happened in slow motion."
Dolphins defensive tackle Larry Chester was asked if he thought the game
was over when Mare lined up for the field goal.
"Yes. The first time and the second. I didn't think they would see the
field again. (The Patriots) did what they were supposed to do. They
blocked one and rattled Mare on the second. It's indescribable. You
don't want to lose one like that. To have it slip through your fingers
not once but two or three times is real upsetting."
All the while, the Patriots were doing it as they've done it for weeks.
Shorthanded. Yesterday, they were without cornerback Ty Law and
linebacker Willie McGinest, among others. Seven of the team's 11
defensive starters -- Asante Samuel, Eugene Wilson, Matt Chatham, Jarvis
Green, Ty Warren, Tyrone Poole and Rodney Harrison -- were either subs,
rookies or new guys.
The Patriots forced two Miami turnovers in the first half (a pick by
Eugene Wilson and a fumble recovery by Rodney Harrison) but got just
three points off of those. Miami, meanwhile, turned a Brady fumble at
the Pats' 16 into a 6-yard Jay Fiedler to Chris Chambers touchdown (just
the third touchdown pass of the year the Pats have allowed) and a Kevin
Faulk fumble into another three points to make it 10-3 in the second. An
Adam Vinatieri field goal before the break made it 10-6. Miami made it
13-6 on another Mare field goal, but the Pats tied it in the third with
a 14-play, 76-yard drive that ended with a 24-yard touchdown pass to
David Givens with 1:55 left in the third.
The long Miami drive ate up most of the fourth and the Patriots' stab at
coming back before the end of regulation ended when -- with no timeouts
remaining -- they ran a toss to Faulk that lost 7 yards.
In overtime, Fiedler hit Chambers for 31 yards down the left sideline,
then Williams ripped off gains of 10 and 13 yards to get to the Pats'
20. Three plays later, Mare missed wide right from 35 yards away. The
Pats got out to midfield on the next drive then stalled. Miami took over
at its own 30 and Fiedler tried to make a play on third-and-12 from his
45, throwing long to Chambers but Poole came up with the pick, setting
the stage for a play that will have some staying power in this
ever-escalating rivalry.
"It feels sweet to be in first place right now," said safety Rodney
Harrison. "But it's just one game. Next week, we have Cleveland coming
to town and we can't take any team for granted."
