08:40 AM EST on Monday, January 24, 2005

Thank you, Patriots.

We needed this.

It's been a tough couple of days around here.

But leave it to the Pats to give us a respite from the blizzard and the unrelenting cold, a respite from a storm for the ages, another gift from this team that's given us so many in these past few years. Last night was just the latest exclamation point, the Pats treating the Steelers as little more than a minor inconvenience on their way back to the Super Bowl, little more than a small bump in the road in their run at history.

Not that we should be surprised.

Last night was a script we've already seen, a wonderful sequel.

For this is what the Patriots do.

They don't make mistakes. They are incredibly opportunistic. They make plays. They are experienced in big games. They always seem to have a better game plan than the other team has. And Tom Brady just flat out does what he has to do, even when he so often seems like an afterthought in all the pre-game analysis.

Most of all, this team simply wins. Wins in the snow. Wins in the cold. Wins at home. Wins away. Wins when they are playing second fiddle to the Red Sox. Wins when they get taken for granted. Wins when many of their stars get little national respect. Wins, period.

So what if one of the toughest things in the NFL is having a great year following a trip to the Super Bowl. So what if one of the toughest things in sports in this day and age of inflated egos and entitlement is to keep a team focused and together. The Patriots defy all that. If you didn't know any better you would think you were watching some improbable Hollywood movie on the NFL, Remember The Titans

with weekly paychecks.

Last week it was the Colts, who got manhandled in Gillette Stadium, the high-flying Colts who came into Foxboro as the most explosive team in football and left like whipped puppy dogs.

Last night it was the Steelers in the Steel City, the same Steelers who had lost only once all year and never at home.

No matter.

Another week, another supposed great team dominated in the playoffs.

The Steelers were supposed to have a big advantage playing at home. But they quickly fell behind 10-0, and spent the rest of the game running uphill against a Patriots' defense that bends once in a while, but never breaks when it counts. A Patriots' defense that's full of names no one knows outside of New England, but guys who come out of anonymity to make big plays, like Rodney Harrison's big interception for a touchdown, the play of the game. A Patriots' defense so good and so resilient that it survives the loss of both Ty Law and Richard Seymour and nothing changes.

But enough of the Steelers.

Once again, last night belonged to the Patriots, this team that's now very close to being one for the ages, a modern day dynasty. Last night did that, too. Bill Belichick tied the immortal Vince Lombardi for the best winning percentage of any coach in NFL history, solidifying himself as one of the great coaches in the league's history. Brady went to 8-0 in the playoffs, now second best in NFL history.

Ah, Brady.

Peyton Mannning puts up all the gaudy numbers, and everyone marvels at Michael Vick's athleticism, but Brady is the closest thing there is to the football reincarnation of Joe Montana. His 60-yard highlight-film pass to Deion Branch on the Pats' second possession gave New England a quick 10-0 lead, and another strike to Branch in the second quarter set up his nine-yard pass to David Givens, another dagger into the Steelers' heart.

Those were the signature plays, but it was more than that, too. Whenever the Pats need a play, something to keep a drive going, Brady always seems to make it. His decision-making. His skill at game management. His sixth sense in the pocket, a place that seems as comfortable to him as a childhood bedroom. They always are on display in the big games. Last night was no exception.

And maybe the biggest things is we're no longer surprised.

We expect the Patriots to be great. We expect them to go into Pittsburgh and dominate the Steelers. We expect them to play smart and capitlaize on the other team's mistakes. We expect them to win big games, for we have seen the body of work. Just as we expect Belichick to downplay it afterwards, just as he did last night, saying, "Today, we got a few breaks and things went our way."

Yet that's the Patriots' way too. Take games one at a time. Execute the game plan. Don't make mistakes. Say all the right things afterwards. Live all those cliches taped to walls in all those innumerable high school locker rooms. All the while making their run at history.

"They do a little bit of everything," said Steeler quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.

Yes, they do.

Including giving us a great gift last night, a respite from the snow and the cold.

One we needed.