The Bully-Boy Patriots

The extraordinary chemistry and communication between a great quarterback and a great receiver—Montana and Rice, Manning and Harrison—is not accidental or telepathic. It is developed in long hours of hard work on and off the field. As Brady explains it, he has had only 10 games to work with his three new wideouts, Randy Moss, Wes Welker and Donte Stallworth. It may not seem as if there is any room for improvement in the Patriots offense, but Brady believes that the more they work and play together, the better the chances they will click in the future.

I am not exactly clear why kicking a field goal with a big lead on fourth and short to make the score 45-7 is good form while going for it—a 0- or 7-point option—is inhumane. Brady points out that going for it gives the offense a chance to work on something that may come up later in a more critical situation. The Patriots view everything as a learning experience. No surprise that last season the team was more successful on fourth down—16 for 20—than any other in the league.

Brady wants to play, and there's something to be said for keeping your quarterback happy. He has a well-earned reputation for his work ethic in practice. The reward, all the fun, comes in the game, and he believes he's earned his full share of it. He certainly doesn't want to come out of the game in the third quarter, no matter what the score, and isn't even thrilled at coming out early in the fourth quarter.

Pats fans worry that Brady might get injured on some meaningless fourth-quarter play, costing the team all the historic goals in sight. And some players have even suggested that the Pats' bad manners will eventually lead to somebody taking a cheap shot that could hurt Brady. But a team that essentially stops playing is far more vulnerable to injury. If they are just handing it off to a running back, defenders can tee off. And a second-string quarterback, with an inferior arm and poorer judgment, can put his receivers at risk. If the offense isn't trying to move the ball, that forces the defense onto the field—and, given the injury history in the Pats' secondary, it may be more vulnerable to injury.

Brady is clearly the player the Pats can't afford to lose. But nobody on the team acknowledges that. After all, the Patriots won their first Super Bowl when backup Brady took over for an injured Drew Bledsoe. That was also the year when the Pats ceased to have players introduced onto the field individually, only the team. That egalitarian notion leads Brady to wonder, if he is substituted for safety's sake who else warrants protection? Randy Moss? Richard Seymour? Tedy Bruschi? Rodney Harrison? Assante Samuel? Only 45 players dress for a game, including kickers and players whose roles don't extend much beyond special teams. A coach can't substitute out all his starters. Take too many starters out and the injury risk is greater to any player left on the field.

For the record, here's a little sampler from the championship seasons of the most storied coaches in NFL history, hall-of-famers all. George Halas's 1940 Chicago Bears: 41-10 vs. Packers; 47-25 vs. Rams; 73-0 vs. Redskins. Paul Brown's 1954 Cleveland Browns; 62-3 vs. Rams; 42-7 vs. Steelers; 56-10 vs. Lions. Vince Lombardi's 1962 Green Bay Packers: 49-0 vs. Bears; 49-0 vs. Eagles; 41-10 vs. Rams. Tom Landry's 1971 Dallas Cowboys: 42-7 vs. Eagles; 56-17 vs. Falcons; 41-14 vs. Steelers. Don Shula's 1972 Miami Dolphins: 52-0 vs. Patriots. Bill Walsh's 1984 San Francisco 49ers: 41-7 vs. Bears; 51-7 vs. Falcons. Joe Gibbs's 1991 Washington Redskins: 45-0 vs. Lions; 56-17 vs. Falcons; 41-14 vs. Steelers.