Belichick's Greatest Hits No. 10: Beating Both Co-MVPs in the Same Postseason

Arthur Anderson. Getty Images.

Now we're into the postseason on this countdown and I don't think I'm spoiling jack when I say we won't be leaving it. 

The 2003 season that began with the tumult and confusion of Lawyer Milloy getting released, landing in Buffalo where the Pats opened the season with a 31-0 loss and a 2-2 start, ended spectacularly. With 12 straight wins, led by a defense that wrapped themselves around opponents like a boa constrictor and suffocated them, surrendering less than 15 points per game. They were particularly tough at home, where they pitched three shutouts, including an ironic 31-0 win over Buffalo in the last week. And they came within a garbage time score by Jacksonville from going six straight home games without giving up a touchdown. 

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This was the peak of Bill Belichick defenses. And would need to be in the playoffs, as they were facing the NFL's co-MVPs, Steve McNair of Tennessee and Indy's Peyton Manning. Leading the league's second and fourth highest scoring offenses. Fortunately that 12-game win streak assured both games would be played in the now two year old Gillette that had become The Last Stadium on the Left for the rest of the NFL. 

Divisional Round, Patriots 17, Titans 14

I was at this game. Mainly owing to the fact a state worker with a family to support could afford tickets. A 4-degree night with the wind chill putting it at -10 made sure they were going for cheap. I can confirm that my cousin bought a bottle of water at halftime and by the time he got to his seat it was frozen solid. And drinking beer was virtually impossible. As soon as you took the cap off, it all bubbled up out of the neck like a science fair baking soda volcano, ran down the sides and froze. The best we could do was consume the port wine somebody brought because it goes good with cigars. 

The elements didn't hurt the Patriots prospects any. But to their credit, the Titans didn't fold. In fact, they hung tough. They answered a touchdown on the Patriots opening possession with a touchdown of their own. Then with New England leading 14-7 in the 3rd, put together a sustained, ball control drive that took 11 plays and kept Tom Brady's offense on the sideline for 7:47. 

The Pats eventually took the lead on one of the 98 or so monster kicks of Adam Vinatieri's career, that 46-yarder in that video above. And I remember thinking that kicking a football in those temperatures much have felt like kicking a butternut squash with your bare foot. 

Once again playing with a lead and 4:00 to play, Belichick put his defense in a deep shell and dared McNair to throw deep. Instead, McNair worked the intermediate routes, with the occasional run play. The Titans pulled off no less than four plays of between 11 and 13 yards. Two of which were reviewed - one with a challenge flag, the other an officials review - and upheld. But an intentional grounding by McNair and an offensive holding pushed Tennessee back onto their side of midfield. One completion put them on the New England 42, facing a 4th & 12. That's when Belichick dialed up a safety blitz by Rodney Harrison. Forced to get rid of it, McNair launched a beautiful moon shot intended for Drew Bennett, who came back on the ball, shaking Tyrone Poole who was in single coverage. The arc of the throw gave Asante Samuel and Antwan Harris time to come across from centerfield to break it up. In all, the Pats defense managed three sacks and an interception in holding a Top 5 NFL offense to just 14 points. 

AFC championship game, Patriots 24, Colts 14

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To fully comprehend the awe and splendor of this one, you need to go back a week to the Colts in earlier playoff games:

--Against Denver in the Wild Card round, Peyton Manning went an impossible 22-for-26, for 377 yards, 5 TDs, 0 INTs, and a perfect passer rating of 158.3. The Colts scored on each of their first seven possessions (five touchdows and two field goal) and never punted. 

--At Kansas City in the Divisional game, Manning was an almost as impressive 22-for-30, with 304 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs and a passer rating of 138.7. This time they scored on six of their eight possessions (five touchdowns and a field goal), again never punted, and the only drives where they didn't score ended with the clock running out in the halves.

And in those two games combined, Manning was sacked just once. 

It would be a different story at Foxboro. 

As the video explains, Manning had a complete meltdown in Belichick's hands. Picked off four times, once by Harrison, three times by Ty Law. My favorite moment will always be the replay (not shown) of Law gesturing with his hand while he backpedaled, signaling the exact route that was being run. My favorite stat line will forever be that he caught as many passes as Manning's favorite target, Hall of Famer Marvin Harrison (Sr). And had more yards on his returns (26) than Harrison had receiving (19). Oh, and Harrison fumbled one of those receptions. 

Add to it that the Pats sacked Manning four times, with 2.5 of those going to DT Jarvis Green, who wasn't even a starter. Plus the dozen or so clean but brutal hits the Patriots secondary dished out. Several of them in that video Harris.

Which brings us to perhaps the best part of this whole occasion: What complete and utter squishes the Colts acted like in the aftermath. Not just fun stuff, like Manning trying to ply Law with booze at the Pro Bowl to spill his secrets, In vino veritas:

But the way GM Bill Polian used his position on the Rules Committee to whine and complain about how unfair it is and get them to change the way defense is regulated and enforced. This one dynamic absolutely defined the dynamic between these two teams in the early half of the decade. 

Did changing the rules to suit the Colts work? I think we'll discuss that in the next item on the countdown. Stay tuned.