Maroney steps up for pass-happy Pats

Jan 21, 2008 - 2:48 PM By Tom Torrisi PA SportsTicker Pro Football Editor

Laurence Maroney was not much more than a bystander during the majority of the New England Patriots' record-setting season.

Not an easy task for the starting running back on a team that amassed the highest point total in league history en route to an undefeated regular season.

Yet with New England's high-powered passing game struggling in cold, windy conditions against the San Diego Chargers in Sunday's AFC championship, Maroney took center stage.

The second-year running back rushed for 122 yards and a touchdown, helping the Patriots wear down the Chargers, 21-12, to earn a berth in Super Bowl XLII against the New York Giants.

"One more (step). It's a lot of excitement flowing through my body and my mind right now," Maroney said. "I've never been to a Super Bowl and never played in one. I'm just trying to stay calm right now."

It was the latest in a series of strong performances by Maroney, who has ascended from bit player to supporting player to starring role for New England, which advanced to the Super Bowl for the fourth time in seven seasons.

Maroney gained 122 yards for the second straight week and has gone over 100 yards four times in his last five games.

"It was tough, he (Maroney) is a great runner and they have a very solid line," San Diego linebacker Matt Wilhelm said. "They were determined to run time off the clock."

With league MVP Tom Brady having one of his worst games of the season, throwing three interceptions, the Patriots started to feed the ball to Maroney in the second half while clinging to a 14-12 lead.

After being limited to just 17 yards on seven carries in the first half, Maroney powered through the Chargers for 105 yards after the intermission.

"They played tough the first half, they played tough the second half," Maroney said. "It seemed like they started giving ground a little in the second half. We just kept pounding them and pounding them and eventually those little two-yard runs broke into eight- and 10-yard runs."

A first-round pick in 2006, the 5-11, 220-pound Maroney had a big 20-yard run to help set up New England's final touchdown, making it 21-12 with 12:15 to play.

Maroney, who was a college teammate of Dallas Cowboys running back Marion Barber at Minnesota, then finished off San Diego, carrying eight times - including six in a row - as the Patriots ate up the final 9:13 on the clock.

"It felt good," Maroney said. "You have a lot of critics talking about our running game and the productivity of the running game, so it felt good to run the clock out with the running game."

"Laurence ran well, made some key plays when we needed to, especially that last drive, to be able to hang onto the ball and run out the clock for the better part of the fourth quarter," Patriots coach Bill Belichick said.

Maroney got off to a decent start to the season with 252 yards rushing in his first three games before a groin injury almost derailed his campaign.

After sitting out three games, Maroney returned and had 15 or fewer carries in the next seven contests. He only rushed for more than 44 yards twice in that span, with 75 being his top effort.

Then came a cold, windy and rainy home game against the Jets on December 16. Maroney rushed for 104 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries - his first game over 100 yards since Week Three.

That started the current five-game stretch in which Maroney has averaged 21 carries and scored six touchdowns.

"We come into the game and try to be balanced," Maroney said. "Hopefully, the pass works. If the pass doesn't work, hopefully the run works. I really didn't know what to expect in terms of carries. I just knew that whenever they called my name, I'd be ready."