Final
Belichick gets best of Mangini in playoff showdown
Jan 7, 2007 - 11:46 PM FOXBORO, Massachusetts (Ticker) -- Bill Belichick schooled his pupil on the playoff stage.Using a diversified offense that mixed Tom Brady's precision passing and an effective running attack to go with a defense that forced two critical turnovers, the New England Patriots rolled to a 37-16 victory over the New York Jets in the AFC wild card round.
The game matched Belichick, a three-time Super Bowl-winning coach who has never lost a home playoff game, against Eric Mangini, the Jets' rookie coach who was an assistant under Belichick when the Patriots won championships in 2001, 2003 and 2004.
Mangini left New England to take over the Jets last January and guided them to a split with the Patriots in the two regular-season meetings between the AFC East rivals, including a 17-14 victory here on November 12.
Not much was expected of the Jets, who finished 4-12 last season. But Mangini orchestrated quite a turnaround as New York (10-7) earned the first wild card spot.
However, the playoffs belong to Belichick. And he proved it again on Sunday, improving to 12-2 in the postseason, including 7-0 in home games.
"We just played a complete game today," Belichick said. "It wasn't perfect by any means, but we did a lot of good things. Our tight ends and running backs did a great job in blitz pickup."
In the November meeting between the teams, the Jets sacked Brady four times. This time, Belichick and his staff made the adjustment on blitz pickups and Brady was sacked just once. That was a big reason why the Patriots (13-4) were 11-for-16 on third-down conversions.
The Jets were just 3-for-11 on third-down conversions.
"In the end, they just executed more effectively than we did in key areas," Mangini said. "Stopping the run defensively and not turning the ball over were the keys for us. They outexecuted us."
After the game, Belichick hugged Mangini at midfield. That was not the case after the regular-season meetings when Belichick gave Mangini a quick handshake and walked away.
"I don't want to talk about that," Belichick said when asked about his postgame hug. "I'm not going to get into that kind of postgame analysis."
"He said 'good luck' and I wished him luck and I meant it," Mangini said of Belichick's postgame hug.
A two-time Super Bowl MVP, Brady improved his playoff record to 11-1, including 6-0 at home. He completed 22-of-34 passes for 212 yards and capped two long drives with scoring tosses to tight end Daniel Graham and running back Kevin Faulk.
"I think we had a great plan," said Brady, who is 10-2 in his career against the Jets. "This is a pressure defense. They bring a lot of different blitzes and I think we were prepared much more for the pressure this time around."
Belichick's wrinkle on offense was to make Jabar Gaffney a major part of the game plan. After catching just 11 passes during the regular season, Gaffney caught eight passes for 104 yards.
The backfield tandem of Laurence Maroney and Corey Dillon complemented the passing game, combining to rush for 122 yards and a touchdown on 28 carries.
As is usually the case in the postseason, the Patriots also got some big plays from their defense.
Defensive tackle Vince Wilfork recovered a lateral that was deflected by linebacker Rosevelt Colvin and returned it 31 yards to the New York 15. That set up a 28-yard field goal by rookie Stephen Gostkowski with four seconds left in the third quarter, giving New England a 23-13 lead.
Cornerback Asante Samuel, who tied for the league lead with 10 interceptions this season, sealed the win when he picked off a pass by Chad Pennington and returned it 36 yards for a touchdown with 4:54 left in the game.
The fourth-seeded Patriots will play the top-seeded San Diego Chargers (14-2) in the divisional playoffs next Sunday.
Gostkowski has the distinction of following in the footsteps of Adam Vinatieri, who kicked two Super Bowl-winning field goals for the Patriots. Vinatieri signed as a free agent with Indianapolis last March and Gostkowski won the kicking job over Martin Gramatica in training camp. After making 20-of-26 field goals in the regular season, Gostkowski made all three field-goal attempts in his first playoff game.
Pennington hit Jerricho Cotchery with a 77-yard touchdown - the longest pass play in the franchise's playoff history - just 15 seconds into the second quarter to give the Jets a 10-7 lead.
But that was the only time the Jets would get into the end zone against the NFL's second stingiest defense.
Mike Nugent kicked three field goals for New York, extending his streak to 21 in a row.
The Pats took control with a 15-play, 80-yard drive which consumed nearly seven minutes of the second quarter. Brady completed 4-of-5 passes for 43 yards and capped it with a one-yard touchdown to Graham, giving New England a 17-10 lead with 11 seconds left in the first half. With 3rd-and-goal at the 1, Brady faked a handoff and lofted a pass in the back of the end zone for Graham, who got behind linebacker Brad Kassell.
The Jets pulled within 17-13 on a 21-yard field goal by Nugent after opening the second half with a 13-play, 73-yard drive that lasted 6:41.
The Pats responded with a drive of their own that included a 31-yard pass from Brady to Gaffney and resulted in a 40-yard field goal by Gostkowski with 4:22 left in the third quarter.
On the Jets' next possession, rookie Leon Washington broke loose for a 19-yard run to the New England 48. But on the next play, a lateral by Pennington was knocked down by Colvin and picked up by Wilfork, who rumbled 31 yards before being tackled by Cotchery at the New York 15. The play was ruled a backward pass and a fumble and upheld by replay.
"I think it was something that broke the game open for us," Patriots Pro Bowl defensive end Richard Seymour said.
Four plays later, Gostkowski kicked a 28-yard field goal with four seconds left in the quarter.
Tight end Chris Baker caught three passes for 50 yards on New York's next drive to set up a 37-yard field goal by Nugent 3:21 into the fourth quarter, pulling the Jets within 23-16.
But Brady directed a 13-play, 63-yard drive which he capped with a seven-yard scoring pass to Faulk with 5:16 left in the game. Brady connected with Troy Brown on a 10-yard pass on a 3rd-and-8 play to keep alive the drive.
Just 22 seconds after Faulk's touchdown, Samuel picked off an underthrown pass by Pennington and raced 36 yards down the left sideline to give the Pats a 37-16 lead.
Pennington was 23-of-40 for 300 yards. But the Jets ran the ball just 16 times with two coming on reverses and two on scrambles by Pennington.
Maroney rushed for 69 yards on 18 carries and Dillon added 53 yards on just 10 carries. Dillon scored on an 11-yard run just 3:07 into the game to cap a 10-play, 65-yard drive which featured three catches by Gaffney for 34 yards.
"The season in total was a good job on our part," Jets linebacker Jonathan Vilma said. "But you don't want to lose in the first round of the playoffs."
It was the second meeting between the division rivals in the playoffs. The first one was also won by the Patriots in the 1985 wild-card round.
- WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
NFL WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
FINAL 1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH TOTAL
--- --- --- --- -----
NY JETS 3 7 3 3 16
NEW ENGLAND 7 10 6 14 37 FINAL
SCORING SUMMARY
1ST QUARTER: NWE - TD, COREY DILLON 10 YD RUN (STEPHEN
GOSTKOWSKI KICK), 3:07. Drive: 10
plays, 65 yards in 3:07. Key plays:
Brady 12-yard pass to Gaffney to
New En
Jan 7 4:19 PM
TD NWE ASANTE SAMUEL 36 YD INTERCEPTION RETURN (STEPHEN GOSTKOWSKI KICK)
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 4:07 PM
TD NWE ASANTE SAMUEL 36 YD INTERCEPTION RETURN (STEPHEN GOSTKOWSKI KICK)
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 4:07 PM- WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
NFL WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
TD NWE
ASANTE SAMUEL 36 YD INTERCEPTION RETURN
(STEPHEN GOSTKOWSKI KICK)
NY JETS 16
NEW ENGLAND 37 4:54 LEFT, 4TH QTR
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 4:07 PM - WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
NFL WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
TD NWE
KEVIN FAULK 7 YD PASS FROM TOM BRADY
(STEPHEN GOSTKOWSKI KICK)
NY JETS 16
NEW ENGLAND 30 5:16 LEFT, 4TH QTR
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 4:01 PM
FG NYJ MIKE NUGENT 37 YD
Pennington 26-yard pass to Baker to New England 49; Pennington 11-yard pass to Baker to New England 38; Pennington 13-yard pass to Baker to New England 21; Pennington 12-yard pass to Washington to New England 19.
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 3:47 PM- WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
NFL WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
FG NYJ
MIKE NUGENT 37 YD
NY JETS 16
NEW ENGLAND 23 11:39 LEFT, 4TH QTR
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 3:44 PM - WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
NFL WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
END, 3RD QTR 1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH TOTAL
--- --- --- --- -----
NY JETS 3 7 3 13
NEW ENGLAND 7 10 6 23 END, 3RD QTR
SCORING SUMMARY
1ST QUARTER: NWE - TD, COREY DILLON 10 YD RUN (STEPHEN
GOSTKOWSKI KICK), 3:07. Drive: 10
plays, 65 yards in 3:07. Key plays:
Brady 12-yard pass to Gaffney to
Jan 7 3:37 PM
FG NWE STEPHEN GOSTKOWSKI 28 YD
Wilfork 31-yard fumble return to New York 14.
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 3:35 PM- WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
NFL WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
END, 3RD QTR 1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH TOTAL
--- --- --- --- -----
NY JETS 3 7 3 13
NEW ENGLAND 7 10 6 23 END, 3RD QTR
SCORING SUMMARY
1ST QUARTER: NWE - TD, COREY DILLON 10 YD RUN (STEPHEN
GOSTKOWSKI KICK), 3:07. Drive: 10
plays, 65 yards in 3:07. Key plays:
Brady 12-yard pass to Gaffney to
Jan 7 3:34 PM - WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
NFL WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
FG NWE
STEPHEN GOSTKOWSKI 28 YD
NY JETS 13
NEW ENGLAND 23 0:04 LEFT, 3RD QTR
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 3:32 PM
FG NWE STEPHEN GOSTKOWSKI 40 YD
Brady 13-yard pass to Gaffney to New England 34; Dillon 13-yard run to New York 49; Brady 31-yard pass to Gaffney to New York 18.
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 3:21 PM- WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
NFL WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
FG NWE
STEPHEN GOSTKOWSKI 40 YD
NY JETS 13
NEW ENGLAND 20 4:22 LEFT, 3RD QTR
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 3:18 PM
FG NYJ MIKE NUGENT 21 YD
Cotchery 14-yard run to New York 40; Pennington 13-yard pass to Coles to New England 47; Bruschi 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty to New England 25; Pennington 14-yard pass to Baker to New England 11.
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 3:14 PM- WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
NFL WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
FG NYJ
MIKE NUGENT 21 YD
NY JETS 13
NEW ENGLAND 17 8:19 LEFT, 3RD QTR
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 3:09 PM - WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
NFL WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
HALFTIME 1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH TOTAL
--- --- --- --- -----
NY JETS 3 7 10
NEW ENGLAND 7 10 17 HALFTIME
SCORING SUMMARY
1ST QUARTER: NWE - TD, COREY DILLON 10 YD RUN (STEPHEN
GOSTKOWSKI KICK), 3:07. Drive: 10
plays, 65 yards in 3:07. Key plays:
Brady 12-yard pass to Gaffney to
New
Jan 7 2:38 PM
TD NWE DANIEL GRAHAM 1 YD PASS FROM TOM BRADY (STEPHEN GOSTKOWSKI KICK)
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 2:37 PM
TD NWE DANIEL GRAHAM 1 YD PASS FROM TOM BRADY (STEPHEN GOSTKOWSKI KICK)
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 2:37 PM
TD NWE DANIEL GRAHAM 1 YD PASS FROM TOM BRADY (STEPHEN GOSTKOWSKI KICK)
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 2:37 PM- WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
NFL WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
TD NWE
DANIEL GRAHAM 1 YD PASS FROM TOM BRADY
(STEPHEN GOSTKOWSKI KICK)
NY JETS 10
NEW ENGLAND 17 0:11 LEFT, 2ND QTR
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 2:37 PM
FG NWE STEPHEN GOSTKOWSKI 20 YD
Dillon 8-yard run on 3rd-and-1 to New York 41; Brady 12-yard run on 3rd-and-6 to New York 25.
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 2:12 PM- WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
NFL WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
FG NWE
STEPHEN GOSTKOWSKI 20 YD
NY JETS 10
NEW ENGLAND 10 10:57 LEFT, 2ND QTR
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 2:09 PM
TD NYJ JERRICHO COTCHERY 77 YD PASS FROM CHAD PENNINGTON (MIKE NUGENT KICK)
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 1:56 PM
TD NYJ JERRICHO COTCHERY 77 YD PASS FROM CHAD PENNINGTON (MIKE NUGENT KICK)
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 1:56 PM
TD NYJ JERRICHO COTCHERY 77 YD PASS FROM CHAD PENNINGTON (MIKE NUGENT KICK)
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 1:56 PM- WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
NFL WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
TD NYJ
JERRICHO COTCHERY 77 YD PASS FROM CHAD PENNINGTON
(MIKE NUGENT KICK)
NY JETS 10
NEW ENGLAND 7 14:45 LEFT, 2ND QTR
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 1:56 PM - WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
NFL WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
END, 1ST QTR 1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH TOTAL
--- --- --- --- -----
NY JETS 3 3
NEW ENGLAND 7 7 END, 1ST QTR
SCORING SUMMARY
1ST QUARTER: NWE - TD, COREY DILLON 10 YD RUN (STEPHEN
GOSTKOWSKI KICK), 3:07. Drive: 10
plays, 65 yards in 3:07. Key plays:
Brady 12-yard pass to Gaffney to
Jan 7 1:50 PM - WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
NFL WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
FG NYJ
MIKE NUGENT 28 YD
NY JETS 3
NEW ENGLAND 7 2:36 LEFT, 1ST QTR
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 1:44 PM - WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
NFL WILD CARD PLAYOFFS
TD NWE
COREY DILLON 10 YD RUN
(STEPHEN GOSTKOWSKI KICK)
NY JETS 0
NEW ENGLAND 7 11:53 LEFT, 1ST QTR
Jets vs. PatriotsJan 7 1:13 PM
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