PHOENIX — There’s a reason they call the final two minutes of the half or game a drill. It must be handled, practiced and executed with unflinching precision, and it can bore a hole through the will of an opponent.
Nobody performs better at those critical junctures than the New England Patriots. They scored 90 points in the final two minutes of the first and second half during the regular season, by far the most in the NFL, while giving up a league-low 28. Although they might have gotten to this Super Bowl without such efficiency, they would not be staring at a perfect season if not for one very important drive — and an equally significant stop — against the Ravens on Dec. 3.
Trailing 24-20, the Patriots received the ball for the final time with 3:20 remaining in that memorable Monday Night game. They drove 73 yards in 13 plays, capping it with an 8-yard touchdown pass from Tom Brady to Jabar Gaffney with 44 seconds left. Then, when the Ravens caught a Hail Mary pass on the last snap of the game, Eric Alexander tackled Mark Clayton at the 3 to preserve the win.
“At the end of the game, of course, it’s either now or never,” Gaffney said.
How efficient are the Patriots? Let’s break down those numbers. Consider that the two-minute period at the end of each half constitutes about 6.6 percent of the game. The Patriots scored 90 of their 589 points inside that window, accounting for 15.3 percent of their scoring. In 16 games there were 32 “two-minute” drills. The Patriots scored on 14 of them, and they weren’t popping in field goals as time expired. They had 12 two-minute touchdowns and only two field goals.
On defense, the Patriots finished by giving up 10.2 percent of their points in that critical time span. However, 14 of the 28 points allowed came against the Giants in the regular-season finale, including an eight-play, 85-yard drive at the end of the first half that could be looked back on as the pivotal moment not only of the season but in Eli Manning’s development.
Safety Rodney Harrison said he wasn’t aware of the Giants’ success against New England with time running down.
“Now that you said it, it concerns me,” he said. “Hey, we didn’t play our best football against the Giants. They scored 35 points against us, so we have a lot of room for improvement. If we play Patriot defense, we should have success.”
(During the regular season, the Giants scored 63 points in the final two minutes of the half and the game and gave up 39.)
On offense, the success starts with Brady. As the pulse of the game quickens, his remains steady. He said it’s because he’s in the situation so often, has been all his career. He thought back to his days of battling for playing time at Michigan.
“We used to run two-minute drills against our defense, and I wasn’t sure if I didn’t score in that two-minute drill on Thursday that I would be starting the game,” Brady said.
“Talk about pressure, I was feeling pressure on Thursday afternoon at practice to try to get our starting offense into the end zone against our defense. Then when you get into the games and you’re around those situations, you’re already playing, so now you’re having a great time out there.”
And the Patriots work on their hurry-up play every day in practice. Every day. So they know what is expected of them on both sides of the ball.
“You obviously have a different sense of timing,” offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels said. “There’s a little bit more of a sense of urgency, there’s a little bit more of an awareness of getting the ball out of bounds if you can. We always talk to our players about the fact that anybody on the field can call a timeout if we need one called. There’s a heightened awareness of the entire situation.”
McDaniels said the key is to get the important drive going early. Third-and-longs in enemy territory can squash it. Get the ball across the 50, he tells his players, and then think about scoring.
Most Patriots games don’t come down to the final two minutes. They’ve won their 18 games by an average margin of 18.6 points. For them, it’s the two minutes before the half that are often most essential. Those drives, Gaffney said, can really dishearten an opponent, especially if the Patriots receive the ball to start the second half.
“That could be a 14-point swing and the other team hasn’t even touched the ball,” he said.
While the Patriots would prefer to be taking off their shoulder pads, receiving championship T-shirts, and waving to family in the stands when the game clock hits 2:00 tonight, there’s always a chance that they’ll be on the field fighting to the end.
“Sooner or later, your season will come down to the two-minutes,” running back Laurence Maroney said. “If you aren’t prepared or don’t know what to expect, it’s going to be a rough two minutes for you.”
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
