Super Bowl Action

As I write this, the silence surrounding the National Football League is deafening.

The stadiums are calm, with only the echoes of past conquests reverberating through the corridors. The talk radio lines are full of the excited whispers of eager fans. There is no clamoring for the backup. There are no coaches blowing gaskets in media sessions. And the talking heads are nearly out of stupid questions (for now).

Hope.

It's like Christmas Eve, New Year's Day, and that 15 minutes after Confession rolled into one. Right now everyone's record is perfect. There have no blown assignments or missed calls. No one has dropped a pass or mismanaged the clock during a two-minute drill.

Hope.

At this moment, endless possibility is coursing through the veins of all 32 teams in the NFL. Right now, players and fans across the nation are sitting somewhere thinking, "This is our year" or "Why not us?" Anyone can be the next Warner or Roethlisberger or Brady. Anyone can be a champion.

Hope.

But it won't last. It can't. Come Monday morning it will all have changed. The menacing vibrations will have overwhelmed the silence. Pride and desperation will sink in, and so many people will be wretched back into reality. Nature will take its course, and the fittest will survive.

Dynasty? Definitely. The New England Patriots don't have to proclaim greatness. The NFL record book does it for them.

The Patriots won their third Super Bowl in four years -- 24-21 against the Philadelphia Eagles -- and now they are challenging history. 

It was their ninth consecutive postseason victory, equaling Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers. It was coach Bill Belichick's 10th playoff victory in 11 games, one better than the great Lombardi. And it matched Dallas' run of three championships in four years in the early 1990s.

"We've never really self-proclaimed ourselves anything," said Tom Brady, who is 9-0 in the playoffs. "If you guys say we're great, we'll accept the compliment."

This one wasn't overpowering, and at times it was downright ugly. But not even Belichick seemed to care about that.

"To me this trophy belongs to these players," Belichick said. "They met all comers this year, a very challenging year. We're thrilled to win. These players played great all year, their best in the big games and they deserve it; they really deserve it."

With MVP Deion Branch tying a Super Bowl record for receptions with 11, Brady efficiently running the offense and Rodney Harrison sparking a smothering defense, the Patriots (17-2) didn't need a last-second field goal from Adam Vinatieri this time.

But his kick -- a 22-yarder with 8:40 left -- provided the points that made the difference.

This time, the Patriots sealed it with a stop.

Philadelphia (15-4) got the ball back at its 4 with 46 seconds remaining. It was hardly enough time and far too much territory to cover against such a formidable foe.

Harrison got his second interception with 9 seconds remaining to end it.

Playing before a sea of mostly green jerseys in the crowd of 78,125, the Patriots ended Philadelphia's chance of heading north with its first major pro sports title since 1983. Indeed, it has been 45 years since the Eagles won the NFL crown. And even though they made it to the Super Bowl for the first time since 1981 -- after three consecutive conference championship flops -- their sparkling season still ended in disappointment.

"We were too sloppy to win," receiver Terrell Owens said. "It was great to get back, but we made too many mistakes. We could have won, and that hurts." Corey Dillon, a newcomer to the championship game, scored the go-ahead points on a 2-yard run early in the fourth period. And when Branch wasn't catching passes, the Patriots flaunted their versatility by again using

linebacker Mike Vrabel to find the end zone.

Vrabel has caught TD passes in back-to-back Super Bowls and has five TDs in as many career catches, not bad for a linebacker -- or anyone else.

Brady wasn't as fluid as he was when he won the MVP awards in the 2002 and 2004 games, but he was 23-for-33 for 236 yards and two TDs.

"It doesn't matter who gets what," Branch said of taking the MVP away from his quarterback.

When the offense bogged down or turned over the ball, Harrison and his mates forced four turnovers, including a goal-line interception by the veteran safety. The Patriots also had four sacks, making Donovan McNabb look ordinary, even skittish at times.

And while Owens' return from a seven-week injury layoff was an individual success -- he had nine catches for 122 yards -- it was not nearly the star turn Branch made.

Branch was most instrumental on the opening drive of the second half, which set the tone for New England's 57th victory in its past 74 games.