But the Patriots did think. They always do. Above all, they resort to their football intelligence when the environment is hostile, the game is close, and air is ripe for an upset. There's a reason New England is 9-1 this morning, and Kansas City is 3-7.
One team made the big plays, and the other didn't.
It wasn't a clean getaway, that's for sure. The Patriots resembled Matt Damon at the end of "The Bourne Identity"; your heroes absorbed their share of hits and suffered a few bumps and bruises, but still were able to escape under their own power.
Don't waste your time applying style points to this critical 27-19 road victory. Fret about some big plays that quarterback Trent Green provided by hooking up with Eddie Kennison and twice burning Earthwind Moreland for touchdown passes if you must, but remember this is the most hair-raising offense in the league -- for everyone, never mind players pressed into service because of injuries to Ty Law and Tyrone Poole. Moreland was hardly alone in his struggles. Randall Gay was burned by Dick Vermeil's arsenal, and so, at times, were veteran Rodney Harrison and Asante Samuel.
"Defensively, we were kind of scrambling around in the secondary, from the second quarter on," said coach Bill Belichick. "That's the way it goes sometimes."
"How many points did they score?" asked Seymour. "Nineteen? That don't sound like no high-powered offense to me."
Consider the waning minutes of the first half, after the Chiefs, down, 17-10, elected to go for it on fourth and 1 from the 23-yard line. Running back Derrick Blaylock got the 1 yard for the first down, then put his team in position to score with a reception for a first and goal from the 9. New England's defense was bending, but would it break?
There is Bruschi breaking up a pass on first down. There is an errant throw from Green on second down. And there is Harrison picking it off in the end zone on third down.
"We've got playmakers on defense," said Bruschi. "We have all sorts of guys that step up in that situation. Are we surprised? No. We've been doing this a long time. Our only concern is how many points are on the board at the end of the game."
