If New England is able to run the table on this remarkable 2007 season, the Patriots will glance back at this grueling evening with the Philadelphia Eagles and gratefully recall a football game in which they scratched out a victory despite a porous secondary, a continually harassed franchise quarterback, and a negated star receiver who was relegated to the role of decoy down the stretch.
In other words, they will remember this as the game they should have lost, but still managed to pull out anyway.
"You guys have gotten spoiled," said cornerback Ellis Hobbs. "You've got to understand this is the NFL. You can't expect a blowout every time."
"We expected their best shot," said offensive lineman Stephen Neal. "There's a reason they call them the Screaming Eagles. They come from everywhere.
"But you can't ever get too worried. We don't panic. If you've got No. 12, then you've got a shot."
That's the point, isn't it? If Randy Moss is dealing with being bumped at the line of scrimmage, and facing double coverage, and seeing precious little daylight, then quarterback Tom Brady - he's No. 12 in your program - must go to Plan B. In this case, that was Wes Welker, the "other" new receiver who has served the role as the less glamorous go-to guy in this ever expansive and complex offense.
It was Welker who connected with Brady on three key receptions down the stretch, which culminated in a Laurence Maroney 4-yard touchdown run, and a 31-28 Patriots advantage that would - finally - hold. Although the players in the New England locker room said they never felt as if they were in trouble, to a man they agreed this was a close call that might have gone the other way.
"We played terrible, but we still got it," said Asante Samuel, whose interception in the end zone sealed it for the Patriots in the final minutes.
"We won," said veteran Rodney Harrison. "We're not happy about it, but we won."
The Patriots survived some truly disconcerting omens, among them Eagles defensive end Jacqua Thomas leveling Brady with a vicious hit in the first quarter, one of three sacks Brady would absorb on the night.
