Deion Branch

FOXBOROUGH - Ask Bill Belichick, ask Tom Brady, ask anyone who has spent any time with Deion Branch what has made him so effective as a receiver with the Patriots, and one word comes up before any other: instinctive. He isn't the first pass-catcher that's been said about, nor the first football player. But what exactly is instinctiveness? In the case of Branch, it is this: Game 7, Heinz Field, third quarter of a game New England ultimately would lose to the Steelers.

FOXBOROUGH - The Patriots entered the offseason prepared to move on without center Dan Koppen and left tackle Matt Light, with retirement likely for the latter. Koppen is still a free agent after the Patriots signed Dan Connolly to starter's money at center, and owner Robert Kraft said nothing Thursday to dissuade the thinking that Light is likely to retire at some point. Kraft, following a Patriots Charitable Foundation event celebrating Camp Sunshine in Maine, became a little emotional when asked about prospect of moving forward without long-time Patriots in Light and Koppen.

FOXBOROUGH -- Deion Branch considers himself a boxing fan, so meeting Micky Ward was a highlight for the receiver last night. You may have heard the Patriots gathered to watch "The Fighter" last night. Branch said the movie was a nice break from the routine. "... [Belichick] knows when to let up off the pedal on the guys and when he needs to keep his foot down. That's his decision. We're just here following orders. We go to practice, and if we come in without a meeting, that's cool too. Overall, it was a great movie.

Even though the Patriots have signed Brandon Lloyd and Donte' Stallworth in the last week, it always seemed there would be room for Deion Branch. Thursday, the 32-year-old wide receiver agreed to a one-year deal to remain with the team - and the quarterback - with which he's enjoyed his greatest success. Branch took to his Twitter account to share his thoughts: "It's truly an honor and a blessing with [the] Patriots next year. Can't wait to get back in the swing of things.

FOXBOROUGH - The Patriots entered the offseason prepared to move on without center Dan Koppen and left tackle Matt Light, with retirement likely for the latter. Koppen is still a free agent after the Patriots signed Dan Connolly to starter's money at center, and owner Robert Kraft said nothing Thursday to dissuade the thinking that Light is likely to retire at some point. Kraft, following a Patriots Charitable Foundation event celebrating Camp Sunshine in Maine, became a little emotional when asked about prospect of moving forward without long-time Patriots in Light and Koppen.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Half an hour after the Patriots had won their third championship ring, after the fireworks had been set off and the confetti had settled, after he'd been named the most valuable player, Deion Branch still had his gloves on. You never know when Tom Brady might fling another ball his way. "I don't think they were looking to throw me the ball that many times," said the human Venus flytrap, after he'd caught 11 passes for 133...

FOXBOROUGH -- After missing last week's game because of a sore groin, Patriots receiver Deion Branch said he was feeling better, and doing everything he can to play Saturday against the Dolphins. "One day at a time," the receiver said. "I think I've got to go out there and show coach a little more than what I showed him last week and hopefully I'll get the nod that I can go. "My job is to go out, practice as hard as I can, and show them what I can do. If he likes it, then good, if he don't then I won't be playing.

HOUSTON - Like many of the first- and second-year Patriots, Deion Branch was in awe of Super Bowl week. He did the video camera thing. As the Patriots' leading receiver, he was usually a featured player in the daily interview sessions. He answered all the dumb questions. He dreamed of scoring the winning touchdown. "I think a lot of people dream it, but you have to do it to make it a memory," Branch said. "I think you make memories as a team anyway, but everyone wants to make the big play, catch the big catch.

loading video... (please wait a moment) Requires Adobe Flash Player By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff FOXBOROUGH -- Patriots wide receiver Deion Branch donned a large grin and laughed about exchanging notes with Chad Ochocinco if T.J. Houshmandzadeh joined the team's wide receiver corps. But getting more serious, Branch said there's nothing really to talk about yet without Houshmandzadeh on the team. "It's hard to speak on that situation," Branch said.

INDIANAPOLIS - Wes Welker's voice was barely audible. He leaned forward in his director's chair as he sat at a podium in the Patriots interview area at Lucas Oil Stadium, taking questions about his role in the Patriots' 21-17 loss to the Giants last night in Super Bowl XLVI. His crestfallen gaze did little to disguise his disappointment at a critical drop on a Tom Brady second-and-11 attempt from the Giants' 44 with a little more than four minutes left. Welker had capitalized on a busted coverage that enabled him to run free.

INDIANAPOLIS - Wes Welker's voice was barely audible. He leaned forward in his director's chair as he sat at a podium in the Patriots interview area at Lucas Oil Stadium, taking questions about his role in the Patriots' 21-17 loss to the Giants last night in Super Bowl XLVI. His crestfallen gaze did little to disguise his disappointment at a critical drop on a Tom Brady second-and-11 attempt from the Giants' 44 with a little more than four minutes left. Welker had capitalized on a busted coverage that enabled him to run free.

He plays offense. He's won at least two Super Bowls, and he was the MVP the last time the Patriots won the NFL championship. Know who it is? "I'd have to say Tom," New England safety Patrick Chung said Monday. Nope, not Tom Brady. The same question seemed to stump running back BenJarvus Green-Ellis for a few seconds, too. Then he said it's really not important who got the honor in a game where the biggest reward is the Vince Lombardi Trophy that goes to the NFL champion.

By Chad Finn, Globe Staff INDIANAPOLIS -- Loyal Patriots fans know the answer to this question, but let's ask anyway: In the Patriots' three Super Bowl victories, Tom Brady was named the Most Valuable Player award twice. Who was the other player to win it? The answer, of course, is Deion Branch, who had a record-tying 11 catches for 133 yards in the Patriots' 24-21 victory over the Eagles in Super Bowl XXXIX. Branch's MVP performance may be easy to remember for Patriots fans.

FOXBOROUGH - It has become a tradition for Deion Branch, whether his team is in the Super Bowl or fails to make the playoffs: He calls every football coach he's had, and thanks them. When he says every coach, he means it. When Branch is challenged on his claim, he says he even calls Coach Price, the man who led his Bruins team when he was just 6 years old in Albany, Ga., and spent an hour on the telephone Thursday night with Jim McElwain, his receivers coach at Louisville who recently became the head coach at Colorado State after a successful stint as Alabama's offensive...

FOXBOROUGH - It has become a tradition for Deion Branch, whether his team is in the Super Bowl or fails to make the playoffs: He calls every football coach he's had, and thanks them. When he says every coach, he means it. When Branch is challenged on his claim, he says he even calls Coach Price, the man who led his Bruins team when he was just 6 years old in Albany, Ga., and spent an hour on the telephone Thursday night with Jim McElwain, his receivers coach at Louisville who recently became the head coach at Colorado State after a successful stint as Alabama's offensive coordinator.

Tom Brady walks silently to the chair at his locker. He talks quietly with Deion Branch in the adjacent stall. Later, he puts on his jacket and heads for the exit. No hearty backslaps or loud jokes with teammates. Nothing to call attention to himself. Just another routine practice day in the life of one of the most accomplished figures in sports. "Tom thinks he's one of the boys," Branch said. "He can't be one of the boys. This guy's the face of the NFL. " Brady, a two-time Super Bowl MVP, could be the face of the championship game...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- It took Deion Branch nine weeks to get his "breath" back but when he did he left the Kansas City Chiefs breathless. According to the Patriots, their explosive wide receiver had the wind knocked out of him during the second game of the season against Arizona Sept. 19, when he left the field and did not return. He wasn't seen again until last night, long after it had been learned that the real reason Branch was short of breath that day was because he'd badly wrenched his knee at the same time.

Situation: The Patriots were leading the Broncos, 21-7, with 2:06 left in the first half when they had first and 10 at their 39-yard line. What happened: The Patriots came out in a rare traditional set with tight ends on both sides of the line. Quarterback Tom Brady (12) saw a man coverage look from the Broncos as both cornerbacks - Andre Goodman (21) and Champ Bailey (24) - were up on Deion Branch and Wes Welker, respectively, at the line of scrimmage. One of the keys to this play was the safety to Branch's side, David Bruton (30)

FOXBOROUGH - Given an extra week to face reminders about how he and the Patriots had fared in the playoffs lately, Tom Brady took the field last night intent on making those failures - team and individual - a distant memory. He replaced them with a record-setting destruction of Denver's defense in a dominating 45-10 victory at Gillette Stadium, more than enough to place the pass-happy Patriots one scintillating step from football's promised land. Reunited days earlier with newly rehired offensive coach Josh McDaniels, Brady turned last night's AFC divisional game into a 2007 flashback,...