The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Mother Nature in favor of Patriots
FOXBOROUGH, MASS. >> His coach downplays it. Tom Brady does not.
Brady knows the coldweather New England Patriots should have an advantage when they host the warm-weather Los Angeles Chargers in Sunday’s AFC divisional-round game.
Hours before, Bill Belichick said, “We’re playing the Chargers. We’re not playing the weather — whatever it is, it is. We’re going to be on the same field” when asked about having no advantage. His quarterback made it clear this team is quite comfortable in the expected chilly conditions.
New England will apparently dodge the snowstorm that’s making its way to the East Coast, but it will be cold.
It’s the kind of cold the Patriots, who are seeking their eighth straight trip to the AFC title game and a sixth Super Bowl title in the Brady era, know all too well.
“I just think the ability to practice in it,” Brady told his regular Friday media session. “Like today, it’s very similar to what we’re going to get on Sunday, so just knowing how many layers you have to put on, and kind of how you’re going to feel when you have the nice, warm, heated benches out there like we will on Sunday.
“It’s cold and that’s just this part of this time of year. But it’s good to be playing when it’s cold out, it’s good to be playing this time of year in Foxborough.”
Thursday provided the home team with much of what this area has to offer in early January.
“The weather changed a little bit yesterday,” Brady said.
“It snowed at the start, then got sunny, then got cloudy, then got windy, then got sunny and it was just a bunch of different things. Just to practice in it, we’re prepared for it, and hopefully we can use some of the things that we’ve learned to our advantage.”
Brady has reached the AFC title game 12 times in 16 seasons as a starter. He will play in his record 38th postseason game and comes in 27-10. He’s 41 years old and hasn’t had the greatest season of his stellar career, but still gets, well, chills about playing in the cold.
“It’s a good time of year,” he said. “I think everyone’s excited to be out there. It’s just a great environment of football.”