For Patriots, there’s no place like home
Thanks to a decisive win over the Jets, the road to the Super Bowl goes through Gillette Stadium — and whatever Mother Nature has in store
FOXBORO — Before heading off to the ice box known as Gillette Stadium, where it was 13 degrees for the 1 p.m. kickoff with a wind chill of minus two, we engaged in an exercise along the lines of a bedtime check.
We drove down Airport Road in Warwick on Sunday morning, going a little bit below the suggested speed limit with the hope of catching a glimpse of a certain team plane that’s stationed at T.F. Green Airport – a 767 Boeing wide-body jet that features distinct markings such as the Patriots logo on the body and five Lombardi Trophies on the tail.
Alas, we saw no sight of Kraft Airlines off the main drag. Hardly discouraged, we turned right at the traffic light that leads to Winslow Park, home to softball and soccer fields. We went down the road, passing all the fields on the left, before reaching a point of no return.
Taking out the binoculars, we parked the car and spent a couple minutes surveying the landscape. We saw plenty of planes, but not the one designed to provide comfort to mammoth offensive and defensive lineman and 40-year-old quarterbacks.
Just as well. Why would you leave a plane out in the cold when it’s not scheduled to take off for quite some time?
As expected, New England’s favorite football lads got the New
Year’s Eve party started with a bang by grounding the New York Jets in workmanlike fashion, 26-6. The dominant performance by Tom Brady, Dion Lewis, and a stout defense that welcomed new addition James Harrison placed a big red bow on the only item that New England needed to cross off from its regular-season to-do list – the top seed in the upcoming American Football Conference playoffs.
By achieving said honor, the Patriots if they play their cards right won’t have to board Kraft Airlines until the final week of January. That means a certain team plane would get to continue to enjoy a long winter’s nap, one that officially started when New England returned home after winning a close shave at Pittsburgh on Dec. 17.
“Obviously, we knew what was at stake, but it was more important coming out and finishing what we started,” said safety Devin McCourty. “Now we get into the second part of the season, a new season where everything we’ve done doesn’t really matter. It’s how you play in that next game, but what better way to do that than at home in front of our fans? That’s what we’ve earned this year.”
The Patriots have now earned seven No. 1 seeds in franchise history. That’s the most in the NFL dating back to 1990, when the current playoff format was instituted. In the six previous instances when New England entered the postseason derby as the top seed, they’ve gone on to the Super Bowl five times.
Under Bill Belichick and his trusty sidekick Brady, the Patriots have routinely made it a habit of ringing in the New Year with a well-deserved bye when the wild-card round commences. One must harken back to the 2009 season to find the last time that New England participated in the opening weekend of the NFL playoffs.
“Being off this week, hopefully we can get as healthy as we can be. That would help everybody,” said Brady when asked about the importance of having some time off before gearing up for the Patriots’ first playoff test. “There’s no looking past the next game. Whoever we play, we’re going to have to play well.”
Once again, the AFC road to the Super Bowl will go through Gillette Stadium. A divisional round game is on the docket for the weekend of January 13-14. Should the Patriots prevail, they’ll treat the Foxboro Faithful to the eighth AFC Championship Game in team history on Jan. 21. Win that one and then it’s off to Minnesota for the big game that’s on the docket for Feb. 4.
Off? As in the Patriots must travel via plane to an NFL game? It could happen one more time this season. Until such a scenario becomes crystalized, it might not be a bad idea to take Kraft Airlines for a spin around the runways at T.F. Green Airport every now and again over the next few weeks.
Staying sharp also applies to airplanes, especially those who cater to an NFL crowd that likes to spend its January in the New England cold.