There is something admirable about the strength of Bill Belichick's disdain for the Jets. He wants to destroy his arch-nemesis so badly, he will have Tom Brady stand in the pocket and throw until nearly the final moments of a multiple-touchdown game. On Sunday, the Patriots were well on their way to drubbing the Jets and securing the No. 2 seed. But Belichick kept Brady in the game until there was 3:26 left, just after he had hit Julian Edelman with a five-yard touchdown pass. The Patriots marched down the field in their penultimate drive, with Brady throwing three times in the red zone.
The week prior, Brady was removed from the game with 6:50 left. TB12 looked hobbled and brittle, as he continued to bail out of throws when faced with pressure from the Bills' defense. He finished with a QB rating of 48.3.
After another week of amplified talk about his football mortality — and by fill-in hosts, no less –– Brady delivered an "F-U" of sorts on Sunday. Sure, it was against a Jets team with a lame-duck head coach that was seemingly just waiting until it could get back on the buses, but he still threw four touchdown passes and connected with seven different receivers.
His knee also looked A-OK on his touchdown toss to Phillip Dorsett.
Tom Brady scrambles around and finds Phillip Dorsett in the end zone for six pic.twitter.com/HhcmnJ8YdQ
— Def Pen Sports (@DefPenSports) December 30, 2018With their annihilation of the Jets, the Patriots' Super Bowl path once again looks open. They are undefeated at Gillette Stadium this season and just one home win away from an eighth consecutive AFC championship berth. And if the Chiefs lose to the Colts, Chargers or Ravens, which is possible, the AFC championship would be held in Foxboro as well.
And even if the game were to take place in Kansas City, the Brady who played Sunday looked like somebody who could compete with Patrick Mahomes in a shootout.
"F-U," indeed. Belichick made sure the Jets got the point loud and clear.
