Tom Brady and the Patriots broadcast a definitive statement in season-opening win
COMMENTARY
FOXBOROUGH — OHMIGOD, THE CHEATING, SRYSLY?
As if the Patriots infomercial that aired on the NFL Network on Wednesday didn’t do the trick, it took a mere four minutes and 49 seconds one evening later to remind everyone just how misguided the assumptions are that Bill Belichick’s team has gotten to the pinnacle of the league via, what some four-letter networks may call, cheating.
Brady to Gronk. Once. Twice. Thrice.
Just like that, all the innuendo and accusations that preceded the season-opener seemed ultimately juvenile.
It was totally awesome. Right?
Oh, how easy the vindicated Tom Brady made it look Thursday night in the Patriots’ 28-21 season-opening win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, connecting with favorite target Rob Gronkowski for a trio of touchdowns, cementing them as most dominant tandem in the NFL. As if you needed a reminder.
“I was excited to go out there, and certainly to win, to be 1-0,’’ Brady said after his four-touchdown performance on opening night at a Roger Goodell-Less Gillette Stadium. “Last year we started 0-1, always tough to do. We got off to a better start.’’
The “Brady’’ chants started early in this one, from the deafening Gillette crowd.
Yes, you read that right.
This was a Gillette Stadium crowd not witnessed or heard from in quite some time, despite the glorious accomplishments of the last decade-plus. Wine and cheese were replaced with honest, fanatical emotion amidst the celebratory vibe surrounding the raising of a fourth Super Bowl banner. The library infamously known as the Patriots’ home stadium morphed into a party that stretched far beyond the parking lot at Patriot Place, extending to the far reaches of St. Albans and Point Judith. Pats fans reveled in their sports icon taking down Roger Goodell, and celebrated by thumbing their collective noses at the flustered absence of the man in charge.
“The banner is pretty awesome,’’ Gronkowski said after tallying five catches for 94 yards with his three touchdowns. “We had a great team last year, but now it’s a new year. It’s a new focus and what’s so sweet was getting that win tonight. It wouldn’t have been that great a night [with a loss]. Nothing makes it better than having a win when you play football in the NFL.’’
It took until the 11:11 mark of the fourth quarter though for the first “Where is Roger?’’ singsong chant from the Gillette Stadium crowd, echoing the mock question delivered to Roger Clemens in 1999, after being bested by Pedro Martinez and the Red Sox in Game 3 of the ALCS.
The Yankees, of course, would ultimately have the last laugh 16 years ago.
It sure looks like the Patriots might too in 2015.
The seven-point victory seemed a lot more lopsided than it actually was, despite Josh Scobee’s audition for the Detroit Lions, missing a pair of field goals in the first half. Despite missing running back Le’Veon Bell and wide receiver Martavias Bryant, Ben Roethlisberger and company made the argument that they will be an offense to fear once Voltron is complete.
The defense and coaching blunders, are, of course, another issue entirely.
Not that it’s the Steelers’ fault. It’s never an opponent’s fault at Gillette.
You just had to know that the Patriots’ surgical effort couldn’t come without controversy. It took all of less than one half for more questions surrounding Bill Belichick’s trickster ways to rear their head into the national spotlight, when NBC reported that Steelers coaches were hearing a Patriots radio broadcast through their headsets. Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin (“That’s always the case here.’’) was livid about the situation after the game, but it was an issue that the league cut off at the pass, issuing a statement in the wee hours of Friday morning.
“In the first quarter of tonight’s game, the Pittsburgh coaches experienced interference in their headsets caused by a stadium power infrastructure issue, which was exacerbated by the inclement weather,’’ Michael Signora, vice president of football communications for the NFL, said. “The coaches’ communications equipment, including the headsets, is provided by the NFL for both clubs use on game day. Once the power issue was addressed, the equipment functioned properly with no additional issues.’’
If you’re keeping track, that’s two straight inclement-weather football games that matter played at Gillette Stadium. The last one, you might remember, had some influence on all of us studying the ideal gas law. There was even a court case. It was awesome.
“We had a lot of problems,’’ Belichick said in his postgame press conference, dressed as if he were scheduled on the first flight to Nantucket for the weekend, clad in blue cargo shorts and flip-flops, a laid-back antithesis to his normal, rugged postgame attire. “We had to switch headphones a couple of times. The communication system was not very good. We deal with that it seems like weekly. They told us that they were on the verge of shutting it off, but I guess they got it working. … Tom almost had to switch helmets near the end, we couldn’t get the plays into him.’’
Cool. Everyone happy? Looking at you, Baltimore. Indy, we cool?
Ah, but you know somehow that stench is going to follow the Patriots into the national network pregame shows on Sunday, and be a talking point on ESPN throughout the week. And the more games there are like Thursday, the more Patriot fans will get to ignore it all.
Celebrate. Good times.
“Finally, to get down to football and to celebrate something we did, I thought it was good for the team, for everybody’s spirit,’’ defensive back Devin McCourty said. “I think everyone was anxious and ready to get on the field and play football, not having to sit around and listen to everybody talk about something other than playing football.’’
Amen.
But just in case, get ready for six months of headset debate.
Awesome.
PHOTOS: Patriots vs. Steelers
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