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Every Wednesday during the NFL season, Kru’s Control will offer readers a pre-port. A pre-port is a first cousin to a pre-diction, but it’s not just a guess about the score of Sunday’s Patriots game, it is a full-length report about the game—before it ever happens—as if it had already happened. Think of having a time traveler come back each week to let you know the story of the game several days before the game is ever played.
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.
Had Charles Dickens used this phrase to describe the Patriots 24-23 win over the Tennessee Titans, he would have been spot on. Add “Out with the old, in with the new,” and we would have a complete and perfect picture of yesterday’s game.
Mark the moment. Trailing by a touchdown with 1:43 left in the third quarter and the ball at the Titans three, Tom Brady dropped back, felt the heat, and saw nobody open in the end zone. Hardly the fastest or strongest guy out there, he made a dash for the goal line, ensuring a nasty collision at the one with Titans linebacker Rashaan Evans. Not to be denied, Brady lowered his head, bounced back, but then flung himself over the line for the game-tying score at 17 apiece .
As his teammates rushed over for congratulations, we could tell that all was not right. That he seemed woozy was bad enough, but that he was clutching his right shoulder was not a good sign at all. Assisted by the team trainers, he wobbled past the blue tent and was taken directly to the locker room. It’s a cliché, but an accurate one, to say that the crowd was in stunned silence. It was pretty clear that he would not be back today, or perhaps…
But the game went on. The newly-energized Titans went on a long drive to the Pats 12, but had to settle for a field goal on fourth and seven. Then the Pats took the field, with Jarrett Stidham under center. Not surprisingly, they attempted three consecutive runs, and had to give the ball back to Tennessee when Sony Michel was stonewalled on third and one. At that point Tennessee drove it down the Pats throats once again, only to see Jamie Collins sack Ryan Tannehill on third down, setting up a chip shot 29 yard Greg Joseph field goal to give the Titans a 23-17 lead. The game was out of reach—almost—with 2:10 left.
With only one timeout and a last shot at staying alive, Josh McDaniels had no alternative but to place the burden of winning on the rookie’s right arm. And then, believe it or not, the young stud came alive. Starting at his own 25, Stidham hit N’Keal Harry on a sideline route for 12, then Julian Edelman on a short crossing pattern, which the bearded one turned into a 25 yard gain. Sacked on the next play, Stidham had to call the Pats last timeout.
With just under 30 ticks of the clock remaining, Stidham got chased from the pocket but scrambled and hit Mohamed Sanu who managed to get out of bounds. Twenty two seconds left, first and 10 at the Titans 15, a screen to James White went incomplete, almost intercepted by old friend Logan Ryan. Stidham completed another quick pass to Edelman, who was stopped at the 6. That set up a hurried spike, fourth and goal with 3 seconds left.
Had Tom Terrific been at the helm, we would have expected him to pull the proverbial rabbit out of the hat. But Tom was in terrific pain, and all we had was the rookie, fourth round out of Auburn, whose career stats entering this game consisted of two completions for 14 yards. Stidham took the shotgun snap, surveyed the field, rolled right to avoid pressure, and hit fellow rookie Jakobi Meyers in the right corner of the end zone. Replay confirmed a catch with both feet in bounds. The Pats swarmed Stidham and walked off with a win and a new hero.
Nobody thinks that the folks in Canton, Ohio are quite ready to prepare Stidham’s bust for enshrinement. Nobody thinks that facing Kansas City will be easy. But for now the torch has been passed, as we celebrate heroes of yesterday and today. It’s 2020, the start of a new era.
