NEW ORLEANS'The theme of the day was patriotism.
The game itself was no different.
The red, white and blue was dominant before, during and after Super Bowl XXXVI. Using a demonstration of spirit, determination and teamwork, the organizers of the game pulled it off, and so did a group of coaches and players who were given no chance.
Thus, the unofficial American pep rally known as the Super Bowl, in every which way, was won by the Patriots.
The New England Patriots stood on their own 17, game tied at 17, 1:21 left, no timeouts. Momentum was slipping beyond their grip because the Rams just scored a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns. Plus, the Patriots were trying for a winning drive with a quarterback who was a backup when the season began. Yes, this is where the biggest championship upset since the NFL-AFL merger was to begin.
Tom Brady, cool as October, completed a 5-yard pass. Then an 8-yarder. Then one for 11 and finally, 23. They were in field-goal range. A Superdome crowd sensed something special was about to happen. How could it not? How could the Patriots be denied on this day?
\A lot of bookies are upset with us today, but we don't give a damn,"" cornerback Ty Law said.
You saw the way they dismissed the skeptics, disregarded the tag of two-touchdown underdogs, threw away all logic.
They pressured Kurt Warner and the mighty Rams offense and forced turnovers. They refused to buckle, even when the Rams made a late rush, even when TV expert John Madden all but ordered them to shoot for overtime from the booth.
The Patriots sent a message to a sellout crowd and a national audience by refusing to settle for anything and invite the opportunity for defeat.
""These guys never gave up,' said Vinatieri, unquestionably the Patriots' postseason hero. ""We shocked the world, but not ourselves.'
The outcome was the culmination of one of the greatest seasons by any coach. Bill Belichick made all the right calls along the way, didn't he? He brought in a bunch of has-beens whose talent was slipping but not their desire to play. He gave Pro Bowler and disrupter Terry Glenn the boot. He decided to stick with Brady over Drew Bledsoe when the original starting quarterback finally healed. And he had the Pats prepared to play a Super Bowl like no other coach.
From the very start, the Patriots were a perfect fit for the unity theme that swirled within the Superdome. All the flag-waving and anthem-singing was designed to assemble a country anxious to show an example of togetherness.
Likewise, so were the Patriots. In a break from Super Bowl tradition, the Pats were introduced as a team, not individually. That's the way they played all season, so they figured, why change now? Brady even felt a little guilty when he accepted the MVP trophy, which he won largely for his work on the winning drive.
""You can't pick an MVP in this locker room,"" Law said. ""Congrats to Tom Brady but a lot of different guys made plays today and all year. We rally around each other. We aren't individuals, we're a group, and we're proud of it.'
He's right. The Super Bowl mirrored their season, because not one player stood above the rest.
This teamwork was evident when Mike Vrabel socked Warner in the second quarter, allowing Law to intercept the fluttering pass and return it 47 yards for the Pats' first score. Then Antwan Harris hit Rams receiver Ricky Proehl, and Terrell Buckley grabbed the ensuing fumble, leading to Brady's touchdown pass to David Patten.
""You can't beat a team like the Rams with individuals,' safety Lawyer Milloy said. ""It takes a team. That's what you saw today. That's what we gave during the evolution of a season.'
