The 84,254 fans who crammed into Wembley Stadium for the third year running to watch the NFL’s finest do battle both for a win, and for the hearts and minds of British supporters, witnessed an entertaining but one-sided affair, as the heavily favoured New England Patriots easily defeated the winless “home” side, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
On the field, this was a routine win for the Patriots, who after a slow start, are beginning to resemble the ruthless machine that came seconds from a perfect season in 2007. This is due in no small part to the growing confidence of quarterback Tom Brady, whose early season performances suggested he was still feeling the psychological effects of the knee injury that ended his 2008 season after only a few minutes. Brady was short of his best at Wembley, but still comfortably outclassed Tampa Bay’s Josh Johnson, his precision and patience resulting in three passing touchdowns. Brady was never seriously pressured by the Buccaneers’ defence, despite giving up two interceptions, and good protection from his offensive line allowed the three-time Super Bowl winner to pick out his receivers at ease. With deep threat Randy Moss often double covered, and carrying an injury, the Patriots favoured screen passes and quick slants to Wes Welker and an unheralded supporting cast of Ben Watson, Sam Aiken, Chris Baker and Brandon Tate. Welker, Watson and Aiken all scored touchdowns, whilst Laurence Maroney, who had a good day, added a rushing score in the fourth quarter.
The tone for the performance had been set by the Patriots’ defence, when safety Brandon Meriweather intercepted Johnson on the first drive of the game, and returned the pick for a touchdown. From that point on, the Buccaneers were always chasing the game, and never really threatened an upset. Johnson was picked off again by Meriweather in the first quarter, and although he improved, showing glimpses of talent with a nicely weighted touchdown pass for Antonio Bryant in the third quarter, a combination of poor protection, throwing and catching meant that the Florida side relied on the running game, making it easy for the Patriots’ defence to stop them.
With a straightforward, albeit entertaining, game on the field, the other matter at hand was the ongoing success of the NFL’s International Series. There has been speculation, much of it fanciful, about where the league goes from here, but whatever happens, the fixture was another triumph, with the highest attendance yet, better weather than previous years, and a wealth of media coverage prior to the game. The novelty may be wearing off after three years, but there is a committed band of supporters who keep coming back. The game itself may not have been a close encounter, but they came away entertained and content that they had seen one of the game’s true greats in Brady.
No comments:
Post a Comment