New England stamps itself as a team for the ages with third NFL title in four years

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. —  Rage against the machine. Fight the power. But you still can’t beat the New England Patriots, who didn’t so much crush the competition Sunday but, with the businesslike efficiency of a Fortune 500 company, waited around to capitalize on mistakes.

The Philadelphia Eagles, cheered on by a stadium filled with their fans, put up a good fight before losing, 24-21, and becoming the latest victims of the NFL’s buttoned-down bullies.

Even the final score of Super Bowl XXXIX at Alltel Stadium was typical of the methodical Patriots, who for a third time won a championship by three points.

It was McDonald’s over McNabb; Wal-Mart over Westbrook; G.M. over T.O.

“We’ve been in this situation before,” New England linebacker Mike Vrabel said flatly. “We knew what to expect, and we executed when the game got close.”

Trailing by 10 points with less than two minutes to play, the Eagles made things interesting when Donovan McNabb tossed a 30-yard touchdown pass to Greg Lewis to trim the deficit to three with 1 minute 48 seconds remaining. The Patriots regained the momentum, though, when they recovered the ensuing onside kick.

After a three and out by New England, Philadelphia got the ball back at its four-yard line with 46 seconds to play. But there would be no dramatic scoring drive; on the third play of the possession, safety Rodney Harrison ended the threat by intercepting McNabb’s pass. It was McNabb’s third pick of the game, capping an unusually shaky outing for him.

Of course, it was his first Super Bowl, and there was a great deal of pressure on his shoulders, considering the Eagles have now gone 44 years without winning a football championship. Only the Cardinals and Lions have endured a longer drought.

The Patriots, meanwhile, became the first team to repeat as Super Bowl champion since the 1998 Denver Broncos and only the second NFL franchise to win three championships in four seasons; Dallas, in the early 1990s, is the other.

“We’ve tried to express to people what this team is all about,” Patriot quarterback Tom Brady said. “We really are a team. I mean, in four seasons I’ve never had a receiver complain about not getting the ball. I’ve never had a running back complain about not getting enough carries. An offensive line that busts their backs every day. And a defense that’s just unreal.”

The Patriots are short on superstars and long on players willing to do what’s necessary to win. So it wasn’t a surprise that an erstwhile no-name receiver wound up being named the Super Bowl’s most valuable player. Deion Branch earned that honor after catching 11 passes for 133 yards. He had missed much of the season because of a knee injury.

“He’s been a clutch guy,” Coach Bill Belichick said. “We missed him in the first half of the season. But since he’s been back, he’s been a big contributor, and never more so than today.”

Although he wasn’t named MVP -- and the award probably wouldn’t have soothed him much anyway -- Eagle receiver Terrell Owens turned in the most remarkable performance of the game. He made an astonishingly quick recovery from a broken leg and didn’t announce until last week that he planned to play. He finished with nine catches for 122 yards, including one spectacular, twisting grab.

“I played as many plays as I could,” Owens said. “I played as many plays as Coach called. He allowed me to get on the field, and he called my number. ... You don’t get tired at this stage.”

Even with the help of tireless T.O., the Philadelphia offense failed to get into a consistent rhythm. Many of McNabb’s passes either whistled high above the heads of his receivers or were drilled into the turf at their feet. The Eagles weren’t able to bust loose running back Brian Westbrook with any regularity. He did have a 22-yard run, but he needed a total of 14 more runs to get another 22 yards.

Most crippling to the Eagles were their four turnovers -- three interceptions and a fumble -- as compared to New England’s one, a Brady fumble.

“I made three interceptions,” said McNabb, who also threw three touchdown passes. “I don’t look at the touchdowns, I don’t look at any of that. I look at the interceptions. As a quarterback you want to make sure you take care of the ball. Turnovers kill you, and they hurt us today.”

As for the Patriot secondary, it had to cope with personnel turnover, just as it has all season. Starting free safety Eugene Wilson left the game with an injury and was replaced by rookie Dexter Reid. The Patriots already had rookie Randall Gay starting at left cornerback, and second-year corner Asante Samuel starting on the right side. The only true veteran of the group was Pro Bowl safety Harrison, who earlier this season had to deal with the loss of starting cornerbacks Ty Law and Tyrone Poole.

“The guys who had to step up, stepped up,” Harrison said. “They did a tremendous job of playing man-to-man coverage and breaking up some passes. They just really learned. It’s a huge step for next year.”

On another front, New England will take a step back next season. Charlie Weis, the team’s revered offensive coordinator and confidante to Brady, will leave immediately and turn his attention to coaching Notre Dame’s football team. And Romeo Crennel, the defensive coordinator, is headed to the Cleveland Browns to be their head coach.

“Charlie, Bill and myself have been together a long time,” Crennel said. “Not only as coaches, but as friends. And to know the finality of it, it kind of hits you. But this game is about change. Players change, coaches change, and you have to move forward.”

Corey Dillon understands that. The Pro Bowl running back joined the Patriots last spring after spending his first seven seasons in Cincinnati, where he never made the playoffs. Now, he’s getting a ring.

“This whole thing has been a true blessing,” he said. “I went out there and worked hard with my guys, my teammates. This is great. This is what it’s all about.”

Spoken like a real company man.

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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

TWO-MINUTE DRILL

MOST VALUABLE

* Patriot receiver Deion Branch had 11 catches for 133 yards; Patriot quarterback Tom Brady completed 23 of 33 passes for 236 yards and two touchdowns.

TURNING POINT

* Trailing, 24-14, the Eagles were driving when Donovan McNabb underthrew Terrell Owens, leading to an interception at the Patriot 24 with 7:27 left.

KEY STAT

* Donovan McNabb threw three interceptions and, despite being one of the best scrambling quarterbacks in the league, was sacked four times.

3, 3, 3

* The Patriots have won all three of their Super Bowl titles by three points, beating the Eagles, 24-21; Carolina, 32-29, in 2004 and St. Louis, 20-17, in 2002.

THE FINAL WORD

* The talk during the season always seemed to be about Peyton Manning, Michael Vick and McNabb, but Brady walked away with the NFL title again.

BRADY’S BUNCH

A look at the New England Patriot dynasty:

* New England is the second team to win three Super Bowls in four years (Dallas 1992, 1993, 1995 seasons).

* New England set an NFL record with 34 wins (34-4) in a two-season span, surpassing Denver, which went 33-6 in 1997 and ’98.

* New England tied the 1960s Green Bay Packers for the longest playoff winning streak in NFL history (nine games). The Packers won nine straight from 1961 to ’68.

* Patriot Coach Bill Belichick improved his postseason record to 10-1, moving ahead of Vince Lombardi (9-1).

COACH CLASS

Best playoff coaching records:

Bill Belichick...10-1, .909

Vince Lombardi...9-1, .900

Joe Gibbs...16-5, .762