FOXBORO — You are supposed to be used to this by now around here. Heck, the competition is supposed to be used to this by now.
The record book says Tom Brady has done "this" 29 times, leading the New England Patriots to a victory when his team trailed in the fourth quarter.
It didn't stop you from smiling as your head hit the pillow around midnight.
It didn't stop the tears from running down the cheeks of Buffalo Bills safety Donte Whitner.
"We had them," said Whitner, wiping away a tear under his left eye. "We had them beat."
Brady was not only human the first 54 1/2 minutes last night, but he was pretty darn pedestrian.
Brady not only guided the Patriots to just 13 points against the "not-ready-for-prime-time" Bills, but some of his decisions (see interception to defensive end Aaron Schobel) and overthrows on routine sideline routes were things that might be common occurrences in places like Oakland, Chicago or Houston.
"(Brady) looked a little tentative out there," said Bills linebacker Kawika Mitchell, of the New England Patriots quarterback during that stretch. "We put a little pressure on him. He just didn't look as comfortable as he usually does out there."
Mitchell forgot to say "dull."
But as Brady walked onto the field midway through the fourth quarter, with the Patriots trailing 24-13, something clicked. And it was not his gimpy left knee, which hadn't been under this much duress in over a year.
"He came into the huddle with (5:25) left in the game and he was talking like we're going to win the game," said Patriots receiver Randy Moss, who tied a career-high with 12 receptions last night. "That's the kind of thing you want to hear from your leader."
The Bills aren't quite sure what hit them after that.
Beginning on the Patriots' 20, Brady went back to pass 11 times. He completed nine of them, including one for a score, 18 yards to tight end Ben Watson, to close it to 24-19 (the two-point conversion failed).
With Brady waking up Gillette Stadium with that drive, the Patriots special teams did their part when Brandon Meriweather rammed Bills return man Leodis McKelvin head on before Pierre Woods came in for the kill, ripping the ball free. Kicker Stephen Gostkowski ended up with the loose ball.
Coach Bill Belichick was asked if it was rare to see a kicker go diving for a fumble like he did.
"Not Stephen," said Belichick. "He's a pretty tough kid."
So Brady was handed the ball on Bills' 31-yard line with 1:56 remaining in the game, trailing 24-19. To be honest, it had felt as if the Patriots had clinched the game.
Three passes and 50 seconds later, Brady hit Watson again, this time from 16 yards on the same kind of pattern — Brady threw the ball behind Watson and Watson grabbed it. In both instances, the defender wasn't looking, which made it look very easy.
"It was just a post," said Watson. "I was just going through the middle and he made a great throw. He put it where the defender couldn't see it; only I had a chance at it."
The Bills, which looked like a contender for 54 1/2 minutes, then looked like the Bills again. Needing a field goal with two timeouts and 50 seconds remaining, they botched everything up.
Quarterback Trent Edwards was sacked twice and the game ended with the Bills playing pitch as the clock ended.
The talk afterward centered not just on the victory, but the man who looked like he had done it 28 times before.
Brady was 3 for 3 on the last drive. He was 9 for 11 on the drive before that. And for the fourth quarter he was 15 for 18.
"At the end there, he looked like the old Tom Brady," said Mitchell. "There is a reason everybody knows his name. Brady is special. He always finds a way. I've seen him do this before. It's hard to take. It really is."
You can email Bill Burt at bburt@eagletribune.com.
ÔÇæÔÇæÔÇæ
Join the discussion. To comment on stories and see what others are saying, log on to eagletribune.com.
Stoglin's frustrations boil over following Duke loss-2/12
Timonen "disappointed" in teammates' effort
Morganti: 'Rangers' power play demolished the Flyers'
Timonen: 'I think we got half the guys going and half the guys not'
More shootout woes in store for the Flyers when they face the Red Wings?
The Rangers have the Flyers' number
St. Joseph's vs. Massachusetts Highlights - 2/11
Penn vs. Dartmouth Highlights - 2/11
Drexel vs. Hofstra Highlights - 2/11
La Salle vs. St. Louis Highlights - 2/11
John Wall talks about the loss to the Heat-2/10
Collins takes the blame for the Sixers' final possession
Sixers vs. Clippers highlights
Sixers defensive effort not enough vs. Clippers
Post game plus crew on the Sixers loss
Rose and Zumoff recap the Sixers last second loss
Penn vs. Harvard highlights
Stefon Diggs chooses Maryland, Randy Edsall comments-2/10
Cal Ripken says the Orioles will go as far as their pitching-2/10
Sandusky makes a statement
Julien: 'did it the hard way'
McAdam's Spring Training primer
Doc: Team's effort is 'un-Celtic'
Pierce stresses mental toughness
Globe 10.0 Who was the best free agent in Boston?
Maria Menounos dons a Giants-colored bikini after losing Super Bowl bet-2/7
Thomas' moratorium: 'I'm out, peace'
Gasol: 'Not pleasant' being part of trade rumor
Blakely: Gasol-for-Rondo trade unlikely
Brady-ing is Latest Internet Meme
Globe 10.0: Is Paul Pierce the Celtics greatest scorer?
Ranking Pierce among Celtics greats
Garnett's tale of first meeting Paul Pierce
Pierce's loyalty touted after big night
Hurt Locker: Patriots react to Super Bowl loss
Brown: 'Eli Manning is better than Tom Brady'
Local fans crushed by Patriots loss in Super Bowl XLVI
Marcus Johansson Caps lone goal in loss to Bruins-2/5
Matt Hendricks throws down with the Bruins' Adam McQuaid--2/5
Vinatieri, Law, Brown recount Super Bowl XXXVI
