New England Patriots players listed alphabetically or numerically. Running backs Travis Minor and Lamar Smith were held to a combined total of 20 yards on 11 carries, while quarterback Jay Fiedler ended up as the leading rusher with 16 yards. Philadelphia responded with an 11-play, 50-yard drive, featuring a 20-yard run by Duce Staley, that ended with a 46-yard field goal by David Akers. Steelers defensive back Chad Scott started out the dominance by intercepting Baltimore quarterback Elvis Grbac's first pass of the game and returning it 19 yards to the Ravens 43-yard line. During the game the Jets appeared to lose a fumble to the Patriots, but the fumble was reversed based on a rule that would become controversial in the subsequent playoffs - the Tuck Rule. Are you a Stathead, too? The Packers generated most of their offense early in the contest, but the turnovers gave the Rams a 24–10 halftime lead. Because the Jets had two timeouts left, coach Herm Edwards decided not to attempt an onside kick. Meanwhile, they managed to pin down the Packers, only allowing a meaningless score on an 8-yard touchdown pass from Favre to Freeman with 5:46 left in the game. But despite being down 26-16, Brady took over, directing a field goal drive, then throwing the game-tying touchdown in the final minute to Jermaine Wiggins. Join our linker program. The two surviving teams from each conference's divisional playoff games then meet in the respective AFC and NFC Conference Championship games, hosted by the higher seed. Taylor finished the drive with a 4-yard touchdown catch to give the Ravens a 14–3 lead with 1:20 left in the third quarter. Jerome Bettis finished it off with a 1-yard touchdown run, cutting the score to 21–10 with 5:11 left in the third quarter. First, safety Tebucky Jones intercepted a pass from Stewart and returned it 19 yards to the Steelers 34-yard line. But three plays later, Williams stripped the ball from Freeman, dove on it, then got up and returned it for a touchdown. In the second half, things began to open up, especially for New England, who almost completely abandoned their running game and relied on Brady. Tampa responded with a 10-play, 65-yard drive, but once again could not dent the end zone and had to settle for another Gramatica field goal, cutting their deficit to 10–6. O-Line Coach), Eric Mangini (Defensive Backs), Josh McDaniels (Personnel Assistant) and Rob Ryan (Linebackers), Head Coach/de facto General Manager: Bill Belichick, Director of Player Personnel: Scott Pioli, Preseason Odds: Super Bowl +6000; O/U: 6.5, Training Camp: Bryant College (Smithfield, Rhode Island), Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Monday, October 12, 6:40AM. : Brian Daboll (Defensive Assistant), Jeff Davidson (Asst. However, McGinest sacked Warner for a 16-yard loss on second down, pushing the Rams back to their 46-yard line. Later in the third quarter, Otis Smith intercepted a pass intended for Rams wide receiver Torry Holt after Holt slipped while coming off the line of scrimmage, and returned the ball 30 yards to the Rams 33-yard line. The Rams forced New England to another three-and-out, and got the ball back on their own 45-yard line with 1:51 left in the game. : Brian Daboll (Defensive Assistant), Jeff Davidson (Asst. On second down, Warner scored on a 2-yard touchdown run to make the score 17-10, Patriots. Under the current playoff format, wild card qualifiers can meet in any playoff round except the wild card round. The game was the last played at Foxboro Stadium. With the second seed in the AFC playoffs, the Patriots faced the Oakland Raiders at home following a first-round bye in the final game at Foxboro Stadium; in a snowstorm, a Patriots drive late in the fourth quarter was kept alive in an application of the now-infamous tuck rule that was used in overturning a Brady fumble into an incomplete pass. The game that decisively turned the 1-3 Patriots season around came against former and future Patriot Doug Flutie along with the 3-1 Chargers' vaunted rookie LaDainian Tomlinson. Bill Belichick coached the team. Both teams struggled in the heavy snow storm during the first half, combining for the same number of punts as first downs (11) and converting only one of 13 third downs. Subscribe to our Free Newsletter, This Month in Sports ReferenceFind out when we add a feature or make a change. Then after forcing a three-and-out, the Rams drove 71 yards in 10 plays, with Warner completing three passes to Bruce for 44 yards and a 16-yard pass to Holt at the Eagles 9-yard line. Then linebacker Jason Gildon recovered a fumble from Terry Allen on Baltimore's next drive and the Steelers capitalized with a 46-yard field goal from Brown, increasing their lead to 20–0 with 4:23 left in the half. Then on San Francisco's ensuing possession, defensive back Mike McKenzie deflected a pass from Garcia into the arms of Tyrone Williams for an interception on the Packers 7-yard line. Obviously there are emotional swings with sports and so the mathematical ratings do not always line up with the emotional expectations from a team. After defeating the top-seeded Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Championship Game, the Patriots faced the heavily favored St. Louis Rams, known as "The Greatest Show on Turf," in Super Bowl XXXVI.