The Day The Sky Fell

One of the good things about the regular season is that a team can play poorly and have a chance at a better game the next week. Unfortunately, this is not the scenario in the playoffs. One mistake can cost the season. A team's deficiencies are very apparent.

Maybe the Pats went further than they should have this season. They won the AFC East in spite of playing poorly in the second half of many games. As a fan, I thought they could turn things around in the post-season.

I was able to attend the game at Gillette Stadium. The tickets were pricey at $174 face value. I was at the playoff game against Jacksonville following the 2007 season and had a great time. I was looking forward to a well played game.

The day was sunny and very cold, but hey it's January! The Pats won the coin toss and elected to kick. They stopped the Ravens on the 13 yard line. Things looked good until the next play. Ray Rice took a hand-off and ran 87 yards for a TD. That seem to suck the life out of the crowd.

Brady proceeded to throw two interceptions and was strip-sacked. It was 21-0 in the first quarter. Nothing worked well after that. Although Joe Flaco passed for only 32 yards, the Ravens ran for 234.

Brady would throw another interception as well as connecting for two TD's with Julien Edeleman. The game was never close. The Ravens defense was devastating.

Nobody ever wants their team to lose. The way the Pats lost Super Bowl XLII to the Giants was heart breaking. However, this was a very frustrating loss. The team played so poorly. Their effort wasn't there. I was hoping for a competitive game, but it wasn't there.

In retrospect, I guess I saw history made yesterday. It was the absolute worst performance of Tom Brady's career. Hopefully, he will never top it.