AMERICAN FOOTBALL:THE REIGN of parity in the NFL this season has crumbled with the New England Patriots led by MVP frontrunner Tom Brady emerging as a legitimate Super Bowl favourite off an ominous run of excellence.
As the winds of December begin to howl, New England (11-2) have sent shudders through other contenders after back-to-back blowouts against teams that had combined records of 18-5.
New England followed a 45-3 demolition of AFC East rival New York Jets by burying NFC North-leading Chicago Bears 36-7 in a Windy City blizzard on Sunday for their fifth win in a row.
Hungry to return to the Super Bowl spotlight that brought them three Lombardi trophies in four years from 2001-2004, the Pats continued their December dominance by flouting a windchill of nine degrees and winds blowing above 30 miles an hour to storm to a 33-0 half-time lead against the bewildered Bears.
“It’s one of those days where a lot of people would rather be cosied up near the fireplace, drinking hot chocolate,” Brady told reporters after throwing for a season-high 369 yards.
“But we work on Sundays and, all of us, we’re pretty committed to coming out here and trying to play well and execute well in some pretty tough conditions.”
The Pats matched the NFC’s Atlanta Falcons for best record in the National Football League, but no team is playing at their level.
In his last eight games, Brady has thrown 18 touchdown passes and no interceptions.
Boasting a record of 35-5 in December since 2001, the Patriots are on the way to guaranteeing that the road to the Super Bowl travels through Foxborough, where Brady has won a record 26 successive home starts at quarterback.
Playing a precision, short-passing attack to perfection, the Patriots have outscored opponents 102-10 in their last nine quarters of play and a young defence moulded by defensive-minded head coach Bill Belichick has grown into a force itself.
Practice makes perfect and Brady said that it was no coincidence the tough-minded Patriots had thrived in adverse conditions.
“You’ve got to be mentally tough enough to play in them,” Brady told reporters.
“We don’t go in our (practice) bubble very often. If it’s windy, we practise out there. If it’s snowing, we practise in the snow. If it’s raining, we practise in the rain.”
As the Patriots streak, the Jets have been in a dive both on the field and off.
As the Jets (9-4) were going down to a second successive defeat and second straight game without a touchdown, a member of their coaching staff stuck out his knee and tripped a Miami Dolphins player as he was running downfield in punt coverage.
Strength and conditioning coach Sal Alosi issued an apology after the game for tripping Miami’s Nolan Carroll, who had been shoved beyond the sideline and was racing to get back into the play when he was sent sprawling.
Carroll limped off the field but later returned to action.
“I made a mistake that showed a total lapse in judgment,” Alosi said in a statement released by the Jets.
“My conduct was inexcusable and unsportsmanlike and does not reflect what this organisation stands for.”
Alosi said he apologised to Carroll and Dolphins coach Tony Sparano after the game, as well as Jets coach Rex Ryan, general manager Mike Tannenbaum and owner Woody Johnson.
NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said the league is reviewing the incident.
“I accept responsibility for my actions as well as any punishment that follows,” said Alosi.
