This is the backstory to one of the great moments of Week 6, the New England Patriots' dramatic last-minute touchdown to knock off the previously unbeaten New Orleans Saints. The Patriots' comeback, as well as the Green Bay Packers' road win over the Baltimore Ravens and the Cincinnati Bengals' overtime triumph against the Buffalo Bills, are nominees for the GMC Never Say Never Moment of the week. Cast your vote for the GMC Never Say Never Moments of Week 6.
It likely will go down as one of the most memorable nights in Boston sports history. Late-game heroics by Tom Brady helped the New England Patriots complete a furious comeback in the waning seconds to top the previous unbeaten New Orleans Saints in Foxboro. Later that night, the Boston Red Sox won in improbable fashion at Fenway Park. However, we're here to talk exclusively about the football portion of that fun.
Here are the key moments before the moment:
Patriots build 17-7 halftime lead
The play:Patriots running back Stevan Ridley scores a 4-yard touchdown -- his second touchdown of the game -- to put New England up by 10 on New Orleans.
The aftermath: After missing the Patriots' previous game -- a humbling 13-6 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals at rainy Paul Brown Stadium -- Ridley returned to action and produced his best game of what had been a disappointing season entering Sunday. Ridley finished with a season-best 96 yards rushing and had his third career multi-touchdown game (the last coming in Week 17 of last season against the Miami Dolphins -- a 28-0 win).
A funny moment happened on the Patriots' sideline, as Brady was left hanging by Julian Edelman when he attempted to give the receiver a high five. This didn't seem to alter Brady's sky-high self-confidence one bit.
Saints strike back
The play:Khiry Robinson scores on a 3-yard touchdown run for the Saints to tie the game at 17-17.
The aftermath: Robinson -- an undrafted rookie free agent -- is rising from obscurity to become a viable option in the Saints' crowded backfield (which already includes Darren Sproles, Pierre Thomas and Mark Ingram). The score was Robinson's first in the NFL, and his 53 yards rushing were a career high. The Saints came out of the half with authority, scoring on their first two possessions to even up the tally on the scoreboard.
Stills the one
The play:Saints quarterback finds rookie receiver Kenny Stills in the end zone for a 34-yard strike that put the Saints up, 24-23.
The aftermath: Stills' spectacular touchdown grab came after the Patriots had gotten two field goals from kicker Stephen Gostkowski to retake the lead. The Saints added to that lead when Garrett Hartley seemingly put an exclamation point on another Saints victory with a 39-yard field goal that gave New Orleans a 27-23 lead.
Brady, Patriots appear beaten
The play: Brady is picked off by Keenan Lewis on the Patriots' first snap following Hartley's field goal.
The aftermath: The interception have the ball back to the Saints with 2:24 remaining in the game. It appeared that New England was heading toward its second loss in as many games. New Orleans, however, couldn't capitalize on the gift. The Saints went three and out on offense, giving the ball back to the Patriots -- and, more notably, the ever-clutch Brady -- with 1:13 left to play.
The moment
The play: Brady hits Kenbrell Thompkins in the end zone for a 17-yard game-winning touchdown.
The aftermath: Brady had 70 yards to navigate in just over a minutes with no timeouts left. Completions of 23 yards to Edelman, 15 yards to newly acquired Austin Collie and six yards to Aaron Dobson got the Patriots to the Saints' 26-yard line. However, two consecutive incompletions to Edelman near the goal line set up a desperate fourth-and-4 situation. A 9-yard completion to Collie put the Patriots in position for the dramatic winning score to Thompkins, which has since been properly immortalize with a Tecmo Bowl-style treatment.
The frenzied come-from-behind win was just the latest in a long line of heroics by Brady, who has been playing miracle worker for the New England faithful for more than a decade. It represented Brady's 39th game-winning drive in the fourth quarter or overtime in his career (regular season and postseason), and ties him with Peyton Manning for the most since 2001.
Follow Jim Reineking on Twitter @jimreineking.
