Spirits rose when Brady got up from hit

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- As quarterback Tom Brady lay on the ground in the fourth quarter, the result of a bruising hit, the Patriots had a brief moment to consider what life would be like without their key leader.

The Patriots were driving for their final touchdown and faced third and 6, when Brady scrambled out of the pocket and raced 7 yards. Brady didn't slide, leaving him vulnerable to a hard hit on the back of his right throwing shoulder by Jaguars rookie linebacker Clint Ingram.

"I was looking for the first-down marker and tried to dive head-first," Brady recalled. "He got me pretty good. I'm sure it will be sore, but I'll be ready to go."

Brady remained on the sideline for the next snap, as backup Matt Cassel entered the game. But when the Jaguars were penalized for having 12 men on the field, Brady returned to the game, having not missed an official play.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick acknowledged his heart skipped a beat when he saw Brady get crunched.

"You don't want to see any player go down, but luckily he bounced back," he said. "He's a tough kid and that was a big first down that he got. Ultimately that led to our final points that we were able to put up there. I think that reflected his toughness and his competitiveness, how bad he wants to win. That's the type of great player he is."

Added offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels: "He's tough. I've always said he's as tough as anyone I've ever seen play the game."

Brady's trademark running play is usually a sneak up the middle, but he varied his repertoire a few times yesterday, finishing with a career-high 31 yards rushing on 10 carries (three on game-ending kneeldowns). Why so much running?

"They were doing a pretty good job of covering our receivers, doing a pretty good job of matching our routes pretty well, and I think the one [player] who isn't accounted for is me and I wish I could run a bit more," he said. "But I'm not the most fleet-of-foot guy, so there has to be a lot of space for me to run. I made a few plays running. I'm trying to get over the 100-yard mark for the season."

Brady, whose highlight running play of the season came when he faked out Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher Nov. 26, is indeed over the 100-yard mark on the year. After yesterday's win, he now has 48 carries for 103 yards.

Linebacker Tedy Bruschi was impressed with Brady's hard-nosed running, and the way he got up after taking the big hit from Ingram.

"I'm used to seeing him make plays like that every week, but that's the first time I've seen him take a shot like that where he stayed down," Bruschi said. "So, Cassel comes in for a play, but to see [No.] 12 go back in there after one play, it fires us up as an entire team."

Brady is now 25-4 when the final margin of the game is less than 7 points; 37-7 on Thanksgiving or later; 60-2 when leading at halftime; and 64-1 when leading after three quarters.

When the Patriots were driving midway through the fourth quarter and rookie Laurence Maroney entered the huddle, he was given specific instructions from Brady.

"Tom was like, 'Stay in bounds and get a first down,' and I was like, 'Hey, I'm trying to get the touchdown,' " said Maroney, who darted 27 yards for what turned out to be the winning score. "I was due for one."

Maroney led the team with 48 yards on just seven carries, as the team primarily attacked through the air. He was happy to return to action after suffering torn rib cartilage Dec. 3 against the Lions.

"Like I was telling everybody, I'm not good on the sideline, no good on the bench," Maroney said. "I couldn't wait to get back and play. It was a good feeling to get back out there and play with the team and help in any way possible."

Maroney said his touchdown was a result of solid blocks up front and on the second level by fullback Heath Evans. The touchdown run was the longest by the Patriots this season, besting Maroney's 25-yard run Oct. 1 against the Bengals.

The Jaguars, who were playing without leading rusher Fred Taylor, relied heavily on rookie running back Maurice Jones-Drew. Jacksonville had 46 offensive plays and Jones-Drew had the ball for 25 of them (19 rushes, 6 receptions). He was also part of one of the game's most unusual plays, a 74-yard second-quarter touchdown run in which he fell to the ground after colliding with teammate Kyle Brady but never was touched by the defense.

"I was running and I didn't get a chance to see Kyle, who was doing a great job of blocking the defensive end and kind of bounced off," Jones-Drew said. "Nobody touched me, so I got up and took off running. But the run doesn't mean anything because we didn't win. It wasn't enough."

After the game, Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio questioned two calls by the officials -- a diving third-quarter touchdown catch by Patriots tight end David Thomas, and the game-ending strip sack of Jacksonville quarterback David Garrard. Del Rio challenged both calls during the game, but they weren't overruled on replay.

"I thought we had a legitimate shot to overturn, and in both cases we did not get it," he said. "The touchdown grab by the tight end, the ball hit the ground and it moved. I saw it on the screen and verified it, because we had an injured player. And at the end there, there is an arm moving forward and the ball knocked out, and that's by definition, an incomplete pass. It wasn't ruled that way. Maybe I'm looking from an angle full of hope."

Cassel served as the holder on field goals for the first time this season. That role had been filled by punters Josh Miller and Ken Walter. "It's not brain surgery," said Cassel, who was a backup holder in college at Southern California . . . In his first game punting for the Patriots, Todd Sauerbrun finished with five attempts and a 35-yard average and 35-yard net. The Jaguars didn't return a punt . . . Stephen Gostkowski had a streak of 11 straight field goals broken when he missed a 49-yard attempt in the third quarter. Gostkowski made a 48-yarder in the second quarter . . . The strip sack by defensive end Jarvis Green that sealed the win gives him 6 1/2 sacks on the season, tying him for second on the team and adding to his career-high total . . . Running back Corey Dillon's 1-yard touchdown run in the second quarter was his team-leading 11th of the season and the 80th rushing touchdown of his 10-year career. The touchdown was Dillon's 37th as a Patriot (2004-present) in 42 games . . . Receiver Kelvin Kight recorded his first career reception, a 9-yard grab on the first play of the game.

When umpire Garth DeFelice was injured after being hit with a pass in the first half, the refereeing crew shifted personnel and officiated with six officials instead of the normal seven . . . Nose tackle Vince Wilfork, tight end Benjamin Watson, offensive tackle Ryan O'Callaghan, cornerback Antwain Spann, safety Rashad Baker, guard/center Gene Mruczkowski, and defensive end Marquise Hill were inactive. Vinny Testaverde served as the emergency quarterback for the sixth time in six games . . . Taylor, receiver Charles Sharon, running back Montell Owens, cornerback Ahmad Carroll, offensive tackle Richard Collier, and defensive linemen Tony McDaniel, James Wyche, and Jeremy Mincey were inactive for the Jaguars.