Chargers defenders - including safety Eric Weddle - had their hands full trying to slow down the Patriots' Kevin Faulk.
(Jim Davis/Globe Staff)
FOXBOROUGH - After the San Diego Chargers had tried and failed all afternoon, even Kevin Faulk found it difficult to contain himself as the seconds ticked away in the Patriots' 21-12 victory in the AFC Championship game yesterday.
Bouncing like a kid on a pogo stick on the Patriots sideline, Faulk looked to celebrate with anyone and chest-bumped offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. He blasted a high-five to a teammate and then darted out onto the field minus his football helmet.
He abruptly stopped in his tracks and began to backpedal when he realized quarterback Tom Brady had yet to take the final knee of a game-clinching 15-play, 65-yard march that consumed the final 9:13 of the game and wrung the life out of the Chargers' hopes for an upset of the undefeated Patriots and a trip to Super Bowl XLII in Glendale, Ariz.
Once Brady did the final deed, Faulk finally let loose his emotions in an exuberant display.
As a gentle cascade of glittering red, white, and blue confetti fell upon him, and "Party Like a Rock Star" by the Shop Boyz blared from the loudspeakers at Gillette Stadium, Faulk joined his teammates on the field. He jumped into the air to share a chest-bump with Benjamin Watson then ran into a scrum of players and grabbed Randy Moss by the collar of his shoulder pads, hugged him and gave Moss a congratulatory pat on his helmet.
Asked if the team had contained its emotions for 18 games, Faulk said, "I would say we've been holding them [back], because we've been playing to win games, to get to this point right now. And at this point right now, the emotions are high."
Somehow, though, it would have been fitting during the celebration if Faulk had found himself at the bottom of a happy pile of teammates.
It wasn't to be the case, but the Patriots' offensive cocaptain was certainly deserving of a little special treatment after he complemented the hard-nosed running of Laurence Maroney (25 carries, 122 yards) by coming up with a pair of big third-down conversions, including a diving 11-yard grab on third and 11 from the New England 24, on the game-ending drive that enabled the Patriots to possess the ball for the last 9:13 of the game.
"To not let them get the ball back is pretty impressive to do against a defense that has been playing great all day," Brady said. "They are a very physical defense and Kevin made some huge third-down catches and Laurence ran the ball extremely well. That's what we needed."
Faulk, who entered the game as the team's all-time leader in receptions by a running back (323), led all receivers with 82 yards on eight catches (10.3 yards per grab), representing career playoff highs for the ninth-season, all-purpose threat from Louisiana State. When it mattered most, Faulk seemed to come up with the biggest plays of the game, if not the season, after five of his receptions out of the backfield resulted in first downs.
"He's been big for us all year," coach Bill Belichick said of Faulk, who finished the regular season third on the team in receiving with 47 catches for 383 yards (8.1 average) and one touchdown. "We've had guys step up all year and Kevin and Laurence have done a great job for us and certainly did today."
After Brady was sacked for an 8-yard loss on the second play of that clinching drive, Faulk hauled in a screen pass and appeared to find a seam but was tripped up after a 7-yard gain. Facing third and 11, Faulk came out of the backfield and raced past Chargers defensive back Eric Weddle to make a diving grab of a Brady pass.
"Hey, I just saw the ball and I just dove for it," Faulk said. "It was an opportunity to make a first down and make a play for my team."
But it was Faulk's quick thinking to roll after hitting the ground untouched that resulted in an extra 2 yards, just enough for a first down.
"It was just a natural reaction," Faulk said. "Nobody had touched me so the reaction was just to keep moving."
Faulk wasn't done, however. Three plays later, on another third down at the New England 42, Faulk hauled in a short pass over the middle for a 14-yard gain that gave the Patriots a critical first down at the San Diego 44. Faulk then turned it over to Maroney who ripped off gains of 2, 6, 5, 4, 2, and 5 yards on his next six rushing attempts.
Asked if he sensed that he and Maroney were going to play bigger factors in the game after Brady (three interceptions) struggled to throw deep, Faulk said, "It wasn't a sense early on, but it's just a sense of being prepared, being ready all year long. We heard the question about we didn't have a running game and all I told Laurence was, be patient; your time is going to come and your opportunity is going to come to move this team forward."
When Brady took the first of two knees, it triggered a countdown of the final seconds on the Patriots' sideline.
"Once the clock ticked down, the emotion level went real high," Faulk said.
© Copyright 2008 Globe Newspaper Company.
