FOXBOROUGH – They were shouting his name all through the night.
"Brady! Brady! Brady!" came the calls from the sell-out Gillette Stadium crowd.
He was the center of attention all week, too, but for all the wrong reasons. Tom Brady faced pointed questions like never before in his weekly press conference, with reporters virtually salivating to ask him in various ways why he was playing so poorly to start this season. Not just his team. Him, personally.
The New England Patriots take on the Cincinnati Bengals during Sunday Night Football at Gillette Stadium on Sunday, October 5, 2014.
New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski (87) runs after catching a pass from Tom Brady in the first half of an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals Sunday, Oct. 5, 2014, in Foxborough, Mass. With the completion, Brady becomes the sixth quarterback in NFL history to throw for 50,000 career passing yards. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
Tom Brady, QB -- There is no doubt that Brady is having a great year despite dealing with the injury challenges to his line and, now, his weapons. No. 12 has had a few turnovers in recent weeks, which is less than ideal, and must clean that up with a surrounding cast that continues to change.
Malcom Brown, DL - The Patriots first-round pick has been improving by the week and has impressed Bill Belichick of late. Brown is a key cog in the middle of New England's No. 2 run defense that will be the defensive key in this meeting with Rex Ryan's ground-and-pound Bills.
Ronald Darby, CB -- Buffalo's rookie cornerback has been on the rise in recent weeks and playing very good, physical football. Tom Brady now has to deal with a pair of impressive corners in Darby and Stephon Gilmore who are allowing the Bills to be a little more aggressive and creative defensively.
Rob Gronkowski, TE -- New England's all-world tight end almost always has a big game against his hometown team, including 113 yards and a touchdown back in Week 2 in Buffalo. The Bills supposedly have a plan to take Gronkowski out of the game on Monday night. Good luck with that.
Brandon LaFell, WR -- With Julian Edelman sidelined and Dion Lewis on IR, the Patriots will be looking to diversify the passing attack. After opening the year on PUP, LaFell is working his way into midseason form and could be ready for a bigger role in offensive game plan.
LeSean McCoy, RB -- The former Eagles star seems to be settling into his role as the centerpiece of the Bills offense. Now healthy, McCoy is coming off his first two 100-yard games in Buffalo and has averaged better than 5 yards per carry in three of his last four games to pace the Bills No. 2 rushing attack that will take on the Patriots impressive rush defense.
Rex Ryan, Head Coach -- Buffalo's blustery coach is always at the center of attention for every game his team plays. Ryan, who has lost seven of the last eight against the Patriots, got a little snippy with the New England media this week. Ryan's game plans have given the Patriots problems in the past and an upset this week would certainly make waves across the NFL.
Tyrod Taylor, QB -- Statistically, Taylor is having an incredible season as a first-year starter in Buffalo. But is he capable of making enough plays in the air at key times on the road in New England to lead his team to victory? That's still very much in question.
Sebastian Vollmer, T -- The veteran tackle was one of three injured linemen to return to practice this week. If Vollmer can get back on the field, likely to play left tackle, it would be a big step toward stabilizing the offensive line in this battle with an impressive Bills front.
Mario WIlliams, DE -- The Bills only have 14 sacks as a team, but Williams has three of them. The veteran $100 million man challenges the edges with a combination of athleticism and power, an issue regardless of who lines up at right tackle for the Patriots in this prime time battle.
New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski celebrates his touchdown catch against the Cincinnati Bengals in the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 5, 2014, in Foxborough, Mass. (AP Photo/Stephan Savoia)
New England Patriots vs Cincinnati Bengals October 5, 2014 at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, MA.
Photo By: KEITH NORDSTROM
Brady and his team looked like they took it personally.
The opening drive was a clinic in precision and enthusiasm. It took five games, but the Patriots finally had an opening drive that lasted longer than three plays, and it resulted in the first touchdown of the night for New England.
On both sides of the ball, Brady and the Patriots seemed to take out all their frustrations from the first month of the 2014 season on the Cincinnati Bengals. Last week was a particularly challenging one for the Patriots, after they were embarrassed on national television by the Kansas City Chiefs.
The schedule makers did the Patriots an unwitting favor by making their next game a prime time affair as well. It was the perfect opportunity for New England to prove that reports of their demise had been greatly exaggerated.
It started up front, with an offensive line that has been the team's biggest problem this season. Brady was sharp largely because his line gave him plenty of time to throw.
On defense, despite losing starters before (Dont'a Hightower) and during (safety Devin McCourty) the game, New England was aggressive from the outset. Bengals QB Andy Dalton tried to test cornerback Darrelle Revis with deep throws to A.J. Green. The receiver made a handful of catches, but Revis, who has garnered his share of criticism thus far as well, proved equal to the challenge. He actually intercepted a Dalton pass intended for Green, but it was called back because Revis was flagged for a penalty.
No matter. The tone had been set early by New England, and when Patriots penalties began mounting and it looked like Cincy was poised for a comeback, the Patriots just amped up their intensity. Even special teams got in the act, scoring a touchdown on a fumbled Bengals kickoff return.
They simply refused to lose this game. Not only that, they were determined to win in memorable fashion.
"We got back to business after [last] Monday night," co-captain Vince Wilfork said. "A lot of us understood that wasn't the team that we wanted to be. It wasn't us. It started with a good week of practice. Started fast: offensively, defensively, turnovers, special teams. You name it, this is a great team win against a real good football team.
"Best way to answer anything is to win. If we were undefeated, everybody would be blowing smoke up us, how great we are. That's why we don't pay attention to anything outside of here."
Ah, but they did hear the criticisms. They paid very close attention to them and took them to heart. The Patriots were motivated Sunday night to prove each and every doubter wrong.
"It was great seeing all the Brady chants," an emotional Rob Gronkowski admitted afterward. "After the first couple of games, we were a little shaky. It's great to come back strong. He's shown that he's still a young buck. He has a lot in his tank left.
"I told my brother before we came to the game, 'I'm going to make 12 look like Tom Brady again today, baby.' And I went out there with my teammates, and we made Tom Brady look like Tom Brady after you guys were criticizing him all week – the fans, everything.
"And it feels so good," Gronkowski added, "he's such a leader, and he went over 50,000 yards [passing for his career] today. He's an unbelievable player and I'm so glad to play with him."
"We knew what we had to do," Wilfork continued. "Even rookies. We executed well. That's something we've been lacking. Been inconsistent. It's a good start. Hopefully, we can keep it going. Being on Sunday night on national TV, everybody watching, you've just seen two different teams, from Monday night to tonight. Just goes to show you, we're capable of doing it."
"Yeah, it was a bad taste Monday night against the Chiefs. It was embarrassing for our team," Revis told reporters. "We feel that we're a better team. This game was a great start for us to show how we really play football and how good of a team we are, especially against a great team."
It was a great team win, for sure.
But it was particularly sweet for one individual. The man who's name had been singled out over and over and over again since last Monday night. The man who was more fired up in this game than he's been in a long, long time.
"That was awesome," Brady acknowledged in his post-game comments. "I mean, I've been here awhile, so it's – we have great fans. We get great support. It's great to play well and play in this environment. I'm a very lucky guy."
