As the Patriots clinched a 34-13 win over the Bengals, Paul Brown Stadium erupted in chants for Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, who threw 15-of-29 for 128 yards with two touchdowns. Despite their offensive struggles this season and concerns of whether or not Brady and his offense will get the job done in the playoffs, the chants were telling of Brady’s performance. On Sunday, he moved into second on the NFL’s all-time passing touchdowns list (538), passing Saints quarterback Drew Brees. He is just one touchdown shy of tying Peyton Manning’s record of 539.
When asked about the crowd’s support, Brady nearly blushed in the postgame press-conference.
“That was pretty sweet, pretty sweet man,” he said. “Even when we pulled into the hotel last night, [we] saw all the fans. We figured there would be a lot of people here today. It was pretty cool man, amazing.”
While Brady inked himself into the record-books, rookie wide receiver N’Keal Harry got the Patriots on the scoreboard, catching a touchdown in the third quarter off of a 7-yard pass from Brady to extend the Patriots’ lead.
“It was a good play by him. He adjusted,” Brady said. “Kind of a little bit held in the pocket, he adjusted his route and then came back and found some space. It was a good play. We needed it.”
“He’s fighting. He’s working hard every week to learn and he’s a very hard-working guy. It’s fun to see him make those plays.”
Brady also noted wide receiver Julian Edelman for his “toughness” while battling both knee and shoulder injuries. Edelman appeared to have been playing through some pain and finished with only two receptions for nine yards.
“Jules, he fought hard all week,” Brady said. “I’m happy to have him out there. I think just mentally, his ability to be out there shows his mental toughness and physical [toughness]. That was great effort by everybody, everybody really toughed it out and I don’t think everyone is feeling great this time of year but, happy to go on a road and get a win.”
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When asked if it was a “frustrating” day for passing — Brady threw for his fewest passing yards all season –the Patriots QB admitted it was, but also brushed it off.
“Um, Yeah. But we won,” he said. “I’m happy we won, wish we would always do better. There’s always things to improve on even when you win, but, yeah.”
Brady then joked that he’s open to adding cornerback Stephon Gilmore to their offensive mix. Gilmore finished with an impressive two interceptions, one of which led to a 64-yard run for a touchdown in the third quarter.
“Who’s that?” Brady asked jokingly with a smile about Gilmore’s performance. “That was pretty sweet. Yeah, I’ll put him over there. Take what we can get.”
The Patriots’ defense capitalized on a rough-passing day for Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton, who was 17-of-31 for 151 yards with only one touchdown. He threw four costly interceptions that were snagged by both Gilmore and J.C. Jackson, a defensive effort that not only helped solidify the win, but a spot in the playoffs for New England.
“This team has been working hard and, trying to put ourselves in a good position. It’s good to win,” Brady said. “We’re 6-2 on the road this year, last year we were 3-5, so it was good. Defense played great, got five turnovers. Got to keep it going.”
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