Fisch und Wirbellosenforum

Opponents tend to freak out against Tom Brady and Bill Belichick just when they’re about to conquer the New England Patriots’ dynastic duo. The Philadelphia Eagles swear they won’t fall into that trap if they have the chance in Super Bowl 52.

The pair have built such a reputation of coming through in the clutch that foes often outthink themselves with conservative Youth DJ Moore Jersey , uncommon or unconventional calls against the five-time champs.

Think Seattle in Super Bowl 49 and Atlanta in Super Bowl 51.

The Patriots have built an extreme confidence through five Super Bowl-winning seasons under Brady and Belichick and are disciplined when other teams get discombobulated, like last month when they sniffed out Ben Roethlisberger’s fake spike and intercepted him in the end zone, reshaping the AFC playoff picture.

”You’re basically talking about experience and knowing that no matter what the score is, it’s not insurmountable,” said ex-NFL quarterback Joe Theismann.

He pointed to Brady’s habit of making a few plays every game that swing momentum and Belichick’s knack for coaxing his counterparts into beating themselves – like the Indianapolis Colts did with their fake punt fiasco in 2015.

”The New England Patriots find a way to make a play when no one else seems to be able to do that,” Theismann said. ”Teams that haven’t been in that situation don’t really understand the ability of New England teams to be able to overcome darn near anything.”

Like the 25-point second-half deficit Brady rallied the Patriots from in last year’s Super Bowl or the 10-point fourth-quarter hole he dug them out of against Jacksonville in the AFC championship last week.

”You’ve got to play a damn near perfect game against them,” lamented Jaguars safety Jarrod Wilson.

Therein lies the trap.

The Jaguars were on the verge of knocking off New England when a flurry of follies in Foxborough aided Brady’s two-TD rally that sent the seemingly impervious Patriots back to another Super Bowl.

”You can never have a safe lead with (No.) 12 at the helm,” Jaguars safety Tashaun Gipson said. ”… That’s Tom Brady, the greatest to ever lace up the cleats at the quarterback position.”

And Belichick, arguably the best to ever roam the sideline.

The Eagles swear they’re not going to give the Patriots any help next Sunday in Minneapolis.

”You know what? If I make this all about them, we’re in trouble,” coach Doug Pederson said. ”Honestly. We’re in trouble. Everything’s going to be written about it, has been written about it, talked about it, discussed, debated and it’s about us. And I’ll keep saying that. It’s about what we do and how well we execute and I can’t worry about that.”

The Eagles (15-3), who statistically can make the case for being the best opponent Brady and Belichick have ever faced in the Super Bowl, don’t see themselves getting out of their comfort zone against New England (15-3).

”Doug is going to do what got us to this point,” right tackle Lane Johnson said. ”Just because you’re in a big stage doesn’t mean you have to do anything out of the ordinary to make bigger plays. Don’t make the moment bigger than what it is.”

The Patriots may need no assistance but that hasn’t stopped teams from helping them out like Jacksonville did last week with a delay penalty coming out of a timeout and a rushed punt that essentially gave Brady an extra timeout before halftime.

”I think why the Patriots are so good is because they capitalize off people making those mistakes,” Johnson said. ”They don’t make mistakes, hardly. They’re well-coached. You don’t necessarily have to be the most talented team. You saw last year they weren’t the most talented team. Yet Youth Donte Jackson Jersey , they’re the best team because they function together well and they’re coached well.”

New England safety Duron Harmon said the Patriots never panic like so many other teams because they rehearse adversity so well and so often in practice.

”We go over every type of situation that you can think of,” Harmon said.

Theismann said Belichick is simply the best at teaching ”if somebody’s going to beat us, they’re going to have to beat us; we’re not going to beat ourselves.”

”What New England does is New England preaches discipline and understanding your job,” Theismann said, singling out lieutenants Josh McDaniels and Matt Patricia in addition to Belichick, who, along with his personnel assistants, identifies coachable players who fit in.

”Think about it: You never see Bill Belichick run up the sideline and call a timeout because the time clock’s running out,” Theismann said. ”You don’t see Bill’s players making those kids of errors. I mean, I was very fortunate to play for Joe Gibbs and Joe was the same type of game manager, where he was aware and he made me aware of all the possible circumstances and situations that you deal with.

”For example, when you’re coming out of your own end zone, if you’re backed up inside your own 3-yard line, it’s a great time to run a hard count because you’re only going to get a yard and a-half penalty. Instead of first-and-10, it’s going to be first-and-11. But you do have the possibility of making it first-and-5.

”There is a game within the game that the Patriots play better than anybody.”

T

The Latest on the NFL conference championships. (all times local):

4:28 p.m.

Jacksonville has taken a 14-10 lead at halftime of the AFC championship.

The Jaguars were up 14-3 after an early touchdown pass from Blake Bortles to Marcedes Lewis and a run by Leonard Fournette.

Just before the half, Tom Brady led the Patriots on a six-play, 85-yard drive that included two Jacksonville penalties. The drive ended with a 1-yard touchdown run by James White .

Bortles completed 13 of 15 passes for 155 yards in the half. Brady was 12 of 17 for 124 yards.

The last three times the Patriots have trailed by double digits in a playoff game, they came back to win.

– Kyle Hightower, reporting from Foxborough, Massachusetts

—

4:25 p.m.

Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski is being looked at after a hard hit from Barry Church left him wobbly.

Gronkowski was running downfield on a passing route, looking back for the ball Youth Rashaan Gaulden Jersey , when Church put a shoulder into him late in the second quarter. The 6-foot-6, 265-pound All-Pro tight end seemed shaken, and he left the field. He did not return for the remainder of the drive, which was New England’s last in the first half.

There was no immediate announcement from the team about his condition.

Church was called for an unnecessary roughness penalty that gave the Patriots the ball at their own 40. A pass interference penalty on the next play put New England on the 13. Two plays later, James White ran it in to make it 14-10.

Jacksonville was also called for a delay of game that negated a first-down completion on their previous possession. In all, the Jaguars the Jaguars had five penalties for 62 yards in the first half; the Patriots had one for 10 yards.

– Jimmy Golen reporting from Foxborough, Massachusetts.

—

4 p.m.

Leonard Fournette has given the Jacksonville Jaguars a 14-3 lead over the heavily favored New England Patriots in the AFC championship game.

Fournette bulled his way into the end zone from 4 yards out midway through the second quarter . He carried the ball five times for 23 yards on the 10-play, 77-yard drive.

Fournette ran for 103 yards and three touchdowns in last week’s divisional round playoff victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. He is the first NFL rookie to surpass 100 yards rushing with three scores in a postseason game.

Fournette was limited in practice all week with a sore ankle. He was also involved in a fender-bender back in Jacksonville, but was not injured.

– Jimmy Golen reporting from Foxborough, Massachusetts.

—

3:45 p.m.

The Jacksonville Jaguars have taken the lead early in the second quarter of the AFC title game.

Blake Bortles found Marcedes Lewis wide open in the end zone from 4 yards out to give the Jags a 7-3 lead. Bortles was 5 for 5 for 66 yards on the drive.

Running back Corey Grant caught two passes for 44 yards on the 76-yard drive. He had only 41 total receiving yards during the season.

Tom Brady’s only comeback wins in an AFC championship were from a four-point deficit against Baltimore after the 2011 season and a three-point deficit against San Diego after the ’07 season. The Patriots also rallied from a four-point hole against Miami en route to the 1986 Super Bowl.

– Jimmy Golen reporting from Foxborough, Massachusetts.

—

3:20 p.m.

Tom Brady’s injured right hand looked fine on the Patriots’ opening drive in the AFC title game.

Brady was 6-for-6 for 57 yards on New England’s first possession against the Jacksonville Jaguars. He completed a 20-yarder to Danny Amendola on a fourth-and-1 to keep the drive going. But the Patriots settled for Stephen Gostkowski’s 31-yard field goal to take a 3-0 lead.

Brady reportedly injured his right hand and needed stitches when it was hit by a teammate’s helmet in practice. The five-time Super Bowl champion took the field on Sunday with a piece of black tape on the back of his hand.

The Patriots are in the conference championship game for the seventh straight year. They are hoping to go to their eighth Super Bowl of the Brady era.

– Jimmy Golen reporting from Foxborough, Massachusetts.

—

2:45 p.m.

New England Patriots owner Bob Kraft says the team needs to guard against ”jealousy and envy” from people who are trying to tear apart one of the most successful dynasties in NFL history.

Speaking on the pregame show before the Patriots played the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC championship game, Kraft said it’s only natural there would be some tension between him and coach Bill Belichick after 18 years together. Kraft says, ”But when you’ve got something good going, everyone’s got to get their egos checked in and try to hold it together.”

ESPN reported this month that Kraft essentially vetoed Belichick’s plan to set backup Jimmy Garoppolo up as the successor to five-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady. Instead, the Patriots traded Garoppolo to San Francisco for a second-round draft pick.

– Jimmy Golen reporting from Foxborough, Massachusetts.

—

2:35 p.m.

The Super Bowl matchup will be set after conference title games featuring three teams that have never won the big game.

The other participant is a five-time Super Bowl winner, the New England Patriots.

The Patriots and Tom Brady, nursing an injured right hand, start conference championship Sunday playing host to the Jacksonville Jaguars and quarterback Blake Bortles.

The night game with