Brady, Pats beat Jets, Mangini in '07 playoff

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady faced the Jets in one prior playoff game, a wild card meeting at Foxborough on Jan. 7, 2007. The Patriots won, 37-16, as Brady capped long scoring drives with short touchdown passes to Daniel Graham and Kevin Faulk, and Asante Samuel sealed the outcome with a 36-yard interception return for a score with 4:54 left for New England, which was seeking its fourth Super Bowl title in six seasons.

The Pats eventually lost to the Colts in the AFC Championship Game.

The loss ended a surprising run by the Jets, who won their last three regular-season games to get into the playoffs under first-year coach Eric Mangini.

The Jets made things interesting early, taking a 10-7 lead in the second quarter on a 77-yard touchdown catch and run by Jerricho Cotchery. But it was all New England from that point in the teams' second-ever meeting in the playoffs, the last also a victory by the Patriots in 1985.

With the Patriots leading 23-16, Brady engineered the type of drive that has made him so deadly in big games. New England took over at its 37-yard line and, with a series of short passes and runs, got to the Jets' 7. Brady then found Faulk with a short pass and the running back zipped into the end zone with 5:16 left.

Brady finished 22-for-34 for 212 yards and two touchdowns.

New England also took advantage of a big mistake by the Jets late in the third quarter. Chad Pennington's pass was knocked down by Rosevelt Colvin and picked up by Vince Wilfork, who rumbled 31 yards to the Jets' 15 before being tackled by Cotchery. The play was ruled a backward pass and a fumble, and the ruling was upheld after a challenge by Mangini. Four plays later, Stephen Gostkowski kicked a 28-yard field goal to give New England a 23-13 lead. - AP

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