Super Bowl 2012: Tom Brady Must Take on Secondary Role for Patriots to Win

If the Patriots are going to win the franchise's fourth Super Bowl, Tom Brady will not be an integral part of the game, at least not on the stats sheet. 

No, the Patriots will need to find a way to keep the Giants' pass rushers out of Tom Brady's face. They failed to do that in Super Bowl XLII. As a result, New York sacked Brady five times, and we all know the end result of that game. 

In Super Bowl XLII, Brady threw the ball 48 times against only 16 New England runs. I don't care how great the quarterback is, that kind of ratio is not going to work against a defense like New York's.

No, the kind that will work is one that focuses more on the run and short passes. That takes the pass rushers out of the game and puts the focus squarely on the rest of the Giants' defense. That is a good matchup for the Patriots. 

The Patriots need to use New York's pass rush against them. The Giants are dependent on that rush, but it's not bulletproof. If it was, New York would have had a much better record than 9-7 during the regular season. 

You beat that rush by running right up the middle. Give them a heavy early dose of BenJarvus Green-Ellis. Rushing between the tackles will give the Patriots a lot of room to work with, and big plays will come as a result. 

Another way to use the pass rush against the Giants is to rely on short passes, and even screens. With Wes Welker, Aaron Hernandez, and Rob Gronkowski, New England doesn't lack the players to get that done. 

Other than moving the ball, the other advantage that style would bring New England is that it will keep Eli Manning and the Giants' offense on the bench. That will keep the Patriots' defense rested, making them a lot more effective. 

What they can't do is rely on Brady to win the game with deep passes. If they do, it will be Super Bowl XLII all over again, only against a more potent offense. The passing yards that Brady gets, particularly early in the game, need to be on short passes that are broken for big gains. 

If New England does that early, it will force the Giants to call off their rush. When that happens, Brady will have little to worry about airing it out, testing New York's secondary. 

The Patriots can't rely on a vertical game to win. If they do, Super Bowl XLVI will bring the same result as Super Bowl XLII. 

But if they rely on the run and short passes and use New York's speed rush against them, the Patriots will win in Indianapolis and will do so fairly easily. 

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