Tom Brady Not Focused On Past History With Ravens, Says This Is A New Season
By Cyrus Geller
There is quite a bit of recent postseason history between the Patriots and Ravens, as Saturday’s matchup will mark the fourth meeting in five years between the two squads. Baltimore has taken two of the previous three, including a 33-14 stomping of the Pats back in 2009.
For some fans, this has caused some concern, simply because it is hard to forget those tough losses. But 2014 is a new year, and these are two very different teams from the last time they met in the playoffs. Gone are seasoned veteran such as Ray Lewis and Ed Reed, and dynamic play-makers have entered in New England. Rob Gronkowski, Darrelle Revis, Brandon Browner, LeGarrette Blount, and Brandon LaFell were all absent back in the 2012 AFC Championship, which should give the Pats the edge.
Tom Brady agrees with this sentiment, as he talked about not worrying about the past, and staying focused on advancing past a quality football team.
On past history:
"“Everything is different at this point,” Brady said Monday during his weekly appearance on WEEI’s “Dennis & Callahan Show.” “We can never change anything that has happened in the past, and neither can they. You can’t bring players out of retirement and they can’t either. It’s the guys we’ve got versus the guys they’ve got, which is an entirely new team that we have versus an entirely new team that they have.”“There’s some carryover,” Brady said. “There’s some characteristics that are the same, but these teams have established their own identities. It’s going to be the Patriots’ 2014 version versus the Ravens’ 2014 version, and we go from there."
On what they have to do to advance:
"“We will be able to evaluate some scheme stuff they could possibly do — that’s always helpful. But, it will be determined by what happens on the field on Saturday night, not anything in the past.”“I think every team is capable — I think when you watch these games — anyone is capable of anything,” Brady said. “If you catch a team at the wrong time or you play sloppy football, your season is over. You have to be your best and bring your best. Hopefully we bring our best this Saturday. That’s all that matters for us. We’ve worked pretty hard to get to this point. You don’t want to squander it away.“They know how to win, and that’s why it makes them a great matchup. That’s why I’m excited about it. You wouldn’t want anything handed to you. I think we’ve worked hard to earn where we are at this year. Now we have to earn it going forward.”"
I am excited for this matchup, and while it may not be the cakewalk that would have been the Colts or Bengals, I think the Patriots will come away with the victory. My line of thinking since Saturday night has been this: the Pats should win by 30, but the Ravens will make it a tighter game.