FOXBORO, Mass. — The New England Patriots had a dual-threat quarterback at the helm Sunday.
No, that wasn’t Michael Bishop you saw weaving between New York Jets defenders. It was 38-year-old Tom Brady, and he led the Patriots in rushing.
“I actually enjoyed this because it will probably never happen again,” Brady said.
The quarterback had four rushing attempts for 15 yards with one touchdown in the Patriots’ 30-23 win over the Jets, while his running backs, James White and LeGarrette Blount, had just five carries for 1 yard.
Brady almost had a second touchdown when he tucked the ball and ran for 11 yards on third down near the goal line before being tackled at the 2.
“They had pretty good coverage, and I just saw a little seam,” Brady recalled. “So, I just kind of rumbled toward the goal line, and it’s good when I have the threat of the ball in my hand because they’re not quite sure if they can go drill me or not. I just try to keep pump-faking as long as I can to keep them all at bay.”
Randall Cunningham, he is not, but Brady is the master of the QB sneak, and he has worked on maintaining his foot speed while improving his mobility in the pocket. It all came together Sunday, as he was the Patriots’ leading rusher for the first time in his 16-year NFL career.
Oh, by the way, Brady also went 34-of-54 passing with 355 yards and two touchdowns, and his completion percentage would have been much higher if his receivers didn’t drop nine passes.
Thumbnail photo via Mark L. Baer/USA TODAY Sports Images
