Perhaps no play summed up Sunday evening’s Patriots win better than the one that occurred with 13:10 remaining in the fourth quarter.
The Patriots were up 20-6 after a Cowboys field goal, and were looking to answer right back and put the game out of reach. Tom Brady dropped back on 2nd-and-13 from the Patriots 41-yard line. He saw an open Julian Edelman and fired it over to him just as Cowboys defensive end Greg Hardy laid a hard hit from Brady’s blind side.
Brady took the hit as the ball hit Edelman. Now in the open field, Edelman made two cuts to the inside of the field and turned on the jets the rest of the way for a touchdown.
Brady, looking like he felt that hit, picked himself up and gingerly jogged down the field to celebrate with the rest of his team. Now up 27-6 after the touchdown (they’d go on to win, 30-6), the soreness that he’ll feel on the plane ride back was worth it.
That may have been the hardest hit Brady took on the day, but it was by no means the only one. He was hit from the first drive of the game, when another Cowboy making his season debut, Rolando McClain, got to him for a sack.
Hardy, as he’s known to do, got his licks in for much of the game. Brady was hit eight times according to ESPN, five of which were courtesy of Hardy. Two of those Hardy hits went for sacks.
Hardy’s first sack came on the Patriots’ second drive of the game. Hardy blew by Nate Solder on 1st-and-10 and got to Brady for a seven-yard loss. The Pats, working on a short field, ended up kicking a field goal three plays later.
Two offensive drives later, Hardy was at it again. This time, he knocked the ball loose from Brady just as he was throwing it. The ball skipped up the field, past a few Cowboys, and into the hands of Edelman, allowing the Patriots to retain the ball. But the message had been loud and clear: Hardy and the Dallas defensive line were going to be a problem on Sunday.
“I think those are great players,” Brady told reporters of Hardy and McClain. “I think two great players, add them to the mix and they’ve got a good defense. So, it was a big win for us. Going on the road is never easy and certainly they get two of their key guys back. It was a going to be a good team. They’re obviously dealing with some injuries, but I’m glad we got the win.”
Hardy, for all he had to say about Brady's family this week, was complimentary of the quarterback after the game as well.
"Phenomenal player, man," Hardy said, according to the Dallas Morning News. "They had a great game today, everybody was just clicking . . . they did what they normally do."
And Hardy did what he normally does - but it just wasn't enough to stop Brady and the Patriots.