3. New England 16, Oakland 13 (Jan. 19, 2002 @ New England)

The numbers: 32 for 52 (61.5%), 312 yards, 0 TDs, 1 INT, 6.0 YPA, 70.4 rating
The story: Everyone remembers the “Tuck Rule” call. What they don’t remember is that Brady completed more than 60 percent of his passes for 312 yards in one of the most memorable blizzards in NFL history, while leading his team to three scores in their final four drives and a comeback from a 10-point, fourth-quarter deficit. Brady carried his team through the maelstrom, completing a remarkable 20 of 27 passes for 143 yards in the fourth quarter and overtime, while running for one TD. It was just his 15th start as a professional. Brady became one of just a handful of quarterbacks in NFL history to pass for more than 300 yards in his first playoff game. Among Live Ball Era Hall of Fame quarterbacks, only Montana topped 300 yards in his playoff debut (304).

2. New England 32, Carolina 29 (Feb. 1, 2004, Super Bowl XXXVIII @ Houston)

The numbers: 32 for 48 (66.7%), 354 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT, 7.4 YPA, 100.5 rating
The story: The Patriots defense allowed a league-low 238 points in 2003. But in the biggest game of the year, New England found itself locked in a fourth-quarter shootout with the spunky Panthers. Brady responded with a Super Bowl-record 32 completions, 354 yards (fifth-most in Super Bowl history) and his second Super Bowl MVP performance. He led the Patriots to 18 fourth-quarter points, including 11 points in the final two minutes, culminating in a last-second game-winning field goal. Brady threw TDs to three different players: wideout Deion Branch, Givens and Vrabel. The drama certainly attracted a lot of attention – Super Bowl XXXVIII remains the most watched TV program in North American history.

1. New England 41, Pittsburgh 27 (Jan. 23, 2005 @ Pittsburgh)

The numbers: 14 for 21 (66.7%), 207 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs, 9.9 YPA, 130.5 rating
The story: Brady channeled the spirit of his Hall of Fame 1960s predecessor, Bart Starr, in this, his definitive performance. Pittsburgh had every advantage heading into this game: a 15-1 record, a raucous home crowd and the league’s No. 1-ranked total and scoring defense. It was also the second-coldest game in Pittsburgh history (11 degrees, -1 wind chill).

Special feature PFT: Cowboys are on a fast rise

These obstacles meant nothing. Brady picked apart the league’s top team like a Cold, Hard Football Facts troll pulling apart barbecued Carolina pork. He led New England to 34 offensive points and to a comfortable 41-20 lead late in the game. It reminded the football historians among us of Starr’s precision performance in a 28-7 win over the Rams in the 1967 playoffs. The Rams earned a home game by virtue of their 11-1-2 record and still stand as one of the most dominant teams in NFL history. But Starr led the 9-5 Packers to postseason victory by completing 73.9 percent of his passes (17 for 23) for 222 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT (100.3 rating). Both Starr and Brady would punctuate their amazing playoff performances with Super Bowl victories.

It was days later, in a Sports Illustrated report, that we discovered that Brady was laid up the night before in his Pittsburgh hotel room with a 103-degree temperature and an IV drip stuck into his arm.  

Honorable-mention peformances:

New England 31, Atlanta 28 (Oct. 9, 2005 @ Atlanta)
Brady pieced together one of the best statistical games of his career (140.4 rating, 13.0 YPA, 81.5 percent completions) and directed another ho-hum, game-winning scoring drive that ended with Vinatieri’s 29-yard field goal with 17 seconds to play.

New England 33, Chicago 30 (Nov. 10, 2002 @ Chicago)
Brady completed 36 of 55 passes for 328 yards and 3 TDs to spark a comeback from a 27-6 third-quarter deficit.

New England 41, Kansas City 38 (Sept. 22, 2002 @ New England)

Brady completed 72.2 percent of his passes (39 for 54) for 4 TDs and a career-best 410 yards to lead the Patriots to an overtime victory.

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