GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM New England Patriots fans Shane Miki, left, Curtis De Feo, Hick Heidelberger and Zach Walton cheered on their team yesterday at the Eastside Grill on University Avenue.

Dynamic dynasty

New England wins its third
Super Bowl championship
in four years

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. » Don't even think the word "dynasty" around the New England Patriots, or try to anoint them as "greatest ever."

They'll settle for the simple label of Super Bowl champions -- again, for the second year in a row, and third in four.

"No doubt, this is what I came here for," said New England running back Corey Dillon, a refugee from the Cincinnati Bengals. "But I'm not gonna say the D-word."

None of the other Patriots were interested in their place in history, either, last night after they beat the Philadelphia Eagles 24-21 in Super Bowl XXXIX. A crowd of 78,125 -- dominated by vociferous Eagles backers -- reveled in a game that started slow but heated up at chilly Alltel Stadium, the site of the Patriots' last postseason loss in 1998.

New England tied the record set by the Dallas Cowboys for most Super Bowl wins in the space of four years. Dallas did it after the 1992, 1993 and 1995 seasons.

The job the Patriots did last night was far from the kind of dominating performance the star-studded Cowboys of the previous decade were known for. But as usual, New England did enough, and got precious contributions from players not generally regarded as NFL superstars.

ASSOCIATED PRESS New England wide receiver David Givens celebrated his game-tying, 4-yard touchdown reception from Tom Brady in the second quarter. Givens' TD was the Patriots' only first-half score.

The most flamboyant figure of this game, Eagles receiver Terrell Owens, played despite missing the end of the regular season and both NFC playoff games with a broken leg. He played well last night, catching nine passes for 122 yards.

But the Patriots' less-heralded Deion Branch tied the Super Bowl record with 11 catches, going for 133 yards in taking the MVP award.

"It doesn't make a difference who gets what," Branch said. "Our plans were just to come in here and win as a team."

Patriots coach Bill Belichick accepted the Lombardi Trophy after passing the man it is named after for best postseason coaching record. Belichick is 10-1 overall in the postseason, and 9-0 with the Patriots. Vince Lombardi, the legendary Packers coach, went 9-1 in playoffs and Super Bowls.

"To me this trophy belongs to these players," Belichick said. "They met all comers this year."

New England finished 17-2, losing only to the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Miami Dolphins. The Patriots avenged the loss to the Steelers in the AFC Championship game. Philadelphia, which finally made it to the Super Bowl after losing three consecutive NFC title games, finished 15-4.

As they did against the St. Louis Rams in 2002 and the Carolina Panthers last year, the Patriots won this one in the fourth quarter.

ASSOCIATED PRESS Kevin Faulk couldn't quite get past Lito Sheppard for a fourth-quarter TD.

The Eagles, in their first Super Bowl since losing to the Oakland Raiders in the 1981 game, never let New England keep total control last night. But they killed their chances with four turnovers, including three interceptions by star quarterback Donovan McNabb, who completed 30 of 51 passes for 357 yards and three scores.

"You can't turn the ball over as much as we did," Philadelphia coach Andy Reid said. "We could have done a better job putting our guys in better positions to make plays offensively."

The Eagles still had a chance until New England safety Rodney Harrison intercepted his second pass, leaving only 9 seconds on the clock.

"We came out looking for opportunities to get the ball and put some points on the board," Harrison said.

That didn't seem to be a part of the Patriots' offensive plan early on, as it didn't take advantage of two Eagles turnovers and sputtered without a first down in the first quarter.

Philadelphia wasn't much better with the ball early on, as McNabb struggled with the Patriots' blitz and its previously rare use of 4-3 and 3-5 alignments.

But both offenses warmed up, and New England scored on four of five possessions to steal the momentum from the Eagles, who took a 7-0 lead when McNabb found L.J. Smith for a 6-yard TD at 9:55 before halftime to cap an 81-yard drive.

That seemed to wake up Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and the rest of the New England offense.

With Dillon catching two passes for 29 yards and making a pretty cutback run for 28 more, the Patriots drove from their own 13 to the Philadelphia 5. But Brady fumbled, and the Eagles' Darwin Walker recovered.

McNabb could get nothing going on the next series, though, and a short punt gave New England the ball at the Philadelphia 37.

This time, New England cashed in, with Brady throwing a 4-yard touchdown to wide-open David Givens.

"I lost my man and Brady found him," Eagles cornerback Lito Sheppard said.

Pats lose another assistant coach CLEVELAND » New England defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel accepted an offer to coach the Cleveland Browns, a team source told The Associated Press shortly after last night's Super Bowl. Crennel's agent, Joe Linta, is expected to arrive at the team's headquarters in suburban Berea today to begin negotiations, said the source, speaking on the condition of anonymity. As long as talks go well, the Browns will introduce Crennel as their 11th full-time coach -- and first black coach -- in team history tomorrow. Crennel's move is no surprise. It had been expected for weeks, and was only delayed because the Browns weren't allowed to have contact with the 24-year NFL coaching veteran while the Patriots were still playing. Associated Press

Brady, MVP of the Patriots' previous two Super Bowl wins, completed 23 passes in 33 attempts for 236 yards and two touchdowns.

The second scoring pass was for 2 yards to Mike Vrabel. The starting linebacker was lined up as a tight end. It was the second Super Bowl in a row in which he caught a touchdown pass, and Vrabel, like Givens before him, celebrated his score with an Owens-style dance. But like receiver/defensive back Troy Brown, Vrabel said his double-duty is nothing special.

"I'm not into all of that," said Vrabel, who was in on four tackles. "I'm just happy we won. We fought hard and kept our poise throughout."

Vrabel's score gave New England a 14-7 lead in the third quarter, but Brian Westbrook tied it again with a 10-yard touchdown pass from McNabb, and Super Bowl XXXIX became the first one to be tied at the end of each of the first three quarters.

The Patriots took the lead they would keep on a 2-yard run by Dillon with 13:44 left in the game. His backup, Kevin Faulk, contributed heavily to the nine-play, 66-yard drive, accounting for 53 of the yards on two runs and a pass.

"This is what this team is all about," Faulk said. "It really doesn't matter who it is or what we have to do. We're going to find a way to get it done."

Adam Vinatieri, who made game-winning field goals for the Patriots in Super Bowls XXXVI and XXXVIII, provided the eventual winning points this time, too, though in less dramatic fashion. When New England stalled at the Philadelphia 4 on its next possession, Vinatieri converted a 22-yarder. With 8:40 left, and the Eagles having gone three-and-out most recently, it looked like Philadelphia was done.

But McNabb led a drive that ended with him hitting Greg Lewis for a 30-yard touchdown pass, and the Eagles had life with 1:48 left.

Even after New England's Christian Fauria recovered the onside kick, the Patriots failed to get a first down. Dexter Reid downed Josh Miller's punt at the 4. With 46 seconds left, and strong kicker David Akers available, overtime was a possibility.

But Harrison's interception ended it.

"When you get in situations like that, you have to stay aggressive and that's what we did," said McNabb, who was also sacked four times.

New England 24, Philadelphia 21

At Alltel Stadium, Jacksonville, Fla.

New England		0	7	7	10	--	24
Philadelphia		0	7	7	7	--	21

First Quarter
No scoring
Second Quarter
PHI	9:55	Smith 6 pass from McNabb (Akers kick)	0-7
NE	1:10	Givens 4 pass from Brady (Vinatieri kick)	7-7
Third Quarter
NE	11:04	Vrabel 2 pass from Brady (Vinatieri kick)	14-7
PHI	3:35	Westbrook 10 pass from McNabb (Akers kick)	14-14
Fourth Quarter
NE	13:44	Dillon 2 run (Vinatieri kick)	21-14
NE	8:40	NE--FG Vinatieri 22	24-14
PHI	1:48	G. Lewis 30 pass from McNabb (Akers kick)	24-21

Attendance: 78,125.

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Team Statistics

	NE	PHI
First downs	21	24
Total Net Yards	331	369
Rushes-yards	28-112	17-45
Passing	219	324
Punt Returns	4-26	3-19
Kickoff Returns	4-63	5-114
Interceptions Ret.	3-5	0-0
Comp-Att-Int	23-33-0	30-51-3
Sacked-Yards Lost	2-17	4-33
Punts	7-45.1	5-42.8
Fumbles-Lost	1-1	2-1
Penalties-Yards	7-47	3-35
Time of Possession	31:37	28:23

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Individual Offensive Stats

Rushing -- New England, Dillon 18-75, Faulk 8-38, Pass 1-0, Brady 1-(minus 1). Philadelphia, Westbrook 15-44, Levens 1-1, McNabb 1-0.
Passing -- New England, Brady 23-33-0-236. Philadelphia, McNabb 30-51-3-357.
Receiving -- New England, Branch 11-133, Dillon 3-31, Givens 3-19, Faulk 2-27, T.Brown 2-17, Graham 1-7, Vrabel 1-2. Philadelphia, Owens 9-122, Westbrook 7-60, Pinkston 4-82, G.Lewis 4-53, Smith 4-27, Mitchell 1-11, Parry 1-2.

Individual Defensive Stats

New England
Player	Solo	Ast	Tot
Gay	11	0	11
Harrison	7	0	7
Bruschi	6	1	7
Samuel	4	0	4
Vrabel	2	2	4
Phifer	3	0	3
Reid	3	0	3
Wilson	3	0	3
T. Johnson	2	1	3
Seymour	2	0	2
McGinest	2	0	2
Traylor	1	0	1
Poteat	1	0	1
Colvin	1	0	1
Warren	1	0	1
Chatham	2	0	2
Izzo	1	0	1
Abdullah	1	0	1
Pass	0	1	1
Team	1	0	1
Philadelphia
Player	Solo	Ast	Tot
Adams	5	1	6
Lewis	5	1	6
Dawkins	4	1	5
Ware	4	0	4
Trotter	4	0	4
Burgess	3	1	4
S. Brown	3	1	4
Hood	3	0	3
Walker	2	1	3
Sheppard	2	1	3
Thomas	1	2	3
D. Jones	2	0	2
Reese	2	0	2
Rayburn	2	0	2
Simoneau	2	0	2
Labinjo	2	0	2
Lewis	2	0	2
Kearse	1	1	2
Simon	1	0	1
Mikell	1	0	1
Reed	1	0	1
Thomason	1	0	1
Mayberry	1	0	1
Owens	1	0	1
Mitchell	1	0	1
Team	1	0	1

Sacks-Yards -- New England: Vrabel 1-16, Bruschi 1-10, Seymour 1-6, Harrison 1-1. Philadelphia: Team 1-9, Burgess 1-8.
Interceptions -- New England: Harrison 2, Bruschi. Philadelphia: None.
Fumbles forced -- New England: Gay. Philadelphia: Team.
Fumbles recovered -- New England: Wilson. Philadelphia: Walker.

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Super Bowl Champions 2005: New England 24, Philadelphia 21 2004: New England 32, Carolina 29 2003: Tampa Bay 48, Oakland 21 2002: New England 20, St. Louis 17 2001: Baltimore 34, N.Y. Giants 7 2000: St. Louis 23, Tennessee 16 1999: Denver 34, Atlanta 19 1998: Denver 31, Green Bay 24 1997: Green Bay 35, New England 21 1996: Dallas 27, Pittsburgh 17 1995: San Francisco 49, San Diego 26 1994: Dallas 30, Buffalo 13 1993: Dallas 52, Buffalo 17 1992: Washington 37, Buffalo 24 1991: N.Y. Giants 20, Buffalo 19 1990: San Francisco 55, Denver 10 1989: San Francisco 20, Cincinnati 16 1988: Washington 42, Denver 10 1987: N.Y. Giants 39, Denver 20 1986: Chicago 46, New England 10 1985: San Francisco 38, Miami 16 1984: L.A. Raiders 38, Washington 9 1983: Washington 27, Miami 17 1982: San Francisco 26, Cincinnati 21 1981: Oakland 27, Philadelphia 10 1980: Pittsburgh 31, Los Angeles 19 1979: Pittsburgh 35, Dallas 31 1978: Dallas 27, Denver 10 1977: Oakland 32, Minnesota 14 1976: Pittsburgh 21, Dallas 17 1975: Pittsburgh 16, Minnesota 6 1974: Miami 24, Minnesota 7 1973: Miami 14, Washington 7 1972: Dallas 24, Miami 3 1971: Baltimore 16, Dallas 13 1970: Kansas City 23, Minnesota 7 1969: N.Y. Jets 16, Baltimore 7 1968: Green Bay 33, Oakland 14 1967: Green Bay 35, Kansas City 10

Super Bowl MVPs 2005: Deion Branch, WR, New England 2004: Tom Brady, QB, New England 2003: Dexter Jackson, FS, Tampa Bay 2002: Tom Brady, QB, New England 2001: Ray Lewis, LB, Baltimore 2000: Kurt Warner, QB, St. Louis 1999: John Elway, QB, Denver 1998: Terrell Davis, RB, Denver 1997: Desmond Howard, KR, Green Bay 1996: Larry Brown, CB, Dallas 1995: Steve Young, QB, San Francisco 1994: Emmitt Smith, RB, Dallas 1993: Troy Aikman, QB, Dallas 1992: Mark Rypien, QB, Washington 1991: Ottis Anderson, RB, N.Y. Giants 1990: Joe Montana, QB, San Francisco 1989: Jerry Rice, WR, San Francisco 1988: Doug Williams, QB, Washington 1987: Phil Simms, QB, N.Y. Giants 1986: Richard Dent, DE, Chicago 1985: Joe Montana, QB, San Francisco 1984: Marcus Allen, RB, L.A. Raiders 1983: John Riggins, RB, Washington 1982: Joe Montana, QB, San Francisco 1981: Jim Plunkett, QB, Oakland 1980: Terry Bradshaw, QB, Pittsburgh 1979: Terry Bradshaw, QB, Pittsburgh 1978: Randy White, DT and Harvey Martin, DE, Dallas 1977: Fred Biletnikoff, WR, Oakland 1976: Lynn Swann, WR, Pittsburgh 1975: Franco Harris, RB, Pittsburgh 1974: Larry Csonka, RB, Miami 1973: Jake Scott, S, Miami 1972: Roger Staubach, QB, Dallas 1971: Chuck Howley, LB, Dallas 1970: Len Dawson, QB, Kansas City 1969: Joe Namath, QB, N.Y. Jets 1968: Bart Starr, QB, Green Bay 1967: Bart Starr, QB, Green Bay