I’m continuing my series of the 25 best Patriots players over the past 25 years (in other words, what happened before 2001 doesn’t matter). I feel good about where these guys relate to those from spots 21-25, and as I look ahead to the final 15. I had to phone a friend for one of these, and learned a thing or two researching a couple of the others.
Again, enjoy, debate and share your recollections in the comments.
20. Darrelle Revis: One Patriot legend told me Revis is the single best defensive player he has played with. That was enough for me, even though the cornerback was here for just a single season. It wasn’t all rainbows and ice cream either. Revis was on his own plan and challenged Bill Belichick on a few occasions. But eventually, it all came together and was magic. The Patriots ended their decade-long Super Bowl drought, and the Hall of Fame corner (2023) had a big hand in that.
Revis was a first-team All-Pro that season, the fourth and final time he earned that honor during his career. He had 3 interceptions and, per PFF (you know how I feel about them for some things), allowed 44 receptions. There’s no way it was that high. Revis Island was in full effect for the majority of that season, and he had teammates marveling at his ability to shadow a receiver from start to finish and show no let-up.
“He changed the way our defense played,” recalled Julian Edelman.
It was evident after the second week of the season that Revis still had it. Playing the Vikings at the University of Minnesota’s stadium, he drew savvy vet Greg Jennings for a lion’s share of the reps and erased the wideout. If you ever get a chance to go back and watch that game, it was almost comical the level of domination, and Jennings wasn’t some slouch. Afterward, he told Minnesota reporters that Revis was running his routes before he ran them, which showed the cornerback didn’t just win physically but also mentally.
Following his Foxborough experience and the title that came with it, Revis was asked whether he liked his time there.
“No, I did not,” Revis said. “You know, I’m happy for the grind and the hustle of winning Super Bowl 49, but you know waking up every day and walking into the facility and having to deal with the tension, you see why they’ve been to ten Super Bowls. You see the hustle and the grind of it, but at the end of the day, there’s other philosophies to win and it doesn’t have to be that way.”
19. Deion Branch: Much like round one of the list with Troy Brown, we have another all-time clutch player in Branch. Won the Super Bowl MVP in 2004, torturing the Philadelphia Eagles for 11 catches, 133 yards and a touchdown (yes, he outdid Terrell Owens, who was remarkable on a broken leg). The year before, Branch went for 143 yards on 10 grabs and a score against Carolina, and could have easily won the MVP in that one as well.
What was amazing about Branch was that, nearly from the moment he set foot on the field, he and Tom Brady had this connection, and in the early years of the dynasty, the QB leaned heavily on the undersized but silky smooth receiver.
“Deion is a very instinctive receiver,” Belichick said. “He has a great sense of timing, of when the quarterback is ready to throw the ball, when he needs to be open, how to get open. Tom has that same sense of what the receiver would expect him to do and what he should do in certain situations, and that’s almost always what Deion would do. Those guys almost always do what, if you had gone over it, what you would have wanted them to do.”
Of course, Belichick felt it necessary to trade Branch when he wanted an extension. In many ways, it was the right thing to do. Branch wasn’t a quote-unquote number one receiver, but wanted to be paid like one. Seattle did that, and regretted it fairly quickly. However, Branch’s absence on the 2006 team that lost the AFC title game in Indianapolis has been pointed to by many on that squad as the reason they didn’t get another ring.
The Pats got Branch back in 2010 (via trade), and he helped the 2011 team reach another Super Bowl (stupid Giants). He had 213 receptions during his first go-round with the Pats (4 seasons) and another 115 over parts of 3 seasons upon his return. Branch also added 56 postseason receptions (15.2 yards per) wearing a Patriots uniform.
After the Pats won their third Super Bowl in four years, I asked Branch if he thought they were a dynasty (hard-hitting, I know). His response: ‘What do you think?’ Me: ‘Yes.’ Him: “Let’s go with that. I like the sound of it.” His mega-watt smile is seared into my brain.
