As the final minutes ticked off the clock in Foxboro, my girlfriend Mari said this to me, and it spoke volumes because I think almost everyone in New England really wants to see this team take on the Colts in the next or final round.

Here I am sitting at home with my shoes off getting ready to drink a tall mug of hot chocolate and eat a warm slice of apple bread while bringing this article to you. You see, I just got home from the stadium and was very happy to see that all my talk about players stepping up came true tonight, and there were some other points that I made just last week that came face front tonight.

"The key for the Pats to overtake the Jags this weekend will be an aggressive defense with their QB situation. The word is that QB Byron Leftwich is going to get the start, but he's coming back from a broken left ankle, which he sustained in late November. If for some reason he doesn't go, then David Garrard will be at the helm, and the last tough defense he faced (Indy) sent him away with a loss. The Pats will have to blitz, and blitz often forcing mistakes..."

The Patriots got to Leftwich early, and my feeling has always been that if a line can get to an opposing QB early in the game then it's going to be a long game for that QB. The Pats defense muscled the Jaguars offensive line, and finished the game with six sacks, one forced fumble and one interception returned for a touchdown.

Outside linebacker Willie McGinest led the team with eight tackles and 4.5 sacks, which broke two NFL records. His sack tally surpassed Buffalo Bills sack master Bruce Smith for the post season record, and proved that some players just get better with age.

Also joining him in the sack department were Rosevelt Colvin (5 tackles), who had a sack after beating triple coverage, and Richard Seymour (2t), who had a half sack assist with Willie late in the game. Seymour also had a key fumble recovery.

Wide receivers's Troy Brown (4t) and Andre Davis (3t) saw some time chasing players down and got the job done when needed. Brown finished third below inside linebacker Mike Vrabel (9t).

Corner back Asante Samuel (4t) had been playing very inconsistent of late, but stepped it up and drove a nail into the Jaguars coffin with a 73 yard INT TD return putting the game pretty much out of reach.

As for other players stepping up when needed: LB's Monty Beisel (2t) and Chad Brown (3t) made key tackles that kept the Jaguars from converting. Overall, the defense sent a message to the disrespecting media and they did it without LB Tedy Bruschi, who was dressed for the game, but remained on the sidelines in preparation for next week.

On offense, QB Tom Brady (15 of 27, 201 yds, 3 TDs) started out sluggish, and was rushing the ball like he spent too much time watching the Rose Bowl last week, twice gaining 9 yards of the 118 they dropped...

Fullback Heath Evans didn't see anytime in the game, but the ground attack was spread out among four players. Running back Kevin Faulk led the attack with 51 yards on 6 carries, while Corey Dillon spent part of the first quarter benched for unknown reasons (possibly for his outburst in the locker room last week). He ended up carrying the ball 17 times over 40 yards. On second and 10, wide receiver Andre Davis rushed for 13 yards converting for the first, while Patrick Pass came in late in the fourth and converted a third and five for six yards and the first down to set up QB Matt Cassell's kneel down.

The Pats rushing attack kept the Jags LB's busy, but allowed the Pats to make passes downfield when needed. The receiving corps racked up 189 total yards, with tight end Benjamin Watson (5 rushes for 91yds) having a great night despite some dropped passes and a fumble, which rolled five yards ahead of him and was recovered by WR Tim Dwight. Watson's big moment was an explosive 63 yard TD, which sent the stadium into a frenzy when he refused to take the easy first down out of bounds after a missed sideline tackle and made a dash for the end zone.

RB's Kevin Faulk and Corey Dillon combined for 5 receptions and 57 yards, while WR Deion Branch led his corps with 2 receptions over 36 yards, while Brown, Andre Davis and David Givens combined for only 3 receptions over 17 yards. However, Brown and Givens both saw the end zone when it mattered.

So now we wait to see who's next…