INDIANAPOLIS, 30 November 2003 — The New England Patriots visit the RCA Dome today to face the Indianapolis Colts in the most anticipated matchup of the 13th week with both teams boasting impressive 9-2 records going into the contest.
Clutch performances from Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and Colts kicker Mike Vanderjagt have led their teams to a strong position going into the final five games of the regular season.
Vanderjagt is mining a rich vein of form that has made him the most accurate kicker in NFL history with an 87.2 percent career success rate. He is currently enjoying a streak of 30 straight field goals, 10 shy of the NFL record set by Gary Anderson in 1997-98. Vanderjagt, who defies popular superstition by wearing the No. 13 jersey is also happy to talk about his run of successful kicks, unlike a baseball pitcher in the midst of a no-hitter.
He knows he will miss eventually.
“Missing field goals is part of the game,” the Canadian-born player told a Toronto paper this week.
“It’s not as if it rarely happens.”
Vanderjagt is popular in the Ontario border city, as he was a member of the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League before his move to the Colts.
What is the secret of his success?
“You have to have self-confidence,” he said. “It’s a mental thing. Can you do it with the game on the line?”
Brady certainly can.
He is a master at rallying his side in the waning moments of games, as he did in last weekend’s win over the Houston Texans.
The Patriots forced overtime when the 26-year-old Brady hooked up with Daniel Graham in the final minute, then won the game on Adam Vinatieri’s field goal. It was the 12th time in his short career that he had pulled off a fourth-quarter comeback and made him a perfect 7-0 in overtime games.
What is it about being down late that gets him going?
“It forces you to be really sharp and really focused and hopefully you go out and try to make the plays,” he explained.
