That's right; we almost had to go in the closets for a rare winter activation of the Panic Button. The Patriots were struggling on offense, dropping passes left and right. The defense really struggled, allowing Raven Willis McGahee to run amok for three quarters. Don Shula was up in the booth with corkscrew in hand.

But somehow, the game stayed close. And Tom Brady had a chance to go up the field with 3:30 to go. [Tom Brady + 3:30 + 2 timeouts] = money in the bank, right? Well, yes and no. He got them to the Baltimore 30 with 1:48 to go. The 4th-and-inches play was stuffed...BUT the Baltimore coaches had called a timeout just before the snap. No play. After the timeout, the 4th-and-inches play was stuffed....BUT the Pats were being whistled for a false start just before the snap. No play, and now 4th-and-6. So Brady took the ball himself and ran 12 yards for the first down. Five plays later (after a defensive holding call), Brady found Jabar Gaffney, who was (mostly) in the end zone for the game-winner.

But we didn't know it was the game-winner at the time; first, we had to experience Baltimore's Bart Scott having a freakout on the field and getting his team penalized 30 yards on the kickoff. Then we had to bite nails as Kyle Boller flung one down the field..complete, but two yards short. Chew on that for a while, Bart Scott. Game over.

While the Patriots were getting the hell out of town with their perfect record ("perfect season" may be stretching it), the Ravens were boo-hooing long and loud to anyone with a notebook or microphone. Corey Ivy said, "The 'S' has been ripped off their shirts," which is exactly what General Zod said on his way down to the Fortress of Solitude basement. There were Denny Green imitations all around, and some Ravens complained that a referee insulted them repeatedly.

But a win is a win is a win. Pittsburgh's next. That one won't be pretty, either.

The Globe says that the Red Sox and Twins exchanged medical info on Jon Lester and Johan Santana, indicating that the Red Sox might actually be interested in making a trade, and not just making Hank Steinbrenner's life miserable. (A Beckett-Santana 1-2 punch will make Hank's life miserable enough). The Globe doesn't know if Ellsbury is still part of the alleged imminent deal.

If you're a hardcore souvenir collector, you have to be dismayed at the fact that Mike Lowell's jockstrap has been pulled from eBay. If you're a normal person, the letters W, T and F probably crossed your mind as you read that.

The Bruins made their second Long Island stop of this road trip, and this one ended much better than the first. The B's jumped out to a 3-0 lead on goals by Glen Murray (another Savard assist), Petteri Nokelainen, and Chuck Kobasew. Tim Thomas lost his shutout late in the game, but a win is a win is a win. Meanwhile in the NHL, the Flyers sent another guy to the hospital, and the league is considering a serious wag of the finger in their direction.