receiving touchdowns to break Dez Bryant’s team record of 73. Of course, numbers have nothing to do with why he came back.For that answer, look to Prescott and even younger backfield mate Ezekiel Elliott, already a two-time NFL rushing champion. Or a defense led by passing rushing star DeMarcus Lawren

ATLANTA (AP) — In a Super Bowl short on scoring http://www.packerscheapstore.com/elgton-jenkins-jersey-cheap , it was the New England Patriots‘ defense that set the tone.For most of the season the Patriots have stuck to their principles on defense, making just enough plays to win.They were much more than that Sunday night against the Los Angeles Rams.The Patriots battered and bewildered quarterback Jared Goff and the Rams, stifling the NFL’s second-ranked scoring en route to a 13-3 Super Bowl victory.New England quarterback Tom Brady said the Patriots’ defense set the stage for a win that gave sports fans in New England another set of bragging rights over rival rooters in LA. Last October, the Boston Red Sox beat the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series.It also sent linebackers coach Brian Flores, the Patriots’ de facto defensive coordinator this season who is expected to be named Miami Dolphins coach as early as Monday, out with a victory.“They played unbelievable,” Brady said of the Patriots’ defense. “Challenged all these plays. …. They held them.”The Rams’ 3 points equaled the fewest scored in a Super Bowl.When Goff began to find his groove late in the fourth quarter and the Rams trailing 10-3, Los Angeles drove inside New England’s 30 for just the second time in the game.The momentum proved to be short-lived.Enter safety Duron Harmon.Playing in place of Patrick Chung after he suffered an arm injury in third quarter, Harmon combined with cornerback Stephon Gilmore to break up what would have been a touchdown pass to Brandin Cooks. Then, on the next play, Harmon pressured Goff on a blitz and forced him into a throw into coverage that was intercepted by Gilmore .“It was clutch,” Gilmore said of his interception. “I knew he was going to force it up there. Our defensive line put a lot of pressure on him and he chucked it up there and I was able to make a play.”New England’s offense took it from there, sealing the victory with a 9-play, 72-yard drive that ate up 3:05 and ended with a 41-yard field goal by Stephen Gostkowski.The Patriots’ defense gave Goff different looks all night and many of them seemed to confuse the 24-year-old quarterback. They routinely sent an extra deep safety on third-and-short situations and disguised their blitzes up the middle. The latter benefited linebacker Dont’a Hightower, who dropped Goff for a pair of sacks to stunt drives.New England finished with four sacks for the game.“We’ve got a special group,” Hightower said. “We were able to do a lot of different stuff and they weren’t able to pick it up. We were able to get a lot of one-on-one rushes all game and able to get up on the quarterback.”It added up to an abysmal performance by Los Angeles on third-down situations. The Rams were 0 for 6 on third down in the first half and 3 of 13 for game. New England also held Los Angeles to just 260 total yards.None of the Rams’ running backs were able to get much traction, either.Los Angeles, which entered the game averaging 175 rushing yards per game during the playoffs with four touchdowns, mustered just 3.4 yards per rush on third down. All-Pro running back Todd Gurley finished with 10 rushes for 35 yards. C.J. Anderson, who had 167 yards and two touchdowns through two playoff games Jace Sternberger Jersey , had seven carries for 22 yards.Cornerback Jason McCourty, who joined brother Devin McCourty after being traded to New England this offseason, also had some pivotal pass breakups.“It’s the best feeling ever,” Devin McCourty said of watching his brother. “He’s done everything right this year. He’s been an inspiration to every guy.”New England bailed Goff out early in the fourth quarter when Gilmore was called for defensive holding on Goff’s third-and-11 pass attempt, giving the Rams a fresh set of downs.But the Patriots recovered, using a sack by Jonathan Jones, a holding penalty against the Rams and tackling Gurley for a loss to force a punt.Linebacker Kyle Van Noy said the team also got energy from Chung, who returned to the sideline in the fourth quarter wearing a sling.“I don’t know what kind of injury he had, but it didn’t look good,” Van Noy said. “Anytime you have a captain go down like that you feel for him, you want to step up for him.”It was the second straight impressive performance by the Pats’ defense.In the AFC championship game the Patriots held the Kansas City Chiefs, the NFL’s top-scoring offense during the regular season, scoreless in the first half. They held the Rams, which averaged 32.9 points per game during the regular season and 28 points in the playoffs, to just three points.“We ain’t stars over here,” Van Noy said. “We just come to work and keep grinding and grinding and grinding. It shows. Look at the scoreboard again. We’re champs, baby.” FRISCO, Texas (AP) — Jason Witten talks a lot about just wanting to blend in now that he’s back for a club-record 16th season with the Dallas Cowboys following a year in retirement.Ask about playing time among a group of decidedly younger tight ends, and, well http://www.packerscheapstore.com/dexter-williams-jersey-cheap , the franchise leader in catches and yards receiving doesn’t seem quite sure what to say.In other words, an 11-time Pro Bowler many consider an easy choice for the Pro Football Hall of Fame whenever he retires for good just isn’t comfortable accepting the idea of fewer snaps when he took almost all of them for 15 years.“Those coaches work long hours; they’re smart,” Witten said a week before getting all the first-team reps in the only offseason practice reporters saw in which he participated. “I think that I can’t worry about how that plays out. My job is to kind of make it tough on them. We all benefit if that’s the case.”Witten is back after just a year as lead analyst on “Monday Night Football” because he missed playing and thought the Cowboys looked like future contenders for a Super Bowl — something he could never deliver — despite a divisional playoff loss to the Los Angeles Rams last January.The 37-year-old is also back because, unlike best friend and former Dallas quarterback Tony Romo, the Cowboys hadn’t replaced him. Dak Prescott sent Romo into retirement/broadcasting with a debut worthy of the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award after the 10-year starter got hurt in 2016.The only experienced tight end trying to replace Witten last season — 2015 seventh-round pick Geoff Swaim — is in Jacksonville now after another injury-plagued year.Blake Jarwin, an undrafted pass catcher lacking Witten’s blocking ability, had the biggest impact by tying the club record for tight ends with three touchdown catches in a game , but not until a meaningless regular-season finale.And then there’s Dalton Schultz, drafted in the fourth round about a week before Witten announced his sudden retirement last year . He went from thinking he’d have a year to learn from one of the best, to not, to Witten leading the tight end room — and probably taking a lot of the snaps.“I was saying this when I got drafted last year, he’s only going to be good for this organization, no matter what,” Schultz said. “He was my idol growing up, which is weird. Don’t tell him I said that. Just to have a guy that you literally grew up watching, trying to emulate in your room, is pretty cool.”Witten didn’t get his old locker back, or his parking space at the practice facility. He appeared in the locker room only once in the three days it was open to reporters during offseason workouts. The team’s mandatory minicamp starts Tuesday.But his presence on the field was unmistakable, even on the days he didn’t participate in drills. During simple footwork sessions, Witten worked alongside tight ends coach Doug Nussmeier Josh Allen Jersey , another who joined the Cowboys last year only to discover Witten wouldn’t be there.“There’s nothing he hasn’t seen,” Jarwin said. “It’s always incredible just trying to get some input from him. Even the small stuff and what he sees and when we do things right and when we do things wrong, he’s always there to help us along. It’s been great so far.”With Witten, the Cowboys have one of two tight ends in NFL history with at least 1,000 catches and 10,000 yards. The other, Tony Gonzalez, will be enshrined in the Hall of Fame in August after being voted in on his first try.A third-round draft pick by Dallas in 2003, Witten figures to build on the club records of 1,152 catches and 12,448 yards. The 16th season will break a tie with defensive end Ed “Too Tall” Jones, safety Bill Bates and late offensive lineman Mark Tuinei for the most among Cowboys.While Witten never has been a prolific scorer, he needs six receiving touchdowns to break Dez Bryant’s team record of 73. Of course, numbers have nothing to do with why he came back.For that answer, look to Prescott and even younger backfield mate Ezekiel Elliott, already a two-time NFL rushing champion. Or a defense led by passing rushing star DeMarcus Lawrence and promising young linebackers Jaylon Smith and Leighton Vander Esch.The Cowboys have the pieces, and now Witten is another. Anything less than the franchise’s first trip to the NFC championship game since the last of its five Super Bowl titles during the 1995 season will be a disappointment.“I kind of like that the back’s against the wall for the whole football team, the whole organization,” Witten said. “I want those guys to know that I’m just a part of that. I want to be a part of it. It’s as simple as that. I didn’t overthink it. The fire was too strong.”