Krause: Wilfork wasn’t the only one who was tired

FOXBOROUGH – After Rob Ninkovich safely tucked the ball deep into his arms, and the Patriotswalked off the field 29-26 victors over the New York Jets after doing everything they possibly could to lose, defensivetackle Vince Wilfork stayed down on the Gillette Stadium turf for a long time.Finally, while bedlam reigned all around him, a couple of his teammates helped him up.”Problem?” someone asked. “Or were you just tired?””Yeah,” he said. “Tired. That was some game.”If it’s any consolation to Wilfork, he wasn’t the only one who was tired. So was anyone watching the game.Not the same kind of tired, mind you. None of us were out there butting heads for 60-plus minutes. And Wilfork hadevery right to be tired. He rarely takes a play off. And if there’s a No. 2 most indispensable person on these Patriots,after Tom Brady, of course, it’s V. Wilfork.Last week, after a tough loss to the Seattle Seahawks, Wilfork was most blunt about the lack of big plays by hisdefense in that game. His frustration over the defense’s continued penchant for giving UP big plays was palpable.And he wasn’t the only one frustrated. Fans and media alike had this defense on a short leash this week. The slightestgaffe ? the most miniscule miscue ? and the defense, especially the backs, were under the microscope. At times,anyone watching this game would have been justified to break through his TV set and try to defend one of MarkSanchez’ passes. It was exhausting to watch.And once again, it looked as if the Patriots were going to blow it. They led, 23-13, going into the fourth quarter andhad plenty of chances to leave the Jets in the rear-view mirror, but didn’t.The defensive backs were getting burned just about every time they were tested. Stuffing the run wasn’t the issue. Themid-range to deep pass was. The DBs couldn’t stop them.And when it rains, it pours. Devin McCourty, whose electrifying 104-yard kick return in the first quarter catapulted thePatriots back into a game that had started badly, fumbled late in the fourth quarter on a kickoff return, and that set upthe Jets for the go-ahead field goal with 1:37 to go.Déjà vu, right? This time, no. Oh, the Jets did score ? a field goal made possible by some stout defense when itmattered most.That enabled Brady to lead the Patriots back downfield for the game-tying score with 0:00 left on the clock.In overtime, the Pats got another field goal and Ninkovich, along with Jermaine Cunningham, sacked Sanchez, forceda fumble, and then recovered it to end the game.Finally, a big play by the defense.And despite being tired, Wilfork was beaming afterward ? even though there were several over-20-yard plays givenup by the defense.”But you know what?” he asked. “The guys came to work today. They understood ? they got their hands on balls incritical situations, got physical with receivers ? I was actually proud of how they played.”We made more plays to win the ballgame,” he said, “and that’s the only thing that matters right now.”Steve Krause can be reached at [email protected].