Originally posted by Darion
I think it's a little dramatic to simply boil the whole situation down to "Brady couldn't have done anything in 29 seconds!".
Even if you do look at it that way, Tom Brady actually did manage to get them in field goal range in less than 29 seconds.

The kickoff used only 4 ticks, giving the Patriots the ball on their 38 with 1:14 left on the clock (which should have been :22).

On the first play of the drive, Brady completed a pass to Kevin Faulk who was pushed out of bounds at the Pittsburgh 45. The play used only 8 seconds, bringing the clock down to 1:06 (should have been :16).

On the second play of the drive, Brady completed a pass to Patrick Pass who got out of bounds at the Pittsburgh 31. The play used 9 seconds, bringing the clock down to :57 (should have been :05).

If the clock had been correct, Adam Vinatieri would have had to attempt a 49 yard field goal (instead of the 43 yard field goal he made after Brady completed another pass to David Givens).

Maybe that extra 6 yards would have caused Vinatieri to miss the field goal and force overtime. Vinatieri doesn't miss often though....

I think this was just an embarassing mistake for the NFL. Its possible that it would have changed the outcome, but I doubt it. The Patriots with Brady and Vinatieri are just too clutch. (Damn them.)