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HOUSTON -- The New England Patriots are renown for their rock-solid team concept, with that all-for-one and one-for-all thing going. But Thursday morning, almost before he wiped the sleep out of his eyes, quarterback Tom Brady cleared his throat and pointed a finger right at Patriots running back Antowain Smith.

Asked for his thoughts on the Super Bowl's probable MVP, Brady chose Smith, calling him the key to New England's offense. Brady added that Smith might just shock the world on Sunday, when New England squares off against Carolina in Super Bowl XXXVIII.

"I could shock the world, huh?'' said Smith, after having Brady's bold prediction relayed to him moments later by no fewer than four reporters. "The way people look at it, we ain't got a running game, so we're not supposed to go out there and win anything like the MVP. I'm the key to the offense? I think a whole lot of people would differ with that opinion.''

Smith has a case, albeit he makes it against himself. Ask anybody but Brady who the key to the Patriots' offense will be against Carolina and probably very few would choose Smith, who started just six games this season, was inactive three times and ran for 642 yards, by far the lowest output of his three-year tenure in New England.

With the Patriots employing a two- or even three-headed backfield in the regular season, Smith didn't lead Patriots running backs in games played (Kevin Faulk, 15), starts (Faulk, eight), average gain (Michael Cloud, 4.4 yards) or rushing touchdowns (Cloud, five). He had just 4 more yards gained than Faulk (638) and only four more carries (182 to 178).

But a funny thing happened when the playoffs dawned. Rekindling some of the same offensive mojo that helped them to their surprise Super Bowl run two years ago, the Patriots again had Smith squarely in the middle of the game plan and rode his powerful legs to cold-weather wins at home against Tennessee and Indianapolis.

In the Patriots' divisional-round defeat of the Titans, Smith rushed for a rugged 69 yards on 16 carries, outperforming the more acclaimed Eddie George (48 yards on 16 attempts). Then, in the AFC title game against the Colts, it was Smith in the spotlight as he became the first Patriots runner to have a 100-yard rushing game (100 yards on 22 carries) in the postseason since Curtis Martin in 1996.

Who knows, Faulk might end up getting his number called plenty against Carolina, when his speed might make for a better matchup against the Panthers' stellar defensive front, but the Patriots might not even be in Houston if it wasn't for Smith's playoff renaissance.

"It's been up and down this year, of course,'' said Smith, who has rushed for 364 yards in his past four games, including a season-high 121-yard game in Week 16 at the Jets. "I was not quite as productive as I'd like to have been this year, but you take your bitter with your sweet. The thing is though, lately they've been depending on me. I'm just glad me and my offensive line have been stepping up and doing the job.''

In many ways, Smith's season has mirrored his entire seven-year NFL career, in which he has bounced between being featured at times and forgotten at others. In his four years in Buffalo, Smith topped out with a 1,124-yard season in 1998. Two seasons later, his production had dwindled to a measly 354 yards. His reputation was revived once he reached New England, where Smith rumbled for a career-best 1,157 yards in the Patriots' Super Bowl season of 2001 but then slipped to 982 last season and 642 this year.

"That's the way it's gone for me,'' Smith said. "I've been through the process all too many times before, so it really doesn't bother me. I'm not that standout running back, of course. But as long as I go out there and just do the job they ask me to do to the best of my capabilities, that's all I can do.''

Smith has no bigger fan than Brady. After the AFC title game win, the Patriots' fourth-year quarterback gushed about the 232-pound runner that New England used to bludgeon the Colts defense.

"I love that guy, man,'' Brady said. "He runs so hard. I hand that ball off, turn around, and he hits guys and just punishes them. He is such a big, strong, tough back, and he makes those defenders pay for every tackle. I wouldn't trade him for anybody.''

As much as Brady's vote of MVP-level confidence was music to Smith's ears, it's really not his style to talk much about his game. He'd rather slip up on people and let Carolina running back Stephen Davis garner most of the pregame buzz.

"Keep me in the back, you know what I'm saying?'' Smith said. "I'd rather take the backseat any day. I'm always under the radar. I don't need to be in the limelight. Just let me lay low.

"It's nice that my teammates think of me that way. That's all that matters to me, that they have the confidence in me that I can go out there and get it done. Everybody else may say that we don't have a running game, but who cares? The bottom line is that we win games.''

Smith's Surge N.E.'s top rusher, game-by-game: Wk. Opp. RB Att.-Yds 1 @BUF Faulk 10-62 2 @PHI Smith 12-25 3 NYJ Faulk 17-79 4 @WAS Smith 14-56 5 TEN Smith 16-80 6 NYG Faulk 14-87 7 @MIA Faulk 18-38 8 CLE Faulk 23-96 9 @DEN Smith 17-55 10 bye -- -- 11 DAL Smith 16-51 12 @HOU Faulk 23-80 13 @IND Faulk 15-42 14 MIA Smith 27-60 15 JAX Smith 17-39 16 @NYJ Smith 18-121 17 BUF Smith 15-74 Div. TEN Smith 16-69 AFC IND Smith 22-100

But even Smith will admit that it has been difficult to keep a low profile this week. After all, he's in the Super Bowl in Houston, his adopted hometown. Smith played two years of college ball at the University of Houston and has made his offseason home here. Upon arriving Sunday, Smith hosted a welcome-to-Houston party for the Patriots, with his mother, grandmother, mother-in-law and a pair of aunts pitching in to do the cooking for his teammates.

"Playing a Super Bowl in your hometown has its advantages and its disadvantages,'' Smith said. "The advantage is you're at home and get a chance to go to your house and sleep in your own bed a couple nights, on the nights we didn't have curfew.

"And it's nice to see your family and friends. But the hectic part about it is everybody wants a piece of you. Everybody. You just have to turn them away. I can't get tickets for everybody. My standard line has been, 'I ain't got 'em.' ''

While Davis outrushed the Patriots' three-headed backfield all by himself -- 1,444 yards on 318 carries for Davis, 1,398 yards on 387 carries for Smith, Faulk and Cloud -- Brady's premonition still could turn out to be prescient.

After all, if there's an omen in Houston's Super Bowl history, it's a good one for Smith. The only other time the game was here, in Super Bowl VIII, 30 years ago in January 1974, the AFC champion won behind a then-Super Bowl record rushing performance from their powerful lead runner. But Smith was in no mood to hear about Miami's Larry Csonka and his 145-yard MVP performance against Minnesota in that 24-7 Dolphins win.

"Oh, I'm no Larry Csonka by no means,'' Smith said. "He's one of the greatest running backs of all time. You're talking about Larry Csonka and Antowain Smith. There's no comparison. Those two names shouldn't even be mentioned together.''

Smith is concentrating solely on the final score, believing every other number quickly will fade away.

"That's the way it has been for us all year long,'' Smith said. "The numbers haven't been pretty with anything we've been doing. All we do is win, whether the numbers are there or not. The running game hasn't been what we wanted it to be, of course. But as long as we go out there and do our part, and take some of the pressure off Brady, that's been enough to win.''

Fourteen times in a row, and 16 times overall, last we checked. One more, however it comes, is the only thing Smith covets.

Besides, shocking the world can be so overrated.

Don Banks covers pro football for SI.com.