Just before midnight Sunday, I went on YouTube to see the play a few more times, because the NFL.com video was a little grainy on my computer. And someone had put the Chariots of Fire music track down on Garrard's run ... with the video in slow-motion. Brilliant. And late in the run, some Chariots of Fire stuff started happening. As Garrard juked safety Tyrone Carter out of his shoes at about the Pittsburgh 28 (a very bad night for Carter, by the way) and headed upfield, here came the cavalry. From the backfield steamed Maurice Jones-Drew, from the line came Barnes, and from the side came wideout Reggie Williams, all running to block for Garrard.

Jones-Drew came like a freight train, from Garrard's right, to try to take Carter out of the play at the Steelers' 11. "Maurice has done that on a number of occasions this year,'' said Garrard. "He'll tell me, 'Look, if you ever scramble, get behind me, because I'm gonna blow somebody up.' He loves to block, really loves it." Barnes sprinted up, trying to get a block on Carter, as did Williams, and they all met around the 10 or 11, where Garrard was downed. Gain of 32.

The ensuing 25-yard field goal won the game for Jacksonville.

It happened because of Garrard's run, but also because of four strong blocks up front. And what the end of the play showed, with a 5-foot-7 running back, a 325-pound tackle and 6-4 wideout running like their pants were on fire, trying to get close enough to the play to make a block, was enough to show what kind of football players the Jaguars employ.

"I wanted the ball in my hands,'' said Garrard. "I knew if I dug down there was no way they could stop me from getting two yards. Plus, their defense was not ready for it. But I also wanted the ball to make up for earlier mistakes. I made a couple of bad throws in this game. Not bad reads. Bad balls. The ball was just not coming out quite right. And the play showed what we're about. Receivers, backs, linemen, all doing everything they could to make the play happen. It took 11 guys, and everyone did their job.''

This game was tough, a chippy Texas cage match of a football game. The next one is tougher. Tom Brady's not going to take six sacks, and he's not going to hand out three interceptions, the way Ben Roethlisberger did. Garrard can't have one of those "the ball wasn't coming out quite right" kind of nights Saturday in Foxboro.

The Jags' bus was pulling into the airport as I talked to Garrard. There was whistling and laughter and the occasional shout of joy, and the quarterback was in the middle of it.

"Can you beat New England?'' I asked. (I wasn't sure at the moment that New England would be the foe, but I wanted to hear his thoughts anyway.)

"We're going to have to be near-perfect,'' he said, "but if we bring our A-game, we can beat anybody.''

"But you love the chance, don't you,'' I said.

"I really do,'' he said. "How can you not? I've been playing this sport for 21 years, and games like tonight are so great. I love the elements and the playoff atmosphere. And the chance to play a team as great as New England ... it's why you play the game.''

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