Of All the ‘D’ Words, ‘Deserving’ Perhaps Fits Patriots the Best

Yes, their coach was doused in Gatorade.

But while he was wearing an ugly gray sweatshirt and being hugged by his father.

Yes, a couple of their players performed a funky touchdown dance.

But it was completely stolen from the other team.

Their game-winning touchdown drive was fueled by a guy named Faulk, but it wasn’t Marshall.

Their record-setting receiver was a guy named Deion, but it wasn’t Sanders.

All of which goes to today’s question of whether, when referring to the three-time Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, can you use the “D” word?

The answer is yes, plenty of “D” words.

Dull. Different. Debatably interesting.

And, absolutely, dynasty.

They earned as much Sunday after their third three-point Super Bowl victory in four years, boring and bruising during a 24-21 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles at Alltel Stadium.

The game was sometimes as awkward as Bill Belichick’s pregame entrance -- when he ran to the wrong bench.

It was sometimes as ungainly as the fighting, tipping touchdown catch -- by one of their linebackers.

But the message, to star-crossed parents and teachers and bosses alike, was as important as it was clear.

“Over the past four years we have told the world -- you don’t have to be a star to play like a star,” said Troy Brown, the typical Patriot with two children on his lap, a dull brown championship cap on his head, and grass-stained tape all over his hands.

If you are a youth league coach who wants to build a team around his son, listen. If you are a high school coach who is afraid of using the bench, watch.

Anybody who thinks galaxies are made up only of shiny objects and not dependent on all sorts of odd shapes and colors and sizes, understand.

“We’ve never stood out, we’ve always symbolized the meaning of team,” said guard Joe Andruzzi. “Whether you want to write that as a dynasty, that’s up to you.”

With pleasure, we will, even if history will cringe and NFL Films will have to edit.

If the Patriots were the old Green Bay Packers, they’d be Ray Nitschke’s toothless smile.

If they were the 1990s’ Dallas Cowboys, they’d be Jimmy Johnson’s gel.

On the San Francisco 49ers, they’d be John Taylor.

On the Steel Curtain, they’d be the rod.

Yet, that is the company they now keep, joining the Cowboys as the only teams in league history to win three titles in four seasons while tying the Packers for the longest postseason winning streak at nine games.

Only the Steelers have won more titles -- four -- with essentially the same key players.

Certainly, those guys had nine Hall of Famers in uniform while the Patriots will have, at most, two ... one of whom could be their kicker.

“But in the end, when you get checkmate, it doesn’t matter how many pieces you have left on the board,” linebacker Mike Vrabel said. “It’s still checkmate.”

That is indeed what the Patriots did Sunday, falling behind early amid a raucous pro-Philly crowd, then calmly wearing down the Eagles until they couldn’t run a proper two-minute drill for all the gasping.

The Eagles scored with 1 minute 48 seconds remaining to pull to within three points, but if they actually run a no-huddle offense like everyone else in that situation, they could have scored much earlier.

The Eagles still had time for some sort of score-tying drive with 46 seconds left, but Donovan McNabb threw three consecutive passes down the middle, the final being picked off by Rodney Harrison.

Last year, the game was beset with a wardrobe malfunction. This year, the Eagles had a clock malfunction, leaving them as naked as youknowwho.

“We did what we could,” center Hank Fraley said. “They just kept coming.”

While stampeding every good Eagle story in their path.

Terrell Owens? He was spectacular, proving me and others wrong, catching 122 yards’ worth of passes on a bum ankle.

Yet, the Patriots still managed to make him look silly by doing his flapping-wings Eagle touchdown dance after their touchdowns.

Said touchdown-scoring Vrabel with a grin: “I’ve seen T.O. do it, I figured I’d like to try it out.”

McNabb? He threw for 357 yards and three touchdowns and showed glimpses of the leadership that brought the Eagles here.

Yet, the Patriots still made him look mostly silly with a new 4-3 defense that stopped the running game and forced him into bad passes that resulted in three interceptions.

The Patriots had not run that defense since the preseason, yet they practiced it every day for the last two weeks and trusted each other to get it right.

“It was the element of surprise,” nose tackle Keith Traylor said. “That’s how our coaches win around here.”

Remember Freddie Mitchell talking about how he didn’t even know the names of the Patriot defensive backs?

One of them, Harrison, with two interceptions, had twice as many catches.

“I bet he knows our numbers now, huh?” Harrison said.

The Patriots are so precise, their go-ahead touchdown was set up by a 14-yard screen pass to Kevin Faulk in which the Eagles, during the entire snap count, shouted “Screen! Screen!”

The Patriots are so schooled, they not only easily recovered the Eagles’ on-side kick in the final minute, but Christian Fauria was already surrounded by blockers in a quarterback-type pocket when he caught it.

The Patriots are so unselfish, the first person mentioned by full name during owner Robert Kraft’s trophy acceptance speech wasn’t a player or coach, but personnel boss Scott Pioli.

And when the game ended and the confetti fell, there were so many winning wives and children and families swarming the field, you couldn’t tell one player from another, you couldn’t tell one year from another.

It was then you thought of one “D” word involving the Patriots for which there could be no argument -- deserving.

*

Bill Plaschke can be reached at bill.plaschke@latimes.com. For previous columns by Plaschke, go to latimes.com/plaschke.

*(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

Fab Four

New England’s 24-21 victory over Philadelphia in Super Bowl XXXIX gave Coach Bill Belichick his third Super Bowl title, tying him with Bill Walsh and Joe Gibbs. Pittsburgh’s Chuck Noll is the only coach to win four.

*--* CHUCK NOLL, Pittsburgh SB Opponent Result IX Minnesota Vikings 16-6 X Dallas Cowboys 21-17 XIII Dallas Cowboys 35-31 XIV L.A. Rams 31-19 Record: 193-148-1 (16-8 in playoffs)

BILL WALSH, San Francisco SB Opponent Result XVI Cincinnati Bengals 26-21 XIX Miami Dolphins 38-16 XXIII Cincinnati Bengals 20-16 Record: 92-59-1 (10-4 in playoffs)

JOE GIBBS, Washington SB Opponent Result XVII Miami Dolphins 27-17 XXII Denver Broncos 42-10 XXVI Buffalo Bills 37-24 Record: 130-70 (16-5 in playoffs)

BILL BELICHICK, New England SB Opponent Result XXXVI St. Louis Rams 20-17 XXXVIII Carolina Panthers 32-29 XXXIX Philadelphia Eagles 24-21

*--*

Record: 89-71 (10-1 in playoffs, Cleveland and New England)