Past is present

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Shola Branch cried when she heard her husband had been traded across the country. They were not tears of joy.

They’d have to find a new home. The children would have to make new friends.

“She took it the hardest,” Deion Branch said.

But it also would be a new start for him, a key role in the New England Patriots’ offense after more than four years with the Seattle Seahawks. And he was excited.

On the field, the adjustment has been smooth. Branch was reunited with quarterback Tom Brady, his quarterback in his first four seasons before he was traded to Seattle after the first game in 2006 during a contract dispute.

Just five days after the trade back to the Patriots on Oct. 12, Branch caught a season-high nine passes for 98 yards and one touchdown in a 23-20 overtime win over the Baltimore Ravens. As the season progressed, it became clear Branch was more than an adequate replacement for Randy Moss, who was traded to Minnesota on Oct. 6.

Branch finished the season with 48 receptions and six touchdowns in 11 games with New England.

“That would have been crazy” to be told when the season began that he’d be playing the New York Jets in a divisional playoff game Sunday, he said. “The opportunity that I had to come back here was just a blessing.”

Branch must figure out how to escape the tight coverage of Darrelle Revis. He held Indianapolis’ Reggie Wayne, the AFC leader in receptions, to one catch for 1 yard in New York’s 17-16 wild-card win last Saturday night.

But Branch doesn’t know what the Colts’ game plan was.

“I can’t sit here and say, ‘Yeah, he shut him down,’ ” he said. “There were some times that Reggie was open and he didn’t get the ball and there were other times that he was covered. It’s 50-50. It’s just hard to sit back and say, ‘He did this. He did that.’ Both of them are great players.”

Branch was still in Seattle when the Jets beat the Patriots 28-14 on Sept. 19. In the rematch, a 45-3 New England win on Dec. 6, he caught three passes for 64 yards and a touchdown.

In two Super Bowls he has 21 catches, third in the history of the championship game. The Patriots won both of them, and he was voted MVP in their last Super Bowl win in 2005 over the Philadelphia Eagles.

The offense has changed since then, but Branch is still the same sure-handed receiver who occasionally outruns defenders for deep passes.

“He’s a very intelligent player, really smart, really instinctive guy,” coach Bill Belichick said. “He always seems to do the right thing.”

Branch said his last Super Bowl six years ago “doesn’t seem that far away.” He stayed in touch with Patriots players while he was in Seattle.

“Being a part of this team in the past and winning Super Bowls, you form this certain bond,” he said. “I always paid attention to the guys and seeing what they were doing. I was excited for them.”