Patriots’ dynasty endures

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Dynasty? Definitely. The New England Patriots don’t have to proclaim greatness. The NFL record book does it for them.

The Patriots won their third Super Bowl in four years Sunday, 24-21 over the Philadelphia Eagles, and now they are challenging history.

It was their ninth straight postseason victory, equaling Vince Lombardi’s Green Bay Packers. It was coach Bill Belichick’s 10th playoff victory in 11 games, one better than the great Lombardi. And it matched Dallas’ run of three championships in four years in the early 1990s.

“We’ve never really self-proclaimed ourselves anything,” said quarterback Tom Brady. “If you guys say we’re great, we’ll accept the compliment.”

This one wasn’t overpowering, and at times it was downright ugly. But not even Belichick seemed to care about that.