FRIDAY, AUGUST 2, 2019 The Boston Globe Sports C5
ular helped him do that. It came in his
second season in the league, 1996,
against the defending Super Bowl
champion Dallas Cowboys. These were
the three-time Super Champion Cow-
boys of Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith,
and Michael Irvin. It was a measuring
stick for a Patriots team that would go
on to play in the Super Bowl — and for
Law.
Always the master motivator and
manipulator, Parcells gave Law what
he asked for every week, a shot to
shadow the other team’s best receiver,
Irvin. Law responded with two inter-
ceptions in a 12-6 loss.
“I said, ‘Put me on the top guy.’ I
said it all the time,” said Law. “They
were reluctant. I was a young guy. So
he said, ‘You know what 2-4 [Law’s
number], I got somebody that ain’t
scared of you this week. He’s going to
kick your ass! You intimidate everyone
else. This one ain’t scared of you.’
“So he rode me all week. I swear he
didn’t coach nobody else during that
whole week of practice.
“That was the breakout game for
me, and the rest is history. I got so
much confidence from that. It was
amazing.”
Physicality was Law’s calling card.
It’s what led Parcells to draft him.
“We had a tremendous need at cor-
nerback,” said Parcells. “I wanted big,
physical corners, and that’s what Ty
was.”
What separated the 5-foot, 11-inch,
200-pound Law from a Deion Sanders
or a Bailey was that he was as adept at
making tackles in the run game as he
was at shadowing receivers anywhere
on the spectrum from physical to fast.
“It used to be you wanted corners
where you tell them early on that they
have to tackle,” said Crennel. “Today,it’s more pass-oriented. You have ‘cov-
er corners,’ and a lot of them think
their job is just to cover. They don’t
have to tackle. It’s not part of their job
description.
“He could cover and was more than
willing to tackle.”
Willie McGinest remembered that
Law would be apoplectic when the
team substituted him for a safety or a
linebacker in short-yardage situations
“Sometimes in short-yardage when
the corners had to come out, we would
tease him,” said McGinest, “and we
would be like, ‘Strong, physical, tough
guys in. Little guys, out!’ He would get
upset.”Laststop,Canton
Law went hard on the field and off
it. That’s the Legend of Law.
Johnson recalled showing up one
day at 6:30 a.m. after the players hadtheir customary day off on Tuesday. He
was pulling into his spot at Gillette
Stadium when a limousine pulled up.
Law stepped out with blankets and
a sleeping bag and greeted Johnson,
telling him he just got in from New
York City. Law paid the limo driver,
turned to Johnson, and said, “All right,
man, let’s go to work.”
Law got in his usual pre-practice
conditioning, running the stadium
stairs, and then dominated in practice.
Things didn’t end that well here for
Law in 2000. After the Patriots defeat-
ed the Buffalo Bills in a driving snow-
storm, Law, Troy Brown, and Terry
Glenn stayed behind because they
were afraid of flying. Law ended up
partying at a nightclub across the Ca-
nadian border. When he tried to re-
turn to Buffalo, he was stopped by US
Customs and the drug Ecstasy was
found in his bag.Law apologized and said the bag
belonged to a relative who was staying
with him. But he was suspended by
Belichick for the season finale against
Miami, one of a few run-ins between
Law and Belichick.
But Law and Belichick buried the
hatchet long ago. On Monday, follow-
ing the Patriots’ in-stadium practice,
Law snapped a photo of his daughter
and her friend with a beaming and
avuncular Belichick, who praised Law
on making the Hall of Fame.
In Law’s mind, Canton was always
his final football destination. He never
doubted it for a minute. The doubts al-
ways belonged to everyone else.Christopher L. Gasper is a Globe
columnist. He can be reached at
[email protected]. Follow him on
Twitter @cgasper.INTERCEPTIONS BY QUARTERBACK
DAVE BROWN JAKE DELHOMME BOOMER ESIASON JIM EVERETT
STEVE MCNAIR PHILIP RIVERS ALEX VAN PELT TOM BRADY
DAMON HUARD JIM KELLY MATT LEINART DAN MARINO
RICK MIRER KYLE ORTON CHAD PENNINGTON JAKE PLUMMER
ALEX SMITH KORDELL STEWART MARQUES TUIASOSOPO MICHAEL VICK
PEYTON MANNING
9 INTERCEPTIONS TO LAWKELLY HOLCOMB
5 INTERCEPTIONS TO LAWGLENN FOLEY DAVID GARRARD MATT HASSELBECK BILLY JOE HOBERT
CHRIS CHANDLER JAY FIEDLER TRENT GREEN BRIAN GRIESE
KURT WARNER CHRIS WEINKE DANNY WUERFFEL STEVE YOUNG
TROY AIKMAN DREW BLEDSOE QUINCY CARTER
BradymakesthecaseforLaw
By Ben Volin
GLOBE STAFF
In his letter supporting former Ty Law’s candidacy for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Patriots quar-
terback Tom Brady outlined exactly what made Law so good.
“He always wanted to defend the opponent’s best receiver and typically took them out of the
game,” Brady wrote. “He was great at knocking a receiver off his route, baiting quarterbacks into bad
reads, and capitalizing on ill-fated throws.” Here are examples of how Law did that:RKnockingareceiveroffhisroute
Receivers knew they were in for a tough, feisty day when facing off against Ty Law. In a 1998 loss
to Atlanta, you see Law hand-fight the receiver coming off the line of scrimmage, react to the break
quickly,andundercutthethrowfortheinterception.COURTESY FOX
COURTESY CBS
RBaitingquarterbacksintobadreads
Law’s gifts were on full display in the 2004 AFC Championship game, when he intercepted Peyton
Manning three times in the Patriots’ 24-14 victory.
Law’s first interception was a classic game of cat-and-mouse. Lined up across from Marvin Harri-
son at the line of scrimmage, Law dropped off intozone coverage after the snap, responsible for the
tight end in the short flat. But when Manning rolled out of the pocket, Law’s instincts took over. He
abandoned his zone and sprinted downfield, sensing that the sideline throw to Harrison was coming.
Law got there just in time to undercut Manning’s throw and give the Patriots a big momentum boost.
Law’s third interception that day was a testament to his film study and preparation. Working with
Rodney Harrison to double-cover Harrison, you cansee Law pointing to the sideline even though
Harrison begins cutting toward the middle of the field. Law knew the post corner was coming, and
was in perfect position to undercut Manning’s throw and essentially seal the victory.COURTESY FOX
RCapitalizingonill-fatedthrows
Few cornerbacks had a better combination of instinct and quickness. In Super Bowl XXXVI, Law
changed the momentum of the game with a 47-yard pick-6 in the second quarter. Covering Pro Bowl
receiver Isaac Bruce, Law played 8 yards off the ball before the snap, but closed quickly on Bruce and
was in the perfect spot to pounce all over Kurt Warner’s errant pass.Ben Volin can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @BenVolin
2019 NFL Hall of Fame | TY LAW