The last time the New England Patriots started a season 0-2, an injury thrust an unknown backup quarterback into the limelight.
He's been synonymous with the Patriots ever since, and now Tom Brady will try to prevent New England from matching that dubious start against one of his former backups.
Brady and the Patriots are looking to bounce back from a rare season-opening defeat when they visit Matt Cassel and the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.
New England again entered a season as a favorite in the AFC, and the team certainly looked worthy of that praise building a 10-point halftime lead at Miami last week. The Patriots, though, wilted in the heat, giving up 23 unanswered points to fall 33-20 and lose a season opener for the first time since 2003.
"There was certainly an element in the second half that we'd love to stay away from," offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels said.
New England last dropped its first two games of a season in 2001, when Brady replaced an injured Drew Bledsoe in a Week 2 loss to the New York Jets.
Protecting Brady could go a long way in avoiding a repeat performance.
He was sacked four times while completing 29 of 56 passes for 249 yards with one touchdown against the Dolphins, who limited the Patriots to 67 of their 315 total yards in the second half.
Brady is trying to re-establish his rapport with Rob Gronkowski. The tight end returned from knee surgery in Week 1, catching four passes for 40 yards with a touchdown.
But the Vikings' defense isn't about to comply with New England Sunday, after allowing a pair of field goals with two interceptions, five sacks and six forced punts in last week's 34-6 win at St. Louis.
They haven't opened a season with back-to-back wins since going 6-0 in 2009.
"We're facing a huge challenge this week," rookie coach Mike Zimmer said. "We're so far in the infancy stages of what we're trying to do in this program, that we want to go out and perform well each and every week. This is the process that we're trying to build here."
Cassel is trying to build on his 17-for-25 effort for 170 passing yards and two TDs from last week, as he faces the Patriots for the first time since spending his first four seasons with them.
Like Brady, Cassel became notable due to an injury. He replaced an injured Brady in 2008 and went 10-5 as a starter that season, before spending the next four years in Kansas City.
Cassel feels his experience in New England and friendship with Brady are valuable.
"There's a number of different things I took away from Tom, but one of the main things was his leadership and how he approached his leadership, his work ethic," Cassel said. "And each and every day, his accountability to knowing the offense and being accountable."
Patriots coach Bill Belichick doesn't think there's any advantage in being familiar with Cassel.
"We know him. He knows us," Belichick said.
He's about to become familiar with Cordarrelle Patterson, Minnesota's electric wide receiver. He caught three passes for 26 yards against the Rams, but did the majority of his damage on the ground with 102 yards and a score on three carries.
"Patterson is obviously an explosive guy; you see that in the return game," Belichick said. "He's a deep threat. He's dangerous with the ball in his hand, whether they hand it to him or throw it on a short pass."
