With the 2012 season done, we’ve decided to take a look back the 10 best plays of the year for the Patriots. Not every one of the plays ended in a touchdown, sack or interception, but the combination of execution, results and situation led us to name it one of the best of the year. We started with a look back at linebacker Brandon Spikes delivering a goal-line hit to help turn the tide in a win over the Bills. Our next play is another one for the defense -- Rob Ninkovich’s strip-sack in overtime to beat the Jets, 29-26.

DATE: Oct. 21, 2012, against the Jets in Foxboro. It was the first meeting of the season between the two rivals. In retrospect -- considering New York’s epic collapse down the stretch -- it’s amazing to think that this was a game that, at the time, had some divisional implications. Both came into the game with 3-3 records, and both were looking to seize command in the AFC East race.

THE SITUATION: It was a much closer game that the Patriots probably anticipated -- New England had to get a 43-yard field goal at the end of regulation to tie the game and send it to overtime. Mark Sanchez (328 passing yards, one touchdown) did a nice job keeping the chains moving throughout regulation, leaning on Jeremy Kerley (seven catches, 120 receiving yards) and Dustin Keller (seven catches, 93 yards, one TD) to power the Jets’ offense.

But ultimately, this was a game that swung on special teams. Whether it was Devin McCourty’s 104-yard kick return for a touchdown, his late fumble on a return which gave the Jets some life, the four field goals from New York kicker Nick Folk or the two clutch field goals from New England’s Stephen Gostkowski, it was a memorable day for special teams. That is, until the Jet Killer -- Bill Belichick’s not-so-secret nickname for Ninkovich -- again took center stage in overtime.

WHAT HAPPENED: After the Patriots took the lead at the start of overtime with a 48-yard field goal from Gostkowski, the Jets were facing a 2nd at 10 and their own 40 with just over 7:30 left in the extra session. Sanchez dropped back to pass, but the Patriots were able to get great pressure off their left side, as Ninkovich (off the edge, head up against right tackle Austin Howard) and Jermaine Cunningham (up the middle, mainly working against right guard Brandon Moore) were both able to overwhelm their men in one-on-one matchups. 

Cunningham went underneath, and was able to reach Sanchez first. After blowing past running back Lex Hilliard -- who tried to deliver a chip on Cunningham before heading out on a route, but missed badly -- delivering what appeared to be the first shot at the quarterback, initially knocking him off his feet. Ninkovich got the upper part of his body, coming quickly off the edge and helping knock the ball loose. Ninkovich then quickly scrambled after the ball, falling on it and ending the game -- the first walk-off sack in the history of the franchise. (On the afternoon, Ninkovich had six tackles, including two for a loss, to go along with 1.5 sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.)

WHO STEPPED UP: While the Patriots preach team defense, when it comes right down to it, that starts with individuals winning their matchups, and both Ninkovich and Cunningham won theirs on this play. Ninkovich was able to beat Howard cleanly around the corner, leaving the right tackle looking like a turnstile. Cunningham not only got past Hilliard (a former Patriot) without much of a fight, he beat Moore pretty easily, going low and managing to get close enough Sanchez to corral him around the ankles. While Ninkovich would continue to make big plays throughout the season, it was likely the highlight of the year for Cunningham -- just over a month later, the Florida product would be hit with a four-game suspension for violating the league’s policy on performance enhancing substances.

WHY IT WAS IMPORTANT: It wasn’t just that Ninkovich came up with a sack in a key situation, it was also the fact that he displayed the wherewithal to strip Sanchez of the ball. (“We talk to the players and their awareness about not only making a hit on the quarterback, but having an awareness for the ball,’’ Belichick would say later. “We’ve seen Rob do that several times already this year. We saw it in the Buffalo game. We saw it in the Denver game and we saw it in the Jets game.”) With the new overtime rules, the Jets needed a field goal to tie it and extend the game. (A touchdown would have won them the game.) The turnover allowed New England to close out the contest nicely.

QUOTE: “It was just an edge rush. Jermaine Cunningham did a great job of getting inside on the guard, so it kind of shortened that corner for me and I was able to get around the guy. I saw Jermaine on his legs trying to get [Sanchez] down and he tried to throw it, so I just got the ball, knocked him down and picked up the ball.” -- Ninkovich on how the play developed

POSTSCRIPT: It was one of several signatures plays on the season for Ninkovich, who ended the season with a team-leading 12 quarterback hits and 8.5 sacks. In addition, he had five forced fumbles (tying Mike Vrabel’s single-season record) and four fumble recoveries. The Jets would collapse over the second half of the season -- after opening the year 3-3, they would lose seven of their last 10 games and end the year 6-10. (Included in those defeats was an embarrassing Thanksgiving night loss to the Patriots in New Jersey that introduced the term “buttfumble” into the American sports lexicon.) Meanwhile, the Patriots would go on to finish the season 12-4 and reach the AFC title game.