Patriots vs. Seahawks 2012: Have the Pats lost the 'clutch-gene'

Early on his career, Tom Brady earned a reputation for leading fourth-quarter comebacks. When the game was on the line, the Brady and Bill Belichick led Patriots were thought to be at their best. Following Sunday's 24-23 loss, in which the Patriots gave up a 13-point fourth quarter lead, some are questioning whether the Patriots still have the "clutch-gene" they had before.

The Patriots scored just six second-half points on Sunday and were unable to take advantage of several opportunities to close out the Seahawks. As Tony Santorsa of The Pats Pulpit noted, the the failure to close out games in the end is becoming a trend for New England.

The Patriots do not have the ability to close out games. They failed to do so against the Baltimore Ravens earlier this season, they failed to do so in Super Bowl XLII and Super Bowl XLVI and failed to do so against the Seahawks Sunday night.

In all of those games that I listed, the Patriots had multiple chances at closing out the game, but failed to do so.

Santorsa said he believes the Patriots no longer have the "clutch-gene" and he may be right. After leading the Patriots to late wins numerous times early in his career, Brady has struggled in that situation as of late. He threw two second-half interceptions against Seattle, including one in the end zone as the Patriots were driving to extend their lead.

The 3-3 Patriots will host the 3-3 New York Jets on Sunday, with first place in the AFC East on the line.