FOXBORO, Mass. (NEWS CENTER) -- You can't see much of the game while standing in the tunnel surrounded by other reporters and cameramen but I could see the game clock winding down, second by second as the Patriots were about to win their record-ninth AFC Championship game.
Once the clock hit zero, members of the Pittsburgh Steelers were running off the field while I was running in the opposite direction.
This guy right here played a huge part in the #Patriots win! @ChrisHogan_15 #DriveForFive pic.twitter.com/O9V7b5zJYB
— Johnny Mehler (@JohnnyBangor) January 23, 2017
With a cell phone in one hand and my camera in the other, my head was on a swivel looking for candid celebratory moments.
I walked past cornerback Malcolm Butler as he needed assistance from a teammate to put his championship t-shirt over his shoulder pads. Devin McCourty had the same issue.
To their left, running back LeGarrette Blount was asking "where's my shirt?," and was quickly sidetracked by a group of his teammates chanting "We're going to the 'ship!'."
I head the crowd erupt, and realized that Rob Gronkowski was back on the field for the first time in weeks since injuring his back. He wasn't in any pads, of course. He was in a suit and rocking his AFC Championship hat and giving his buddy Tom Brady a giant hug.
This all is happening while confetti starts to rain down on the field (and regular rain continues to fall), and tight end Martellus Bennett tracks down a set of pom-poms from the cheerleaders. He showed off his best dance moves to the sound of Whitney Houston's "I Wanna Dance With Somebody."
.@MartysaurusRex taking it all in with his teams as the @Patriots are Super Bowl bound! #DriveForFive #OnToAtlanta pic.twitter.com/aiXzkhA7cl
— Johnny Mehler (@JohnnyBangor) January 23, 2017
Sounds like a lot was going on.
But wait, there's more.
Head coach Bill Belichick and Brady are award the shiny Lamar Hunt Trophy to officially be crowned AFC Champions.
There's another trophy that the team is trying to capture, and they'll play for it in Houston in two weeks.
Maybe red, white and blue confetti will be in the forecast.