The past has a way of crawling back out at the most inopportune moments. And now that means Patrick Leary has one more thing to deal with.

On top of healing from his cut, preparing for the fight, solving financial problems, appeasing his family, and making deals with Hal Brennan, Patrick was forced to contend with the FBI on this week's episode, "Rainmaker." They were hunting big fish, and their sights were set on the champ.

The councilman, who had received a special delivery from Patrick in episode two, was arrested. It was his corroboration with the FBI that could have put Patrick and Hal in trouble. This was a great throwback to the early portion of the season, illustrating how much deeper Patrick has become involved with the shady crime boss of New Jersey.

Hal can pretend to be "friendly" with Patrick and his family, but he ultimately only cares about himself. What's worse is that now that Hal's money is backing Patrick, the debt pocket continues to get deeper. How will Patrick ever break free from the tightening grip?

At least the boxing champ was able to have a calm and open conversation with his wife about the illegal situation. While Theresa was upset with Patrick at the start of the episode (which seems to happen a lot), she listened to his quandary and stood by his side. All of the problems put a lot of stress on the relationship, so it was nice to see the married couple work together.

An even better scene took place during the Fourth of July barbecue. There was a reiteration of the importance of family that showed a lighter moment for the Leary crew. The only worry at the time was the identity of Ava's new crush.

And don't forget that not having beer on Independence Day is highly un-American.

Yet, it was the introduction of former boxer, Jerry "Rainmaker" Raynes that had the most influential impact on the episode as a whole. Played by David Morse (House, The Green Mile), Jerry offered a future view of Patrick's life if he fought for too long. It was sad to see this once great fighter become a man living a dingy and depressing life, all because of the effects of pugilistic dementia.

Bravo to another great guest actor for the show. Despite being a small role, Morse brought the character to life to illustrate multiple dimensions of the washed out boxer.

As much as Patrick recognized the possible downhill fate, Jerry also served to assist in the particular problem of the moment.

I thought at first that Patrick had gone to beat up the councilman in order to keep him quiet, but the shot of Jerry's hand in the ice bowl revealed otherwise. After all, he can't remember what he doesn't write down. Clever move, Lights.

The time is winding down towards the finale, but the story of the characters continues to successfully unravel.

There are still plenty of questions to ponder, too: Will viewers ever find out about Theresa's side of the family? What happened to Patrick's mother? Why is Hal so interested in Patrick?

As always, though, the big query remains: Can Patrick defeat "Death Row" Reynolds?

Have a comment or question for Sean? Send him an email at sean@tvfanatic.com and be sure to follow him on Twitter: @SP_McKenna

Sean McKenna was a TV Fanatic Staff Writer. He retired in May of 2017. Follow him on Twitter.