Big Shows & No Shows

Big Shows

1. Welker/Moss/Brady - Three players, one unstoppable force working in perfect synchronicity. Combined for 15 completions and 231 yards of offense, scoring one TD and setting up the other.

2. Pat Chung/Brandon McGowan - The two safeties have serious cover issues, but at least they hit people when they come forward on blitzes or in run support. Brandon McGowan again leads the team in solo tackles with eight. Pat Chung has a big sack and pulverizes Chad Henne on another blitz. On the negative side, McGowan was badly fooled and too aggressive on Ronnie Brown's TD pass to Joey Haynos. And when Ronnie Brown clicked on a 16-yard run on third-and-two play midway through the fourth, Chung was sprinting off the field. Only one problem, the rookie left his defense with just 10 men on the field for the play.

3. Kevin Faulk - Didn't have great numbers - 15 yards rushing, four catches for 35 yards - but did you see the absolutely nasty cut he made at the line of scrimmage on his 11-yard draw play. A 33-year-old with 11 years of NFL wear on his body simply shouldn't be physically able to break a defender's ankles like that.

No Shows

1. Jerod Mayo - Miami ran the ball 31 times, and the reigning NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year had a mere seven solo tackles. Yes, he thwacked Ronnie Brown for -2 yards in the final minutes. That was the lone highlight. On his six other solos Miami gained 58 yards or 9.7 yards per play. Looked befuddled when pursuing the Miami sweeps. A legit middle linebacker has to do more than get caught up in the trench fallout. If I were Mayo, I'd call in sick for today's defensive film session.

2. Brandon Meriweather - Maybe it was the scheme, but he simply wasn't as active as he's been recently. Again, that might be the coaches pushing Chung and McGowan up into the box and relying on Meriweather to cover. But on a team with only a couple defensive impact guys, Meriweather has to bring more than two tackles and some shoddy pass coverage.

3. Pick a corner, any corner - Leigh Bodden, Shawn Springs, Darius Butler, Terrence Wheatley ... They just can't cover anyone. Peyton Manning and Drew Brees stand in their immediate future. An implosion is sure to follow.

Grading the Groups

Offense

Line (B+) ... For the most part Tom Brady was unhurried. And there was room to run for Laurence Maroney when it mattered. Big ups to Dan Connolly, who fills the void when Dan Koppen goes down with a knee injury. Also, the rookie Sebastien Vollmer took care of business at left tackle yet again.

Backs (B-) ... Don't you get the feeling that Maroney left a bundle of yards out there. Miami was there to be gashed and he picked up a product but had an unspectacular 82 yards on 20 carries.

Quarterback (A-) ... The rating for the day says 93.5, but this was a three-digit day if there was one. Didn't get much help from Randy Moss on Vontae Davis' spectacular pick. Was on the money all day. When it mattered, he made the perfect read and found Moss on the cross, with one-on-one from Davis to re-take control.

Receivers (A) ... Moss' one drop on the second-half bomb was the lone imperfection in a staggeringly effective afternoon. Miami is still trying to locate Wes Welker. Ben Watson was quiet but solid with 49 yards on four grabs.

Defense

Line (B+) ... Miami's offensive line got the better of things for a long time. Still, when they had to, Ty Warren, Vince Wilfork and Mike Wright penetrated and disrupted.

Linebackers (D) ... Adalius Thomas and Mayo each had big plays, then crawled back into their cocoons. An extra "I Beat Burt" T-shirt to the person who can tell me who the third linebacker was out there. Just kidding! It was Gary Guyton, but he was that invisible most of the day with tackles after gains of 4,7,3 and 5 yards.

Defensive Backs (C-) ... "We still need to do a better job. They put up 17 points, so we had a terrible day on defense." Now, McGowan, aren't you being a little tough on yourself? It wasn't pretty, but a win is a win, right?

Coaching (C-) ... Two weeks to prepare and you still can't stop the Wildcat. Most of the big gains came not because of bad plays but because the Patriots were outmanned. Miami came out of the locker-room at halftime and marched 66 yards on 16 plays to take the lead. What were we doing during the break, watching the latest Ron Popeil infomercial?

Hot Reads

The debate is on about Bill Belichick's decision to move Vince Wilfork out to defensive end?

"They move Vince out because we were going a little more stout with them trying to move it outside," said Mike Wright, who slid down inside with Wilfork moved out to end.

The switch changed the face of the Patriots defense, but Wilfork, who didn't speak to the media afterward, was quiet with one solo tackle.

"Bill wanted to match him up, and we felt like that was the best matchup. You'll have to ask him (about it)," said Ty Warren. "Vince was kind of, you know. ... We just get paid to show up and work." ...

Quickest trigger finger in the East? That would be the man on the clock here yesterday at Gillette Stadium. A mighty early flip of the run-stop switch saved Brady, who tried to force in one extra play before halftime. In 19 out of 20 NFL games, that clock runs out in the same situation.

Instead of blowing an opportunity, the Pats were allowed to march Steven Gostkowski out for a 34-yard field goal. ...

Defensive lineman Mike Wright on figuring out Miami's offense with Pat White in at the shotgun QB: "We just figured out he was definitely going to pitch the ball ... I think." Therein lies the danger of the Wildcat. ...

Warren on preparing for the ever-changing Wildcat, "It's like studying for a test in college. You study all week, study all week, study for multiple choice but now it's an essay. You're kind of caught off guard."