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There are many views about how the Patriots fared Monday night, the majority of which say the Bills just plain choked.  I prefer to think that New England just stepped up to the challenge. 

A young secondary clamped down on Terrell Owens and Lee Evans but somehow failed to shore up the middle part of the field.  They still couldn't stop the run.  Yet when it counted they stepped up to the challenge and gave Tom Brady the opportunity he needed to lead them to victory. 

Bill Belichick now has a raw defensive blueprint from which to draw on.  He understood that both teams were inexperienced and both Owens and Brady were coming back from injury.  The game was essentially up for grabs and his team found a way to win.

The Mayo injury will test that blueprint even further.

Media heads are now thinking that Belichick must be missing Richard Seymour now, especially since he had a great defensive game.  His team lost when it counted.

Where was that fire when he was here?

Last year when Bruschi needed defensive leadership help, the only one that provided that help was Mayo with his fire and tenacity.  Bruschi saw that and taught him the little nuances of leadership that helped  him to elevate his  game.

Seymour will wow you with statistical numbers, but no one trusted him enough to follow.  New England made a great move; they took their eye-candy Richard Seymour and used him as a dowry for a future option.

I'm sure you have all had some eye-candy in your past lives at one time or other.

Jerod Mayo is the real deal and the defensive coaches of New England will conjure up schemes as the defense continues to grow. 

This weekend the Jets and Rex Ryan smell an easy win because they think they can take advantage of the defense.  They are now for all intensive purposes, in the Jets mind, on equal footing with a slight advantage.  Their next glamour boy of Broadway, Mark Sanchez,  is fresh off a win in Houston. 

The Patriot offense and defense were tested under the bright lights of Monday Night Football and passed.  The Jets walked all over a clueless Texan team.

I'll put my money on the Pats any day.

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