New England Patriots: With Aaron Rodgers Out, No True Test Left For Defense

Matt Flynn, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Chad Henne. Those are the names of the quarterbacks the New England Patriots will face in their three remaining games of the 2010 NFL season.

Just a couple of weeks ago, I wrote about how the Patriots were preparing for every game like it was the Super Bowl, and that every game seemed to be the "true test" for the Patriots.

Well, with Aaron Rodgers sitting on Sunday, it seems the defense doesn't have any of those left on its schedule.

One might assume that this is great, that now the Patriots can lock up home field advantage for sure. While that may be the ultimate outcome of the remaining three games, there remains a caveat the likes of which may surprise some.

The defense could gain some confidence if it's able to shut down the remaining three offenses, but even if it does, what has it really accomplished?

Sure, big games against the likes of Peyton Manning, Philip Rivers, Joe Flacco and Ben Roethlisberger are already on the resume. With playoff time coming up, it would help to have at least one true test remaining on the schedule just to get a gauge for exactly how far this defense has come.

We've seen the "bend-don't-break" style play in their favor, even though many analysts would say that turnovers aren't necessarily the best way to make a living on defense.

Confidence is key, though, and if the Patriots can build it by preying on lesser competition, I'm sure no one in New England will be complaining. The level of their competition will skyrocket come playoff time, though, and who knows what to expect if they haven't faced a top-tier quarterback since Week 11.

Perhaps it won't matter. The stats lie with this defense, as they have all year long, and as Bill Belichick once said, "Stats are for losers." Tied for the highest win total in the league, the Patriots are clearly far from losers.