Greased lightning

WEEK 7
The first half of the Pats-Chargers game set football back about 50 years.

WEEK 7: Pick up game.

Has a wide receiver (SD's Richard Not-So-Goodman) ever caught a pass, fallen down, and then just left the ball on the field for the defense to pick up? I've never seen it. It's also not too often you see offsides on the opening kickoff (Pats), or a team (SD) kill a big drive by throwing a lazy lateral then watching the ball roll around on the ground till a defender (Ninkovich) picks it up and takes it to the 8-yard line. Only to then sack the opposing QB (Brady) twice to force a field goal? It was sloppy, crazy football.

And it made for a beautiful road win for the now 5-1 Patriots. That's two road wins in a row for a team that just a few weeks ago couldn't win outside the Foxborough town line. At two tough places to play. The 2010 season is definitely starting to feel a lot different from 2009. Good teams find ways to win games when not playing at their best. Or take games when the other teams give them away. The Lightning Bolts were in a very giving mood yesterday. Thank you, Norv Turner. Again.

The first half ended with the Pats ahead 13-3 thanks mostly to four Charger turnovers. And thanks to an opportunistic, aggressive defense. San Diego, the best passing attack statistically in the league so far this year, had eight first half possession but only put up one field goal. Tight end Antonio Gates, almost unstoppable in the first six weeks, was blanked in the first half. It was another solid game by Jerod Mayo, Jermaine Cunningham, Rob Ninkovich, Pat Chung, Vince Wilfork, and company.

The third quarter opened with a dominating 17-play drive by the Pats that showed how good the offense can be when it is clicking. Brady spread the ball around nicely and Woodhead and Green-Ellis continued their straight ahead -- if unspectacular -- running game. The Pats controlled most of the second half and with just more than seven minutes left in the game were up 23-6. Then the Chargers -- desperate to avoid falling to 2-5 -- finally got their passing game cranking.

Gates finally hauled in a touchdown pass and the Chargers cut the score to 23-13. Then something very surprising happened. Norv outcoached Bill Belichick. No, really. The Chargers executed a perfect onside kick and recovered the ball. The Pats did not look ready for that. Might have been because the sun seemed to be in Belichick's eyes the entire fourth quarter. Whatever it was, the Chargers drove in for another score to cut the lead to 23-20.

Brady and the offense got the ball with four minutes left. Two first downs and the game would be over. It's a drive this offense has to have. Instead the offense went four and out. Green-Ellis was stuffed on a fourth down run and the Chargers took the ball and moved into position for a 45-yard field goal to tie the game. Fittingly, San Diego committed one last mistake. A five-yard illegal formation flag pushed the kick back to a 50-yarder and Kris Brown's kick -- and the Chargers' season -- clanked off the goal post.

The Pats -- as the Steelers and the Ravens also did yesterday -- escaped with a big win.

There were plenty of negatives for the Pats. Too many penalties. The defense gave up nearly 400 yards of offense -- again. The offense is still having too many wasted possessions. The passing game is mostly limited to Aaron Hernandez. New hero Deion Branch finished with just four catches and was hardly part of the offense for three quarters. Watching the tape of the game showed several times where he came off the line of scrimmage and just stood around. Like Randy Moss. I can't wait to hear Felger rip Branch for that. Right. He loves Branch. The old double-standard. The Pats are 2-0 since trading away Moss, but in both wins the offense had no deep threat and struggled for much of the game. That may prove to be a weakness going forward. It may not. Clearly an element of their attack is gone.

But the defense is fast becoming a positive. Mayo is starting to return to the level that he played at during his award-winning rookie season. Rookie Devin McCourty, who has been quietly playing solid cornerback since training camp, made his first pick of the year. Brandon Meriweather made some big -- and legal -- hits. There will be some tough days ahead for the young defense, but the signs are mostly pointing in the right direction.

Speaking of pointing in the right direction... there's Tom Brady. He threw for just 159 yards yesterday and one touchdown. But the biggest stat was his interceptions: zero. On a day when seven picks were returned for touchdowns in the NFL, the Pats quarterback did a great job of directing his team and keeping them in a position to win. Just like he did last week against Baltimore. He will still have his three and four touchdown games. But yesterday's one touchdown game was just as crucial. He's playing like the veteran champion that he is. That's the most positive sign.

Next up on the schedule is a game I've been looking forward to since the schedule came out (I'll be saying that a lot the rest of the season). Brett Favre and Randy Moss come to Gillette for a 4 p.m. game on Halloween. The forecast is partly cloudy with temps in the 50s. Perfect costume weather. I will be wearing my Randy Moss T-shirt as a final salute to one of the game's greatest receivers.

It should be a house of horrors for old man Favre.