Michael Christina
Journal Staff

The Patriots offense continued to roll on Sunday with the defense making timely plays to help secure a victory against one of the primer teams in the AFC in the San Diego Chargers.
Philip Rivers, despite having 378 yards passing, still could not notch a win against the troublesome combination of Tom Brady and Bill Belichick. And speaking of Brady, he just passed for only 423 yards following a Monday night performance where he threw for 517. He is now on pace to throw for 7,500 yards.
Linebacker Jerod Mayo came up huge in critical moments making a tackle for a goal line stop and forcing a fumble late in the game. And enough cannot be said about maybe one of the all time plays in Patriots history, being defensive lineman Vince Wilfork’s interception.
The defense, however, still needs a vast improvement to take place after giving up over 400 yards of offense following a week in which they gave up over 500.
Before the game, the Patriots held an emotional tribute to the late franchise patriarch Myra Kraft.
Also at halftime, former Patriot great Drew Bledsoe was honored by being inducted into the Patriots Hall Of Fame. And Chad Ochocinco received a rousing welcome by the home crowd to his new home of New England after making his first reception in Gillette Stadium.
With all of the emotion and festivities it certainly felt like a game the Patriots were not going to lose. In a way, it felt like an old school Patriots win. Players stepped up in critical situations when necessary which provided for an overall solid effort.