EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – The defining moment for the Patriots on Statement Sunday at the Meadowlands came in the fourth quarter, after the Jets had scored their lone touchdown to shave the Pats’ lead to six points with 10 minutes remaining. For the first time since the early going, the Jets had life. As Matt Cassel and the offense took the field, you could feel momentum hanging in the air.

And Bill Belichick snatched it.

Cassel had been kept on a short leash to that point, but Belichick loosened the reins just enough for the Pats to regain control. First snap: deep slant to Randy Moss for 14 yards. Second snap: Quick out to tight end David Thomas in an area vacated by a streaking Moss for another 14 yards. Third snap: Bomb to Moss that was under thrown and dropped but should have been caught by the future Hall of Famer. Two plays later, Cassel hit Sammy Morris with a four-yard flair to pick up a third-and-2 while drawing a roughing flag and the Pats were in field-goal range. Ball game.

It’s what makes Belichick great: knowing when to take chances and never being afraid to take them. In other words, it’s not the 59 minutes of conservative, close-to-the-vest football that Belichick engineered that sets him apart. Most coaches would have done the same thing. It’s showing faith in your players and having the balls to go for it in that one minute when the game hung in the balance.

Overall, the loss probably meant more to the Jets than the win did to the Pats, who, after all, established themselves a long time ago. The Jets still haven’t, and after Sunday we know they aren't quite ready to compete with the big boys, Brett Favre or no Brett Favre. And the Patriots, Tom Brady or no Tom Brady, remain one of those big boys.

But, again, as much as anything, the game reiterated the acumen of Belichick, whose fingerprints were all over the field. His team was physical. It limited mistakes (no turnovers; just two penalties). It shortened the game (the 33-26 run-pass ratio left the Jets with just 49 offensive snaps). And, mostly, it capitalized on the opportunities it was given. Carpe diem.

On to the grades, and be sure to send the abuse to mfelger@weei.com for Thursday's mailbag….

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QUARTERBACK -- B+

Sure, the bomb to Moss was under-thrown. So what? How many times do you see that ball come up short in games across the NFL? Maybe a third? In that stadium, maybe more. Moss should have had it. The heave was one of only a handful of attempts by Cassel past the first level, and his success rate on those balls was low. So bench him in your fantasy league if you don't like it. Cassel was just about everything he has to be for the Pats to win games this season. He commanded the game plan he was given. He got the offense to the line when they went quickly and called timeouts when they were in a bad play. He took some heavy hits and hung in. He hit his underneath receivers in stride and gave them an opportunity to run with the ball. And when the Pats had to have a completion, he delivered more often than not. On third downs, Cassel completed 5-of-7 passes for 38 yards. There were a few wild balls but overall he was in control throughout. We said last week that if Cassel plays like he did against the Chiefs (13-of-18, 152 yards, no turnovers) the Pats are going to win a lot of games. Well, Cassel did (16-of-23, 165 yards, no turnovers), and so did the Pats. Want to see something interesting? Compare Cassel's first-start stat line to that of Tom Brady back in 2001 (vs. the Colts in Foxboro): 13-of-23, 168 yards, no turnovers. For what it's worth.

RUNNING BACK -- A-

Another 2001 comparison: Remember how Antowain Smith used to look in this offense? You know, plodding and deliberate for three quarters and then a plow horse in the fourth? Well, Smith is back, only in the form of LaMont Jordan, who was simply a load in gaining 62 second-half yards on 11 carries. Meanwhile, Kevin Faulk was once again spectacular in the passing game with 50 receiving yards on four catches, including a highlight-reel, one-hander on third down. His ability to set up blockers on screens was also exemplary. Sammy Morris also did his part with a couple of excellent catches, both for first downs, and an over-the-top touchdown dive to give the Pats a commanding lead in the third quarter. Give fullback Heath Evans credit for the lead block on the score. It seems everyone on this unit played a role in the win except for the starter. Thankfully, the Pats have built enough depth to work around the disappointing and injury-prone play of Laurence Maroney (16 yards on eight carries).

RECEIVERS -- B-

Cassel's stat line would have looked much better if not for the Moss drop and another one by Welker at the end of the second quarter. Overall, it's hard to have any complaints with the latter, as Welker continues to be there for his quarterback (seven catches, 72 yards). Moss is a different story. Cassel barely looked at Moss early, and as the game went on it reflected in the receiver's comportment. The CBS telecast did a good job focusing on one play where Moss, in one-on-one coverage with second-year-corner Darrelle Revis, took a chuck off the line, jogged a few steps and then essentially stopped running while Cassel was sacked. Moss finished with two catches for 22 yards, which certainly wasn't all his fault given the game plan. It’s just that whether he sees the ball a lot or a little, Moss still has to be there for Cassel. A lot of eyes will be focused on him. Jabar Gaffney once again didn’t have a reception, but credit him with some nice downfield blocking in the screen game.

OFFENSIVE LINE – B+

Notice how much better this unit looked when Jordan started getting the ball late in the third quarter? Also credit these guys for protecting Cassel when the Pats went to the air following the Jets touchdown. The work here in the fourth quarter was huge. As for the three sacks given up by the Pats earlier in the second, two were not the fault of the O-line. Thomas gave up the first to Shaun Ellis, although Dan Koppen had problems with Kris Jenkins on the play as well (a recurring theme on the day), and Faulk lost safety David Barrett on the other. The Jets’ third sack was, in fact, the responsibility of Koppen, who was beaten by Jenkins on the play. As usual, the big guys did great work getting downfield on screens. Matt Light was way out in front of Wes Welker for a 26-yard gain in the first quarter, and Billy Yates and Koppen laid down the key blocks that sprung Faulk in the third quarter.

DEFENSIVE LINE -- B+

Give an `A' to the goal-line unit, which shut down the Jets in the second quarter. Individually, Ty Warren dominated his matchup against Damien Woody, bringing down Thomas Jones for a short gain on the first series, dropping him for no gain on the second series and drawing a holding penalty on Woody to bring back a 10-yard Jones run on the  first play of the third quarter. Warren later burst through the line to create the pressure that resulted in another failed Jones run. Meanwhile, Richard Seymour continued to show his old burst and disruptiveness in the backfield. He split the pile on third down on the goal-line stand to bring down Jones for a loss of two yards and later in the stanza beat guard Alan Faneca for a sack of Favre. Seymour did get run on a bit (such as on the 16-yard gain by Jones on the first series), but his handful of impact plays more than made up for it.

LINEBACKERS -- A-

The Seymour-Adalius Thomas combo is perhaps the most encouraging factor on defense in the early going this season. Thomas did his part Sunday with a one-armed, 20-yard takedown of Favre in the fourth quarter that essentially sealed the game. Jets running back Leon Washington was no match on the play. Meanwhile, rookie Jerod Mayo has continued his instant impact, staying on the field in all situations and finishing with a team-high seven unassisted tackles. His work in the passing game has set him apart, as his tackle of Jones for a three-yard loss in the second quarter will attest. Tedy Bruschi made himself useful with a deflected pass, a tackle for a loss and a takedown of Favre. Mike Vrabel made a nice play stringing out Washington for a five-yard loss late in the second quarter.

SECONDARY -- A-

Ellis Hobs was really good in this game, getting up on Jericho Cotchery in the end zone on the first series and stepping in front of Cotchery for a deflection on the next series. He had two tackles, two deflections, and more than anything felt like one of the tone-setters on the defense. Good stuff. Deltha O'Neal's greatest contribution was drawing an offensive pass interference call on Cotchery that looked a lot worse to the naked eye than it did on replay. He was helped by an early drop from Laveranues Coles before giving up the big, 54-yard gain to Coles on a Favre scramble in the second quarter. Rodney Harrison, as usual, was all over the field, sometimes making the play (team-high eight tackles; take-down of Jones on the goal line) and sometimes missing it (whiffing on Leon Washington on an 11-yard run in the second quarter; giving up the touchdown to Chansi Stuckey in the fourth quarter). Finally, credit Brandon Meriweather for holding on to Favre's gift interception. The coaches had told the defensive backs to be patient, that eventually, in the words of Harrison, ``Brett would be Brett.'' These words came to fruition, as they almost always do with Favre, and Meriweather was the beneficiary.

SPECIAL TEAMS – A

A great game here, especially from Stephen Gostkowski. The third-year kicker made all four field-goal attempts (from 21, 37, 28 and 27 yards) and booted his first five kickoffs deep for touchbacks. His sixth kickoff was also into the end zone and was brought back meekly to the 20. Gostkowski did that into both ends of notoriously windy Giants Stadium. Excellent job. Elsewhere, Faulk and the punt return team took advantage of some terrible kicking by the Jets’ Ben Graham, with the key effort being the 24-yard return in the third quarter to set up a field goal. Give Ray Ventrone credit for a key block on the return. An earlier 14-yard return by Faulk set up three more points. The only negative here continues to be the inability of punter Chris Hanson to pin opponents deep. He had two more chances to do it Sunday but sent both into the end zone. On the year, Hanson has four touchbacks and just one ball downed inside the 20.

COACHING -- A+

I give the credit to Belichick for the aggressive play-calling after the Jets fourth-quarter touchdown because I think those broad, flow-of-game decisions are his domain. But if you want to get into the nitty-gritty of Cassel's game management, give the gold star to Josh McDaniels. The offensive coordinator was clearly able to put Cassel in a comfort zone early, which set the tone for the rest of the day. On defense, you have to wonder if the presence of new secondary coach Dom Capers has contributed to some of the solid play at corner. Finally, there was some fun stuff late in the second quarter when, coming out of a Jets timeout, the Pats huddled their offense on fourth-and-1 at midfield, only to race their punt team on the field at the last second. The move led to a fire drill on the Jets' sideline (they had no more timeouts left) and nearly had Eric Mangini coming out of his headset. Bet that was played a few times at Gillette yesterday.

THREE UP

Bill Belichick – Reinforces the power of T-E-A-M.

Stephen Gostkowski - As big a factor as anyone in the win.

LaMont Jordan -- The closer.

THREE DOWN

Jets Coaches -- Conservative to a fault; you would have thought Brett Favre was the first-time starter.

Chris Hanson -- How about aiming for the corner?

Randy Moss -- Not exactly taking his game to the next level for his young quarterback.

FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH

-- Could the Jets’ play-calling have been any worse? I understand the Jets have spent a lot of money and high draft picks on the offensive line, but the way they played into the strength of the Pats’ defense – the front seven and the defensive line in particular – was amazing. Obviously, the Jets wanted to prove a point down on the goal line by muscling the ball over. But not many teams can run right at Vince Wilfork and have success, and the Jets obviously aren’t on that short list. Beyond that, it felt like the Jets were playing it as conservatively as the Pats despite owning what should have been a clear edge at quarterback. Yet instead of having Favre attempt to exploit the Pats’ secondary, the Jets kept the reins tight. But then again, what do you expect when a Schottenheimer (offensive coordinator Brian) is calling the shots?

-- Speaking of Favre, all you need to know about him is what you saw on the Jets’ first series of the third quarter. On that drive alone, Favre picked up a penalty for throwing past the line of scrimmage; picked up a huge first down on third-and-22 after a great scramble and throw across his body; narrowly avoided a sack by flipping the ball to tight end Bubba Franks for a five-yard loss; and ultimately set up the Pats’ only touchdown with an interception thrown off his back foot deep in his own territory. The classic Favre mosaic. Enjoy it, Jets fans.

Mike Felger can be seen nightly on Mohegan Sun’s Sports Tonight on Comcast Sportsnet. Reach him at mfelger@weei.com.