What more can you say about Kevin Faulk that hasn't already been said? Next to Brady and Bruschi, he's the unquestioned leader of this team. With Maroney done for the year, Jordan and Morris on the sidelines dealing with various injuries, and BenJarvus Green-Ellis being largely ineffective in his second game, Faulk came through in the clutch with 60 yards on 13 rushes and 47 yards on four receptions, none bigger than Cassel's fourth quarter endzone lob that he hauled in for a quick six points with just over three minutes to play. As has been the case his entire career, he never puts up the numbers that make you say 'Wow,' but his constant professionalism (weed possession charge at that Lil Wayne concert aside) and ability to step up and assume a key role in a pinch make him one of the most essential players on this club.

Few other things from yesterday's game:

Cassel makes the grade
He got sacked three more times and threw a pair of picks, but Cassel showed an improved ability to get rid of the ball quicker or make a play with his feet when there wasn't much developing downfield. Plus, he gets extra points for making the first full-fledged fourth quarter comeback of his young career. It wasn't Brady-esque, but it got the job done.

Give and receive
102 yards on seven catches (including his 800th career reception) for Moss, including a beauty of a 23-yarder that saw him dance and juke his way to about 15 extra yards that came in the fourth quarter. Welker hauled in seven catches of his own for 79 yards, his fourth game with at least 72 receiving yards. A model of consistency all season long, Welker's had at least 51 receiving yards in every game this year.

Defense wins championships
The secondary still leaves a lot to be desired (even with Deltha O'Neal's pick and subsequent 47-yard return, which had most Patriots fans including myself yelling 'Just go down!'), but the line and linebackers couldn't have done much better. Seymour, Warren and Wilfork combined for 13 solo tackles and two sacks, and Adalius Thomas rocked Bulger's world all day with a pair of sacks and two hurries. He also had seven tackles with four solos.

What you talkin' about, Ellis?
Ellis Hobbs, who gave us a lot to talk about when he whined about booing fans and people leaving early a couple of weeks ago, gave us even more to talk about when he had one of his worst games of the season, blowing coverages and missing reads to allow rookie Donnie Avery to rack up 163 yards and a score. His one saving grace was that nice 49-yard return early in the fourth, but if you want to nitpick that one, you can blame him for getting tackled by the kicker. I, however, will refrain from doing so.