Maybe that Maroney injury was a blessing in disguise as BenJarvus Green-Ellis seems to just keep getting better game-by-game. This week, he contributed big time in the Pats' 20-10 victory over the Bills as 'Law Firm' rushed for 105 yards and a score on 26 attempts, good for an even 4.0 yards per carry. Belichick et. al. showed just how committed they were to the undrafted rookie when they handed him the rock on third-and-1 in the fourth after a pair of unsuccessful Cassel rushes, only to see him plunge into the end zone to record his fourth-straight game with a rushing touchdown. Just awesome. The threat of a viable running game frees up the passing game to make big plays, as evidenced by Welker's 107-yard game. Speaking of Welker, he's atop our list of this week's game-changers:

On the up and up:
BenJarvus Green-Ellis - For all the reasons stated above... and give some credit to the O-line, as well.
Wes Welker - What more can you say? Wes became the first player in NFL history to catch at least six passes in the first nine games of the season (he had 10 today) and he now has 66 on the year. His touchdown output is well short of last year's pace as he's only found the end zone once, but as long as the Pats keep winning, that's easy to overlook.
Matt Cassel - What you see is what you get with Matty Backup. 23 completions for 234 yards with no TDs and no INTs, but he managed the game well and made plays on his feet (22 rushing yards and a score) when necessary. I'll say this for him: he looked pretty comfortable out there today.
Defensive front seven - A pair of sacks and 3.3 yards per rush for the Bills (18 carries, 60 yards) were the stats, and don't think they didn't have an impact on Edwards' two picks. The secondary deserves some props too as the Bills had just 120 receiving yards all game.


Trending downward:
Stephen Gostkowski - Gostkowski's on this list thanks to a missed field goal and a flag for booting a kickoff out of bounds. Not a completely horrible effort as he nailed two field goals and two extra points, but it's not what we've come to expect out of him.
Kevin Faulk - Tough game for him today (18 total yards on five carries and one catch), but he wasn't involved much as Green-Ellis was busy going to town and the Bills snuffed out every play he was in early. Should rebound next week.
Randy Moss - To date, Randy only has three games with over 100 yards receiving. Yesterday's 5-catch, 53-yard effort was his sixth this season with fewer than 70 yards receiving, including those three games where he failed to crack the 30-yard mark (OUCH!). There were a couple deep balls where Cassel overthrew him, but he was more than capable of hauling in at least one of those end zone targets he had today.
Adalius Thomas - He didn't have a bad game or anything, but the Pats have likely lost their best pass rusher after Thomas was forced out after injuring his arm in the first half. Michael Smith of ESPN reports that Thomas has a broken arm, so the Pats will need Pierre Woods to step up big time to keep that front seven as solid as they've been this season. Tall order, but the 3-year veteran should be up to the task.