Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Final Score
Patriots 35
Packers 0

Teddy’s Take: You think we could trade this one in for Super Bowl XXXI?

Needless to say, these aren’t the same Packers and Brett Favre is a shadow of his old self, even if his old self was overrated to begin with. Meanwhile, this is exactly how the Patriots needed to respond to their first two game losing streak in years. They were efficient. They were physical. And they were in control from the opening kickoff till the final gun sounded. They wanted the shutout as icing on the cake and made sure they got it. I got the feeling Green Bay wasn’t getting on the scoreboard if they played 24-quarters instead of four.

One more thing this win did. It put an end to the ridiculous “the division is up for grabs� talk we kept hearing all week. Look, these aren’t the “dynasty� Patriots, but they don’t need to be to win the AFC East. The Jets are an improved club that has a bright future and a long way to go to get into New England’s class. You don’t need to be making Super Bowl plans, but make sure to keep Saturdays and Sundays open in early January. The Pats will be playing playoff football.

Shining Stars: The much-maligned Reche Caldwell earns a star on the forehead for his 2nd consecutive strong performance. The 54-yard TD is New England’s longest play from scrimmage this year and the first sign of a deep threat since you-know-who departed…Laurence Maroney gets one as well. I’d love to see this kid get 25-carries a game for a prolonged period and see what he could do. All great running backs get better as the game goes on. I think Maroney would fall into the same class if given a chance. By the way, did anyone pick up Nick Barnett’s jock strap for him?

Ben Watson gets a gold star for a strong game and a great TD catch…Tom Brady adds to a star-filled forehead with a flawless 4-TD, 0-INT performance…We’ll also hand one out to every member of the Defense, as a shutout is a true team performance. Mike Vrabel and Tedy Bruschi get an extra sticker for their work, however. The linebacker duo was all over the field.

Finally, a week after being put in detention, Bill Belichick earns one for getting his team back on track. He had the boys practicing in full pads this week in an effort to rediscover some intensity. I don’t care how bad Green Bay is…the move worked!

Quality Quotes: “I was trying to throw it away [laughter] and he jumped up and caught it.�—Tom Brady discussing a near-miss TD pass to Mike Vrabel

That’s my take…what’s yours? Are the Patriots back on track? Or did they beat up on an overachieving team that came back to earth?