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Moss honored

FOXBORO -- Patriots wide receiver Randy Moss has been named AFC Offensive Player of the Week after catching nine passes for 145 yards and one touchdown in Sunday's win over the Colts.

His 55-yard catch helped set up a touchdown three plays later to help the Patriots cut Indy's lead to 20-17 with 7:59 to play.

It was his sixth 100th yard game of the season and 52nd of his career. He also caught his 12th touchdown of the season, tying a franchise record.

The last time Moss won a player of the week honor was in 2001, with the Vikings.

Posted by Rob Lee  at 6:24 PM to Randy Moss | Permalink | Comments 2

Jackson & Jackson activated; Ventrone released

Hey all --

The Patriots had until today to make a decision on receiver Chad Jackson and cornerback Eddie Jackson -- whether they'd activate the players off the PUP list and onto the 53-man roster, or whether one or both would be moved to injured reserve -- and the team decided to activate both.

New England had one open roster spot after cutting tight end Marcellus Rivers yesterday, and today released defensive back Ray Ventrone to open up the second spot needed. Ventrone, who played his first NFL game on Sunday against the Colts, will likely clear waivers and be re-signed to the Pats' practice squad.

Chad Jackson was New England's second-round draft pick last year out of Florida, and struggled with a hamstring injury during the preseason which lingered into the regular season. He finished his rookie season with 13 catches for 152 yards and three touchdowns, and the Pats also used his speed out of the backfield a few times, as he had four rushes for 22 yards.

Jackson suffered a torn ACL in the AFC Championship game.

Eddie Jackson, 26, was signed by the Patriots as a free agent this offseason despite suffering a torn ACL late in the season with Miami. Jackson typically plays in nickel/dime situations and on special teams.

Posted by Shalise Manza Young  at 6:12 PM | Permalink | Comments 0

Projo PatsTalk with Shalise Manza Young: The noise didn't help

Click here to listen to today's edition of projo PatsTalk with Shalise Manza Young. The topics: the gamesmanship of the Patriots-Colts rivalry; crowd noise conspiracy theory; the increasing chances of a perfect season; the toughest remaining tests; the wisdown of playing for perfection; giving the players a rest on the bye week; and, of course, Don Shula.

Here are some excerpts from Shalise's comments.

Do the Patriots and Colts players particularly dislike each other? "I don't think there's necessarily dislike between the players. There's definitely some things between the organizations. ... But for the players, when they're between the lines all they want to do is win. ... They're just two very good teams, and they know that one has to beat the other, more than likely, to get to the ultimate goal at the end of the season."

The quest for perfection: "The biggest threat that I see for them, going forward, is the Steelers. That game is here at home, but the Steelers put on a heck of a show against the Ravens the other night. ... It seemed like as soon as the ball was snapped they were on the ball. Ben Roethlisberger is a good enough quarterback -- if he can put up just enough points, and if the Pittsburgh defense gets to Tom Brady early and often, and maybe they hold the Patriots to just 14 points. ... the Steelers seem like they're good enough that they could put up 17. It may be one of those lower scoring games, or lower-scoring for the Patriots."

The bye week schedule: "They had some meetings yesterday, and that's it -- the guys are free to go wherever they want, do whatever they want. ... They're not due back at Gillette Stadium until Monday morning. Belichick if I had to guess will probably take Monday to work on some fundamental, basic things on the field, use it as a teaching day, and then they will have Tuesday off like they usually do, and then Wednesday they'll get right into game planning for Buffalo."

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 11:03 AM | Permalink | Comments 0

Boston cameraman says Colts employee talked about manipulation of crowd nose

Here's more fuel for the fire surrounding the Colts' alleged manufacturing of crowd noise at the RCA Dome. WBZ photojournalist Bryan Foley says in this video clip that he was on the sideline during Sunday's game, and asked a security employee how the man coped with the tremendous noise every week. Foley says that the guard told him that the crowd noise is recorded and then played over the PA system to enhance the overall sound when the opponent has the ball.

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 9:51 AM | Permalink | Comments 1