I think the OP isn't trying to be another Moss thread, it's trying to talk about how the team has redefined itself, finding a new identity.
The turning point was not the Moss trade, although everyone seems to see that as a milestone. To me, this is also about Moroney, Faulk, TWarren, Burgess, Adalius, Bodden, Mankins. Not only all the promising rookies like Cunningham, Hernandez, McCourty, Gronk, Deaderick, Zoltan, Spikes leaving their mark on the team, but a whole bunch of FAs and young players emerging on the team, Branch, Woodhead, Tate, Chung, Vollmer, Connolly, Ninkovich.
This team is entirely reformed for 2010, and still very much a work in progress and still a little uncertain about what it is.
On third down and long against the Ravens, Brady lofts a pass way over Branch's head, and Deon goes up to try and pull it in for what would have been a 5-yard gain. It was obvious watching that Tom intended the pass to go to Welker who was on a deeper out pattern and open, right at the sticks for a first down. Deon just didn't realize where Wes was, or that the pass wasn't for him and tried to make a play. Just an example of a guy that's not quite in rhythm yet.
Merriweather has been laying the lumber, but after the hit on Heap, you can see him trying to figure out what his game is. Rodney reported that he was coaching Merriweather not to cultivate a reputation as a dirty player, like he had. And in apologizing for the hit, and begging the media to move on, he seemed like a young player still trying to figure out how to use his skills on the field.
The coaches started sending Spikes on a run blitz pretty regularly in the Raven's game. That was new, and it plays to Brandon's strengths. It seemed to work well, and I think we may see that as a new feature in our base-D. Cunningham seemed to get a consistent and strong pass rush on a highly regarded young LT in Oher: that's new too. Fits and steps.
But if the team is still ironing out it's game, it's starting to lock down key components that work, one by one. Pass protection seemed to gel against Cinci. Against the Bills, we found our power running game behind BJGE. At Miami, we discovered that Ninkovich is strong in pass coverage, that we can dominate in the kicking game. Against the Ravens, we learned that Woodhead can carve up an elite front-7 in the running game. The pieces are starting to fit.
As these things get locked in place, they become tools in the toolkit for BB and the staff. We still haven't seen the ceiling of what this team can be. We still need to see consistency against 3rd and long. And there's a question mark whether BB has confidence in Gostkowski. They may be at their ceiling now, but I think we'll continue to see them get better and more confident as a team. As they figure it out, the swagger will follow.
Good news is that with all the on-the-job training that's going on, we're 4-1. That's pretty impressive.
