Bill Belichick on the loss: "They were obviously the better team tonight," Patriots coach Bill Belichick said according to the Boston Globe. "It wasn't a competitive game like we thought it would be or like we needed it to be. We’ve got to coach better and play better. We have to do a lot better to compete with a team of this caliber."
The Providence Journal reports QB Tom Bradyfully recognizes there's a separation between the elite teams in the NFL right now. "There's a reason they're 11-0. We obviously didn't play up to their level," he said. "There's obviously a big gap between us. We're just not playing as consistent as we would like against these good teams. There's only one way out of it and that's to get back to work."
Despite the loss, the Patriots received some good news on the injury front. RB Sammy Morris, T Matt Light, DL Jarvis Greenand G Stephen Nealall returned to see time on the field.
The *Boston Herald *reports the Patriots defense yielded 480 total yards while Saints QB Drew Brees had a perfect 158.3 passer rating. Bill Belichick cited blown coverage and "enormous mistakes" by the defense.
Although putting much of the blame on himself for the defeat, LB Jerod Mayobelieves the loss is a "minor setback" and good teams learn from their mistakes according to the Boston Herald.
ESPN Boston *reports WR Sam Aiken set career highs with seven catches for 90 yards. Aiken was first in *ESPN Boston's three up, three down.
*SouthCoastToday.com *believes the Patriots are pretenders and not contenders as the playoffs near. Click here to find out why.
*Fox Sports *draws comparisons between the 2009 Saints and 2007 Patriots. Click here to read the full story.
