Matt Cassel scans the field for a receiver in the first quarter of Sunday's game.

Journal photo / Bob Breidenbach

FOXBORO - Tom Brady was gone minutes into the season opener.

Rodney Harrison was lost last week.

They eked out a win against the lowly Chiefs, then saw their record regular-season win streak come to an embarrassing end against the Dolphins.

They rebounded in San Francisco after the bye week, only to look helpless against the long ball in San Diego.

And somehow, after all of that, the New England Patriots, after yesterday's 23-16 win over the St. Louis Rams and Buffalo's loss to Miami, are tied for first place in the AFC East.

On its face, it kind of makes you shake your head. But with everything these Patriots have done this decade to dispel the doubters, should we really be surprised?

That's not to say that yesterday's win wasn't without its problems. New England had to scratch and claw for this one, even though the Rams played without star back Steven Jackson, and that deep-ball issue reared its ugly head again. Offensively the Pats had some trouble running the ball, Matt Cassel's two interceptions were flukes, and both Randy Moss and Wes Welker couldn't pull in catchable balls.

But in the standings, it saysNew England and Buffalo are 5-2, and in a bottom-line business, that's what matters.

"Five and two is a lot better than two and five, and that's where a lot of people thought we would be at this point," said Ty Warren, who was glad to get his first sack of the season, bringing Marc Bulger down in the fourth quarter. "But we're heading in the right direction. The division is not won by any means, and we know that."

St. Louis rookie Donnie Avery introduced himself to the Patriots on the opening drive of the game, sprinting through Deltha O'Neal and Brandon Meriweather on his way to a 35-yard gain. O'Neal suffered a concussion on the play, though he would return later in the game.

Avery was brought down by Jonathan Wilhite at the 9-yard line, giving the Rams first and goal. But the league's most inefficient red-zone team (they've now made 10 trips there with just three touchdowns) got to the 2 before an errant third-down pass to Torry Holt in the end zone forced a chip-shot field goal by Josh Brown.

The Patriots answered, driving 73 yards on their opening possession. Rookie BenJarvus Green-Ellis, who got the start with both Sammy Morris (knee) and LaMont Jordan (calf) nursing injuries, pounded out the last two yards for the touchdown.

Then Avery struck again. On second and 6 from the Rams' 31, Bulger connected with Avery. Ellis Hobbs, who was in coverage, was taken out of the play by teammate James Sanders when Sanders ran into Hobbs. Avery ran the final 20-plus yards into the end zone alone.

With Harrison out for the season, Sanders and Meriweather started at safety. Corner Lewis Sanders (hamstring) was inactive. Hobbs and O'Neal started at corner, but when O'Neal went down, rookie Terrence Wheatley came in. Fellow rookie Wilhite and Mike Richardson, who basically is also a rookie after spending his first season on injured reserve, also saw a high number of snaps at corner.

Wheatley, who admittedly didn't have his best performance against San Diego and was a healthy scratch against the Broncos, said he's been working to improve his game.

"You have to make the most of opportunities. Obviously, last time I was in, I didn't make the most of it; I went out there and had a few technique [mistakes]," he said. "So between then and now, you want to work on certain things. Teams when they see you, they'll remember, 'Oh, he's the one that got beat on,' or something like that. You definitely want to fine-tune your game as best you can, work on stuff in practice, and practice good so you go out there and play good."

Field goals of 30 and 27 yards by Stephen Gostkowski meant New England took a 13-10 lead into halftime, but the game was tied at 16-all with seven minutes left.

That's when Cassel (21 for 33, career-high 267 yards, one touchdown, two picks, three sacks) led his first game-winning drive, though the possession started with the Pats putting themselves into an eight-yard hole when Cassel was taken down. He recovered with a 23-yard completion to Moss that put him in Rams' territory. A few more passes to Moss, who recorded his third 100-yard game of the season, and a couple carries by Kevin Faulk brought New England into the red zone.

A pinpoint lob to Faulk, split out wide and covered by linebacker Pisa Tinoisamoa, and the Patriots had the game-winning touchdown.

St. Louis' last real possession ended, as did the game, when O'Neal, forced back onto the field when Hobbs injured his shoulder, made a juggling interception. Had the Rams scored, coach Jim Haslett said, they would have gone for the two-point conversion.

Win number five in the books, order restored atop the AFC East standings.

smanza@projo.com