The only thing standing between the New England Patriots and an undefeated season is road games against Baltimore and the New York Giants and home dates with Pittsburgh, Miami, and the New York Jets.

We might not be having this conversation today however if it weren’t for some questionable play calling late in the Patriots, 31-28, win over the Philadelphia Eagles Sunday night in Foxborough.

The Eagles, a 24 1/2 point underdog, moved the ball downfield on the Patriots defense at will and were well within David Akers field goal range when the Eagles made the blunder of the game.

A.J. Feeley had completed four straight and five of six passing attempts as the Eagles moved the ball to the Patriots 35-yard line. The Eagles then ran Westbrook for six yards setting up a second down and four yards from the Pats 29. A great spot for an offensive coordinator to take a shot at the endzone but with 3:58 left in the game, it was time to run the ball and milk the clock.

The Eagles tried for the dagger but Feeley threw a horrendous pass that easily intercepted by Asante Samuel in the endzone. The Patriots took over and were forced to punt but with only 18 seconds left the Eagles valiant effort would not be rewarded this night.

The effort and effective game plan the Eagles used against the Patriots has to give the rest of the teams fighting for the playoffs a glimmer of hope because the Patriots showed Sunday night that they can be vulnerable. 

Shortly after Tom Brady took the final kneel down and sealed the Patriots win, head coach Bill Belichick walked to mifield to shake hands with Eagles head coach Andy Reid before turning his attention to the game’s most important figure.

That would be Philadelphia defensive coordinator Jim Johnson, whom Belichick patted on the back. 

Belichick was the first to congratulate him but I guarantee you he wasn’t the last. Johnson’s game plan came this close to shutting down the game’s most explosive and most productive offense – THREE POINTS. 

The credit goes to the coaches for their game plans and the players who executed them the way they did,” Reid said.

The credit goes especially to Johnson, who had his defense playing so well it blanked New England on five of its six second-half drives. One problem: The one that it didn’t check was the one that decided this game — a 69-yard march punctuated by a Laurence Maroney touchdown run. 

For the first time this year, Tom Brady didn’t throw at least three touchdown passes in a game. He had one TD pass. Randy Moss was a non-factor; he had no second-half receptions. For the first time this year, the Patriots were both shaken and stirred at home and that is good news for remaining opponents of the Patriots.

Sunday night’s game film will be broken down like no other tape has ever been before and even though I don’t see the Patriots losing in the regular season, I see a team, after disecting this film, that will find a way to win in Foxborough come January.

The Patriots are still the clear-cut favorite to win Super Bowl XLII in Phoenix later on this season, but after Sunday nights game, eleven other teams now have a ray of hope that the almighty Patriots can be beaten with the right game plan if it is executed to or near perfection.

The rest of the league and non-Patriots fans would like to say thank you to the Philadelphia coaching staff for uncovering a kink in the armor of Hoodie and his Boys.