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FOXBOROUGH - Memo to those who may have written off the Patriots: Buy an eraser.

The Pats are back to their old habits, having disposed of their second straight unbeaten opponent, holding off the Ravens, 27-21, at Gillette Stadium Sunday.

In many ways it followed the old script. The Patriots came up with the big plays at the right time and ultimately stopped a late Ravens drive on a failed fourth-and-4 pass from the 14. But look more closely and you will see Tom Brady's sharpest game, Randy Moss' first touchdown catch and the return of Wes Welker with a team-high six catches. Not to mention a defense that gave up just two TDs to an offense averaging 34.5 points a game.

"We needed it," said Brady, who looked back in his comfort zone, completing 21 of 32 passes for 258 yards, throwing for one TD and scoring another on a QB sneak. "They're a good team and you've got to earn everything off of them."

Rutgers grad Ray Rice had 103 yards on 11 carries and 49 yards on five catches for the Ravens but, for the most part, the Patriots put a lot of pressure on Joe Flacco (27-for-47, 264 yards, one INT) and limited his opportunities downfield. Baltimore had to play catchup after its opening drive of the game and the Pats, who almost never give up fourth-quarter leads under Brady, were not going to let it happen this time.

After jumping to a 17-7 lead, the Patriots answered two Raven touchdowns with scores of their own in the second half.

After Brady's fumble on a blind-side sack by Terrell Suggs was recovered in the end zone by Dwan Edwards for a Baltimore TD, Brady answered by leading the Patriots on a six-play, 79-yard drive. The TD came on third-and-4 when Brady found Moss near the sideline for a 14-yard score, Moss' first of the year.

After Flacco countered by hitting Willis McGahee on a 14-yard TD pass, Brady moved the Patriots 59 yards for a Steve Gostkowski field goal and a 27-21 lead.

And that's when the Patriots defense started coming up big, twice stopping Ravens drives on fourth down.

The final play came with 32 seconds left in the game. Mark Clayton dropped what would have been a first down pass at the Patriots' 9, trying to get more yardage - a mistake the Patriots almost never make. "Obviously, we needed a touchdown," he said. "We really had a good call. I got open and dropped the ball."

The Ravens said they would learn from this one but it was clear they weren't happy with the officiating. There were several spots that went the Patriots' way as well as two calls for roughing Brady and an unsportsmanlike conduct call on coach John Harbaugh.

"Put flags on them. Put a red buzzer on them," Ray Lewis said as part of a lengthy tirade. "There's one person on the football field different than everybody else. That's embarrassing. Did it help them lose the game, no? But it damn sure helped them get 14 points."

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