For real or not for real?

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The game was history for just a half hour before the questions came.

What about the Colts?

The New England Patriots are now at that crossroad. They are clearly the best team in the AFC East, there’s no doubting that. But are they the best team in the AFC, period?

Could be.

We’ll have more of an answer to that after Sunday, when they travel to face unbeaten Indianapolis. The Colts have shown themselves to be at the head of the AFC class. But a couple of tough games, thanks in part to defensive injuries, including one that shelves top safety Bob Sanders for the year, inspire doubts.

“I’ll take it,” Patriots quarterback Tom Brady said during his weekly Monday morning WEEI radio appearance when the Indy injuries were discussed. “We’re missing about half our offense so it’s the walking wounded out there.”

Indeed it is, which begs the question of just how good this Patriots team is. They haven’t had offensive lineman Matt Light for the last three games. No Fred Taylor or Sammy Morris at running back. Sunday they lost Dan Koppen for who knows how long. Players like Sebastian Vollmer (in for Light) and Dan Connolly (in for Koppen) have done the job, giving the Patriots some depth that may have gone unnoticed.

But the Patriots have a chance to forge ahead of several teams in the mix. Do some still doubt that they are better than Denver, despite losing there in overtime? Do many believe that they can go toe-to-toe with Pittsburgh, who still have to be considered the conference’s big, bad team until it is knocked off the block?

These are the issues that will be debated over the next couple of weeks, especially if the Patriots knock the Colts from the ranks of the unbeaten.

“It doesn’t matter about anyone’s record,” Pats cornerback Leigh Bodden said. “The NFL is tough. But we’ll be prepared.”

Indeed they will. This is where coaching comes into play. Belichick, in his sleep, could devise a game plan to face rival Peyton Manning, but how many more can he come up with?

“Yeah, I think there’s only so many things you can do in football,” he said on Monday. “It’s not unlimited. You have 11 guys, so there’s some multiples there, I understand that. You’ve got to be able to run something that your defense is comfortable running. We’re not going to go in here and install a new defense in the next couple of days and think that would be a good way to defend one of the best offensive teams, not only this year but really in the last decade. You’re not going to come up with things in a day or two.”

No, but Belichick will discover a new wrinkle. We saw an old one on Sunday when he shifted nose tackle Vince Wilfork to defensive end, reminding us on Monday that Wilfork had played the position at times a few years ago.

“Usually if something new happens, it doesn’t really catch him by surprise,” Belichick said. “He reacts to it pretty quickly. (Miami) tried to trap him (on Sunday) and without really practicing it – we hadn’t practiced it – he read it perfectly, squeezed it down and made a play. He’s a good football player. He’s smart. He’s got good skill and he’s a very instinctive football player.”

Which is why the Patriots are able to win despite some of the adversity that is thrown at them. Belichick grabs instinctive players who understand the game and what he’s trying to do. Don’t let him fool you – they’ve already installed the wrinkles they’ll have for the Colts, and his players will pick it up almost immediately.

“You don’t want to be out there with everybody hesitant and being indecisive about ‘is it this or that?’” he said. “You want to be confident and be able to play aggressively and know what you’re doing and know what the guys beside you are doing.”

The Patriots are trying to make a return to the elite while overhauling their defense on the fly. Of the 11 who started on defense on Sunday, only four played roles in the team’s Super Bowl appearance two years ago. But this revamped defense, along with Brady, Wes Welker and Randy Moss, are all together again.

And anything they get from running back Laurence Maroney, who had 82 hard yards on Sunday, is a bonus. Perhaps he’s finally fully healthy and isn’t looking over his shoulder at Taylor and Morris since both are out.

“Laurence is ready to play every week,” Belichick said. “He came into the season healthy. He had a good spring, a good off-season program, a good training camp. He’s been out there every day working hard, he hasn’t had any limitations. I think he’s been ready to go every week. I think he’s run hard.”

Mix all these ingredients together and hope that the recipe leads to a Patriots team that is back among the elite. Sunday is huge.

“You’ve got to play a great game to win,” Brady said after Sunday’s game. “You can’t go out there and play your ‘B’ game, because you won’t beat those guys.”

Time now for the Patriots to prove their ‘A’ game can make them an ‘A-plus’ team.