Strength at this position runs deep

CINCINNATI - While Randy Moss again stole the show Monday night with his fourth straight 100-yard receiving game, quarterback Tom Brady said it would be a mistake to overlook the contributions of the team's other receivers.

Following New England's 34-13 victory over the Bengals, Brady pointed out that Donte' Stallworth was also instrumental in the win.

"I thought Donte' played his best game so far as a Patriot," Brady said.

Stallworth, who started opposite of Moss and entered the game with just four receptions in the first three games, finished with four catches for 49 yards.

His best play came midway through the fourth quarter with the Patriots looking to put the game away, leading, 27-13. Facing second and 19, Brady found Stallworth on a quick screen to his left, and Stallworth did some nifty work after the catch to record a 23-yard reception.

Stallworth followed that with a 7-yard reception on the next play. He had a 14-yard grab in the first quarter and a 5-yard reception in the second.

The four catches were second on the team, behind Moss's nine.

Clearing the way

The lead-blocking fullback might be a dying breed in the NFL, but it played an important role in the Patriots' victory.

Calling on Heath Evans in that role 16 times, the Patriots ground out 92 rushing yards on 14 carries out of that grouping, including Sammy Morris's 49-yard run in the first quarter that set up the first touchdown, and Morris's 7-yard TD run on fourth and 1 in the third quarter.

The team passed twice out of the set, hitting on both attempts (8 yards to Moss; 18 yards to Morris).

Using a lead-blocking fullback was a change for the Patriots, who - not including goal-line situations when linebacker Junior Seau comes on the field - employed it seven times over the first three games of the season, instead preferring a single-back look.

Monday night, when Evans lined up at fullback, it most often meant he was joined by tight ends Kyle Brady and Benjamin Watson, with a single receiver (most often Moss) and running back (most often Morris).

Quite the production

The Patriots have set one NFL record and one franchise record in their convincing 4-0 start.

New England is the first NFL team since 1920 to win each of its first four games of a season by 20 or more points. The Patriots have won by 24, 24, 31, and 21 points this season.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the last NFL team to win each of its first four games by 20 or more points was the 1920 Buffalo All-Americans.

Meanwhile, the club has produced the highest four-game scoring output in franchise history during a season.

The Patriots' previous high was 146 points, achieved by the 1962 team in the first four games. This season, the Patriots have outscored opponents, 148-48, and the plus-100 point differential is the largest of any four-game stretch in a season in team history.

The previous team record for point differential over a four-game span was plus-90, achieved by the 1997 team during its first four games.

Getting involved

While Moss has dazzled by totaling 31 receptions - on 34 passes thrown his way - not to be overlooked is simply how much he is playing.

In the days leading up to the season opener, Moss expressed concern about slowing the tempo of the offense because he had missed most of training camp. Yet it hasn't been an issue.

Not including quarterback kneel-downs, no receiver, tight end, or running back has played more snaps than Moss. Through four games, he's been on the field for 199 of a possible 257 snaps.

In Monday night's game, Moss was on the sideline for just three first-half plays, when the Patriots went to their goal-line package with no receivers. In the second half, he came off for one play after making a 20-yard reception early in the fourth quarter. Then he remained on the sideline on the Patriots' final drive.

Moss is the first player in NFL history to record 100-yard receiving games in the first four games with a new club. He is the second Patriot to gain 100 or more receiving yards in four straight games, joining Stanley Morgan (1985-86). Moss's total of 505 receiving yards is the third highest for any four-game stretch by a player in Patriots history, trailing only two four-game outputs by Terry Glenn in 1999.

Aides helped cause

When detailing one of the Patriots' big plays - a 27-yard reverse to Wes Welker in the third quarter - coach Bill Belichick made a point of praising the play-calling of coordinator Josh McDaniels. Belichick felt the reverse reflected an overall solid performance by one of his top aides. "I thought Josh called a great game," Belichick said. Belichick also praised defensive coordinator Dean Pees, as the defense liberally substituted personnel, calling on more nickel packages as the game progressed. Overall, Belichick felt "both play-callers did an excellent job of mixing it up and keeping them off balance." . . . In snaring a 1-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter, linebacker Mike Vrabel notched his ninth career reception (including playoffs), and all have gone for touchdowns. The play came on third down, with Vrabel lined up as a tight end and the Patriots effectively utilizing a play-action fake. "Mike does a great job down there," Belichick said. "He can slip around those guys and get into the secondary. He has good hands and Tom hit him. It was a well-executed play. He's pretty reliable. He sees that ball coming and his eyes light up."

Living on the edge

Watson had two catches and Kyle Brady did not register a catch, but Belichick isn't looking solely at receptions when assessing the tight ends' impact. Belichick felt Watson and Brady were key in the running game with solid blocks on the edge that allowed the team to "get the ball outside several times." Both tight ends continue to be big parts of the offense, as Brady played 45 of 62 snaps (not including four kneel-downs), the second-highest total of skill-position players, and Watson was in for 36, the fourth-highest total . . . Free agent tight end Marcellus Rivers, who was with the Patriots for parts of training camp and is near the top of the team's list to return if the leg injury David Thomas sustained Monday night is a long-term issue, tried out with the Dolphins yesterday. Yet Miami didn't move to sign him immediately.

Mays now a Bengal

The Bengals claimed linebacker Corey Mays, who was waived by the Patriots Monday. The Bengals are hurting at linebacker, entering the game with four healthy players at the position and losing two of them during the game. One of them, Lemar Marshall, was placed on injured reserve yesterday after he tore his left Achilles' tendon . . . The Patriots were called for just three accepted penalties, none in the final 44 minutes (the Bengals declined a fourth-quarter illegal touching penalty on offensive lineman Logan Mankins) . . . There was a reduced load for outside linebacker Rosevelt Colvin (no tackles), who has been battling an ankle injury . . . Through four games, Brady leads the NFL in completion percentage (79.2) and touchdown passes (13).

Mike Reiss can be reached at mreiss@globe.com.