Davis is now a rookie cornerback with the Dolphins and he found himself face-to-face with the legendary Moss at Gillette Stadium yesterday. Davis wasn’t solely responsible for covering Moss - he had help on most plays - but he didn’t do that badly. However, two big Moss catches turned out to be the difference in the Patriots’ 27-17 victory.

“All I can do is compete the best I can,’’ said Davis. “That’s Randy Moss. He’s going to make his plays and I just tried to limit him the best I can.’’

Davis’s day started tremendously when he intercepted a pass intended for Moss on the third play of the game. “He’s the type of player who’s going to keep coming at you,’’ said Davis, who didn’t celebrate too much.

Not surprisingly, Davis was correct. Moss’s first big play was a spectacular one-handed grab for a 36-yard gain to the 1-yard line that set up a touchdown run by Laurence Maroney.

The second one brought the fans out of their seats as Moss snared a pass from Brady as he was moving right to left across the field on a short pattern. Davis was close behind but not close enough as Moss stepped out of an attempted tackle, gave Davis a stiff-arm, then sprinted to the end zone to complete a 71-yard touchdown play that gave the Patriots a 24-17 lead.

“He does those little veteran things that will get you,’’ said Davis, using the 36-yard pass to the 1 as an example. “He was holding my arm down with his hand and he caught the pass with the other arm.’’

Davis showed some toughness when he got hurt while covering Moss in the end zone late in the first quarter. The official announcement was a quad injury and a questionable return. He was soon back in the game. “It was nothing,’’ said Davis.

He didn’t seem affected by the injury but he still couldn’t stop Moss on the winning touchdown. “He ran across the field and I got behind him,’’ Davis said. “He caught the pass, he held me off, and then I went for the tackle and missed.’’

The Dolphins were forced to put Davis in the lineup after starting cornerback Will Allen was lost for the season with a knee injury. Davis’s effort was a good one but not quite good enough. He said Moss was gracious after the game, telling the rookie he’s going to be a good player.

Joe Sullivan can be reached at jtsullivan@globe.com.