Tom Brady is deservedly getting a lot of early buzz as the NFL’s most valuable player, but when it comes to the MVP of the Patriots, it’s probably Randy Moss.

Held in check for much of the first half, Moss was a force in the second half, racking up six catches for 118 yards.

On the Patriots’ first fourth-quarter touchdown drive, Brady looked to Moss on six consecutive plays, and though he completed only two, one was a 55-yard bomb down the middle of the field that gave New England first-and-goal from the three.

Indianapolis safety Antoine Bethea was flagged for pass interference on the play for bumping Moss, but Moss, with a five-inch advantage over Bethea and eight inches on Bob Sanders, who was also trying to break up the play, came down with the ball anyway.

“Randy’s not a real fiery guy on the field; he just goes about his job,” fellow wideout Donte Stallworth said. “But he got fired up after that one.”

“We hadn’t been throwing it deep very much all day; I think we had been picking our spots,” said Brady. “Randy had a great release and he got up on that safety. He was one-on-one with [Bethea] and I just tried to throw it up for him. It was a great catch.”

Brady called the play a spark for New England, and four plays later Wes Welker kept his toes inbounds on a short touchdown pass.

Moss had nine catches for 145 yards and a second-quarter touchdown on the day. It was his sixth 100-yard receiving game of the year and the 52nd of his career, which is second all-time behind Jerry Rice (76) and the Colts’ Marvin Harrison (59).

After taking a low-risk, potentially high-reward gamble in acquiring Moss on draft weekend, New England is reaping the rewards of having the wide receiver on the field. He has been a model citizen since coming to the Patriots, both in the locker room and on the field.

His mere presence on offense gives defenses pause, and the extra attention he gets often means that Stallworth or Welker is open. His blocking has been underrated, and against the Redskins, Moss even got on the field on defense, lining up deep for a Hail Mary prevent play.

“Anytime you throw to Randy it helps. He was a big part of the plan, made some great catches,” Brady said.

Not many snaps for Thomas

The Pats began the game with four down linemen, just two linebackers and five defensive backs, but Adalius Thomas was often not one of the two linebackers.

Signed as a free agent in part for his versatility and athleticism, Thomas did not play many snaps against Indianapolis, which came as a surprise to many observers who believed yesterday’s game might be a big one for him.

If he was bothered by the lack of playing time, Thomas didn’t let on after the game.

“You’d have to ask coach [Bill] Belichick. As he says, ‘It is what it is,’ ” Thomas said.

When Belichick was asked, he didn’t offer much more in the way of an explanation. “We felt we had matchups that were the best for us this game.”

Indy TD frustrates Pats

The Patriots’ defense was none too happy about the touchdown it gave up to the Colts at the end of the first half. Peyton Manning dumped the ball off to running back Joseph Addai, and Addai weaved his way past three defenders and then juked safety James Sanders on his way to a 73-yard touchdown.

“We didn’t feel good about giving up that one,” Tedy Bruschi said. “Peyton’s initial reads weren’t there [and he checked down to Addai]. But he’s a good player.”

Addai had 226 yards from scrimmage and the touchdown for Indianapolis.

Seymour feeling comfortable

With some limited playing time under his belt from last week’s win over Washington, defensive lineman Richard Seymour saw a lot more playing time against Indy and feels he’s making progress.

“I’m not there yet, but I think I’m moving in the right direction,” he said. “This is like my second week of training camp.”

Seymour was credited with five tackles and tipping Adam Vinatieri’s missed 50-yard field goal attempt in the first quarter.

Way too many penalties

Quote of the day goes to Stallworth, who when asked about the team’s ability to win despite racking up nearly 150 yards in penalties replied: “How many? A hundred and fifty yards? Oh, God. That means I’m not getting on that plane [home].” Stallworth had two catches for 42 yards, including a key 33-yard grab to set up the Pats’ game-winning TD. … This is New England’s bye week, the latest it has been since 2003, when it also came in Week 10.