FOXBORO — Bill Belichick’s defense has done its best to survive, but no one would dare say it has mastered the art of defending the mobile quarterback.

DeShaun Watson, Blake Bortles, Patrick Mahomes and Mitchell Trubisky have all given the Patriots their share of fits this season. They’ve had good and bad moments with all of them.

Tonight, with the Packers in town, the defense is facing its biggest test yet. Belichick’s crew has to contain a quarterback who is equally awesome throwing from the pocket, as well as on the run.

Aaron Rodgers is the ultimate nightmare for any defense. He can kill you no matter how well you’re defending him.

“There’s so many issues with him. You could go on for days. He’s incredibly accurate. He’s got great arm strength. He knows exactly what he’s looking at. He’s mobile. He’s got great feel in the pocket. He’s capable of beating you running the ball, he’s capable of extending plays and throwing the ball down the field. He’s a great player,” Pats defensive line coach Brendan Daly said Wednesday. “There’s a fine line you have to balance between being aggressive enough to create pressure and get there versus being out of control and creating opportunities for him to extend plays and scramble and move around. It’s not easy.”

Just from the list above, it seems like every team in the NFL has a mobile quarterback. The Patriots certainly have gained some experience from their games with those quarterbacks, even if the results were mixed.

Most recently, Trubisky didn’t necessarily hurt them too much in the air with a pair of touchdowns, and two picks. But he did rush for 81 yards and a touchdown. Mahomes, however, lit them up in the second half of that 43-40 Patriots win Week 6.

“We’ve been very good at times dealing with mobile guys. We’ve had issues as well. Every week is different. He brings varying elements to it. You can’t just allow him to stand back there,” said Daly. “There’s other scrambling quarterbacks that you’d say, “Just let him throw from the pocket.” Well, OK, do it with this guy, and he’ll carve you up like a Thanksgiving turkey. You have to rush, and get pressure on him, without putting yourself in harm’s way. It’s a delicate balance.”

Safety Duron Harmon knows Rodgers is in a league by himself when it comes to how deftly he moves, and how accurate he is with the football. They just have to maintain their poise. He’ll make plays, they just have to limit the big ones.

“He’s the master of it all. Being able to scramble around, moving in and out of the pocket, and finding guys down field for big plays,” said Harmon. “We have tape to learn from. We know he’s a great quarterback. But, you just have to maintain, and have everybody do their job.”

The second-ever Brady-Rodgers Bowl comes with the Patriots (6-2) riding a five-game winning streak. They’re 4-0 at home. The Packers (3-3-1) are 0-3 on the road, and haven’t strung together consecutive wins. They lost a tough game last week to the Rams.

Acing the Rodgers test would provide a huge boost for the Patriots going forward. It would be a good stepping stone for the defense, putting together a strong performance against Rodgers and the Packers offense.

“It would be great. We all know the capabilities of this offense. This offense has broken plenty of records over the last 10 years,” said Harmon. “They have one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, one of the best offensive masterminds in (head coach Mike) McCarthy, so we know, this offense is going to come ready to play, they’re going to score points, we just have to come ready to play with them.”

Daly said it just comes down to them staying consistent, and keeping with the plan for 60 minutes. They did well against Mahomes for a half, then it all unravelled in the second half.

“We’ve played very well at times, and we’ve had moments where we’ve done things that you absolutely can’t do fundamentally. The consistency of our play has to improve,” he said. “We’re capable of playing the run well, we’re capable of playing the pass well. We’re capable of defending deep balls, we’re capable of defending mobile quarterbacks in stretches. We have to be consistent with what we’re doing.”

Rodgers suffered a knee injury early in the year, and was hobbled for a time, but with rest and a bye week, has looked better with his mobility recently. Daly said he hasn’t seen much of a difference in the recent games.

“Is his true speed what it was? Probably not at this point . . . I don’t know if that’s because he’s a 14-year vet, or if it’s because he’s dealing with a knee issue,” said the defensive line coach. “But his awareness and ability to navigate traffic in the pocket, that hasn’t been affected. If he gets out in the open field, what he’s going to clock in the 40 yard dash, I don’t know if that’s what it was when he was 23. But he’s no less effective.”

If the defense can win the red zone battle, and hold Rodgers to field goals, the Patriots will be in business.

PREDICTION — PATRIOTS 34, PACKERS 30

Twitter – @kguregian