WISCONSIN TO SAN DIEGO -- While acknowledging it was a well-played game that could have swung on a single play going in the other direction, one of the questions we had following the New England Patriots' 26-21 loss to the Green Bay Packers on Sunday was if the offense missed an opportunity to run the ball more.

The Patriots, not including a half-ending kneel-down, totaled 17 rushes against 36 pass attempts (includes one sack).

The numbers stood out when considering that the Packers entered the game as the NFL's 30th-ranked run defense in terms of yards allowed per game (136.7) and 27th in average yards allowed per carry (4.5).

Bill Belichick previously explained that a low overall snap count was a primary factor in the lack of rushing attempts, while quarterback Tom Brady was asked about the lack of runs in his weekly interview on sports radio WEEI's "Dennis and Callahan Show" on Tuesday morning, as well as one media-based theory that perhaps the Patriots were holding something back in case the clubs meet again in the Super Bowl.

That last thought drew a chuckle from Brady.

"We do everything we can to win," Brady said from San Diego, where the Patriots are practicing this week leading into Sunday's game against the Chargers. "You can always look back and say, 'I wish we did this.' We were running on them the last drive of the game. That's what we were trying to do, trying to stay balanced.

"I'd say, too, there's a misconception that there is this 30th-ranked rush defense that they have. Yeah, that's where their ranking was. But they were up 50 points at home against Carolina, against Chicago, and those teams were running it in the third quarter and fourth quarter, and gaining like 12 or 15 yards a carry when the game didn't matter. I don't know; stats sometimes can be deceiving.

"Early in the game, they weren't giving up a lot of rushes. Certainly, when we did run it, we ran it effectively. And when we threw it, we threw it somewhat effectively. It could have been better in certain situations, which would have allowed us to run the ball even better. It all goes hand in hand. I think we're all connected -- offense, defense and special teams. We just didn't have our best night."