"The Patriots are quiet no more.

While the rival Jets on Wednesday re-signed their best receiver (Santonio Holmes) and became serious contenders to add one of the league's best cornerbacks (Nnamdi Asomugha), the Patriots were nearly silent by comparison.

At least, it seemed they were.

Inside Gillette Stadium, often only half-jokingly referred to as the Fort Knox of the North, the phones were buzzing. On Tuesday, the Patriots called the Bengals, requesting and receiving permission to speak with wide receiver Chad Ochocinco about a possible trade.

Then Wednesday night, coach Bill Belichick called Redskins counterpart Mike Shanahan to inquire about defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth.

By last night, the deal for Ochocinco was done, and the one for Haynesworth was nearly complete.

The move to get Haynesworth, who just a few years ago was considered one of the dominant forces in the game, was certainly more surprising. The 30-year-old signed a seven-year, $100 million contract with the Redskins just two years ago, but his time in Washington was marred by numerous incidents of fighting with teammates, verbal sparring with Shanahan, and behavior that led to Redskins past and present calling him an embarrassment to the uniform."