FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - The New England Patriots won three of the last four Super Bowls by emphasizing team play. They used the same approach to get a good start toward a fourth.

Three of their defensive linemen charged Raiders quarterback Kerry Collins, forcing a crucial interception. Tom Brady completed passes to eight different receivers. And several defensive backs held Randy Moss to three catches after his 73-yard touchdown reception in the second quarter.

New England beat Oakland 30-20 in the NFL season opener Thursday night, seven months after its 24-21 Super Bowl win over Philadelphia.

Since winning their third Super Bowl in four years, the Patriots lost coordinators Charlie Weis and Romeo Crennel to head coaching jobs and inside linebackers Tedy Bruschi, who suffered a stroke, and Ted Johnson, who retired.

"This is our football team," linebacker Mike Vrabel said. "The team that we have suited up is the team we're going to have all year. ... We have to make that work."

They did that Thursday by switching from a 3-4 defense to a 4-3 after the Raiders marched downfield on the first series of the season and capped it with Collins' 2-yard touchdown pass to Courtney Anderson, the first against New England on an opening drive in 37 games.

"I think we could have been all right in 3-4," Patriots coach Bill Belichick said. "Just kind of got off to a rocky start that first series."

They were in the 4-3 when they came up with what safety Rodney Harrison called "a huge, huge play." Brady said it was "probably the play of the game."

Leading 17-14, the Patriots fell short on a fourth-and-1, giving Oakland the ball at its 31-yard line with 6:37 left in the third quarter. After LaMont Jordan rushed 2 yards on the Raiders first play, Collins was besieged by charging linemen.

Richard Seymour pushed center Jake Grove into Collins. Jarvis Green, the fourth lineman when the Patriots went to the 4-3, rushed from the right side and hit Collins as he was throwing. The ball popped into the air and 325-pound nose tackle Vince Wilfork intercepted at the Raiders 20.

"My eyes got so big," said Wilfork, a first-round draft choice last year from Miami.

Two plays later, Corey Dillon scored the first of his two touchdowns on an 8-yard run. Adam Vinatieri's extra-point attempt was blocked, but the Patriots led 23-14 instead of holding a three-point lead with the Raiders in possession of the ball if Wilfork hadn't intercepted.

"They came at us with a four-, five-man front and forced Kerry a couple of steps back," Oakland coach Norv Turner said. "In that circumstance, you'd like to get the ball put down and live with a punt."

The Raiders also wasted another good opportunity when Sebastian Janikowski missed a 43-yard field goal attempt on the first series of the second quarter.

"We could have been sitting 17-17 at halftime," Turner said.

Instead, it was 23-14 in the third quarter and 30-14 in the fourth after Dillon scored on a 2-yard run set up by a 24-yard pass interference penalty on rookie Stanford Routt, one of Oakland's 16 penalties for 149 yards.

Brady completed 24 of 38 passes for 306 yards and touchdown passes of 18 yards to Super Bowl MVP Deion Branch and 5 yards to newcomer Tim Dwight. Oakland's final touchdown came on Collins' 5-yard pass to Anderson just 3:04 before the clock ran out on the Patriots' 21st consecutive home win and 35th overall victory in 39 games.

But the Patriots were disappointed in their running game.

"I'm glad we're not peaking here in Week One," Brady said.

Moss, in his first game with the Raiders after seven seasons in Minnesota, had five catches for 130 yards.

"He handled it like a professional," Oakland defensive tackle Warren Sapp said. "He's the best thing going. He showed it."

Moss also made mistakes - an offensive pass interference penalty on a 2-point conversion play after Anderson's second touchdown and a dropped short pass on third down deep in Raiders territory early in the third quarter.

But Turner knows he faced a very tough opponent in a stadium where the Patriots increased their home winning streak to 21 games.

"The game was going in a positive manner for us" until Wilfork's interception, Turner said. "We are going to be a good football team and we are going to grow from this."

The Patriots are a very good football team that also has plenty of room for improvement.

"Obviously, there were a lot of mistakes," Brady said, "but we played better than the team we played against and that's what's important."