Season Averages:
O-PTS
22.4
(16th)
O-YDS
339.9
(15th)
O-PASS-YDS
197.7
(20th)
O-RUSH-YDS
142.1
(4th)
D-PTS
24.0
(25th)
D-YDS
345.7
(19th)
D-PASS-YDS
236.9
(23rd)
D-RUSH-YDS
108.9
(12th)
Miami Dolphins Vs. New England Patriots
01:00 PM EASTERN, 11/08/2009, Gillette Stadium
TV Broadcast: CBS
NFL Game Center | Listen Live
Tickets | Transportation | Parking
Season Averages:
O-PTS
27.9
(4th)
O-YDS
411.5
(2nd)
O-PASS-YDS
297.0
(2nd)
O-RUSH-YDS
114.5
(17th)
D-PTS
18.4
(7th)
D-YDS
313.4
(12th)
D-PASS-YDS
203.6
(10th)
D-RUSH-YDS
109.7
(16th)
Miami Dolphins
Record: 7-9-0
Division: AFC East
New England Patriots
Record: 7-5-0
Division: AFC East
Pregame Breakdown
Offense | Defense
After rolling over most of their opponents on the ground in the first five-and-a-half games, the Dolphins have struggled since the beginning of the second half against the Saints two weeks ago. Last week in the Meadowlands, the running backs Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams were held to a combined 54 yards on 19 carries and no touchdowns, but Miami still has the No. 3 rushing offense in the NFL behind Tennessee and the Jets with an average of 153.4 yards per game. Brown and Williams will try to test New England's 15th-ranked run defense early and establish a ground game that will eat up clock and take some pressure off of second-year quarterback Chad Henne.
As has been the blueprint for New England ever since acquiring Randy Moss from the Oakland Raiders three years ago, everything on the offense begins with the passing game so the Patriots' ground attack has become more of an afterthought. They enter Sunday's game with the Dolphins ranked 14th in the NFL, averaging just 115.0 rushing yards per game. The loss of veteran running back Fred Taylor took away one dimension and Laurence Maroney ranks 37th in the league with 265 yards and two touchdowns, so Miami's sixth-ranked run defense won't be too concerned about New England's ability to rush the ball.
Miami dropped all the way down to 29th overall in this category after last week's rough outing against the Jets and are averaging just 152.0 yards per game through the air and 5.9 yards per pass play. New York registered six sacks, equaling the total Buffalo had against the Dolphins in Week 4, and teams have sacked the quarterback 21 times so far this season. Henne is still adjusting to the starting role but avoided throwing a costly interception last week and is showing lots of poise in the huddle. He just needs his receivers to make more plays for him like they did in the first win over the Jets in Miami and not let the Patriots' pass rush rattle him.
Granted the Patriots' last two wins came in dominant fashion over two winless teams – the Tennessee Titans (59-0) and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (35-7) – but a healthy and confident Tom Brady combined with a healthy and confident Wes Welker and Randy Moss will make any defensive coordinator quiver at night. New England owns the No. 2 passing offense behind only Indianapolis with an average of 291.0 yards through the air and its overall offense is ranked third behind New Orleans and Dallas, averaging 406.0 yards per game. Brady is the league's fifth-rated passer and Moss ranks ninth among NFL receivers with 43 catches for 565 yards in seven games and he and Welker will be going up against rookie cornerbacks Sean Smith and Vontae Davis and the league's 21st-ranked pass defense, so this will truly be a trial by fire for Smith and Davis.
Ted Ginn, Jr. vaulted to the top of the league among kick returners averaging more than one return per game thanks to his back-to-back returns for touchdowns against the Jets of 100 and 101 yards. He is now averaging 34.9 yards per return and became the first player in NFL history to have two returns of over 100 yards in the same game. Meanwhile kicker Dan Carpenter is now 10-of-11 on field goals with a long of 48 and a perfect 21-of-21 on extra points.
Kicker Stephen Gostowski is tied for fourth in the league in field goals made at 12 in 16 attempts with a long of 53 yards and he has been perfect on all 21 of his extra points but on kick returns Kevin Faulk is all the way down at 36th with an average of 24.0 yards per return. Wes Welker and Julian Edelman rank 16th and 17th, respectively, in punt returns with averages of 10.6 and 10.5 yards per return and face a very good coverage unit in Miami's.
Last year in Gillette Stadium, offensive coordinator Dan Henning and quarterbacks coach David Lee sprung the Wildcat on the Patriots and the rest of the league and got four touchdowns out of it in a 38-13 rout. The element of surprise is gone, and Bill Belichick has had an extra week to prepare for whatever new wrinkles Henning might throw his way, so this will be Henning's toughest test of the year as he tries to come up with a successful game plan. He most certainly will try to get his two best skill players, Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams, heavily involved again, and will try to put Chad Henne in more comfortable situations.
When Josh McDaniels left to take the head coaching job with the Denver Broncos, Bill Belichick did not technically replace him, opting instead to take over most of the play-calling duties while sharing some of that role with Bill O'Brien, his assistant head coach/offensive assistant. Knowing Tom Brady and his offensive players as well as he does it made sense for Belichick, but O'Brien wasn't afraid to throw in a new wrinkle by calling for Brady to run the ball for a touchdown against the Baltimore Ravens despite the fact Brady is coming back from a torn ACL in his left knee. Belichick still knows how to push all the right buttons in the locker room and on the sideline and with an extra week to prepare for Miami's defense coming off the bye, he will surely be ready.
Week1
MIA VS ATLWeek2
MIA VS INDWeek3
MIA VS SDWeek4
MIA VS BUFWeek5
MIA VS NYJWeek7
MIA VS NOWeek8
MIA VS NYJWeek9
MIA VS NEWeek10
MIA VS TBWeek11
MIA VS CARWeek12
MIA VS BUFWeek13
MIA VS NEWeek14
MIA VS JACWeek15
MIA VS TENWeek16
MIA VS HOUWeek17
MIA VS PIT
Copyright 2010 by STATS LLC.
Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC is strictly prohibited.