The Dolphins came in sky-high after two blowouts over Tennessee and Houston.
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“Not one bit did I believe that’s really who we are”, Campbell said.
And then there was Miami’s vaunted, expensive, talented defensive line, which the Patriots spent a considerable portion of their media availability talking up during the short week. Now, at age 38, he’s putting together a remarkable season (69 percent completions, 20 touchdowns, just one interception, on pace to throw for more than 5,500 yards, which would be an National Football League record) and boasting that he wouldn’t mind playing for another decade. In a season where the great quarterbacks of the decade, namely Drew Brees and Peyton Manning, are merely shells of what they once were, Tom Brady is having a late career resurgence; and he is doing it without deflated footballs for those that questioned his ability to perform without cheating. He stiffened up but then drove through the pain and continued to go after Brady. LaFell went deep, stretching the field. They had a two game win streak coming into the game and it was quite impressive.
“It’s more about just going out there and hammering the nail away, all the way in”, he said.
The Dolphins’ lone shining drive opened the second half. “That’s what coach always says”. They were setting up field position for the offense.
New England was only up 19-0 at halftime, but if you were watching the game you knew it was over at the break, even if Miami managed to score a touchdown on its first drive. Lewis made a quick move with his back to Misi and left the helpless defender grasping for air and fall to the ground watching the New England speedster race by.
After the Dolphins arrived in Foxborough, they were thinking upset. This season, the Patriots have drawn quite a few offensive pass interference penalties because they haven’t been particularly discreet in running picks on crossing pass routes. The running game is looking sturdy. While the 95 yards they gained wasn’t great, it didn’t have to be with Brady throwing for more than 350 through the air. They’ll have to reconfigure the design of their defense for the third time in the space of six weeks. Miami’s 15 yards rushing was among the franchise’s lowest outputs ever. Cornerback Logan Ryan jumped a route for an interception in the first half, while safety Duron Harmon made an diving interception in the second half. Right tackle Ja’Wuan James was in a boot after the loss because of a toe injury and is expected to miss several games. That is a tough task for any team.
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That was never on better display than on Thursday night when the Patriots defense held the Dolphins to 76 yards in the first half while the offense was finding its way. Brady is 9-0 on Thursdays….
