Boston Sports Then and Now

Tom Brady and the Patriots are in for a dogfight in the AFC East.

It looks like the Patriots will be in a dog fight this year in the AFC East, the division that New England has dominated over the last decade.  The Pats have captured the AFC Crown seven of the last ten seasons, but a changing of the guard is looming on the horizon.

The Patriots are looking more like the least than the beast of the AFC East.

The New York Jets are getting better every day it seems. The team that went to the AFC Championship last year on the shoulders of rookie quarterback, Mark Sanchez is loading up their arsenal.

On the offensive side of the ball they acquired disgruntled Cleveland Browns wide out, Braylon Edwards last season. A talent for sure, but has consistency issues and a chronic case of the drops. However, he showed sparks of what he is capable of when he is focused. In 12 games with New York, Edwards caught 35 catches for 541 yards with 4 td’s.

This off season the Jets have been very busy signing former San Diego and fantasy football stud, LaDainian Tomlinson. Tomlinson replaces the productive Thomas Jones who was unsigned before landing with the KC Chiefs. A puzzling signing considering Jones was more productive than LT. Jones had 1400 yards and 14 touchdowns in comparison to Tomlinson’s 730 yards and 12 touchdowns.

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Different road game.  Same story.

Was Bill Belichick outcoached again?

Get out to an early lead.

No pass rush.

Secondary gets torched.

Offense disappears in second half.

Patriots lose another road game.

This storyline sounds all too familiar. It happened in New York, Denver, Indianapolis, New Orleans, and now Miami.

The Patriots started off like gangbusters yet again. They raced out to a 14-0 lead highlighted by a 58 yard bomb from Brady to Moss that brought me to my feet!

Can the Patriots finally shake off their road game funk?

Not so fast.

They had the Dolphins on the ropes early and let them back into the game, yet again.

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Brady and Welker need to get back in sync against the Dolphins.

Overview: The New England Patriots (7-4) and the Miami Dolphins (5-6) both have something to prove this weekend. The Patriots will have to prove to themselves that they can win on the road and all but put away the AFC East title.

The Dolphins must shake off their disappointing loss last week against Buffalo and be geared up for New England. Miami historically has played the Patriots tough in southern Florida.

Last Week: The Patriots were thrashed by the undefeated Saints, 38-17. The offense was out of sync and the defense was dissected by Drew Brees and crew. This marked the teams’ fourth straight road loss (not counting the neutral site game in London).

The Dolphins had a 14-7 lead against division rival Buffalo in 3^rd quarter last week, but it all went down hill from there. The Bills scored 24 fourth quarter points on route to a 31-14 victory in Buffalo.

All-Time Series: This will be the 89^th meeting between Miami and New England. Miami holds a 49-39 lead in the all time series.

Miami has always been a thorn in the Patriots’ side. Since 2001, 5 of their 12 divisional losses have come at hands of the Dolphins.

The Patriots took the contest earlier this year at Gillette Stadium, 27-17 on November 8^th.  New England, led by Matt Cassel, won the meeting last November in Miami, 48-28.

Key Questions Entering Week Eleven:

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Randy Moss scored the game changing touchdown against Miami.

Joey Porter did his talking all week saying that Brady got preferential treatment from the referees.

Looks like the Dolphins secondary also gave Brady preferential treatment.

He torched Miami for 332 yards and a 71 yard touchdown to Randy Moss. Brady broke Drew Bledsoe’s team record with his 27^th 300 yard passing game and his third in a row.

Both Moss and Welker had their way with the beat up Miami secondary. Moss added another 5 catches to compliment his scoring grab, accumulating 147 total yards.

Welker also made his presence felt in the passing game. He continued to churn out hard fought yards and added 9 more catches to his stellar season.

The Patriots offense has been in full flight over the last 3 games. New England has outscored their opponents, 121-24.

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Former Dolphin Wes Welker will look to continue to haunt his former team when the Patriots host the Dolphins.

Overview: This always entertaining AFC East matchup is an important mid-season contest. With a victory, the New England Patriots (5-2) can really put themselves in the driver’s seat in the division. After struggling with losses in their first three games, the Miami Dolphins (3-4) have scrapped their way back into contention, but must win this game if they hope to stay in the race.

Last Week: The Patriots had a much-deserved week off after defeating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 35-7 the week before in London. In their last two games, the Patriots have out-scored their opponents 94-7.

The Dolphins took advantage of two kickoff returns for scores by Ted Ginn Jr. to defeat the New York Jets 30-25.

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