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Things are not looking good for either Watson or Wilfork playing this week as they both are nursing leg injuries. The Patriots are working Daniel Graham and David Thomas more in practice with the first team.
Vince Wilfork would be a big loss for the run defense of the Patriots. Santonio Thomas was activated from the practice squad and could get some playing time this week.
The Patriots didn’t look like they were in Miami mentally and the Dolphins took it to them on the field. Tom Brady had one of his worst games of his career as he hit 12 of 25 passes for 78 yards. Corey Dillon had a solid game with 16 carries for 79 yards (4.9 ypc). Kevin Faulk was busy with 5 carries for 29 yards (5.8 ypc) and 2 catches for 12 yards. Troy Brown (3 rec, 25 yards) and Daniel Graham (4 rec, 23 yards) were the leading receivers on a bad day for the Patriots.
Tedy Bruschi led the way for the Pats defense with 9 tackles. The Dolphins carried the football 31 times for 131 yards (4.2 ypc). The Dolphins completed 18 of 30 passes for 184 net yards passing.
The Patriots fell to 9-4 on the season with this loss.
How do the Patriots keep doing this. They always pick near the bottom of the draft and keep grabbing impact players! Laurence Maroney has been outstanding splitting time with Corey Dillon and he will eventually replace him. Maroney is runs very hard and he’s fast which is a deadly combo. Maroney has played in all 12 games this season and has carried the ball 155 times for 624 yards (4.0 ypc) and 4 TDs. He also has caught 18 passes for 188 yards (10.4 avg) and a TD. Maroney also returned 27 kick-offs for 774 yards (28.7 avg).
Maroney was another excellent draft pick by Belichick and Co.
The Patriots are rolling as they’ve won 3 games in a row. The Dolphins also have been hot as they’ve won 4 of their last 5 games.
Look for the Patriots to come out throwing the ball against the Dolphins. Tom Brady (2,868 yards passing) should have a good game if his O-Line keeps him clean. Jason Taylor must get extra attention from the line and running backs to keep him away from Brady. After Brady softens up the defense, look for the Patriots to start pounding the ball with Corey Dillon (575 yards rushing) as Laurence Maroney will miss this game because of injury.
With Ronnie Brown missing another game, look for the Dolphins to shift the focus of their offense back to the passing game. Joey Harrington must be careful against the Patriots defense that already has 16 interceptions on the season (7 by Asante Samuel). Harrington will spread the ball among Wes Welker, Marty Booker, Randy McMichael and Chris Chambers.
The Patriots won the first game 20-10 over the Dolphins and should win this game too. Tom Brady will have success throwing the ball against the Dolphins and Joey Harrington will throw a couple of picks that will turn the balance of this game.
The Lions played a good game, but not good enough to beat the Patriots. Tom Brady completed 27 of 38 passes for 305 yards and an INT. Corey Dillon did all the heavy lifting by the goal-line as he carried the ball 9 times for 25 yards (2.8 ypc) and 3 TDs. Reche Caldwell caught 8 passes for 112 yards, while Kevin Faulk added 8 catches for 59 yards.
Tedy Bruschi and Artrell Hawkins led the way on the Patriots defense with 10 tackles apiece. Ty Warren had 8 tackles and 2 sacks. Mike Vrabel added 8 tackles and 2 INT. The Patriots were tough against the run as the Lions only got 77 yards rushing on 22 carries (3.5 ypc). The Lions completed 22 of 38 passes for 284 net yards passing.
This win showed a lot of character on the Patriots part.
The Lions will come out throwing the football, like they always do. Kitna (2,876 yards passing) better be careful when going after Asante Samuel who has 6 interceptions this season. Roy Williams (60 rec, 993 yards) should get his yards against the Patriots. The keys will be if the Lions can get the ball to Mike Furrey and Kevin Jones (if he plays). Jones would at least give the offense the threat of a running game, which they don’t have when he’s out.
The Patriots should be able to do whatever they want on offense. The preferred method will be to run the football with Laurence Maroney (610 yards rushing) and Corey Dillon (550 yards rushing) against the Lions run defense that allows 131.5 yards rushing per game and 4.2 yards per carry. Tom Brady (2,565 yards passing) should have an easy time spreading the ball around against the Lions pass defense that has allowed an opponents rating of 101.2 this season.
The Patriots should win this game easily as the defense will pressure Jon Kitna into mistakes and the Patriots offense should score at will.
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