The Patriots are on a 7-game winning streak and they have already clinched the best record in the AFC.  I don’t look for the first teamers to play very long this Sunday after Wes Welker tore his ACL in a meaningless game last season in the same kind of situation.  Still, the Patriots destroyed the Dolphins 41-14 earlier this year in Miami and they are 7-0 at Gillette Stadium so far this year.  The Dolphins are 6-1 on the road and they will be looking for some revenge this Sunday.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Patriots have the ball:  I don’t see the Patriots changing the gameplan much this Sunday….just the players.  I look for Tomy Brady & Co. to play around 1 quarter and then call it a day.  Brian Hoyer has been a mop up man to this point in his career so it will be interesting to see how he responds in this game.  If Hoyer has time to throw the ball, I think he can make some plays against a Dolphins’ D that is allowing 201.8 yards passing per game.  The Patriots will also likely run the ball a lot in this game in an effort to control the clock and protect the defense.

When the Dolphins have the ball:  The Patriots are going to have to get a good pass rush on Chad Henne, because they are allowing 262.0 yards passing per game.  If Henne has time to throw the ball (which he likely will), he’s going to be able to hit Brandon Marshall and Davone Bess down the field.  The Patriots also must key on the Dolphins’ running game as Ronnie Brown & Ricky Williams are a nice combo.

PREDICTION:  DOLPHINS 27, PATRIOTS 17

The New York Jets probably already regret cutting 25-year old RB Danny Woodhead.  Woodhead has played in 13 games for the Patriots so far this year and he has carried the ball 95 times for 528 yards (5.6 ypc) with 5 TD runs.  He has also caught 34 passes for 379 yards (11.1 avg) with 1 TD grab so far this year.  The Jets thought Woodhead was too small at 5’8″, 195 pounds but they were wrong.  That’s because they didn’t measure his heart and toughness.  I looks like he has found a home in the NFL and the Patriots are happy to have him.

33-year old QB Tom Brady set another NFL record yesterday in Buffalo.  He has thrown 319 straight passes without an interception going back to week #6 to set a new record that stood since 1991.  Bernie Kosar threw 308 passes in a row without a pickoff during the 1990 + 1991 seasons with the Cleveland Browns.  Brady has thrown 24 TD passes and 0 INTs over the last 10 weeks of the year for the Patriots.  Brady has now played in 15 games for the Patriots so far this year and he has completed 314 of 476 passes (66%) for 3,701 yards with 34 TD passes and only 4 INTs (109.8 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 31 times for 30 yards (1.0 ypc) with 1 TD run so far this year.  Brady continues to amaze for the New England Patriots!

The Patriots ran the ball and they played defense today in a very suprisingly easy win over the Bills.  Tom Brady was solid in completing 15 of 27 passes for 140 yards with 3 TD passes and 0 INTs.  He also carried the ball 3 times for 13 yards (4.3 ypc) in this game.  BenJarvus Green-Ellis led the way on the ground for the Patriots in this game with 104 yards on 19 carries (5.5 ypc).  Danny Woodhead also had a outstanding game with 13 carries for 93 yards (7.2 ypc) with a TD run and he also caught 3 passes for 32 yards (10.7 avg).  TEs Rob Gronkowski (4 rec, 54 yards, 2 TDs) and Alge Crumpler (1 rec, 4 yards, TD) led the way for the Patriots in the passing game today.  The Patriots finished up with 217 yards rushing on 41 carries (5.3 ypc) and they also completed 15 of 27 passes for 131 yards in this game as they had the ball for 32:30!

The Patriots forced 7 turnovers on D today as they were dominating.  LB Tully Banta-Cain (8 tackles, 1 QB hit), safety Patrick Chung (6 tackles, 1 interception) and LB Gary Guyton (6 tackles, 2 passes defensed and 1 sack) led the way for the Patriots’ D in this game.  LB Jared Mayo (fumble recovery), safety Sergio Brown (fumble recovery), DE Eric Moore (fumble recovery), LB Dane Fletcher (fumble recovery and a interception) and safety Jarrad Page (interception) also pitched in with HUGE plays on D in this game.  The Bills finished up with 125 yards rushing on 21 carries (6.0 ypc) and they also completed 18 of 37 passes for 244 yards.  The Patriots have locked up the best record in the AFC with a 13-2 record giving them home field advantage throughout the playoffs.

The Patriots have won six games in a row and they are currently 2 games ahead of the Jets in the AFC East.  They also have the best record in the AFC, also by two games.  The Bills have won two games in a row and 4 of their last six games.  Not only that, but the Bills only lost 38-30 in the first meeting of these two teams in Foxboro!  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Patriots have the ball:  The Patriots are going to likely come out running the ball and throwing short passes to attempt to control the clock.  The Bills are giving up 158.6 yards rushing per game and 4.6 yards per carry so look for BenJarvus Green-Ellis & Danny Woodhead to have a heavy workload.  With the Bills lacking much of a pass rush, Tom Brady will likely have a lot of time to pick apart their secondary by moving the ball around to a lot of different receivers.

When the Bills have the ball:  I look for the Bills to also be balanced on offense with Fred Jackson & C.J. Spiller running the ball and Ryan Fitzpatrick taking shots down the field.  The key to winning this game for the Patriots is stopping Ryan Fitzpatrick who is a gunslinger type.  He also takes off running out of the pocket a lot and he’s good at it.  If the Patriots can slow the Bills’ passing game they should be o.k. on Sunday.

PREDICTION:  PATRIOTS 34, BILLS 27

The Patriots have signed 24-year old DT Landon Cohen.  Cohen played in 2 games earlier this year for the Jaguars and he had 2 tackles.  Cohen has now played in 22 games in his first three years in the NFL and he has 27 tackles.  The Patriots can use some beef on the front line so signing Cohen might turn out to be a good move.

The Patriots knew they were in for a fight Sunday Night when the Packers recovered a onside kick on the first play of the game and then coming right down the field and scoring a field goal.  The Packers had an almost perfect gameplan as they had possession of the ball for 40:48 of this game.  But in the end, the Patriots got big plays from guys who aren’t known as stars.  The play that still sticks out in my head was when OG Dan Connolly picked up a squib kick and he rumbled his way 71 yards to set up the Patriots’ offense inside the Packers’ 10-yard line!

Tom Brady was solid when the Patriots had the ball as he completed 15 of 24 passes for 163 yards with 2 TD passes and 0 INTs.  Danny Woodhead led the way on the ground for the Patriots with 59 yards rushing on 9 carries (6.6 ypc) and he also caught 1 pass for 12 yards.  BenJarvus Green-Ellis also was solid when he got a chance in this game with 38 yards rushing on 6 carries (6.3 ypc) with a TD run.  He also caught 2 passes for 12 yards in this game.  WR Wes Welker (3 rec, 42 yards) and TE Aaron Hernandez (4 rec, 31 yards and 2 TD grabs led the way in the passing game.  The Patriots finished up with 113 yards rushing on 16 carries (7.1 ypc) and they also completed 15 of 24 passes for 136 yards despite only having the ball for 19:12.

LB Jared Mayo (16 tackles), CB Devin McCourty (10 tackles, 1 sack, 2 tackles for a loss, 1 pass defensed and 1 QB hit), LB Gary Guyton (9 tackles) and NT Vince Wilfork (6 tackles, 1 fumble recovery) led the way for the Patriots’ D in this game.  CB Kyle Arrington also had a good game with 4 tackles, 2 passes defensed and a interception that he returned 36 yards for a TD.  The Packers finished up with 143 yards rushing on 38 carries (3.8 ypc) and they also completed 24 of 37 passes for 226 yards.  The Patriots are now 12-2 on the season.

The Patriots have won five games in a row since the beatdown the Browns gave them.  They have really been completely dominant in their last two games as they have outscored the Jets & Bears by a combined score of 81-10!  The Patriots have the best record in the AFC and they are also 2 games ahead of the Jets in the AFC East.  The Packers lost a stunner 7-3 at Detroit last week and they lost Aaron Rodgers in that game due to his second concussion of the season.  He won’t be playing tomorrow night.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Patriots have the ball:  Tom Brady lives for games like this.  Tom Brady has won his last 26 games at home during the regular season and he is 31-5 (86.1%) in his career in December.  Brady will likely spread the ball around as usual so that the Packers won’t be able to double anyone.  The Patriots will also likely give BenJarvus Green-Ellis and Danny Woodhead a lot of work in the running game as the Packers give up 117.3 yards rushing per game and 4.3 yards per carry so far this year.

When the Packers have the ball:  The Packers are likely to run the ball more than usual due to Matt Flynn starting at QB.  James Starks, Brandon Jackson & John Kuhn will be the backs the Patriots have to deal with and none of them strikes fear in the hearts of defenses.  The Patriots will likely try to confuse Flynn with coverages instead of blitzing him a lot.

PREDICTION:  PATRIOTS 38, PACKERS 17

The Patriots have placed 26-year old CB Jonathan Wilhite on the Injured Reserve List ending his season with a hip injury.  Wilhite played in 9 games for the Patriots this year and he had 20 tackles and 2 passes defensed.  Wilhite has now played in 39 games in his first three years with the Patriots and he has 93 tackles, 9 passes defensed and 3 interceptions.  The Patriots’ secondary has been playing better lately so they won’t likely miss Wilhite that much the rest of the year.

The Patriots have signed 26-year old DT Louis Leonard.  Leonard played in 2 games for the Panthers last season and he had 2 tackles.  Leonard has now played in 20 games in his first three years in the NFL and he has 33 tackles and 1 sack.  Leonard is a huge man at 6’4″, 325 pounds and the Patriots could use some beef up front.

UPDATE:  (12/23/2010) – The Patriots have waived Louis Leonard before he even got into a game.