Lilseb93
This Is My House
The Patriots are the class of the AFC and the leaders of the AFC East, but are they the elite team everyone considers them? According to the stats, they are.
Rushing:
Miami ranks 4th in the NFL in rushing. These stats are skewed a little bit due to the Jets game and the bye week as we know we're at least the 2nd best rushing team in the league. This fares well for Miami as the Pats rank 15th in rush D. Miami, for the most part, has consistently run over teams all season long with the Wildcat and power running of Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams. New England ranks 14 in the NFL in rushing.
Passing:
The Pats are a pass happy team, which they are 2nd in the league behind the Saints of course. Miami ranks a lousy 29th in the league, but Miami lacks WR's and is a run first team. Speaking of WR's, NE has far superior WR's than Miami. The best WR's on NE is Randy Moss and Wes Welker. No matter how hard you try, these guys always get open. They are also lead by a HOF QB, Tom Brady. Coming off a serious injury in 2008, Brady has struggled a bit on his deep passes, especially to his favorite target, Moss. However, after two blowout victories over the lowly Titans and Buccaneers, Brady looks to be back in his SB form. This does not go well for Miami as they rank 21st in the league in pass D and have been easily scored upon in the 4th quarter.
So...
With all the attention Miami Dolphins’ Wildcat offensive package receives, you’d sometimes think they invented the forward pass, not simply popularized the single-wing formation that has been in use for decades. Anyways, the Wildcat is quite popular these days in the media. Remember in week 3 in the 2008 season where Miami first introduced their wildcat offense and annihilated the Pats 38-18, where they revived their season to eventually win the AFC East? However in their second meeting of that season, NE tamed the wildcat. In 2009, the Wildcat is far superior and has a stronger offensive line and more blockers to work with. One advantage of the Wildcat is that it puts two of Miami's play makers on the field at the same time. Ronnie Brown is also 2 years away from an ACL injury and in the best shape of his life. Ricky Williams is also having one of his best seasons as these 2 backs have been said to be the best duo in the league.
So once again, taking care of the Wildcat is a priority for New England. But as Pats’ head coach Bill Belichick and defensive coordinator Dean Pees spoke during conference calls on Monday, they stressed that attention to the details of opponents is a focus every week. Another advantage of the Wildcat is that it forces teams to prepare for it, and less time to prepare for the base offense of Miami. Due to their bye week, New England will have four days of practice leading up to the Miami game, instead of the usual three. Belichick seemed happy to have the extra time to get ready for their AFC East foe. But beating Miami isn’t just about slowing down the Wildcat; on Sunday, the Jets had better success in their rematch with the Dolphins, holding them to just 104 yards of total offense. New York did well with that, but Miami had two special-teams touchdowns and a third on defense, which led to a New York loss.
Keys to winning for Miami: Keep Brady off the field, run down their throats, put pressure in Brady's face, try to win field position, no turnovers, do not give up the big play, play all 4 quarters.
Rushing:
Miami ranks 4th in the NFL in rushing. These stats are skewed a little bit due to the Jets game and the bye week as we know we're at least the 2nd best rushing team in the league. This fares well for Miami as the Pats rank 15th in rush D. Miami, for the most part, has consistently run over teams all season long with the Wildcat and power running of Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams. New England ranks 14 in the NFL in rushing.
Passing:
The Pats are a pass happy team, which they are 2nd in the league behind the Saints of course. Miami ranks a lousy 29th in the league, but Miami lacks WR's and is a run first team. Speaking of WR's, NE has far superior WR's than Miami. The best WR's on NE is Randy Moss and Wes Welker. No matter how hard you try, these guys always get open. They are also lead by a HOF QB, Tom Brady. Coming off a serious injury in 2008, Brady has struggled a bit on his deep passes, especially to his favorite target, Moss. However, after two blowout victories over the lowly Titans and Buccaneers, Brady looks to be back in his SB form. This does not go well for Miami as they rank 21st in the league in pass D and have been easily scored upon in the 4th quarter.
So...
With all the attention Miami Dolphins’ Wildcat offensive package receives, you’d sometimes think they invented the forward pass, not simply popularized the single-wing formation that has been in use for decades. Anyways, the Wildcat is quite popular these days in the media. Remember in week 3 in the 2008 season where Miami first introduced their wildcat offense and annihilated the Pats 38-18, where they revived their season to eventually win the AFC East? However in their second meeting of that season, NE tamed the wildcat. In 2009, the Wildcat is far superior and has a stronger offensive line and more blockers to work with. One advantage of the Wildcat is that it puts two of Miami's play makers on the field at the same time. Ronnie Brown is also 2 years away from an ACL injury and in the best shape of his life. Ricky Williams is also having one of his best seasons as these 2 backs have been said to be the best duo in the league.
So once again, taking care of the Wildcat is a priority for New England. But as Pats’ head coach Bill Belichick and defensive coordinator Dean Pees spoke during conference calls on Monday, they stressed that attention to the details of opponents is a focus every week. Another advantage of the Wildcat is that it forces teams to prepare for it, and less time to prepare for the base offense of Miami. Due to their bye week, New England will have four days of practice leading up to the Miami game, instead of the usual three. Belichick seemed happy to have the extra time to get ready for their AFC East foe. But beating Miami isn’t just about slowing down the Wildcat; on Sunday, the Jets had better success in their rematch with the Dolphins, holding them to just 104 yards of total offense. New York did well with that, but Miami had two special-teams touchdowns and a third on defense, which led to a New York loss.
- Miami leads an all time record against New England (49-38)
- The last game to be played was on 11/23/08 in Miami, where the Pats won 48-28. *NE had over 500 yards*
- Taylor statistically has great games against Tom Brady
Keys to winning for Miami: Keep Brady off the field, run down their throats, put pressure in Brady's face, try to win field position, no turnovers, do not give up the big play, play all 4 quarters.
