Week 5 Game Recap: Miami Dolphins 10, New England Patriots 20

What you need to know

Miami Dolphins

In what was almost a must win situation for Dolphins coming into this game, the big news before kickoff was that QB Daunte Culpepper was not going to start the game because of a shoulder injury he suffered back in week two. The Dolphins said Culpepper didn’t start because of the injury to his throwing shoulder, not because of performance but one has to wonder if that’s not just damage control. Culpepper has struggled in his first four games of the season leading the Dolphins to 1-3 start and surrendering 21 sacks in the process. Culpepper was dressed but would only play in case of emergency.

QB Joey Harrington got his first start as a Miami Dolphin and played pretty well despite only managing ten points of offense. He was able to lead the Dolphins to ten unanswered points at the end of the first half to cut a 13 point deficit to 13-10 at halftime. But it was Harrington’s two turnovers that were just too much to overcome for him and Dolphins. Harrington had two interceptions deep in Dolphins’ territory that lead to 14 New England points. Despite the result, Harrington played well at times and looked good in the pocket. He had fairly good protection from his offensive line and when he was pressured, he handled it well most the time. Harrington was only sacked once in the game and he may have played just well enough to start a quarterback controversy in Miami.

The Dolphins’ rushing game struggled again as they only gained 62 yards on the ground against a good Patriots’ rush defense. RB Ronnie Brown averaged less then two and half yards a carry and didn’t have a carry longer then seven yards. The game got off to bad start for Brown as he fumbled the ball on the third play of the game from the line of scrimmage, which eventually resulted in a Patriots’ field goal. He was able to salvage a bad week statistically by getting in the end zone on a two yard run in the second quarter.

WR Wesley Welker and TE Randy McMichael were the biggest play makers for Dolphins in Sunday’s game as both players combined for 15 receptions for 161 yards. The Dolphins got some good one on one match ups with Welker and McMichael as the Patriots’ defense gave WR Chris Chambers a lot of attention especially down the field. This seemed to open more opportunities underneath the pass coverage for Wesley and McMichael. QB Joey Harrington targeted them throughout the game.

New England Patriots

New England turned three Miami turnovers into 17 points, including two interceptions by CB Asante Samuel deep in Dolphins’ territory that led to two Patriots’ touchdowns. Those three mistakes by Miami proved to be the difference in what turned out to be a closely contested game.

QB Tom Brady did not have one of his best games, but he did capitalize both times on excellent field position after two interceptions by scoring two touchdowns. Brady hit WR Troy Brown for a ten yard touchdown pass two plays after Miami first interception. One of the biggest and most controversial plays came two plays after Harrington’s second interception in the fourth quarter when CB Will Allen was called for pass interference on WR Doug Gabriel in the end zone, giving the Patriots the ball first and goal from the one yard line. Brady hit FB Heath Evans for a one yard touchdown pass on the next play. Even though Brady and the Patriots’ offense did not have very good yardage numbers in this game, they did protect the ball against a Dolphins’ defense that played very well in this game.

The Dolphins kept the Patriots’ rush game in check as RB Laurence Maroney only had 38 yards on 18 carries. Maroney got most of his carries in the second half, especially late in the game. He finished the game with eight more carries then RB Corey Dillon but eight of Maroney’s carries came with less then six minutes left in the game as New England was trying to run out the clock.

RB Corey Dillon led the Patriots in rushing with 45 yards but only had ten carries as the Dolphins’ defense kept New England from sustaining any long drives and held them to only 79 yards rushing as a team.

This game was a good example of why the Patriots have been so consistent for so long; they don’t make a lot of mistakes to beat themselves and they take advantage of there opponents errors.

What you ought to know

QB Joey Harrington, Pass: 26 - 41 - 232 - 0 TD / 2 INT

Harrington had a decent performance in his first start as a Miami Dolphin. He got into a rhythm at the start of the game and looked good early on completing seven of his first eight passes. But in the second quarter he hung out a pass intended for Wesley Welker and it was picked off by cornerback Asante Samuel. Harrington came back on the next drive and led the Dolphins back on an 80 yard touchdown drive. With two minutes left, Harrington led the Dolphins another drive that resulted in a field goal before halftime to pull them within three points of the Patriots. Aside from the interception, Harrington looked solid as he finished the first half 17 for 22 for 176 yards. Harrington wasn’t as effective in the second half moving the ball. He had a second interception in the fourth quarter when his pass tipped off the hands of Wesley Welker and into the hands of Patriots’ cornerback Asante Samuel again. The interceptions appeared to be misreads of coverage by Harrington and both interceptions led to touchdowns for the Patriots. But overall, Harrington looked good at times and kept drives going, which kept the defense off the field more often.

QB Daunte Culpepper

Culpepper did not start or play in the game because of a shoulder injury.

RB Ronnie Brown, Rush: 17 - 39 - 1, Rec: 1 - -3 - 0 (3 targets)

Brown only had ten carries for 26 yards in the first half, but did get a two yard touchdown plunge in the second quarter. The Dolphins’ rushing game looked sluggish again in the first half as they averaged less then three yards a carry. The Dolphins did not run the ball any better in the second half as Brown only added 13 yards to his total. Even though he was targeted three times in the passing game, he only caught one pass for a minus three yards. The Dolphins’ rushing attack looked overmatched in this game and the running backs only gained 44 yards on the ground.

RB Sammy Morris, Rush: 2 - 5 - 0 (1 targets)

Morris saw limited action in his first game of the season after serving a four game suspension to start the season. He had two carries for five yards and one target in the passing game but that went for an incompletion.

WR Wes Welker, Rec: 9 - 77 - 0 (12 targets)

Welker had a big game and he was Harrington’s favorite target in this game. A big part of his success was because of the attention Chris Chambers was getting from the New England defense. Welker saw one-on-one coverage and he was able to exploit his good match ups against the Patriots’ defenders most of the game. His biggest play was a beautiful 25 yard catch to the Patriots’ two yard line in the second quarter. His catch set up Miami’s only touchdown in the game. He did have a pass deflect off his hands and into the arms of cornerback Asante Samuel for a costly interception in the fourth quarter.

WR Chris Chambers, Rush: 1 - 18 - 0, Rec: 5 - 29 - 0 (10 targets)

Chambers drew a lot of attention from the Patriots’ defenders and was double teamed quite a bit in the game. Even though he was targeted ten times in the game and caught five balls, he only had 29 receiving yards as the New England pass defenders were determined to not let Chambers get behind them for a big play. Chambers did add a nice 18 yard rush on a reverse in the second half.

WR Marty Booker, Rec: 2 - 22 - 0 (3 targets)

One of the biggest plays early in the game was a 23 yard catch by Booker to the New England one yard line that was called back on a holding penalty. He hurt his left arm or shoulder on that play, but stayed in the game through the second quarter. He did not catch a pass or have a target in the second quarter, and he did not return to the game in the second half. Booker was seen with his arm in a sling after the game.

WR Derek Hagan, Rec: 1 - 17 - 0 (3 targets)

Hagan made a nice, diving 17 yard reception in the second quarter for a first down. It was his only catch of the game.

TE Randy McMichael, Rec: 6 - 84 - 0 (10 targets)

McMichael had a very good game as Wesley Welker and he were quarterback Joey Harrington’s main targets in the game. He did an excellent job to get open all day. He had a big 23 yard catch to keep the Dolphins only touchdown drive going in the second quarter. McMichael was hurt on that catch but did return to the game. He finished the first half with four catches for 47 yards, and added another 37 yards in the second half to end the game as the leading receiver.

TE Justin Peelle, Rec: 2 - 6 - 0 (2 targets)

Peelle had two receptions for six yards.

PK Olindo Mare 1 - 3 FG, 1 - 1 XP, 4 points

Mare had a 40 yard field goal blocked in the first quarter, but he did make a 40 yard field late in the second quarter. He also missed a 50 yard field in the fourth quarter.

MIA Rush Defense

The Miami special teams made a big play in the third quarter as they recovered a fumble on a punt return. That would be the Dolphins’ only forced turnover in the game. The Miami defense clamped down on the Patriots’ run game and limited them to only 62 yards.

MIA Pass Defense

The pass defense shut Tom Brady down for the first three quarter limiting him to only 60 yards passing. Most of Brady’s passing yards came late in the game, including his second touchdown pass that they gave up after an interception deep in Dolphins' territory. Only Jason Taylor registered a sack for Miami in the game.

QB Tom Brady, Pass: 16 - 29 - 140 - 2 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 4 - -3 - 0

Brady had a mediocre game as he only had 140 yards passing on 29 attempts. He did salvage a below average day passing by getting two touchdowns passes after two Miami turnovers. He hooked up with Troy Brown two plays after Joey Harrington’s first interception for a ten yard touchdown pass. Brady’s second touchdown came after another interception as he hit fullback Heath Evans on a one yard touchdown pass. Even though Brady was unspectacular in the game he did not make any key mistakes unlike the Dolphins’ quarterback.

RB Laurence Maroney, Rush: 18 - 38 - 0

After a big game in week four, Maroney struggled to gain yards against a tough Dolphins’ defense. He got must of his rushes late in the fourth quarter as the Patriots tried to go to a ball control offense and run down the clock. He averaged a disappointing two yards a carry in the game.

RB Corey Dillon, Rush: 10 - 45 - 0

Dillon averaged four and half yards a carry in the came, but unfortunately he only had ten carries. The Patriots had trouble converting third downs against a tough Miami defense and sustaining drives. Dillon also split carries with Laurence Maroney throughout the game. He did finish the game as New England’s leading rusher with 45 yards.

RB Heath Evans, Rush: 1 - 0 - 0, Rec: 2 - 11 - 1 (3 targets)

Evans caught a one yard touch pass from Tom Brady in the fourth quarter. He also added another catch for ten yards in the game.

RB Kevin Faulk, Rush: 1 - -1 - 0, Rec: 1 - 15 - 0 (1 targets)

Faulk had one carry for minus one yard and one catch for 15 yards. He also had a lost fumble on a punt return.

WR Troy Brown, Rec: 5 - 58 - 1 (6 targets)

Brown caught almost everything that came his way as he led the Patriots with five receptions and 58 yards receiving. He caught a ten yard touchdown in the second quarter for New England’s first touchdown.

WR Doug Gabriel, Rec: 2 - 7 - 0 (8 targets)

Gabriel was targeted early in the game and appeared to be Brady’s first option in the passing game, but he had a disappointing game as he only caught two passes for seven yards. Gabriel had eight targets in the game and he failed to catch any passes in the second half of the game. He did draw an important pass interference penalty in the end zone that led to the Patriots’ second touchdown in the fourth quarter.

WR Reche Caldwell, Rec: 1 - 5 - 0 (3 targets)

Caldwell only caught one pass for five yards and was only targeted three times.

WR Chad Jackson (1 targets)

Jackson only had one target in the game and no receptions.

TE Ben Watson, Rec: 4 - 33 - 0 (7 targets)

He was the second leading receiver for New England with 33 yards in the game. His biggest catch was a 15 yard reception on fourth down late in the game that helped the Patriots run down the clock.

PK Stephen Gostkowski 2 - 2 FG, 2 - 2 XP, 8 points

Gostkowski had two field goals in the first half. The first was 35 yards and the second was 31 yards. He had no other attempts in the game, but did add two extra points.

NE Rush Defense

The Patriots’ rush defense had an excellent game as they held running back Ronnie Brown to only 39 yards and forced him to fumble in the first quarter.

NE Pass Defense

Asante Samuel had two big interceptions in the game that led to 14 points for the Patriots. Jarvis Green had New England’s only sack in the game.