Kickoff: Monday, 8:30 p.m. EDT, Line: New England -1, Total: 47.5

Many bettors are wondering if the are still the kings of the AFC East. Tonight is a good night to clear those doubts when the Patriots meet the. The Dolphins haven't let down their fans as they have covered in four of their past five games with the Pats, including a 22-21 win in Miami last December. In that , the Dolphins got aggressive with the passing, letting Chad Henne really utilize Brandon Marshall for the first time as the pair connected on 10 catches for 166 yards giving Henne a career-high 363 yards. In that NFL win over New England, Henne threw for 335 yards and two TD sans Marshall, and the Pats' secondary is even weaker this year. Marshall caught eight passes for 64 yards and two scores last year against the Patriots when he was with Denver.

It's not secret that the Patriots are also able to move the football with Tom Brady and the rest of the team. Brady has thrown for 758 yards, eight TD and just two INT this year. In his career against Miami, Brady is 10-6 with 3,131 passing yards, 28 TD and 16 INT, including 352 yards, two TD and two INT in last year's loss at Miami. Wide receiver Wes Welker gained 167 of those yards to give him 425 yards on 27 catches in the past three meetings in Miami. The New England Patriots' defense hasn't been the best his year, ranking 27th in the NFL in total defense with 379 YPG allowed.

Neither team has suffered from severe injuries this year; however, the Patriots will play without running back Fred Taylor (toe) and OL Nick Kaczur (back). Dolphins' ILB Channing Crowder is doubtful (groin) and DE Jared Odrick (leg) will be out of the game.

are favoring New England:

Play On - Favorites (NEW ENGLAND) - off a win against a division rival, when playing on Monday night.
(49-18 since 1983.) (73.1%, +29.2 units. Rating = 3*).

experts also like the Under:

MIAMI is 46-21 UNDER (+22.9 Units) when playing against a good team (Win Pct. 60% to 75%) since 1992. The average score was MIAMI 18.5, OPPONENT 20.6 - (Rating = 2*).

Back to Article Listing