The Patriots are now 1-5 away from Gillette Stadium this season with their only road win coming in London against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Pats have lost two in a row for the first time since 2006 when they fell to the Colts in Week 9 and to the Jets in Week 10.
The AFC East is wide open as the Patriots fell to 7-5 and both the Jets and Dolphins are on their heels with 6-6 records.
Dolphins 22, Patriots 21
Land Shark Stadium, Miami, Fla.
Dec. 6, 2009
Headliner: Chad Henne and wideout Davone Bess looked like an unstoppable force on Sunday as Henne threw for 335 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Bess helped pace the Fins attack by racking up 117 yards on 10 catches and a touchdown.
Henne and the Miami offense came back from a 14-0 deficit, as they outscored New England 22-7 in the final three quarters.
Game Ball: Miami kicker Dan Carpenter came through for the Fins when they needed him most as the second-year place kicker drilled a 41-yard, go-ahead field goal with just over a minute to go in regulation. Carpenter also connected on 29- and 24-yard attempts and finished with 10 points on the afternoon.
Wes Welker was once again the Pats’ go-to guy on offense as the scrappy
slot man grabbed 10 catches for a game-high 167 yards. Despite
missing two games earlier this season, Welker now has four games of at
least 10 receptions or more.
Better Luck Next Week: Due to an apparent injured finger on his throwing hand, Brady wasn't his usual self as the Pats'
play-caller was picked off twice in the fourth quarter, once in the Dolphins' endzone and the other coming with just 35 seconds remaining in regulation during the Pats' last minute comeback attempt.
The Pats committed six penalties for 82 yards while Miami took two penalties for 10 yards.
Key Moment: Henne found Brian Hartline in the back corner of the
end zone to bring the Fins within two with just over three minutes to go
in the third frame, but they would have never got there had it not been for their conversion on fourth-and-1 from the Pats 10-yard line two plays earlier. After containing Brady and the Pats' offense for the next 10 minutes, Carpenter was brought in to split the uprights for the come-from-behind win.
Scouting Report: The Pats stick around next Sunday as they host the Carolina Panthers for their first home game in three weeks.
Carolina took down the Buccaneers 16-6 in Week 13 without their go-to running back DeAngelo Williams who was out with an ankle injury. In his place, Jonathan Stewart rushed for 120 yards on 26 carries and a touchdown.
After starting out 0-3 this season, Carolina had a big win over the defending NFC champion Cardinals in Week 8 and a 28-19 win over Atlanta two weeks later and now stand at 5-7.
