Week 8 of the 2015 NFL season started with a Thursday night game between the New England Patriots (7-0) and the visiting Miami Dolphins (3-4). Tom Brady and company had no problem with the ‘Phins, dominating the contest and winning 36-7.
Brady was near perfect against Miami, throwing for 356 yards and four touchdowns. The Patriots look unstoppable as of late, they’ve scored at least 28 points in every game and started 7-0 for the first time since their historic 16-0 run in 2007.
Brady is starting to define himself as an MVP candidate, but the Patriots’ most valuable performances came on the defensive side of the ball. Bill Belichick’s defense forced a safety, earned five sacks and forced two fumbles on the night. Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill threw two interceptions and halfback Lamar Miller amassed only 15 yards rushing on 9 carries.
Adding to the Dolphins’ problems, four time Pro Bowl defensive end Cameron Wake will miss the rest of the season after suffering a torn achilles in the third quarter.
“I think we’re just gonna learn from this.” Dolphins center and former Gator Mike Pouncey told reporters. “It just put a sour taste in our mouth, we were on a real high – winning two back-to-back games by blowouts and we just know that’s not the NFL. It’s not gonna happen like that each week.”
The Dolphins will be on the road next week against the Buffalo Bills.
In the NFC South, Sunday afternoon the Atlanta Falcons (6-1) will play host to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-4).
The Bucs’ defense will need to force turnovers in this match up if Tampa Bay has a chance of winning. Atlanta’s offense is averaging over 400 yards a game and Falcons halfback Devonta Freeman leads the league in both rushing yards (621) and touchdowns (9).
“They’re 6-1, it’s a division opponent, they’re tough, they play hard.” Bucs wideout Mike Evans said of the Falcons. “We’re familiar with them though, so we know what they’re gonna bring and we gotta execute.”
If Bucs rookie quarterback Jameis Winston takes care of the football and makes smart decisions, Atlanta may have trouble containing the dual back combo of Doug Martin and Charles Sims.
While head coach Lovie Smith and the Buccaneers game plan for Devonta Freeman, Falcons QB Matt Ryan could end up having a huge game off of play action passing set up by Atlanta’s ground and pound rushing attack. Falcons receiver Julio Jones has been virtually impossible to cover this season; he ranks second in the league in receiving yards (730) and receptions (58).
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