Dolphins reach .500 without Brown

The good news is that the Dolphins are at .500 again. The bad news is that they had to do it without RB Ronnie Brown, and will have to continue doing so for the remainder of the season. The ankle injury that Brown suffered against Tampa Bay proved to be season-ending. The Dolphins placed him on injured reserve.

In Brown's place, Ricky Williams ran for 119 yards and 3 touchdowns to help defeat the Carolina Panthers, 24-17. Aside from Williams, the rest of the team had a mediocre game, but Miami managed to overcome an underwhelming opponent for the second week in a row. The outcome was in doubt until the final seconds when Carolina's last drive ended with a knocked down pass in the endzone.

The Dolphins get another weak opponent (on paper) this week against the Bills, although the game will be played in Buffalo. I'd like to see them play better because they will need to be sharp in the following game against New England.

Dolphins squeak by Bucs

It took a field goal in the final seconds for the Miami Dolphins to beat the hapless Tampa Bay Bucaneers, 25-23, but I'll take the win any way they come. Chad Henne almost blew it when he threw an interception that led to Tampa Bay's touchdown with over a minute left, but Henne showed some character when he led the team on the winning 77-yard drive that culminated in Dan Carpenter's 25-yard field goal.

Henne had an unremarkable day, completing 17 of 31 passes for 175 yards, a touchdown, and the interception. The running game did better. Ricky Williams ran 20 times for 102 yards and Ronnie Brown added 82 yards on 12 carries. Unfortunately, Brown left the game in the third quarter with an ankle injury. It isn't yet known how serious the injury is.

Randy Moss, Patriots too much to handle

Randy Moss caught six passes for 147 yards and a touchdown to help the New England Patriots defeat the Miami Dolphins, 27-17. The Patriots picked on rookie Vontae Davis, whom Moss took advantage of on a 71-yard TD run and catch to take control of the game. The Dolphins defense also couldn't harass Tom Brady enough throughout the game, allowing him to throw for 332 yards.

On the bright side, the offense was effective for most of the game. Prior to Moss's long touchdown, the Dolphins ground out a long drive to take a 1-point lead. The Wildcat offense also kept the Patriots off balance in the first half with Pat White at QB. Yet again, the Dolphins won the time-of-possession battle without winning the game.

Ted Ginn Jr. saves Dolphins

I never thought I'd write that headline, but Ted Ginn Jr. did indeed save the Dolphins today. Ginn became the first Dolphins player ever to return two kicks for touchdowns in a 30-25 victory over the NY Jets. His 100-yard and 101-yard returns in the third quarter were the difference in a game that the Jets dominated statistically.

New York outgained Miami in yardage by greater than 3-to-1 margin, and had 23 first downs to the Dolphins' 10. The Jets defense held Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams to 54 yards on 19 carries with no touchdowns. Chad Henne completed 12 of 21 passes for 112 yards.