Dolphins' offense: 112.0 rush ypg (15th)
Patriots' offense: 123.3 rush ypg (10th)
Dolphins' defense: 117.3 rush ypg(19th)
Patriots' defense: 119.0 rush ypg (20th)

The best way to move on from a difficult loss is to begin preparing for your next opponent. Similarly, to the Dolphins getting back to work here in the next couple days, it's time for us to begin previewing the Dolphins-Patriots match-up. The Jets game is now officially in the review mirror and there's really no reason to bring it up again until December.

Week 4 is here, and it's a must win for the Dolphins. I know it's early, but in my mind anyway, I don't see the Dolphins winning the AFC East if they lose back-to-back home games against their two biggest competitors in the division. Considering Green Bay on the road, Pittsburgh at home, and then back on the road against Cincinnati and Baltimore await the Dolphins after the bye, they could be on the verge of burying themselves in yet another early season hole despite the 2-0 start.

That's why the Dolphins must come away with a victory Monday night to maintain good position for a playoff push down the stretch of a less daunting second half schedule, let alone keep up in the heated AFC East race.

Even though the Dolphins finally unleashed their passing attack a couple nights ago, and the Patriots are one of the most pass happy teams in the whole league, the running game will, once again, play a big role in who comes out on top Monday night and keep at least a tie for the division lead.

Patriots running game vs. Dolphins run defense
Although Tom Brady, Randy Moss, and Wes Welker usually get all the recognition on the highlights, the New England Patriots have a very underrated running game. After a solid 12th overall ranking a year ago, the Pats are back at it with the 10th best running game after three weeks. Even better, their 4.6 yards per carryis tied for 7th. BenJarvus Green-Ellis has clearly established himself as the most productive in their committee of backs, with a very solid 4.5 yards per carry and a total of 136 yards. Fred Taylor is still holding down a contributing role with 98 yards of his own on 25 carries.

With all that said, though, I still think the Dolphins are getting somewhat of break after facing Adrian Peterson in Week 2, and the best offensive line in football on Sunday night. After stuffing the Bills' trio of backs in Week 1, the run defense has completely fell apart. Sparano even used words like "stop the bleeding" in his press conference after the Jets game. If you can't stop the run, no matter how much the passing game is beginning to take over, you can't win in this league.

What is the cause for the struggles you might ask? Well, teams are beginning to test the edge, more specifically Cameron Wake and Koa Misi, and are finding all kinds of room to operate. Wake and Misi need to do a better job of block shedding and containing the perimeter, and force teams to test the middle of the defense again. Running right at them with consistent success will only get them back on their heals, thus slowing down the one thing Wake has been superb at, and the one area Misi has actually flashed some promise with his motor- the pass rush.

Another explanation could be injuries. Of course, injuries are apart of the game, every team has them, and the Dolphins will undoubtedly have some more, but Jared Odrick and Channing Crowder being out could be holding back this run defense. With Odrick at defensive end and Starks at nose tackle the Dolphins looked stout against the run in Week 1. Grant it, the Bills offensive line isn't very good, but the Dolphins front seven had their way with them like would expect in a lopsided match-up.

With Odrick out, though, the Dolphins were forced to move Starks back over to defensive end, and Paul Soliai filled his void at nose tackle. It's not like the front three have been terrible after the switch, as a lot of the yardage has been surrendered on the edge, but that front three looked pretty quick and athletic in that first game. We don't know Odrick's status yet, but best case scenerio was he was going to be back for this game.

Channing Crowder, meanwhile, hasn't played a down yet this season and just returned to practice last week. For all of his struggles as a playmaker, he is fantastic against the run. Besides, the Dolphins have their playmaking inside linebacker now, and his name is Karlos Dansby. When Crowder returns, he simply needs to do what he's done his whole career. Sure, some game changing plays would be welcomed, but if he can simply return to his 08' form, when he was a complete beast filling in running lanes, the Dolphins' run defense will significantly improve the second he gets back on the field.

I'm a little more optimistic inCrowder's case too. He practiced, on a limited basis anyway, last week. I think another week of practice will be enough to get activated on the game day roster against the Pats.

On another note, Tony McDaniel's one-game suspension hurts the depth at defensive end. Odrick returning this week would surely benefit some of the concerns there.
Edge: Dolphins

Dolphins running game vs. Patriots run defense
Just like the defense, the Dolphins' running game should be getting a much needed break this week. After facing consistently one of the best run defenses in football two weeks ago in Minnesota, and facing the all-around great defense of the Jets, the Dolphins will surely welcome the 20th overall run defense this week.

Does that ranking do the Pats' defense justice? Just three games can be awfully misleading, but I think it's safe to say Monday night will provide a great opportunity for the Dolphins to get what was thought to be one of the better rushing attacks in the league going again. Vince Wilfork is still one of the best nose tackles in football, but the absence of Ty Warren at defensive end obviously detracts from their ability to stop the run. Brandon Spikes and Jerod Mayo provide some potential up the middle at linebacker, but are nothing like the David Harris-Bart Scott combo the Dolphins faced on Sunday night.

A lot of it just comes down to the Dolphins blocking better, though. People may want to place the blame on an expired wildcat, or Ronnie and Ricky losing a step, but to me, it all boils down to the interior offensive line. John Jerry being sick last week obviously hurt. Hopefully he returns to 100% by practice tomorrow, because the longer the starting guards and center play together, the more chemistry and cohesiveness will begin to build. Throwing Pat McQuistan into the starting lineup doesn't bode well for the continuity.

And just because the Dolphins threw all over the Jets Sunday night, that doesn't mean it's time to abandon the identiy of this offense. They moved the ball, but they still fell apart in the red zone. Settling for three field goals and turning the ball over in the end zone attempting to tie the game isn't a great offensive day in my book. Henne and his receivers were fantastic, yes, but for the Dolphins' offense to dominate defenses and rack up the scoring they are going to need a little help from the running game.

The wildcat may have killed a few drives, but it seemed like any running play the Dolphins ran Sunday night halted the momentum the passing game was building. It shouldn't be that way. With two talented backs like Ronnie and Ricky, the running game should keep the defense off balance and help sustain long drives that eventually tire the defense out. Then, chunk yardage, whether it be from the running game or passing game, should follow.

For the Dolphins to beat the Pats, we need to see both the passing game and running game on full display. We've seen potential from both, but we haven't seen both doing well simultaneously. If Dan Henning can strike up the right balance, this offense should be successful against anyone they play, and should definitely be able to move the ball up and down the field against what has been a sub-par defense.
Edge: Dolphins

Jets 31 Dolphins 23

If you would have told me heading into last night's division showdown that Chad Henne was going to throw for 363 yards and 2 touchdowns and Brandon Marshall was going to have his breakout game as a Fin with 166 receiving yards and a score I would have prematurely began to celebrate the win.

But so much for that new and improved Dolphins' defense. After dominating a hapless Bills offense in Week 1, and taking advantage of a turnover plagued Vikings' offense in Week 2, we probably bought into this defense as one of the league's best way too soon.

All the credit in the world to the Jets offense, though. I have been critical of Mark Sanchez many times before, but he forced me to eat those words last night. If Sanchez can play this well for the rest of the season, with that running game and defense, watch out league, the Jets are every bit as good as they say they are.

Perhaps even more concerning was the way the Jets offensive line was plowing right through Miami towards the end of that game. Offenses are starting to find where the Dolphins' weakness on defense is. The Jets were attacking the perimeter all night long, and as solid as Cameron Wake and Koa Misi look rushing the passer, they can't contain the edge right now.

In coverage, Jason Allen sure came back down to earth in a hurry, didn't he? After two stellar weeks, he whiffed badly attempting to tackle Braylon Edwards, who basically went untouched for a 67 yard touchdown, then cost the defense a chance to get off the field when he played that Edwards' sideline grab terribly considering he had Clemons helping over the top, and gave the Jets a fresh set of downs on a pass interference call in the endzone a few plays later.

Earlier in the game, with Edwards benched for the first quarter, and Vontae Davis locking down Jerricho Cotchery, it was pretty obvious who Sanchez was going to. But the Dolphins still couldn't stop it. Dustin Keller absolutely ripped the Dolphins to pieces on those first two Jets touchdowns, and put them in a pretty deep hole to start the game.

Yeremiah Bell is a fantastic safety playing in the box, and is usually a splendid open field tackler (even though he embarrassingly couldn't bring down Brad Smith on a wildcat gainer of 16 yards on 3rd and 15), but he can't cover. Shiancoe roughed him up last week, and Keller flat out abused him last night.

I know the Dolphins want Karlos Dansby up near the line of scrimmage making plays, but when they face elite tight ends I don't know what other options they have at this point but to put Dansby on them. He's flashed fantastic cover skills when given the opportunity, and when Channing Crowder returns to hopefully save the run defense, maybe Dansby should drop back into coverage more often. They could continue to give Sean Smith looks on tight ends, but I just don't think he's physical enough to get the job done.

Now that we got all the finger pointing out of the way, by no means is it time to panic. The Jets, Dolphins, and Patriots are all tied at 2-1 with plenty of football left to be played, including two games against the Pats, and another crack at the Jets in the Meadowlands. Sure, it sucks losing to them, but it's nothing to be ashamed of. They are a great football team, and the Dolphins can't beat them every time. This is an intense rivalry, it's near impossible to pull off four straight wins.

And how about your quarterback? Revis or no Revis, the Jets still have one of the best pass defenses in the league. Outside of that panic run on the final drive, Henne was as cool as a cucumber in the pocket and was rocketing the ball all over the field. Marshall was the beast the Dolphins paid him to be, as it finally looked like Dan Henning was taking the leash off the passing game.

Speaking of Henning, though, those wildcat calls were riduculous. With Henne as hot as he was, you don't call that Ronnie pass, and especially not that reverse to Cobbs. Those were drive killers, and if he continued to put the ball in Henne's hands, who knows how the outcome would have changed.

I'm not willing to say abandon the wildcat, it's still useful as a power running formation. But get rid of all the trickery, and only use it when the offense is struggling to get something going, not when Henne and his receivers are clicking on all cylinders.

Finally, special teams also haunted the Dolphins last night. The blocked punt obviously killed any momentum they had, and conceded three points to the Jets, but giving up 37 yards per kick return is completely unacceptable. Brad Smith is a very solid returner, yes, but I don't care if it's Devin Hester in 06', you can't let offenses start with that kind of field position.

All in all, a very difficult loss to take, considering the Dolphins could have really began to distance themselves from the AFC East. Now, though, the Jets have the obvious advantage having already beaten the Pats as well. I know it's only Monday, but it's time to get over this loss in a hurry. Next week could easily make or break the Dolphins season. In the AFC East you can't afford to lose back-to-back games, especially to your biggest competitors within the division, and definitely not when both of those games are at home.

It's a hard thing to do, but let's put this one behind us. Patriots week is here, and Monday Night Football is always a good place to capture some season altering momentum.

There's only a day left on the countdown clock. The most anticipated game of the season is upon us. You can even throw out all of the verbal sparring that has gone down between these two teams over the past two seasons. Overlook the animosity between them, and we still have a huge division showdown with first place on the line.

If the Dolphins can get the job done at home, they will have a commanding two game lead over the "favorite" to win the AFC East, and an opportunity to land the Partiots an early round TKO next week. If the Jets win, though, it's certainly not the end of the world for the Dolphins, but the Jets would have beaten their two biggest competitors in the division in back-to-back weeks.

While Miami would be tied with an identical 2-1 record with the Jets, and probably the Patriots, they need to take care of business at home in the division. If not, they will likely have to go to New Jersey in December, and to New England in January, and pull off difficult victories on the road in frigid conditions to win the AFC East. A tall order to say the least.

That's not even mentioning how tough the Dolphins' first half of the season schedule is. After these two games at home, which are both pretty much toss-ups, they probably won't be favorites again until November. Even then, Tennessee and Chicago coming to town in succession are no easy wins.

The bottom line; despite having a one game lead in the division right now, it's no time to let up on the gas. A win tomorrow night is essential, not only because how bitter this rivalry is, but because the Dolphins can't afford a loss with the schedule they play, and the division they play in.

Avoid third and long situations
I have said it before, but it's so crucial I might as well say it again. The Jets are a great defense no matter what down it is, don't get me wrong. But it's how dominant they are on third down, that truly separates them from the pack. They are going to blitz everything but the kitchen sink, and, despite Revis being out of the lineup, are going to play great man to man converge on the outside. The pressure gets there too quickly to read the defense.

When you force the quarterback to make decisions instantaneously, you usually have the offense beat. That's why your only hope is to get the ball out quickly. Something like a slant won't likely pick up enough yardage for a first down, so a jump ball down the sideline becomes your best option. Brandon Marshall has done well against Cromartie in the past, and the Ravens exposed him on a few jump balls in Week 1, but I still think the Dolphins offense will operate much more smoothly if they can pick up solid yardage on first and second down. That really comes down to the running game.

We've seen some good signs from the ground attack in the first couple weeks, especially against an elite front seven in Minnesota, but we've also seen some inconsistency at times. A three or four yard loss on first or second down will surely kill the drive against this Jets defense.

Force Sanchez to beat you
I know Sanchez had a great game last week, and maybe that's a sign of things to come, but the Jets' running game is too good to not make him prove that last game wasn't a fluke. When you add Braylon Edwards being out of the starting lineup, it's even more reason to load up the box to stop LaDainian Tomlinson and Shonne Green.

The Jets had the league's best running game last year, and even after ridding themselves of 1400 yards in Thomas Jones, they are currently tied with none other than the Dolphins for seventh best after two games. It's going to take more than one good game from Sanchez to compete with that. We did see a completely inept offense in Week 1, after all. Grant it, against a very stout Ravens defense, but still, you can't tell me that was all Baltimore's D', the Jets were playing awful on offense.

One player that does concern me is Dustin Keller. Shiancoe tore up the Dolphins last week, and Keller is certainly capable of doing the same. We should see a mix of Yeremiah Bell, Karlos Dansby, and even Sean Smith in coverage

Feed off the crowd's energy
Sun Life Stadium hasn't produced many playoff-like atmospheres over the past few years, but Sunday night will surely be an exception. The majority will be wearing orange and howling like a wolf when the Dolphins are on defense. Word is, they will also be passing out orange rally towels, contributing further to what should be an actual home field advantage.

Obviously, just having loud fans isn't going to win you a football game. But you've never watched football before if you don't think it makes a difference. If the Dolphins can feed off that energy, we should see a defense flying all over the field and a refreshingly fiery offense. One thing they can't let happen, though, if they want the stadium to be rocking all game long, is let the Jets get off to a quick start. If the Jets can quiet the crowd out of the gates, it will become a neutral turf in a hurry.

To continue our preparation for Sunday night's huge division showdown, it's time to preview the passing game. Yes, both offenses attack with a run-first approach, but the potential is there in the passing game. The Dolphins and Jets are banking on Chad Henne and Mark Sanchez to become franchise quarterbacks. So far, we've seen flashes from both, but they still have a lot to prove. The talent around them is there, though. The top notch running games and offensive lines are present on both offenses, and the Dolphins have one of the league's most talented receivers, while the Jets have three guys who have 1,000 yard seasons under their belts (counting Holmes who is still suspended).

On the defensive side of the ball, things aren't so parallel. The Jets possess the best pass defense in football that is attributed to the pressure they bring, just as much as the play of Revis and the secondary. The Dolphins, meanwhile, were near the bottom of the league against the pass a year ago. Mike Nolan is bringing the heat, though, and Vontae Davis and Jason Allen may be ready to emerge as one of the league's better corner tandems. Of course, that's just based off of what we saw them do against a bad Bills' offense and a receiving core missing it's star in Minnesota. Yes, the Dolphins and Jets love to pound the football, but if neither one is overly successful at it with the defenses loading up the box to stop the run, it may come down to who make more plays or less mistakes between Henne and Sanchez.

Jets passing attack vs. Dolphins secondary
Sanchez arguably had his best showing as a pro last Sunday against the Patriots. In Week 1, though, he led a completely inept offense to only six first downs. Which game was more indicative of what to expect the rest of the season? I think the answer lies somewhere in the middle, and I would be shocked if we saw a similar performance against this new and improved Dolphins' defense.

The big wild card in all of this, is how much playing time Braylon Edwards will get. We know he won't start due to the DWI he was arrested for earlier in the week, but I have a hard time believing Ryan will keep him out for long. He did tear Miami up in his first game as a Jet last season, after all. Whenever he does come into the game, Vontae Davis and Jason Allen will receive their best test yet, assuming, of course, we get the Mark Sanchez from last week and not two weeks ago.

The Dolphins faced Lee Evans in Week 1, and that was about it, and really only Percy Harvin on the wide receiver end last week. Yes, Shiancoe had a solid game, but he was covered by Yeremiah Bell for the majority of that game. Speaking of which, it will interesting to see if Miami abides by the same strategy against another very talented tight end in Dustin Keller. Personally, I would rather see Karlos Dansby matched up against him, but then again, he wouldn't be able to blitz as much.

Whatever the case, if the Dolphins can get to Sanchez like they did Edwards and Favre, they will be just fine. I have a feeling Nolan has been saving some ofhis exotic blitz looks for these two prime time games against the Jets and Patriots.
Edge: Dolphins

Dolphins passing attack vs. Jets Secondary
If Dan Henning didn't trust Chad Henne enough to air it out against a suspect Vikings' secondary, he would be insane to test the best pass defense in football, right? Well, I think it had more to do with having the lead, than the team they were facing. For some reason, Henning just likes to go in a shell when the Dolphins are winning and the defense is playing well. Criticize him now, but if Henne would have went out and threw a couple interceptions attempting 30 plus passes, you would be asking why not be more conservative.

For the offense as whole to be successful against the Jets defense, they are going to have to avoid third and long. That's when the Jets like to blitz up to seven and eight defenders. Typically, they like to attack one side of the defense or gap, creating more rushers than the offensive line can block. Your only hope there is to either complete a shot pass underneath and hope the receiver can produce some yards after catch, or just throw up a jump ball against single coverage. Considering, how complete the Jets' defense is, the Dolphins will undoubtedly find themselves in some of those situations. That's when Brandon Marshall comes into play, and Revis being out of the lineup is beneficial.

Marshall may be one of the few players that can make plays against Revis, but it would still be risky business throwing in that direction. With Cromartie in coverage, though, Marshall may be able to outmuscle him on some 50-50 balls. Although Cromartie is more lengthy and has great ball skills, Revis is the more physical corner, and thus a better matchup with Marshall. Make no mistake, though, Cromartie is no scrub. He's already got two picks on the year, and completely shut down Randy Moss in the second-half last week after Revis hurt his hamstring.
Edge: Jets

In what is becoming a better read each and every week, I had the opportunity to exchange emails with Rex Sanchez this week. Just like the game this Sunday night, I was looking forward to this post a little more than usual. It's the Jets. This is what it's all about. As expected, our little Q&A didn't disappoint. As always, you can read the questions I answered for him right here.

Phins Phocus: After two games, is this Jets team as good as you thought they would be? Are they still the "hands down favorite to win the Super Bowl," or will they have their hands full winning their own division?

Rex Sanchez: They are as good as I thought they'd be. The defense has been everything you expected. The special teams have been up to par. The offense---well they had a rough night versus Baltimore, but once they actually had possession of the pigskin on Sunday, they stuck it to the Patriots. They lost to a damn good team in the season opener. And it wasn't like they got blown out. They're only going to get better.

Phins Phocus: We obviously saw a completely different offense against the Patriots than what we saw against the Ravens. Do feel like the Ravens defense is that good, or is the Pats defense that bad? Was last week a sign of things to come for Mark Sanchez, or just a fluke?

Rex Sanchez: In my optimistic glaze, I'll say it was the Ravens defense being that good. That's not to say the Patriots defense is an elite unit that the Jets dominated, but they're obviously a solid group. As for Sanchez, man, I wish I knew. When they let him throw the ball, when they show confidence in him (like they did Sunday and in the playoffs), he plays like a franchise quarterback. When they make him a game manager as they did versus Baltimore, that's when he shrivels up. Ultimately, at least for this season, the play-calling will determine his success.

Phins Phocus: If you were an opposing offensive coordinator, how exactly would you go about attacking the Jets' blitz happy defense? Which strategies have had the most success moving the ball against them?

Rex Sanchez:Last season I would have said that short, quick passes were the way to beat the Jets D. This year they've seemed to clamp down on those types of plays (hence why Welker didn't "kill" the Jets). What the Ravens did was interesting and in a way worked. They would simply throw a jump ball downfield to whichever receiver(s) weren't covered by Revis and either hope for an acrobatic catch or a defensive holding/pass interference call. It worked pretty much every single time in the season opener. With no Revis this week and Brandon Marshall having a history of owning Antonio Cromartie, I wouldn't be surprised to see the Dolphins do something similar.

Phins Phocus: Which division rival do Jets fans hate the most? Respect the most? Believe is their biggest competition in the AFC East?

Rex Sanchez: If you ask a Jets fan born after 1985, they will unequivocally say it is the Patriots. But if you ask people older than that, they'll likely say the Dolphins. "If you think Brady owns the Jets, you should have seen Marino." Then they'll start complaining how the Dolphins watered down the field for the '82 AFC Championship Game and so on and so on. The only thing I can guarantee is that no one would say the Bills.

"Respect" the most? Ugh. I guess the Patriots because they win. But it's not a respect borne out of reverence for the players. People just simply respect the rings. And the Jets' biggest competition in the AFC East is still the Patriots, no question.

Phins Phocus: Finally, who do you see winning Sunday night and why?

Rex Sanchez:I see the Jets winning Sunday. The crowd down there will definitely be rocking for the season-opener so I wouldn't be surprised to see the Jets elect to receive (if they have the option), then try to run the ball down the Dolphins' throats. Sanchez played well in both games versus Miami last year so I don't think (offensive coordinator) Schotty will be afraid to let him air it out. Don't be surprised if the Jets make up a phantom injury for Braylon this week, though. They don't want to play him but technicalities in the CBA make it virtually impossibly to deactivate him for being a drunk driver.

Revis or no Revis, the Jets defense is still an elite unit. Heck, they played better without him last Sunday. Would I want it to be that way over a 16-game season? Obviously not, but I think they can weather the storm this week. The reasons the Jets lost both games to the Dolphins last year were because they couldn't stop the wildcat and Ronnie Brown, and they couldn't contain Ted Ginn Jr. on kickoffs, both of which have played a far lesser role (especially Ginn, obviously!) in your offense this season.

Final score: Jets 23, Dolphins 19