Recap: New England vs. Miami
Sports Network | September 21, 2008
Foxboro, MA (Sports Network) - Ronnie Brown ran for four touchdowns and threw for another score, as the Miami Dolphins pulled off a stunning 38-13 victory over New England at Gillette Stadium and ended the Patriots' regular-season winning streak at 21 games.
The Dolphins, coincidentally, were also the last team to beat the Patriots in the regular season, earning a 21-0 triumph on December 10, 2006 in Miami. It was also the first home loss for New England since November 12, 2006, when a Chad Pennington-led Jets team left Foxboro with a 17-14 victory.
Pennington, in his third start for the Dolphins (1-2), threw for 226 yards on 17-of-20 passing to give Tony Sparano his first win as a head coach after season-opening losses to the New York Jets and Arizona Cardinals. Miami equaled its win total from last year and also snapped an 11-game road losing streak, winning away from Dolphin Stadium for the first time since a Thanksgiving Day triumph at Detroit on November 23, 2006.
Brown ran for 113 yards and set a Dolphins record with his four rushing touchdowns, breaking the old mark of three held by numerous players. He also tied the team record for most touchdowns scored, a mark set by Hall of Famer Paul Warfield and matched by Mark Ingram. Both receivers caught four TD passes.
Ricky Williams added 98 yards on the ground for the Dolphins, who gutted the New England defense for 216 yards rushing. Miami piled up 461 total yards to just 216 for the Patriots.
Matt Cassel, in his second NFL start, completed 19-of-31 passes for 131 yards with a touchdown and an interception for New England (2-1), which had beaten Kansas City and the Jets to open the year. It also marked the worst home loss for the Patriots since a 41-10 thrashing by Atlanta on November 8, 1998.
