Miami Dolphins
Jarvis Landry/Rishard Matthews (Wide Receiver): Jarvis Landry and Rishard Matthews were held somewhat in check by this Patriots secondary. But more likely it was the Dolphins offensive line that gave in to the pressure generated by New England. Landry still 71 yards catching 6 out of 8 targets. Matthews on the other hand was a little bit better as he was not facing double coverage. Matthews finished the game hauling in 7 out of 12 targets for 62 yards.
Lamar Miller (Running Back): Miller hit a brick wall after his breakout game in week 7. This Patriots defensive line stopped Miller and this Dolphins run game dead in its tracks. Miller only had 15 yards on the ground after carrying the ball 9 times. He also saw 5 catches that went for 19 yards and a touchdown. Miller should have an easier matchup in week 9.
Ryan Tannehill (Quarterback): Tannehill after posting a perfect passer rating the week before got stuffed by a Patriots defense that wanted to see him on his back for most of the game. Tannehill rarely had a clean pocket which led to his inefficiency. Tannehill completed only 28 of his 44 passing attempts, which gained 300 yards through the air. Tannehill was picked off twice and he clearly was affected by bad pass protection.
New England Patriots
Tom Brady (Quarterback): Brady had another unbelievable game. He completed 26 of his 38 passes for 356 yards and 4 touchdowns. Brady has excelled this season at driving the ball down the field and there is no reason that should change anytime soon.
Rob Gronkowski (Tight End): Gronk had a bigger game than expected in a blowout. He picked up 6 catches on 9 targets for 113 yards and a touchdown. Gronk is the best tight end in the NFL so these numbers are not much a shock.
Danny Amendola/Julian Edelman/ Brandon LaFell (Wide Receivers): These numbers are not to shocking either except for probably Amendola owners. Amendola was one of the hotter waiver wire picks coming out of week 7 however the Patriots rarely bump people in their depth chart especially when it comes to the passing game. Edelman has been this unit's leader and he continued to be highly productive in week 8. Edelman finished the game catching 7 out of 9 targets for 81 yards and 2 touchdowns. Amendola just had 1 reception on his lone target of the season for 11 yards. Brandon LaFell was mixed in between catching 4 of his 7 targets for 47 yards.
Dion Lewis/LeGarrette Blount (Running Backs): Dion Lewis was originally supposed to miss this game, however he came in injured or not and set the Dolphins on fire. Lewis had 5 rushing attempts for 19 yards however he dominated in the passing game. Lewis caught 6 of his 9 targets for 93 yards and a touchdown. Blount played the cleanup crew on the ground as he had 17 rushing attempts for 72 yards and caught his lone reception for 2 yards.
