Without cornerback Aqib Talib, the Patriots were able to hold Mike Wallace to a mere three catches for 41 yards back in October. Wallace is playing much better than he was at that point in the season, however, and projects to be a handful for the struggling Talib on Sunday.
Before his injury, Talib was playing like one of the top cornerbacks in the entire league. Since his return, his ability to shut down opposing receivers hasn't been what it once was. During the first six games, Talib only allowed 186 yards and one touchdown in coverage. In the four games since his return, he's given up 336 yards and two touchdowns.
Quarterback Ryan Tannehill should look to take advantage of this matchup on Sunday, and maybe even connect on a deep ball or two.
The Dolphins won't have to account for tight end Rob Gronkowski this week, but with Bill Belichick, someone always steps up to answer the call. That someone appears to be running back Shane Vereen.
Vereen might not be the back who will expose the Dolphins' leaky run defense on Sunday, but he does have the ability to abuse linebackers Philip Wheeler and Dannell Ellerbe, catching passes out of the backfield. New England will undoubtedly look to get Vereen matched up with Wheeler, in particular, whenever possible.
Vereen produced 12 catches for 153 yards and a touchdown last week and could be in store for another eye-popping stat line if Wheeler is primarily responsible for containing him. Wheeler currently has the fourth worst coverage grade for a 4-3 outside linebacker in the entire NFL according to Pro Football Focus.
The Dolphins gave up a season-high six sacks in Week 8 against the Patriots, but none of them were to defensive end Chandler Jones. Still, with 10.5 sacks on the season, keeping Jones away from Tannehill should be priority No. 1 for the Dolphins' offensive line.
Left tackle Bryant McKinnie will wear that responsibility. Although McKinnie is far from an upper echelon blindside protector and nothing more than a stop-gap solution until Miami can find a younger option, he's been a key ingredient to the Dolphins' improved ability to keep Tannehill upright.
McKinnie has only given up three sacks in seven games with Miami, which is quite the improvement from the seven sacks former starting left tackle Jonathan Martin allowed in his seven starts.
It will be interesting to see how the Dolphins choose to cover wide receiver Julian Edelman, who is clearly New England's go-to pass catcher now with Gronkowski out for the year. If they don't choose to shadow him with No. 1 cornerback Brent Grimes, Nolan Carroll and Jimmy Wilson will also see some coverage snaps against Tom Brady's top target, as the Patriots move Edelman to both perimeters and into the slot.
The wise move would probably be sticking Grimes on him throughout, though. Grimes has taken on the task of sticking with the opposition's go-to receiver several times this season with much success. According to Pro Football Focus, Grimes is graded as the No. 4 overall cornerback and leads the entire NFL with 17 combined interceptions and pass breakups.
Defensive end Cameron Wake didn't look to be 100 percent when the Dolphins and Patriots squared off in Week 8, and only played 34 of the team's 68 defensive snaps. New England won't have that luxury on Sunday. Wake appears have fully recovered from the sprained MCL that slowed him down for over a month earlier in the season.
This past Sunday in Pittsburgh, Wake had one of his most impactful performances of 2013, registering two sacks, a forced fumble, two quarterback hits, and three hurries according to Pro Football Focus. He'll have the opportunity to begin building a late-season surge against the Patriots on Sunday.
Right tackle Marcus Cannon has returned to practice this week for New England after missing the past two games with an ankle injury. If he plays, the Patriots won't have to trust Will Svitek to keep Brady clean. Svitek gave up two sacks in Week 14, so the return of Cannon will be welcomed relief for New England.
Cannon is ranked 38th of 79 offensive tackles this season by Pro Football Focus. That grade could drop after facing a pass rusher of Wake's caliber on Sunday, however, especially if he isn't 100 percent.
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