New England Patriots roll past Miami Dolphins, improve to 7-0

Tom Brady and the New England Patriots brought the Miami Dolphins back to earth with a thud with a 36-7 NFL victory that moved the Pats to 7-0 for the season.

Brady threw four touchdown passes, two of them to Julian Edelman, and Stephen Gostkowski kicked three field goals as the Patriots handed the Dolphins their first defeat since interim coach Dan Campbell took the helm.

Gostkowski has now booted 27 straight regular-season field goals, breaking Adam Vinatieri's team record of 25.

The Patriots scored in every quarter for the sixth straight game.

In addition to his two scoring throws to wide receiver Edelman, Brady connected with touchdown passes to tight end Rob Gronkowski and running back Dion Lewis, who delivered a strong performance in his return from an abdominal injury.

Brady connected on 26 of 38 passing attempts for 356 yards. It was his 69th 300-yard game and his 24th with four or more touchdown throws -- both ranking him third all-time.

His 19th career game with at least four TDs and no interceptions was an NFL record.

Lewis ran for just 19 yards on five carries, but he caught six passes for 93 yards and the touchdown.

Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill was coming off a two-game stretch that saw him complete an NFL-record 25 straight passes.

But the Patriots defense was a different animal than those fielded by the Tennessee Titans or Houston Texans.

Tannehill was sacked five times, his Miami offense converting on just two of 11 third-down attempts. Tannehill connected on 28 of 44 passes for 300 yards, but also threw two interceptions.

New England led 19-0 at halftime and Patriots running back Lamar Miller scored from a yard out to cap an 80-yard drive that opened the second half.

To make things worse for Miami, the Dolphins lost offensive tackle Ja'Wuan James and defensive end Cameron Wake to injury. Wake was helped off the field and then taken by cart to the locker room after suffering an Achilles injury.
Source: AFP