Miami-Pats hots and nots, and game notes.

Here are my print-edition hots and nots (we call it the Farinella Report, but that wasn't my choice), and the game notes as provided by the Patriots. And as a special bonus, I'll tack on the Miami game notes provided by the incomparable Harvey Greene and his PR staff...

WHO’S HOT
STEPHEN GOSTKOWSKI: Booming kickoffs. Four field goals. He even had a special-teams tackle. From a game that just didn’t seem to have a high excitement quotient, it’s only fitting to pick the kicker as the No. 1 star.
TOM BRADY: His 27th 300-yard game (25-37, 332 yards) propelled him past Drew Bledsoe into the team lead in that category.
RANDY MOSS: He caught six of the 11 passes thrown at him for 147 yards, including a 71-yard TD pass in which at least 60 were yards after the catch.
DAN CONNOLLY: Solid work at center after Dan Koppen went out with a knee injury.
TULLY BANTA-CAIN: Nine tackles and three quarterback hits. In his second go-round as a Patriot (third if you cut the clerical release a few weeks ago), TBC is starting to make a mark for himself as a pass-rusher.
LAURENCE MARONEY: He had 82 yards on 20 carries and seemed to do a decent job in the old Corey Dillon mode, running out the clock at the end of the game.
ADALIUS THOMAS: A return to the positive side. He dropped Chad Henne for 11 yards on what could have been a Wildcat-based option pass, and added two tackles for losses.


WHO’S NOT
THIRD-DOWN DEFENSE: The Dolphins converted nine of 17 third-down situations, staying on the field far too long.
RED ZONE OFFENSE: The Patriots scored on one of four ventures inside the 20. Not very good, and a season-long sore point.
JUNIOR SEAU: The only active Patriot (other than quarterback Brian Hoyer) who didn’t get any time on the field. What’s up with that?
JOEY PORTER: After a whole week of yapping his head off, the veteran Dolphins’ linebacker was credited with NO tackles and one quarterback hit. Must have been Spygate’s fault.

WHO’S LUKEWARM
PAT CHUNG: He had an 8-yard sack, but struggled a little in coverage.

HOT NUMBERS
0: Joey Porter’s tackle total.
4: The number of field goals Stephen Gostkowski needed to take over fourth place on the Patriots’ all-time list. He got them.
10-5: Tom Brady’s record against the Dolphins.
12: Jerod Mayo’s game-high tackle total.
14: The number of times Tom Brady has been named the AFC Offensive Player of the week.
20: Consecutive home games won by Tom Brady.
27: The number of 300-yard passing games by Tom Brady, a team record.
65: Game-time temperature at Gillette Stadium.
166: Consecutive sellouts in Foxboro.

TURNING POINT
Honorable mention goes to Adalius Thomas sniffing out a reverse pass attempt and dropping Chad Henne for an 11-yard loss, but the prize goes to Randy Moss’ 71-yard touchdown reception with 3:15 left in the third quarter, about 60 yards of which was a run after stiff-arming rookie corner Vontae Davis.

FUN FACT
Tom Brady threw one touchdown pass to give him 213 in his career, taking over 20th place on the NFL’s all-time list and breaking a tie with Terry Bradshaw and Y.A. Tittle.

PATRIOTS GAME NOTES

BRADY SETS FRANCHISE RECORD WITH HIS 27th 300-YARD PASSING GAME
Tom Brady had 332 passing yards, registering his 27th career 300-yard passing game and passing Drew Bledsoe (26) for the most 300-yard games in New England history. The 300-yard game was his fourth of the 2009 season and was his third straight. The 300-yard game was Brady’s 12th in his last 23 regular-season starts.

BRADY EQUALS HOTTEST STRETCH OF CAREER WITH THIRD STRAIGHT 300-YARD GAME
With 332 passing yards, Brady had his third consecutive 300-yard game, equaling the hottest streak of his career. The only other time in his 10-year career that he had three consecutive 300-yard games was during a three-game stretch in 2007 when he had 388 yards at Dallas (10/14/07), 354 yards at Miami (10/21/07) and 306 yards vs. Washington (10/28/07).

MOSS BECOMES THIRD PLAYER TO REACH 140 OR MORE RECEIVING TOUCHDOWNS
Randy Moss tied Buffalo’s Terrell Owens for second place on the NFL’s all-time list with 140 career touchdown catches. Moss became the third player in NFL history to catch 140 or more touchdown passes when he scored on a 71-yard touchdown in the third quarter. Jerry Rice holds the NFL record with 197 career touchdown receptions.

MOSS MOVES UP ALL-TIME RECEIVING YARDS LIST
WR Randy Moss passed Henry Ellard and Cris Carter and moved into seventh place on the NFL’s All-Time receiving yards list today. Moss finished the afternoon with 13,913 career receiving yards. Moss entered today’s contest ranked ninth with 13,766 career receiving yards and moved past Ellard (13,777) and Carter (13,899). James Lofton ranks sixth in NFL history with 14,004 career receiving yards. Jerry Rice is the NFL’s all-time leader with 22,895 career receiving yards.

MOSS MOVES UP ALL-TIME SCRIMMAGE YARDS LIST
WR Randy Moss passed Cris Carter and moved into 24th place on the NFL’s all-time scrimmage yards list today. Moss entered the game ranked 25th in NFL history with 13,925 yards from scrimmage (159 rushing and 13,766 receiving) and added 147 yards today to push his career total to 14,072 and move past Carter’s total of 13,940 yards. James Lofton ranks 23rd in league history with 14,250 scrimmage yards.

WELKER IS SIXTH PLAYER IN TEAM HISTORY WITH THREE STRAIGHT SEASONS OF 50+ RECEPTIONS
Wes Welker had nine catches to finish the game with 55 receptions on the season, becoming the sixth player in Patriots history with 50 or more catches in three straight seasons. Welker had 112 receptions in 2007 and 111 in 2008, making 2009 his third straight season with 50 or more catches. Welker joins Ben Coates, Irving Fryar, Marv Cook, Terry Glenn and Troy Brown as the only players in Patriots history to achieve the feat. Randy Moss, who finished today’s game with 49 catches in 2009, can join the club with one more reception.

Patriots players with three straight seasons of 50+ catches
Player..............Consec. Seasons..............Years
Ben Coates.................6........................1993-1998
Irving Fryar..................3........................1990-1992
Marv Cook...................3........................1990-1992
Terry Glenn.................3........................1998-2000
Troy Brown..................3........................2000-2002
Wes Welker................3........................2007-2009

WELKER HAS 13th GAME WITH 9+ CATCHES WITH THE PATRIOTS
Welker’s nine catches today marked his 13th game with nine or more catches since joining the Patriots prior to the 2007 season. Welker’s 13 games with nine or more catches are the most in Patriots history, topping Ben Coates’ mark of 10.

WELKER ON PACE FOR 128 CATCHES
Wes Welker has 55 catches in six games this season (9.2 catches per game), despite missing two games due to injury. Welker is on pace for a team-record 128 receptions this season if he can keep up his pace through the Patriots’ remaining eight games. A season total of 128 catches would rank second in NFL history behind Marvin Harrison’s league-record 143 receptions in 2002. The Patriots single-season reception record is 112, set by Welker in 2007. Welker also holds the second highest single-season reception total in Patriots history, 111 in 2008.

CHUNG REGISTERS SACK FOR SECOND STRAIGHT GAME
Rookie CB Pat Chung recorded an eight-yard sack on a third-down play in the first quarter to knock Miami out of field goal range. He has recorded a sack in each of the last two games. Chung had a five-yard sack against Tampa Bay in London two weeks ago.

STEPHEN GOSTKOWSKI TIES CAREER HIGH WITH FOUR FGs
Stephen Gostkowski was a perfect four-for-four on field goals today, tying his career high with four successful kicks in a game. Gostkowski also had four field goals against Atlanta on Sept. 27 and had four successful boots in two games in 2008 (at N.Y. Jets on 9/14/08 and vs. Arizona on 12/21/08).

GOSTKOWSKI MOVES INTO FOURTH ON PATRIOTS FIELD GOALS LIST
With four field goals today, Stephen Gostkowski raised his career total to 94 field goals, passing Tony Franklin (93 from 1984-87) and moving into fourth place on the Patriots’ all-time field goals list. Adam Vinatieri is the Patriots’ all-time leader with 263 field goals (1996-2005), Gino Cappelletti ranks second with 176 field goals (1960-70) and John Smith ranks third with 128 field goals (1974-83).

MOSS GOES OVER 100 YARDS
Moss exceeded 100 receiving yards for the fourth time in 2009. He now has 63 100-yard games, which is second to Jerry Rice’s NFL record 76 100-yard games.

MOSS SCORES ON A 71-YARD TOUCHDOWN PASS FROM BRADY
Moss scored on a 71-yard touchdown pass from Tom Brady is the third quarter. It is the second longest catch of Moss’ Patriots career and the longest from Brady. He had a 76-yard touchdown pass from QB Matt Cassel vs. Arizona (12/21/08).

MOSS HAS 39 TD CATCHES IN 40 GAMES AS A PATRIOT
Randy Moss’s 71-yard touchdown catch was Moss’s team-high fifth of the season and was his 39th scoring catch in 40 games since joining the Patriots prior to the 2007 season. Moss’s 39 scoring catches since 2007 are the most in the NFL over that span.

BRADY COMPLETES 71-YARD TOUCHDOWN PASS TO MOSS
QB Tom Brady’s 71-yard touchdown pass to WR Randy Moss is the third longest touchdown pass of Brady’s career. He had a career-long 91-yard touchdown pass to WR David Patten at Indianapolis (10-21-01) and an 82-yard touchdown pass to WR Troy Brown in overtime at Miami (10-19-03). The 71-yard touchdown pass to Moss is the longest pass of Brady’s career at Gillette Stadium, besting a 63-yard touchdown pass to WR Randy Moss vs. Pittsburgh (12-9-07).
The 71-yard pass to Moss is tied for the third longest pass of Brady’s career (including touchdowns and all other passes). Brady also had a 71-yarder to Troy Brown at Carolina (9-18-05).

BRADY IS ALWAYS AT HOME AT GILLETTE STADIUM
Tom Brady has now won 20 straight starts at home (including the playoffs), a streak that began following a 17-14 loss to the New York Jets on Nov. 12, 2006. Brady is 20-0 as a starter since the Patriots installed FieldTurf at Gillette Stadium. Brady’s overall home record (59-10, .855) is the best since the NFL merger in 1970.

TOP QB HOME RECORDS SINCE 1970 MERGER
Player Team(s) W L T Pct.
Tom Brady NE 59 10 0 .855
Terry Bradshaw PIT 75 14 0 .843
John Elway DEN 104 25 0 .806
Steve Young TB/SF 63 19 0 .768
NOTE: Minimum 50 home starts, includes regular season and playoff games. Includes all players who began their careers in the Post-Merger Era (1970-present).

BRADY, MOSS AND WELKER COMBINE TO WIN AT GILLETTE STADIUM
Tom Brady, Randy Moss and Wes Welker have never lost a game while playing together at Gillette Stadium. Brady and Moss are a perfect 16-0 (including the playoffs). Welker missed one home game in 2009 (Atlanta) and is 15-0 with Brady and Moss.

STREAK OF 15 STRAIGHT GAMES WITH A TURNOVER IS BROKEN
The Patriots did not force a Miami turnover today, breaking a streak of 15 straight games with a turnover. That streak had been the longest current streak in the NFL.

PATRIOTS OFF TO GOOD START
The Patriots are 6-2 in the 2009 season and have started the season with at least six wins in their first eight games for the third time in four years and for the fifth time in seven years.

THE PATRIOTS AFTER THE BYE
The Patriots improved to 8-2 after the bye week since Bill Belichick became head coach in 2000.

HOME SELLOUT STREAK REACHES 166
Today’s game was the 166th consecutive home sellout for the Patriots, a streak that includes every preseason, regular-season and playoff game since the 1994 regular-season opener.

BRADY RECORDS UPDATE
Tom Brady improved his career record as a starter (including playoffs) to—
107-29 overall
59-10 at home
38-9 against AFC East teams
27-3 when throwing for 300 yards or more
46-3 on artificial turf
83-6 when leading at halftime
85-4 when leading after three quarters

DOLPHINS GAME NOTES

With the New England 27-17 victory, the season series fell to a 49-39 advantage for Miami. New England has now won the last two contests and this was the first road division loss for Head Coach Tony Sparano. He is now 4-1 in road games against divisional opponents.

RB Ricky Williams 15-yard touchdown against New England was the 41st time he has reached the end zone with Miami, good for second most in team history behind RB Larry Csonka (53).

DOLPHINS CAREER RUSHING TOUCHDOWNS
Player Years No.
1. Larry Csonka 1968-74,79 53
2. Ricky Williams 2002-03,05,07-09 41
3. K. Abdul-Jabbar 1996-99 33
4. Ronnie Brown 2005-09 30
5. Mercury Morris 1969-75 29

RB Ronnie Brown threw the second touchdown pass of his career when he connected with TE Joey Haynos on a one-yard reception. It was the third career touchdown catch for Haynos and the second of this season, establishing a career high for the University of Maryland product. The score culminated Miami’s longest drive of the season in time of possession that ended in a score, besting a 9:29 drive at the San Diego Chargers on September 27, 2009. On that drive Brown scored on a three-yard run.

With 15 carries for 48 yards, RB Ronnie Brown now has 3,999 rushing yards and needs only one yard to become the third player in team history to rush for 4,000 yards behind RB Larry Csonka (6,737) and RB Ricky Williams (5,098).

DOLPHINS CAREER RUSHING LEADERS
Player Years No.
1. Larry Csonka 1968-74, 79 6737
2. Ricky Williams 2002-03,05,07-09 5098
3. Ronnie Brown 2005-09 3999
4. Mercury Morris 1969-75 3877
5. Jim Kiick 1968-74 3644

QB Pat White had a career long run 33 yard run in the second quarter against New England. He finished the day with six carries for 45 yards. The rookie from West Virginia holds the NCAA record for rushing yardage by a quarterback with 4,480 yards.

WR Greg Camarillo caught five passes for a season high 71 yards against New England. With his 12-yard reception in the third quarter, the receiver recorded his 1,000th yard. The Stanford product now has 88 receptions for 1,033 receiving yards in his career.

DE Randy Starks recorded a sack against QB Tom Brady in the second quarter. Starks now has 4.5 sacks which tied his career high of 4.5 during his 2004 rookie season with the Tennessee Titans. The University of Maryland has had at least .5 sacks in the last five games.

Randy Starks Stats Over the Last Five Games
Date Opponent Sacks
10/4/09 vs. BUF 1.0
10/12/09 vs. NYJ 1.0
10/25/09 vs. NO 0.5
11/1/09 at NYJ 1.0
11/8/09 at NE 1.0

CB Vontae Davis recorded his second interception of the season against QB Tom Brady. He is now tied with CB Will Allen for the team lead. The most interceptions for a Dolphins rookie in team history is eight by S Dick Anderson in 1968.

K Dan Carpenter connected on a 52-yard field goal in the first quarter against New England, the longest of his career. Carpenter’s previous best was a 50-yarder on December 7, 2008 vs. the Buffalo Bills in Toronto, Canada. Additionally, Carpenter is 17-17 on field goals that are 40-yards or shorter. His 52-yd field goal was the longest field goal by a Dolphin since December 2, 2007 when K Jay Feely hit a 53-yard field goal in a 40-13 loss to the New York Jets in Miami.

Streaks
o LB Akin Ayodele – Has now played in 120 contests as has never missed a game in his career.
o T Vernon Carey – Has started 67 regular season games in a row.
o LB Jason Taylor – With the start against the New England Patriots, Taylor now has been in the starting lineup for the 177th time, surpassing G Bob Kuechenberg for second most in team history.

Most Career Starts in Dolphins History
QB Dan Marino 240
LB Jason Taylor 177
G Bob Kuechenberg 176
LB Zach Thomas 168
T Richmond Webb 162

Dolphins Injuries as Reported in the Press Box CB Vontae Davis – First Quarter (Quad) – Questionable C Dan Koppen – Second Quarter (Knee) – Questionable