Times Colonist

Dolphins on rise but is it enough to upend Pats?

- BARRY WILNER

New England was pushed to the limit by the Jets. Miami has turned around its season since Dan Campbell took over for fired coach Joe Philbin. The Dolphins usually give Tom Brady fits. Throw it all away. Unless an opponent can play practicall­y a perfect game, winning right now in Foxborough is an impossible feat. New York had the chance, made one critical mistake on Brandon Marshall’s drop in the end zone with his team up by one point, and Brady made the Jets pay.

The star quarterbac­k credits how the Patriots make adjustment­s so well.

“And when you’re adjusting on the sidelines or constantly talking on things,” Brady said, “and Josh [McDaniels, the offensive co-ordinator] is raking through the call sheet to figure out something so he can spring someone free, which leads to some critical plays when you need them.

“And we made plenty of them there in the fourth quarter, which is what we needed. So a lot of it is trying to keep finding ways to adjust, whether that’s pregame, during the game, all the way up, like I said, to the last snap.”

Odds are, that last snap will be Brady kneeling for New England, an eight-point choice over Miami. PATRIOTS, 33-20

SUNDAY TAMPA BAY (plus 7) at ATLATA We have so much faith in the Falcons, back at home, getting back to early season form to make them . . . FALCONS 30-17 CINCINNATI (minus 11⁄ 2)

at PITTSBURGH Big Ben is back, Bengals see perfect season short-circuited. STEELERS, 22-20 N.Y. GIANTS (plus 3) at NEW ORLEANS Was tempted to make this Upset Special. GIANTS, 28-27 MINNESOTA (minus 1)

at CHICAGO But not this, although it will be tight. VIKINGS, 23-21 GREEN BAY (minus 3)

at DENVER The first Game of the Millennium, 2015 style. A-Rod over Peyton. PACKERS, 23-21 SEATTLE (minus 6) at DALLAS Dez might be back for Cowboys, but he won’t have Romo chucking the ball. SEAHAWKS, 20-17 SAN FRANCISCO (plus 9)

at ST. LOUIS Not many teams Rams can cover this spread against. Niners are one. RAMS, 24-11 DETROIT (plus 5) at KANSAS CITY Chiefs handled Steelers nicely, will do same to Lions. CHIEFS, 23-10 ARIZONA (plus 5) at CLEVELAND Cardinals come off short week, but are ticked about nearly blowing win vs. Ravens. CARDINALS, 26-17 SAN DIEGO (plus 3)

at BALTIMORE Two of the NFL’s most disappoint­ing clubs. RAVENS, 19-13 N.Y. JETS (minus 2) at OAKLAND Former nasty rivalry gone cold. Both teams on the rise. JETS, 24-20 TENNESSEE (Off) at HOUSTON Two solid contenders — for the top overall draft pick in 2016. TEXANS, 17-12

MONDAY NIGHT INDIANAPOL­IS (plus 7)

at CAROLINA Colts only win in AFC South. This opponent leads NFC South. PANTHERS, 24-20

——— 2015 RECORD: Against spread: Week 4-9, Season (53-46-2). Straight up: Week 9-5, Season (69-36)

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