Players to Watch: Patriots at Dolphins

Sony Michel – New England’s rookie running back didn’t have an overly productive day last weekend against the Vikings (17 rushes for just 63 yards) but remains the key part of the Patriots ability to be balanced on offense. Miami’s defense has allowed 5.0 yards per carry this season, so Michel should find a little more room to run this week.

Trey Flowers – There is little doubt that Flowers has become the Patriots best defender up front. He’s a force against both the run and the pass. Flowers has notched a sack in consecutive weeks and three of the last four games as he gets set to tackle Ryan Tannehill and Co.

Rob Gronkowski – Questions about Gronkowski’s health and ability to contribute at a high level continue to swirl. Having not caught more than three passes in a game since Week 5, New England’s big tight end will try to show the Dolphins he’s still a weapon to be feared.

Kyle Van Noy – Van Noy has quietly gone about his business, leading the Patriots with 75 tackles through 12 games, while adding two sacks, five QB hits, an interception, two passes defensed, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. The stats show just how valuable and versatile a defender Van Noy really is.

Tom Brady – The Patriots struggles in Miami over the years have sometimes included Brady struggling. He threw a pair of interceptions in last year’s December loss in Miami and has a passer rating of 76 or worse (matched with completion percentages in the 50s) in three of his last four trips to South Beach. He’ll be looking to turn that trend around against a Dolphins D that could be without top player and interception machine Xavien Howard.

Danny Amendola – The former Patriot leads the Dolphins with 48 catches for 469 yards with one touchdown on the season. He missed last week with a knee injury but returned to practice on a limited basis and appears set to bring some reliability back to the Miami passing game.

Kiko Alonso – The speedy, undersized linebacker is a unique guy for an offense to deal with. Alonso runs sideline to sideline and also has three interceptions this season as an athletic factor in the Miami front.

Ryan Tannehill – It’s hard to pull off an upset against the Patriots without your quarterback playing well. Tannehill is back after five games, topping a 100 passer rating the last two weeks while throwing five touchdowns. He’ll look to stay hot against a Patriots pass defense that’s playing as well as it has all season.

Minkah Fitzpatrick – Miami’s first-round pick is a versatile player in the back end who can play both safety and cornerback. He’s taken on a bigger role on the outside for Miami and could be an even more important factor given that the Dolphins could be without star cornerback Xavien Howard.

Adam Gase – The Dolphins coach has his team in the hunt for playoff spot and playing good football at home. To get to January action Miami’s boss will need to find a way to pull off this upset in his matchup with Bill Belichick.