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In what was supposed to be an easy win against the hapless 0-2 Miami Dolphins, your New England Patriots got schooled in so many ways.  Playing at home in front of a sell out crowd (I was there), the Pats never got the grill lit.  That stupid butane clicker ran out before we could get the party started and by the time uncle Jim made it to the store to grab a new one, it was over.  The 'Fins started to rack up points faster than a pool hustler saying, "Man, that never goes in!"

The day started off good.  My buddy picked me up and we made the trek down to Foxborough.  After a little traffic, we staked out our spot and started the grill.  Some cooked meat, a few adult beverages and we made the 30 minute walk into Gillette Stadium.  This is a BEAUTIFUL place, by the way.  And it's all designed to extract money from your wallet, but what else is new?  Hollister and Victoria's Secret threw me.  I mean, does anyone remember seeing stuff like that at Sullivan Stadium?  I just remember Joey the drunk and Vinny the grizzled sausage vendor with stains on his beater.  Anyway...

A few stats for ya'll after the jump.

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Here ya go, gang.  Our Patriots battle it out with the 'Fins at Gillette Stadium.  I'll be at the game in the nose bleeds wearing, of course, #83.  I'm sure you'll be able to find me in the crowd of sixty-something-thousand.  For this thread, I leave in the more than capable hands of JohnHannahRules.  Safe blogging.

A few noticeable folks on the injury report are running backs Laurence Maroney and LaMont Jordan.  In the backfield, this leaves Sammy Morris, Kevin Faulk, Heath Evans, and Kyle Eckel.  Something that makes me think there's a little fiction going on, other than Belichick's record of toying with the report, is that Laurence Maroney appears in the starting lineup AND the injury report.

As is tradition, I had the chance to exchange "5 Questions" with "Matty I", blogger at SBNation's fine Miami Dolphins blog, The Phinsider.  Matty I answers my questions about Tony Sparano, the WR corp, and his hopes for the team.  Head on over to The Phinsider for my answers to his questions.

Coach Sparano has a VASTLY different style than "Cam Cam", but is he any more effective as head coach of the Dolphins? Is it unfair to lay the blame for an 0-2 start on his shoulders given what he was left with?

TP: It's too early to tell if Sparano will be any more effective as head coach than Cam was.  Sure, 0-2 doesn't look good.  But they were just 19 yards (or 1 Chad Pennington pass) away from beating the Jets in week one.  Even with that said, though, I will be honest.  Sparano has made some noticeable rookie mistakes during these first 2 games.  Time management was an issue late in the Jets' game.  There are some questionable personnel decisions that have been made - like not having Ted Ginn on the field in 3 WR sets last week.

However, it is unfair to lay the blame for the 0-2 start on Sparano's shoulders.  The fat of the matter is that this team isn't any good.  But this new regime - led by Bill Parcells and Jeff Ireland - have come down here and have began a real rebuilding process.  And it's likely that things will get worse before they get better.  And as far as Sparano goes, I just hope he learns from some of his rookie mistakes just like any player would.  After all, Sparano does have the advantage of having a guy like Bill Parcells in his corner - a mentor he can lean to if needed.

Sparano is the head coach, but do you feel as if Parcells is "looming" in the background, directing his every move?  In your opinion, does Sparano have the freedom to run the team like he thinks the team should be run?

TP: It's hard for me to say because I'm not down there, but I don't think Parcells "looming" is much of an issue for Tony.  Sparano seems like his own guy and I do think he runs the team the way he and his coaching staff wants to.  Sure, thee were times during training camp that Parcells was down there on the practice field.  But he didn't get too involved.  Instead, he would sometimes quickly point out something here or there to one of the young players - usually involving technique.  But there's no question that Tony runs the practices and runs the locker room.  And on game day, this is Sparano's team.  He's down on the sidelines and in the locker room while Parcells is up in his box with Jeff Ireland, Wayne Huizenga, and any other front office personnel - right where they should be.

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