Halftime: Uber-Conservative Patriots down 10-3 to Dolphins

The New England Patriots are playing an extremely conservative game as they aim to remain healthy for the playoffs, and trail the Miami Dolphins 10-3 at the half as a result.

Overall, the Patriots have run the ball 20 times on offense, and thrown just five times. One of those five throws ended with quarterback Tom Brady taking a low hit from Ndamukong Suh after a whiffed blocked from Marcus Cannon. Brady looked to tweak his ankle on the play, but never left the game.

The bright spot on offense has been the spark provided by veteran running back Steven Jackson. Jackson has been the focal point of the Patriots' running game, providing power and leg churn to pick up tough yards between the tackles. His 20-yard catch and run on a screen led to the Patriots' only points of the day thus far.

The Dolphins took the lead over the Patriots late in the first half on a Ryan Tannehill to Davante Parker throw.

With 36 seconds and three timeouts, the Patriots chose to run out the clock. This wasn't surprising considering the trajectory of this game.