Pats Smash Dolphins, 41-14

Just when you thought I was crazy for starting Danny Woodhead over Brandon Marshall, what happens? It was all going right for the Patriots in their huge 41-14 victory over the Miami Dolphins last night from Sun Life Stadium.

Wait.. a road win? We must not be talking about the same Patriots. Becuase New England -- despite being an 8-0 home team last season -- was just a 2-6 road team, and one of those wins came in London against the Bucs (which, let's be honest, doesn't even count as a road game). And then they lost to the Jets in week two on the road. And now they had to face a tough Miami team that always gives them trouble. But trends always end at some point, and the Pats just might have ended theirs.

It was a fabulous all-around win with production from a number of different guys. The Monday Night Football broadcast team tagged it a "special teams fiesta." Patrick Chung blocked two kicks and had a pick-6, accounting for most of the spark. Kyle Arrington returned Chung's blocked field goal for a touchdown. Brandon Tate brought back the second half kickoff (for the second time this year) for a touchdown. Rob Ninkovich had two picks and a sack. Tom Brady only threw one touchdown, Danny Woodhead on the receiving end of it. BenJarvus Green-Ellis scurried in for their only rushing touchdown. Noticing a different type of trend here?

Randy Moss had no catches. Brady barely surpassed 150 yards and tossed just the one score. It was all the lesser names on this team that stepped up. Hopefully they all gained confidence. This was a hell of a statement game from the Patriots. If you watched the game -- and, in particular, the post game coverage -- you just got a phenomenal vibe from this team. Bill Belichick went down the line and slammed his hand on every player's shoulder pads. 3-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady came running off the field with 40 seconds remaining, screaming and chest-bumping and pumping his fist like the AFC Championship was theirs. You saw unparalleled emotion from a Week 4 victory. As a Patriots fan, you have to love it. Doesn't it remind you of those glory days? Ground game, defense, special teams, and emotion?

Maybe it's a transition, maybe it was just an anomaly. Personally, I'd rather see their bye week come at some other time. On the flip side, though, the new-found confidence will get to fester in these young Patriots players for an extra week. Don't forget about the guys like Devin McCourty, too -- Brandon Marshall was completely shut down last night. In every way, this defense picked up a load of confidence. Hopefully they can build on that for the remainder of the season. They're going to need it.

For Tom Brady, he became the fastest quarterback to ever reach 100 wins. I'll rant about this several times (as I have in the past), so I won't get into too much detail. But this is just another piece of evidence that reassures the simple fact that Tom Brady is the best quarterback to ever play the game. Spare me your Peyton Manning comments. We'll debate this at another time, maybe when Peyton is on the couch having lost his division to the Texans.

PS -- You heard it here first, the Twins will sweep the Yankees.