On Sunday, the Miami Dolphins will take on the New England Patriots at Hard Rock Stadium.
The Dolphins will enter Sunday’s game with some positive momentum as they are fresh off their first win of the season and their most complete offensive performance.
Miami will have to continue to improve if it is to upset the New England Patriots, who were winners of the AFC last season and have Pro Bowl quarterback Drake Maye under center. However, New England just announced that it will be without two key offensive playmakers after they were ruled out one day before the game.
Miami Dolphins Receive Injury Update on Two Key Patriots Offensive Players
ESPN’s Adam Schefter posted on X: “Patriots downgrade A.J. Brown and TreVeyon Henderson to out for Sunday’s game versus the Dolphins.”
New England Patriots wide receiver A.J. Brown was previously placed on injured reserve after suffering a high-ankle sprain in Week 1. He returned to the Patriots’ lineup two weeks ago; however, he struggled with drops during his two-game return. After practicing on Wednesday, Brown was absent from New England’s practices on Thursday and Friday.
Meanwhile, second-year running back TreVeyon Henderson appeared on New England’s injury report on Thursday as he was absent with an illness. Henderson was unable to practice on Friday as well.
Both Brown and Henderson were listed as questionable on Friday’s injury report, before being downgraded to out on Saturday.
For Miami’s defense, that means having two fewer dynamic playmakers to worry about.
Meanwhile, Miami will also be without one of its key offensive players as rookie left guard Kadyn Proctor was ruled out with a concussion.
Dolphins vs. Patriots Prediction
Unfortunately for the Dolphins, despite their Week 7 win, analysts don’t seem to believe Miami will go on a two-game winning streak. NFL.com’s entire staff predicted the Patriots would defeat the Dolphins on Sunday.
NFL.com’s Jeremy Bergman predicted Miami would lose 30-20, as he wrote: “When the Patriots ship down to Miami, things tend to get a little weird. Think Kenyan Drake, Knowshon Moreno, Davone Bess and A.J. Feeley.
For all its success since the turn of the century, New England is just 10-16 in Miami Gardens since 2000, their worst such road record vs. any opponent (min. five road games). Against a competitive Dolphins team coming off its first win of the season, will Mike Vrabel and the Patriots fall victim to the South Florida sickness again? Not so fast, my friends. Vrabel won his Miami debut in 2025, Drake Maye has been dealing since his early-season slump, and until last week against the Jets, Miami hadn’t led for a single second of action. Jeff Hafley’s Dolphins are improving but aren’t quite ready to go toe to toe with a top AFC contender like New England.”
Dolphins Get Unexpected Injury Development Before Patriots Game