Here, like Christmas coal, were the Dolphins defense’s last five series against Tom Brady: field goal, touchdown, touchdown, field goal, touchdown.

That was the second half.

That is the Titanic.

What really hurts is the defense is the stronger side of this Dolphins team. This is what to say the next time anyone talks about this roster’s being close and how they’re maybe just a great coach away.

No coach has a chance to win with this roster. Not Tony Sparano. Not Todd Bowles. Not Brian Billick. Not Jeff Fisher. Not the young Don Shula that Steve Ross wants. Nor the old Don Shula. Nor the middle-aged Don Shula.

In this sense, New England did the Dolphins a favor in their second-half beatdown for the 27-24 victory Saturday. There are no illusions now. No doubts. None of the wavering you sensed even at halftime, up 17-0, about Matt Moore’s upside or what a possible 7-2 record to finish the season might mean.

The Dolphins are last in the AFC East now. They’re a loss to the Jets from ending the year 5-11. And for all the obvious ways they’ve improved from their 0-7 start, there’s still this to consider: Brady whomped them just as badly in Saturday’s second half as he did in the season opener.

“There’s not many guys around the league like that, and he showed it again today,” Dolphins cornerback Will Allen said of Brady. “In the second half, he played like the elite player he is.”

How many players on this Dolphins roster are talked of in those terms? Jake Long at tackle when he’s healthy. Any more? Cameron Wake was great last season. Brandon Marshall would be if he dropped his case of dropsies. Karlos Dansby, sometimes.

Reggie Bush, for the last two months.

Vontae Davis, for the last five games.

Elite players don’t come and go. They’re elite every game. That’s the definition. What the Dolphins mostly have are a lot of average players.

That’s not being dismissive. You need average players. You can win with average players — so long as a few elite ones are sprinkled on top.

This isn’t about coaching. You want to talk coaching? The Dolphins’ defense had Brady so confused at the start that he completed three of his first 12 passes, was remarkably booed after two series by New England fans (shame on them), and his first six possessions went: punt, punt, punt, punt, punt (how many is that?), punt.

Safety Yeremiah Bell went so far as to say, “We had him rattled early on.”

It was the same on the offensive side under coordinator Brian Daboll. The Dolphins had 255 yards of offense in the first half, scored 17 points and did what good offenses should against the worst-ranked Patriot defense.

“We had a great first half,” Bell said. “We just didn’t finish. We didn’t execute.”

Throw this game in with the others they’ve lost in the fourth quarter. Cleveland. Denver. New York Giants. Dallas.

The Dolphins have this wacky stat of outscoring opponents 310-296 this year despite their awful record. That’s what a lot of people point at to say the problem is coaching.

Here’s the more relevant stat: they’re outscored 113-55 in fourth quarters. You can draw that up as coaching if you want. But with games on the line, great players make the headlines.

Brady did it Saturday. Wes Welker did it, too. They weren’t stopped in the second half, while Matt Moore couldn’t get the Dolphins’ offense to move the way he had in so many games this year. Another hope that won’t be raised farther than it should be this off-season.

The last time the Dolphins made a strong run at the end of a season was 2005, Nick Saban’s first season as head coach. They won six straight that year. They became the hot Super Bowl pick in 2006. Sports Illustrated put them on the cover.

That year didn’t end in the Super Bowl. It ended with Saban in Alabama.

Maybe Brady didn’t just beat down the Dolphins in the second half. Maybe he did them a favor by giving them a painful reality check.

dhyde@suns-sentinel.com

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. —
The 1972 Dolphins will stand alone in their perfection for yet another year. The previously unbeaten Green Bay Packers stumbled for the first time on Sunday, dropping a 19-14 decision to the Chiefs and ending their bid for a perfect season.

“Congratulations to the Green Bay Packers on their great effort this season,” said former Dolphins quarterback Bob Griese, a member of the ’72 team that finished 17-0 and won the Super Bowl. “It just goes to show how difficult going undefeated is over the course of a year. Hats off to Green Bay Packers head coach Mike McCarthy for the effort they have made this season.”

The defending Super Bowl champion Packers had started out 13-0 before losing Sunday in Kansas City.

Long sits out

A back injury caused Dolphins left tackle Jake Long to miss the first game of his NFL career. Long sat out Sunday’s game with the injury, which he sustained the previous week.

“Talk to the guys who played,” Long said following Sunday’s win against the Bills.

John Jerry replaced Long at left tackle.

Despite Long’s absence, the offensive line created openings for Reggie Bush, who rushed for 203 yards, and held the Bills to three sacks of quarterback Matt Moore.

The line gave up nine sacks by the Eagles the previous week, eight after Long left the game with an injury.

“Kudos to John [Jerry] for the job he did today,” Bush said. “He did a really good job at protecting Matt and opening up holes today. He made it really easy for us.”

Long had started 63 consecutive games before sitting out Sunday.

Cool reception

Vontae Davis has no desire to live in a cold climate.

But after intercepting two passes on Sunday, he said he doesn’t mind playing in one.

“Being in Miami, I haven’t seen snow since college,” said Davis, who now has four interceptions to match a career high for a season. “I don’t want to stay [in Buffalo], but I kind of miss it.”

Reshad Jones also picked off a Ryan Fitzpatrick pass. The three interceptions were the most in one game this season by the Dolphins.

First victory

Todd Bowles accomplished something that Don Shula didn’t in his first game as a Dolphins head coach: win.

“It was more of a team win,” said Bowles, who took over after Tony Sparano was fired Monday. “I’m happy for those guys. They fought hard all week, dealt with some adversity early in the week, and I was just happy to get a win to ease everything up.”

Of Miami’s eight previous coaches, only Jimmy Johnson and Nick Saban — in addition to Bowles — won their first game with the Dolphins.

• Hall of Fame running back Thurman Thomas, who spent most of his career with the Bills but also played for the Dolphins, was given his choice of which locker room to visit before Sunday’s game. He chose the Bills.

The New Orleans Saints just might be the best hope for most Miami Dolphins fans—like me—of seeing the Super Bowl Champion Green Bay Packers denied their shot at immortality. The team from Wisconsin is now 11-0 and seem capable of doing what no team other than the 1972 Dolphins have done; run the table in the regular-season and finish with a Super Bowl victory.

However, if the Saints 49-24 rout of the New York Giants on Monday, Nov. 28 is any indication, Green Bay is going to have their hands full trying to get out of the NFC and into the Super Bowl this year even if they are able to finish the season 16-0.

While 8-3 New Orleans doesn’t even have the second-best record in the National Football Conference—that belongs to the 9-2 San Francisco 49ers—I have the distinct feeling they’re actually a better club than the Bay Area squad led by first-year head coach Jim Harbaugh. So far this season they’ve posted three victories where they’ve scored 40 or more points in a game—including their 62-7 demolition of the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, Oct. 23—which is only bested by the Packers themselves; who’ve had four such games.

The last time a team seriously threatened Miami’s nearly 40-year-old unblemished record was the 2007 New England Patriots squad, who ironically were foiled in the championship game by the same team New Orleans just beat down. Nevertheless, it will probably take more than a one-in-a-million pass from Eli Manning(notes) to bring down the behemoth that is the Packers this year; and the Saints are looking like they could just provide that final hurdle for Green Bay.

Watching Drew Brees(notes) surgically take the Giants’ defense apart on Monday Night Football, I got the sense he could be what takes down one of the most vaunted and storied franchises in NFL history. There’s no guarantee Brees and New Orleans will be able to stop Green Bay, but they probably have the best shot at it. It also had me wishing to God Miami hadn’t passed on his amazing talent twice (something I railed about since he was drafted), for I can only imagine how many Super Bowls the Dolphins would have been in if the 32-year-old 5-time Pro Bowler had been under center for them rather than the San Diego Chargers and Saints.

I know New Orleans’ success isn’t solely because of their signal-caller, but the former Purdue Boilermaker has been an integral part of what the Saints have been able to accomplish under head coach Sean Payton. Without Brees, not much of the offense run by New Orleans would probably work at the same level it does with him. After all, who else are they going to find to do what Brees did Monday in becoming the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for over 350 yards while also connecting on four touchdown passes while rushing for another TD?

The Saints schedule over the last five weeks isn’t going to be easy, though—as they’ll be facing the Detroit Lions, Tennessee Titans, Minnesota Vikings, Atlanta Falcons, and Carolina Panthers—but if they’re able to get through it with a winning record, or if they manage to win four of those contests, I think they’ll be the last team the Packers want to face in the postseason.

I, for one, hope they do, though. I make no bones about the fact I want someone to beat Green Bay before the 2011 season is finished, and in truth I wouldn’t mind the Saints being the ones. Of course, if the Packers do find a way to win out, that won’t make me too upset either. They are, after all one of the greatest teams in the league’s history.

Still, if it comes to a matchup of Green Bay and New Orleans with that record on the line, I’ll be shouting “Who ‘Dat?” at the top of my lungs.

Hut, hut, hike!

More from Yahoo! Contributor Network:

Critics of Tebow Might Be Wise to Just Shut Up and Watch for Now

Hoping Vick Topping “All-Turkey Team” is a Sign of Things to Come

Exploring the Miami Dolphins Bubble That’s About to Burst

There’s Simply No Explaining How Tebow and Broncos Are Winning

Playoffs? Don’t Talk About Playoffs! You Kidding Me?

All stats and information taken from personal notes and verified at Pro-Football-Reference.com, NFL.com, and Yahoo! Sports.

Read more by Daniel Barber aka Hotnuke at TFS Sports.

*Daniel Barber has been a fan of all Miami teams since he was a child or since their inception having been born right above Miami.

Sources:

Pro-Football-Reference.com

NFL.com

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

Of all the teams outside the confines of the Miami Dolphins’ division in the AFL/AFC East, there is not one that has built a library of truly memorable moments like the Raiders, whether it be in Oakland or during their 13-year sojourn to Los Angeles.

As the silver and black face off with the Dolphins for the 39^th time, it will mark the first game where late Raiders patriarch Al Davis has not been involved.

Here’s a look at the top five games in the series, based on a mix of excitement and significance:

5. Raiders 31, Dolphins 21 (Sept. 22, 1975)

The Dolphins see their 27-game regular-season home win streak go by the wayside as Oakland, behind two Pete Banaszak touchdowns, grabs a 17-0 lead late in the second quarter. Early in the fourth quarter, with the Dolphins within 24-14, Harold Hart takes a kickoff 2 yards deep in his end zone and takes it 102 yards for a touchdown.

4. Raiders 27, Dolphins 14 (Sept. 19, 1983)

Highly touted rookie Dan Marino is summoned for his NFL debut with 5:07 remaining and Miami trailing 27-0 to that year’s eventual Super Bowl champion. Like a lightning bolt, the Dolphins and their fans see their future as Marino lights up the final moments of that game with 11 completions for 90 yards, with touchdown passes to Joe Rose and Mark Duper. Marino makes one more relief appearance, and then takes the wheel for 17 glorious seasons.

3. Raiders 28, Dolphins 26 (Dec. 21, 1974)

The Dolphins, looking to extend their record run of consecutive Super Bowl appearances to four and set a mark with three straight Super Bowl wins, are beset early on as star safety Jake Scott injures his knee. Ken Stabler throws three touchdown passes but still trails 26-21. While being wrapped up by Vern Den Herder, he shot-puts a ball from the Miami 13 an instant before his knee hits. The pass finds its way to Clarence Davis, among three Dolphins in the end zone, with 26 seconds left.

2. Raiders 23, Dolphins 14 (Sept. 2, 1966)

As if a harbinger of the series and spectacular plays that were to ensue, the Raiders and Dolphins played in the Orange Bowl in Miami’s first game ever. Incredibly, on the opening kickoff, the Dolphins’ Joe Auer forever became a part of franchise folklore when he took the ball 95 yards for a touchdown. The Dolphins held the lead until there was less than five minutes left in the half, but then the experienced and talented Raiders, who would play the following season’s Super Bowl at the Orange Bowl, took over.

1. Dolphins 27, Raiders 10 (Jan. 30, 1973)

Aiming to win their third consecutive AFC Championship and set the stage for a Super Bowl repeat, the Dolphins, powered by Larry Csonka, bludgeon the Raiders in the Orange Bowl for 266 rushing yards. Csonka plows into the end zone for three touchdowns three months after the Raiders had ended the Dolphins’ 18-game win streak in Oakland. Csonka finishes with an exceptional postseason, rushing for 333 yards and six touchdowns, earning Super Bowl VIII MVP honors.

PORT ST. LUCIE — Bob Griese says the answer to the Miami Dolphins’ problems is rather simple — their defense needs to take the ball away more.

Griese, the Jupiter resident and former Miami Dolphins star quarterback, was the guest of honor for the VanDuzer Foundation’s Blood Bowl trophy presentation at the Legacy Golf and Tennis Club on Thursday.

Griese, a long-time TV football announcer, is now in his first season as an analyst with the Dolphins Radio Network.

He talked about the Dolphins, top quarterbacks in the college game and his former teammate and good friend, Jim Mandich, who passed away last April.

Q: Why are the Dolphins now winning?

A: I don’t know, but they ought to bottle it and sell it. Really, I just think after Chad Henne got hurt, they had to get used to a new quarterback and I think Matt Moore is playing well now. Plus, the defense is playing like they did last year. They haven’t allowed a touchdown in the last couple of games and the offense is finishing off drives. Think about it, they could have won three or four of those games they lost. They just weren’t finishing at the end. They lost at the end to Cleveland and they lost at the end to Denver. And the Giants came back on them in the second half. Now, I think, they are a lot more confident, too.

Q: What was missing in the first seven games — all defeats?

A: When Miami was 11-5 back in 2008, when they went to the playoffs, they consistently took the ball away. They were first in the league (plus 17) in turnover margin and (Chad) Pennington was the quarterback and he didn’t throw interceptions. If you don’t give it away and you are taking it away a lot, you are going to be right up there. This (2011) defense had only two interceptions in the first eight games, then they had two last week. They don’t seem to take the ball away much and they need guys that can come in and make those plays.

Q: Who are your Super Bowl teams?

A: You have to say (9-0) Green Bay, and hopefully they will lose a game — or two — and you know what I’m referring to there (the 17-0 1972 Dolphins). On the other side, every team in the AFC has lost at least three games, which to me is surprising. But when push comes to shove at the end of the season, I think the Patriots — because of (QB Tom) Brady and that offense — will be the best team in the AFC. Defensively, I don’t think (New England) will be strong enough to beat Green Bay, or even a San Francisco, who is playing well right now. But if I had to pick two teams for the Super Bowl, it would be Green Bay and New England.

Q: Outside of Stanford’s Andrew Luck, who are the top college quarterbacks?

A: Well, I think there are several. I think the (Landry) Jones kid out of Oklahoma is going to be good, and so is the kid out of Oklahoma State, (Brandon) Weeden. And that Houston quarterback, (Case) Keenum, too. But you know the one who I think would be really good, if he were three or four inches taller, is the Wisconsin quarterback, (Russell) Wilson. This is his first year at Wisconsin, as he was at N.C. State before and was a baseball player there, too. He’s only 5-10 and I remember covering him when he was at North Carolina State. As a quarterback, he can run, he can throw and this kid is really good. If only he were a few inches taller, he would be going in the first round (of the NFL Draft) for sure.

Q: What’s wrong with the Big 3 — Florida, Miami, Florida State?

A: Well, it’s hard to stay at the top forever, especially when you change coaches. It’s a new system for all three of them and the kids have to learn a lot of new terminology from these new coaches. It will take them a while, but I do think Miami has a great coach in (Al) Golden.

Q: Your thoughts on Jim Mandich?

A: “Mad Dog” (Mandich) always had a smile on his face and something intelligent to say. He was a lot brighter than he acted. He liked to go crazy at times, but he was a really great guy.

BOB GRIESE

Born: Feb. 3, 1945 in Evansville, Ind.

Resides: Jupiter

College: Purdue (two-time All-American QB, also played for Boilermakers’ basketball and baseball teams; inducted into College Football Hall of Fame in 1984)

NFL: 1st-round (4th player overall) pick of Miami in 1967 — played all 14 seasons for Dolphins, passing for 25,092 yards (192 TDs), running for 994 yards (7 TDs); was a two-time Super Bowl champion, six-time Pro Bowl selection and six-time Dolphins MVP

Broadcasting: Has worked as football commentator for ABC, ESPN and NBC. Now in first year with Dolphins Radio Network, replacing former teammate Jim Mandich.

Did you Know: The Dolphins had the highest winning percentage of any professional sports team in the 1970s with Griese at quarterback.