2005 Week 17 · Sun, Jan 1, 2006 · Gillette Stadium
Miami DolphinsWinner
28
at
New England Patriots
26
NE -3 upsetO 37 ✓25°F
Miami Dolphins 28–26 — decided on the final possessions.
Pre-2018 game — box score & context only; play-by-play visuals start in 2018
Who moved the needle
Top performers
Full stat lines
Box score
Miami Dolphins
Passing
| Player | C/Att | Yds | TD | INT | Sacked | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gus Frerotte | 22/35 | 239 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 13.5 |
Rushing
| Player | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ricky Williams | 28 | 108 | 3.9 | 1 | 1.9 |
| Ronnie Brown | 8 | 21 | 2.6 | 0 | -2.3 |
| Gus Frerotte | 4 | 19 | 4.8 | 0 | 0.3 |
Defense (top contributors)
| Player | Solo | Ast | Sacks | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zach Thomas | 6 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Donnie Spragan | 6 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Reggie Howard | 3 | 0 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sammy Morris | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kevin Carter | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Vonnie Holliday | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 |
| Sam Madison | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 |
| Jason Taylor | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jeff Zgonina | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Yeremiah Bell | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
New England Patriots
Passing
| Player | C/Att | Yds | TD | INT | Sacked | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matt Cassel | 11/20 | 168 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6.4 |
| Tom Brady | 3/8 | 37 | 1 | 1 | 0 | -1.9 |
Rushing
| Player | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patrick Pass | 9 | 26 | 2.9 | 0 | -0.5 |
| Matt Cassel | 5 | 13 | 2.6 | 0 | 0.1 |
| Kevin Faulk | 6 | 12 | 2.0 | 0 | -2.7 |
| Heath Evans | 6 | 7 | 1.2 | 0 | -0.8 |
| Tom Brady | 1 | 2 | 2.0 | 0 | 2.1 |
| Tim Dwight | 1 | -5 | -5.0 | 0 | -1.1 |
Defense (top contributors)
| Player | Solo | Ast | Sacks | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Sanders | 7 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Hank Poteat | 6 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Matt Chatham | 6 | 0 | 1.0 | 0 | 1 |
| Tully Banta-Cain | 4 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ellis Hobbs | 5 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 |
| Mike Vrabel | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Michael Stone | 4 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brandon Childress | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ty Warren | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Wright | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
Closing number vs result
Betting context
- Closing spread
- NE -3
- Closing total
- 37
- MIA moneyline
- —
- NE moneyline
- —
Patriots closed -3 and lost outright — an upset against the closing number.
Total closed 37; the game landed 54 — over by 17.0.
Conditions and crew
Game environment
- Venue
- Gillette Stadium
- Roof / surface
- outdoors · grass
- Kickoff weather
- 25°F, wind 4 mph
- Referee
- Tom White
- Rest
- MIA 8 days · NE 6 days
- Coaches
- Nick Saban vs Bill Belichick
Division game — familiarity tightens these matchups; closing numbers tend to be sharper.