Dolphins at Patriots: Week 18 preview, odds and injuries

Week 18 · Sun, Jan 10 · Gillette Stadium12 AM ET

at12 AMET · TBD

At a glanceUpdated Nov 10, 2026, 10:46 PM ET

The Miami Dolphins (1-7) visit the New England Patriots (5-4) on Sun, Jan 10, time TBD at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, MA (Week 18, 2026 season).

When and where is Dolphins vs Patriots?

Sun, Jan 10, time TBD at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, MA.

Who is injured for Dolphins vs Patriots?

Dolphins: Jaylen Wright (RB, questionable, quadriceps) and Will Kacmarek (TE, questionable, quadriceps). Patriots: Ben Brown (C, doubtful, knee), Rhamondre Stevenson (RB, doubtful, knee), A.J. Brown (WR, questionable, knee), Brenden Schooler (S, questionable, hamstring), Carlton Davis III (CB, questionable, knee) and Charles Woods (CB, questionable, hamstring) (plus 2 more).

Cite this page

Pigskin Nightly, “Dolphins at Patriots: Week 18 preview”, https://pigskinnightly.com/games/2027-01-10-mia-at-ne (updated 2026-11-11).

How we calculate Plain-text version Report an error

Regular season through week 17 · rank out of 32

Where this game will be decided

1Patriots pass rush vs Dolphins pass protection
The Patriots' pass rush ranks 5th in sack rate (7.7% of dropbacks, 323 dropbacks faced) and faces a Dolphins pass protection ranked 30th (9.3% sacked, 257 dropbacks).
30thMIA offense25 spots apart5thNE defense
2Patriots dropback offense vs Dolphins pass defense
The Patriots' dropback offense ranks 10th in EPA per dropback (+0.15, 330 dropbacks) against a Dolphins pass defense ranked 32nd (+0.26 allowed, 247 dropbacks faced).
10thNE offense22 spots apart32ndMIA defense
3Patriots third-down offense vs Dolphins third-down defense
The Patriots' third-down offense ranks 9th in third-down conversion rate (43.4%, 106 third downs) against a Dolphins third-down defense ranked 31st (50.0% allowed, 94 third downs faced).
9thNE offense22 spots apart31stMIA defense

When the Dolphins have the ballEdge NE · +9 ranks

MIA dropback offenseEPA per dropbackNE pass defense

23rd-0.02257 dropbacks

+0.14 allowed323 dropbacks faced24th

MIA run gameEPA per rushNE run defense

22nd-0.13189 rushes

NE +9

-0.10 allowed212 rushes faced13th

Dropbacks include sacks and scrambles; rushes are designed runs. What EPA measures.

When the Patriots have the ballEdge NE · +22 ranks

NE dropback offenseEPA per dropbackMIA pass defense

10th+0.15330 dropbacks

NE +22

+0.26 allowed247 dropbacks faced32nd

NE run gameEPA per rushMIA run defense

21st-0.12217 rushes

-0.06 allowed207 rushes faced22nd

Third downEdge NE · +22 ranks

MIA third-down offensethird-down conversion rateNE third-down defense

11th42.6%101 third downs

37.6% allowed109 third downs faced10th

NE third-down offensethird-down conversion rateMIA third-down defense

9th43.4%106 third downs

NE +22

50.0% allowed94 third downs faced31st

Conversions are third-down snaps that gained a first down or scored.

Red zoneEdge NE · +14 ranks

MIA red-zone offensered-zone touchdown rateNE red-zone defense

25th50%20 trips

NE +14

50% allowed32 trips faced11th

NE red-zone offensered-zone touchdown rateMIA red-zone defense

21st54%26 trips

59% allowed32 trips faced16th

A trip is a drive with at least one snap inside the opponent's 20; the rate is trips that ended in an offensive touchdown. Small samples swing fast here.

Explosive playsEdge MIA · +18 ranks

MIA big-play offenseexplosive-play rateNE defense against big plays

6th10.3%446 plays

MIA +18

10.1% allowed535 plays faced24th

NE big-play offenseexplosive-play rateMIA defense against big plays

3rd11.5%547 plays

NE +18

9.9% allowed454 plays faced21st

Completions of 20+ yards and runs of 10+, per snap. Definition.

Pressure & sacksEdge NE · +25 ranks

MIA pass protectionsack rateNE pass rush

30th9.3% sacked257 dropbacks

NE +25

7.7% of dropbacks323 dropbacks faced5th

NE pass protectionsack rateMIA pass rush

17th6.1% sacked330 dropbacks

NE +11

4.9% of dropbacks247 dropbacks faced28th

Sacks per dropback. The public play-by-play has no pressure charting, so this is the sack side of it only.

TurnoversNo big edge

MIA ball securityturnovers per gameNE takeaway defense

19th1.3 giveaways a game8 games

0.9 takeaways a game9 games26th

NE ball securityturnovers per gameMIA takeaway defense

31st2.1 giveaways a game9 games

0.9 takeaways a game8 games28th

Interceptions and lost fumbles on offensive snaps, per game. Turnover rates are among the least stable numbers in football.

AbsencesMIA 0 · NE 2 regulars out or doubtful

Dolphins2 listed

0 of them are regulars ruled out or doubtful (60%+ of their unit's snaps across 3+ weeks on the field).

QWill KacmarekTE41% offense · 8 wk
QJaylen WrightRB14% offense · 6 wk

Patriots8 listed

2 of them are regulars ruled out or doubtful (60%+ of their unit's snaps across 3+ weeks on the field).

QWill CampbellOT90% offense · 9 wk
QCarlton Davis IIICB87% defense · 5 wk
QA.J. BrownWR70% offense · 3 wk
DBen BrownC67% offense · 7 wk
DRhamondre StevensonRB64% offense · 9 wk
QCharles WoodsCB44% defense · 8 wk
QTreVeyon HendersonRB33% offense · 6 wk
QBrenden SchoolerS9% defense · 5 wk

Snap share is the average of the weeks each player was on the field this season. Full injury report ↓

Rest & travelSame rest · MIA travels 1,226 mi

AwayDolphins

7days since last game

1,226miles to get here

0time zones

Last: Sun wk 17 vs BUF · 14,622 mi flown this season

Body clock 12:00 a.m.

Rest edgeEvensame restTravel gap 1,226 mi

HomePatriots

7days since last game

0miles · home

0time zones

Last: Sun wk 17 vs DEN · 11,863 mi flown this season

Normal week

League splits for these situations ↓

Sample: MIA 8 games, 446 offensive and 454 defensive plays · NE 9 games, 547 offensive and 535 defensive plays. Rank 1 is the best offense or the best defense in each stat. Keys are the largest rank gaps (12+ spots) between an offense and the defense it faces, one per stat. Ranks are not schedule-adjusted.

Season to date · rank out of 32