Examining the Outside Factors That Could Impact the Dolphins' Week 8 Game Against New England

The Miami Dolphins' Week 8 matchup against the New England Patriots won't be lacking for storylines, including Miami's quest for a second consecutive victory, but there are some that go beyond X's and O's.

The Dolphins will go into the game following their breakthrough 28-25 victory against the New York Jets to face the defending AFC champion Patriots, who have a 4-3 record following a Thursday night loss against the Chicago Bears in Week 7.

The Patriots will go into the game missing star wide receiver A.J. Brown and backup running back TreVeyon Henderson, while the Dolphins will be without rookie first-round pick Kadyn Proctor with star running back De'Von Achane on injured reserve.

New England will enter the game as a 7.5-point favorite, according to the FanDuel Sportsbook, but if you believe in the idea that weather can be an equalizing factor, then the weather in Miami Gardens on Sunday should be considered.

THE TWO POTENTIAL OUTSIDE FACTOR FOR THE DOLPHINS IN WEEK 8

It was raining in Miami Gardens on Sunday night, but the forecast called for the weather to actually get worse — if not much worse — throughout the afternoon and into the night.

The outlook as of 10 a.m., according to Weather.com, read as follows: "Storms likely for the next several hours. Potential for heavy rainfall."

There also is a flood watch in several areas of the northern parts of Dade County, where Miami Gardens is located.

With the expectations of thunderstorms, we also can't help but look back to the Dolphins' 2018 season opener against the Tennessee Titans when two lightning delays lasting more than an hour each made the game last more than seven hours.

And obviously the field conditions could become a factor at some point with the ball getting slippery and footing also potentially becoming an issue.

THE OFFICIATING SWITCH

The other outside factor in the Dolphins-Patriots game that needs to be watched, even though it hopefully won't affect the outcome one way or the other, was the officiating crew switch late in the week.

The officiating around the NFL has come under a lot of scrutiny this season, but it may have reached a high point (or low point maybe?) in the Green Bay Packers game against the Detroit Lions at Ford Field last week, leading to Packers safety Xavier McKinney lashing out publicly after the game.

McKinney drew a fine from the NFL for using the term for bovine excrement in talking about the officiating, but he wasn't the only one complaining.

Ton Brady openly criticized at least one call for roughing the passer during the game, but the most egregious call came for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty when Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown got up after catching a pass, a Packers defender tackled him thinking the play wasn't over but knocked down an official in the process, with the official responding by throwing a flag while on his back.

Likely as the result of not wanting the spotlight on the officiating crew of Alex Moore, the NFL took them off their scheduled assignment for the Sunday night game between Philadelphia and Washington and moved them to the Dolphins-Patriots game, which will be shown to a ridiculously small portion of the country as the "other" 4:25 p.m. on CBS opposite Kansas City at Denver.

Moore's crew, for the record, officiated the Dolphins' home opener against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 3, calling eight penalties on each team. Moore also worked the Dolphins-Patriots game at Hard Rock Stadium in Week 2 of 2025.

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