RICKY WILLIAMS STARS AS DOLPHINS TOP PANTHERS

With starting running back Ronnie Brown out for the season, the Miami Dolphins turned to a well known name—Ricky Williams.  Williams delivered bigtime, running for 119 yards and three touchdowns as the Dolphins beat the host Carolina Panthers 24-17 on Thursday night.  It was the Dolphins fourth win in six games, and improved their overall record to 5-5 on the NFL season.  Carolina lost for the fourth time this season when trying to even their record at .500, and dropped to 4-6 on the year.

NFL football betting enthusiasts were rewarded with the Dolphins outright victory as +3 road underdogs.  After dropping their first three games of the year both straight up and ATS, Miami has covered five of seven to even their NFL pointspread record at 5-5.  Carolina dropped to 4-6 versus the money on the year, though they’d also done well against the pointspread after a slow start.  The Panthers dropped their first four ATS decisions of the year, but have covered four of their past six.  The 41 combined points scored barely managed to stay UNDER the posted total of 41.  The Dolphins have gone UNDER in four of ten games, while Carolina evened their NFL totals record at 5-5.

After the game, Williams was more focused on his team’s victory than on his personal success:

"Coach always talks about finishing. Sometimes in this league, in a physical game, it's difficult to finish. I think in the past we've prided ourselves on finishing games and we did a good job tonight."

He also praised the defense for helping keep the team in the game when the offense struggled:

"We struggled at bit during the game, but the defense kept it close to give us an opportunity and give us time to get it together.”

In the losing locker room, the Panthers sounded more frustrated than beaten.  Carolina defensive back Damione Lewis talked about their problems tackling:

"We just didn't tackle well. Ricky is a hard running, big tailback, He broke some tackles, and that's him."

Quarterback Jake Delhomme made clear that his team’s struggles weren’t due to a lack of effort:

"Guys are fighting their tail off. We are just not getting it done. ... We are not winning the close ones."

Head coach John Fox tried to sound an optimistic note:

"There's still a lot of football left and we're still no way in any stretch out of it.”

The Panthers will hit the road to take on the New York Jets at the Meadowlands a week from Sunday before returning home the following week to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.  They’ll play at New England on December 13.  The Dolphins will play at Buffalo a week from Sunday before returning home for a big game against the New England Patriots.  They’ll then play at Jacksonville on December 13.