Dolphins at Patriots odds open with New England huge favorites, then it gets bigger

The Miami Dolphins lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers earlier Sunday, dropping the game 30-20 after a field goal with four seconds remaining and a touchdown on the final kickoff when Miami was trying to lateral the ball around and Tampa Bay landed on the ball in the endzone after a bad toss. That marks four-straight losses for Miami, a team that came into the season with playoff aspirations and were hoping to overcome the loss of quarterback Ryan Tannehill by adding Jay Cutler to the starting role. None of that has come to pass as Miami is holding on to the fringe of the AFC playoff picture, with two games against the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots still to come.

The first of those games is slated for next Sunday, and Las Vegas does not see it going well for the Dolphins.

The game, which will be played in New England’s Gillette Stadium, opened with the Patriots favored by 15.5 points. That line did not remain long, as it almost immediately moved to 17.5 points in favor of the Patriots.

Will the game be at all competitive? Does Miami have any chance of staying with 17 points of the AFC East leaders?

Who will quarterback the Dolphins after starter Jay Cutler missed the second half of the Buccaneers game after entering the league’s concussion protocol?

Whatever the answer to those questions, the early betting line does not like Miami having any shot in next week’s game.