--Dec. 29, 2002 is the last time the Dolphins had a piece of first place in the AFC East. At 9-6 they held a one-game lead over the Jets and Patriots, but lost their last game to the Patriots, giving the title to the Jets.

--QB Chad Pennington is known for his intelligence on and off the field. Said offensive coordinator Dan Henning, "I can remember when I was at Carolina and they were making the switch from Vinny (Testaverde) to Chad in New York about '02 or '03. One of the writers from up there called me and said, 'What do you think about Chad Pennington?' I said, 'All I know is that he's the brightest guy in that building.' I think he'll do well and I think he's probably one of the brightest guys in this building, too. I'm in this building right now so I have to give deference to a few guys that are upstairs."

--It's possible that both the Jets and Dolphins could finish 10-6 and not make the playoffs. Fifteen other teams have done so, but the 1985 Broncos are the only team in NFL history to not make the playoffs with an 11-5 mark. The Patriots might be No. 2 if they win, along with the Dolphins and Ravens.

--The Dolphins are second in the NFL on first-down success, averaging 6.17 yards per attempt.

--RB Ricky Williams is about to complete his first full NFL season since 2003. He just received an A on a paper about 'obedience,' for some of the course load at a nearby college. He said, "I can look at my situation now and say I benefited from being punished. It was hard for me to see that sometimes. But if I hadn't been punished, I would be in a destructive situation right now. I'm leading a much more peaceful life now because of it. Now, before I do anything, I try to consider how it's going to affect me, affect my family, affect my friends and the people I care about. I'm concentrating on what can benefit me and my family. I'm not looking behind my back, wondering if I'm going to get caught at something."

--LB Joey Porter is one sack shy of tying the Dolphins' sack record of 18.5 set by Jason Taylor and Bill Stanfill. Brett Favre has been sacked 30 times. Said Porter of Favre, "Just try to get the guy on the ground as much as we can. The first time we played him we didn't get to him enough."

--The Dolphins have committed a league-low 12 turnovers and with one last game are within reach of breaking the Giants' mark of 14 set during their Bill Parcells-led 1990 Super Bowl title year. Said Henning, "Being the prankster that I am, I went up to this gentleman (Parcells) and I said, 'Did you see this stat that we're on line to have the least turnovers in the history?' 'Yeah, I know,' he said, 'But it's still not going to count because we did it with 19 games. We went to the Super Bowl; we did it with 19 games.' You think he's not competitive. He's here now, he's part of this now, but that record is important to him, too."

BY THE NUMBERS: 10 -- If the Dolphins win they would join the 1999 Colts as the only two teams to have 10-game improvements from one season to the next.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "I can't comment on that. I just think, right now, it's going to take 11 for us." -- Coach Tony Sparano, on not questioning a playoff system that allows an 8-8 team to get into the playoffs while teams with 11 wins could get shut out.