DAVIE, Fla. -- The Miami Dolphins now have something in common with their 1984 Super Bowl team, and its not good.Miami has allowed 971 yards the past two weeks, the highest total in consecutive games for the franchise in 32 years. The 1984 team gave up 455 yards in the AFC championship game and 537 in the Super Bowl, a collapse even Dan Marino couldnt overcome as Miami lost the title game.The Dolphins defense hasnt retreated so furiously since -- until now. Coordinator Vance Josephs unit has allowed season-high yardage totals (475 and 496) each of the past two games, the latter a 38-6 loss at Baltimore.The last two weeks we havent played well, Joseph said Thursday. Its Week 13. What weve done well for the last month and a half is on tape. Everyone is making adjustments, so we have to make an adjustment now and help our guys more.A dramatic turnaround will be necessary Sunday if Miami (7-5) is to beat the explosive Arizona Cardinals (5-6-1).The defense appeared upgraded during a six-game winning streak in October and November, but the Dolphins rankings have been in freefall the past two weeks. Theyre now 25th in yards allowed and 30th against the run.Pass defense has been the biggest problem lately. San Franciscos Colin Kaepernick threw for 296 yards and three touchdowns against Miami in Week 12, and Joe Flacco threw for 381 yards and four scores last week.Flacco and the Ravens did most of their damage in the middle of the field, exposing weaknesses in pass coverage by an injury-depleted linebacker corps.We were trying to play tight coverage, and it wasnt happening, Joseph said. We were soft across the middle. Joe got hot, and we couldnt stop it. We couldnt cover them. We couldnt chase them. We played zone; it was too soft. We played man; we couldnt chase them. It wasnt good.Carson Palmer is sure to test the Dolphins the same way with throws to Larry Fitzgerald and David Johnson, who leads all running backs in receptions (64) and receiving yards (704), and leads the NFL in scrimmage yards.Our defense has to make sure we dont let Johnson take complete control of this game, Miami coach Adam Gase said. If we let him get going, thats a recipe for disaster for us.Another worry is the 6-foot-3, 218-pound Fitzgerald in the slot. Cameron Wake, the Dolphins 263-pound defensive end, happened to walk past as Joseph was discussing the challenge of covering Fitzgerald over the middle.I can play nickel, Wake said.Hes your size, so maybe, Joseph responded.With Kiko Alonso nursing hamstring and thumb injuries, the Dolphins might be forced to start backups at all three linebacker spots. Theyve also been without two starters in the secondary, making the season -- especially the Ravens game -- an education for young replacements.We can learn a lot from that, and I think we will, veteran cornerback Byron Maxwell said. Weve got a lot of smart guys on this team, and they want to get better. Its going to be better next time.Joseph has been known to shake up the lineup, but said hes not planning any changes this week. Effort hasnt been an issue, he said, and his main complaint has involved self-inflicted damage.As one example, he noted a third-and-15 play where the Ravens took advantage of a mental mistake.Lets be more detailed, he said. Lets get back to doing it right, and then we can see how we fare. But the last two weeks, it has been too much error.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL.---Follow Steven Wine on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Steve-Wine. His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/steven-wine Swell Wood Bottle . Each of Houstons starters scored in double figures as the Rockets improved to 2-0 against the Spurs this season, with both victories coming on the road. They also moved within 3 1/2 games of San Antonio (22-7) for the lead the Southwest Division. Swell Marble Bottle Uk . The home side created most of the chances but struggled to break down Braunschweigs resilient defence, resulting in the Bundesligas 1,000th scoreless draw. http://www.swellbottleuk.com/ .Y. -- Buffalo Bills coach Doug Marrone has drawn on his Syracuse connections once again by hiring Rob Moore to take over as receivers coach. Liberty London sWell Bottle .C. United of Major League Soccer. United chose the defender in the second round of the 2013 MLS re-entry draft. Swell Bottles Uk Sale . Argentina winger Ezequiel Lavezzi and France midfielder Blaise Matuidi scored, with star striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic setting up both despite having a poor game by his high standards. Forward Eduardo gave Ajaccio the lead in the sixth minute after being set up by right winger Benjamin Andre, and the Corsican side looked comfortable in the first half, with the lively Johan Cavalli causing problems with his probing runs from midfield. CLEVELAND -- Jason Kipnis was raised on Chicagos North Side, and like so many other kids, he grew up idolizing Ryne Sandberg, watching Sammy Sosa smash home runs and listening to Harry Caray.He bled Cubs blue.And he never once blamed Steve Bartman -- they went to the same high school, by the way.We have a joke, the Indians second baseman said, referring to the infamous fan vilified in Chicago for a failed attempt to catch a postseason foul ball. The only thing Im mad at Bartman for is missing an easy flyball.Kipnis finds himself in a unique situation in his first World Series, facing the team that helped shape his life. The Cubs are in his DNA. Theyre the team he learned to love, the one that taught him the game and the one that often broke his heart. But while Kipnis family and friends intend to remain true to their Cubbies over the next week, his loyalties are not divided.Theres zero conflict at all, he said Tuesday on the eve of Game 1. Lets be clear about that.Kipnis, though, said watching the Cubs wrap up their first NL pennant since 1945 on TV was emotional. Some of his friends were at Wrigley Field on Saturday night and when the last out was recorded, part of Kipnis was there, too.I didnt know how to handle it, he said. I didnt know if I was happy, mad, sad. I was emotional. I was choked up, I was like, `Oh, no what does this mean right now? But its nothing more than excitement for the games.He was 11 in that magical summer of 1998 when Sosa and Mark McGwire seemed to belt a home run in every at-bat. Baseball was bulked up and booming and Kipnis was under its spell.As he reminisced during an interview session, the two-time All-Star seemed to remember every swing.Thats when I was really watching baseball closely and turning into a baseball fan, said Kipnis, who is dealing with a sprained left ankle sustained in Clevelands ALCS celebration. In the `98 season, it was `Hey, Sammys up, get to a TV every time. And on WGN there were always recaps of the games. Thats pretty much what I grew up on.He was in high school when Bartman, innocently sitting in a front row seat down the left-field field lane, became an unintentional celebrity in Game 6 of the NL Championship. The slight man, weaaring a Cubs cap and headphones so he could listen to the game on the radio, reached out and tried to catch a foul ball in the eighth inning as Cubs outfielder Moises Alou tried to close in.ddddddddddddThe Cubs derailed from there, blowing a big lead and losing and then dropping Game 7.The Curse had a new chapter.Kipnis lived close to Bartman and very vividly remembers seeing police staked out around his house to prevent any zealous fans from getting at him. There are Cubs fans to this day who hold a grudge toward Bartman. He has remained in hiding.He didnt deserve that, Kipnis said. He never asked for all the stuff that probably happened to him afterward. I dont think he deserved any of that. He was probably actually a pretty loyal fan and he wanted a ball, and its just the way events turns that turned him into this scapegoat.Kipnis wishes those Chicago fans who havent been able to let go would finally forgive Bartman and turn an ugly moment into something special.I would love to see him throw out a first pitch, he said. Everyone would go nuts.Despite his Second City roots, Kipnis knows hell be treated like a complete stranger -- and sworn enemy -- when the Series shifts to Wrigley for Game 3. Hes taking solace that there will be a few welcomed faces in the crowd.But the Friendly Confines wont be very friendly.He wouldnt have it any other way.If theyre Cubs fans, theyll boo as they should if youre a baseball fan, he said. But Ill have enough there that youll hopefully hear a couple cheers.Kipnis knows what a championship would mean to fans for both teams, who have gone a combined 174 seasons without celebrating a World Series title.They have the only drought that could make our drought look small, he said. Theyve got us by 40 years. Both franchises have been yearning for this championship, but its pretty neat one of them will come to an end.And Kipnis isnt torn over which one he hopes continues.Theres not one part of me that doesnt wish this curse would keep going, he said.---This version corrects to NL pennant instead of AL pennant in the seventh paragraph. ' ' '