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This is not how one of the more memorable weeks in Patriots' history should have ended.

As 11 men and the relatives of two departed others stood at the center of the Gillette Stadium football field Sunday afternoon, the ex-players wearing tailored red blazers signifying their membership in the Patriots Hall of Fame, there should have been more hope, more confidence and more joy filtering through the rows of stands inside the mammoth coliseum that has become a monument to athletic excellence.

Instead, the current Patriots were getting their butts kicked - and it was going to get a lot worse before it got better.

"We definitely don't live off the past," wide receiver and captain Randy Moss said, "but it definitely hurts. They really came in and handed it to us in our house."

"They" were the Miami Dolphins, coming off one of the worst seasons in that franchise's history and double-digit underdogs to the Patriots according to the Las Vegas bookmakers, who confidently strolled into Gillette Stadium and, as verbose linebacker Joey Porter had promised during the week, threw "the kitchen sink" at the defending AFC champions. The result: A very painful 38-13 drubbing, the likes of which haven't been seen in Foxboro for at least three years and not regularly for many more. And suddenly, those who saw last week's win over the New York Jets as an indication that there might be life after Tom Brady are now reeling from a slap in the face from cold, hard reality.

"What happened today is a reflection of the way they played and the way we played, the way they coached and the way we coached," Patriots' coach Bill Belichick said.

As far as how the Patriots played and coached, the operative word was "miserably."

Never before in the Belichick Era have the Patriots been fooled so many times by the same play in the same game as they were Sunday when running back Ronnie Brown lined up as a shotgun-formation quarterback.

The play was run six times and netted 100 rushing yards on five carries (three for touchdowns) and one 19-yard touchdown pass. And amazingly, the two most damaging instances came after halftime - before which it had been run four times, enough of a sample for Belichick and his staff to devise an antidote to this poison.

Maybe they did. Maybe they just don't have the personnel to handle such a challenge any more. Brady certainly never played a snap of defense in his career before he blew out his left knee two weeks ago, so the loss can't be blamed on his absence.

Or maybe this was just one of those times when a good team throws up a stinker against a team that had more to prove.

"Every week in practice, you always work on things," Belichick said. "You improve them and correct them as you go through the week. The bottom line is, they came out to play on Sunday and we didn't."

In the visiting team locker room, there was plenty of satisfaction to go around from seeing the game-planning produce the desired result.

"It lends credibility to everything you've been telling the players all along," said Miami coach Tony Sparano, formerly Bill Parcells' right-hand man on the Dallas coaching staff. "Right now, they understand that. We had a good, solid week of practice ... their attention to detail was tremendous during the week." "Attention to detail" was also a watchword in Foxboro this week, but more so in some areas and less in others. While the football team fell short in its preparation, the curators of the Hall at Patriot Place had crafted a magnificent museum for all to see, capped by a touching and dignified salute to past players whose accomplishments are now remembered in a first-class manner.

Sadly, the current Patriots forgot their own mantra for this season at the worst possible time. They didn't "finish" the job and give the 13 members of their Hall of Fame a suitable performance to cap their special weekend.

Maybe it was only fitting. On any given Sunday, the dynasties can fall and the downtrodden can rise. That's football.

MARK FARINELLA may be reached at 508-236-0315 or via e-mail at mfarinel@thesunchronicle.com. Read Farinella's blog, "Blogging Fearlessly," at thesunchronicle.com/farinella.