FOXBOROUGH – Back in my day (late 90s early 2000s) the Patriots were always in Miami in September and the Dolphins were here in December.

Brady’s bomb to Troy Brown for the OT win and Tedy Bruschi throwing snow in the air are moments that never get etched in fans’ minds forever if the schedule was the way it’s been the last decade or so, with locations usually flipped.

This season, the schedule makers returned to their old ways, which means the Pats are in Pro Player Stadium (I’ll never call it Hard Rock) this Sunday for an important early season matchup with the Dolphins.

For my entire existence, the messaging has always been the same among fans and media, it’s like one of the first things you learn as a Patriots fan growing up: Miami is a House of Horrors for the Pats. They’ll probably lose and it’s a miracle if they win.

Everyone accepts it and goes about their week, assuming the Pats might lose (even during the Brady years) just because the game is in Miami, or, by the sounds of it, the surface of the sun.

I decided to ask a few veteran players in the locker room on Monday afternoon if the whole ‘Miami thing’ is real. It’s obviously hot, but camp was just a few weeks ago. How much worse could it be? I also understand Florida heat is a different kind of heat, but have we all just accepted the Myth of Miami as if it’s the old Yankee Stadium? Is this actually one of the sneaky best home field advantages in football for the first month or two of the season?

“We just play ball,” said Marcus Jones. “That’s the main thing. We don’t really care too much about ‘oh, it’s hard to play there’ and stuff like that. Of course, how the stadium is set up…that’s just how they got it. But, at the end of the day, it’s 11 players on both sides of the field, so we just gotta be ready to play.”

Antonio Gibson acknowledged it’s a factor, but something you can prepare for.

“You’d be a fool to sit here and say like, ‘the heat wasn’t a problem.’ It’s draining, it can fatigue you if you’re not prepared mentally and physically,” he said. “You definitely have to take it into consideration at home before going and playing out in Miami. You have to make sure you prepare as much as you can for that heat because we don’t practice in that type of heat. We don’t get that environment.

“So, it’s a game changer, but it’s still football. We should be able to prepare. We’ve played in heat before. But, to go from these conditions to that type of heat, it can affect the game.”

Milton Williams still remembers one particular day in Miami when he was an Eagle.

“It’s a real thing. It’s hot out there,” said Williams. “You gotta make sure you’re hydrating all week to get ready to go play down there. I remember two years ago when I was still with Philly, we had a joint practice down there in Miami and it was scorching. It was tough. I’m pretty sure it’s going to be an emphasis for us this week, making sure we’re getting hydrated enough, getting IVs before the game or at halftime if you need to.

“We’ve got to make sure we can go, make sure we can be out there and try to pull out a win.”

For a long time, the Broncos have had Mile High, Kansas City has had Arrowhead, Green Bay has had Lambeau and for 20 years, the Patriots had the mystique (and cold) of Gillette Stadium. But, the Myth of Miami is a real thing that truly messes with players’ heads (and their bodies). It may not get the credit it deserves as a home field advantage because of how mediocre the Dolphins have been for years.

It’s not overhyped or over discussed.

It’s a real thing New England will have to be ready for (current forecast is 85 degrees with 70% humidity) and it adds another element to a now massively important week in the early head coaching tenure of Mike Vrabel.