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Minnesota (4-5) at Miami (3-6) Sunday 1:00 pm EST

MIAMI (Ticker) -- Daunte Culpepper had November 19 marked on his calendar. However, the date now will have a lot less meaning for him.

Culpepper was expected to face his former team for the first time Sunday. Instead, Joey Harrington will be under center when the Miami Dolphins host the Minnesota Vikings.

Without a Pro Bowl quarterback since Dan Marino retired in 1999, the Dolphins acquired Culpepper - a three-time Pro Bowler - from the Vikings in March for a second-round pick.

One of five quarterbacks selected in the first round of the 1999 draft, Culpepper became the Vikings' starter in 2000 and developed into one of the NFL's best quarterbacks.

However, last season Culpepper threw for just six touchdowns with 12 interceptions in seven games before he tore the ACL, MCL and PCL in his right knee in an October 30 game at Carolina.

Culpepper's value to the Vikings diminished when veteran quarterback Brad Johnson led the Vikings to a 7-2 record the rest of the way.

Not fully recovered from his knee injury, Culpepper played in the first four games for the Dolphins before being replaced by Harrington as the starter.

Culpepper has continued to rehabilitate his knee, although it is uncertain if he will return this season.

The injury to Culpepper and inconsistent play from the offensive line was a major reason why the Dolphins lost six of their first seven games.

But the Dolphins have rebounded in the last two weeks by handing Chicago its first loss and posting a 13-10 win over Kansas City last week.

Ronnie Brown has been a key for the Dolphins in the last two games, rushing for 157 and 89 yards on 54 carries. But now he faces a Vikings defense which allows 66.6 yards per game on the ground to rank first in the league.

Harrington will have his homecoming when Miami visits Detroit on Thanksgiving.

After getting off to a 4-2 start under first-year coach Brad Childress, the Vikings have lost three straight games.

The big problem for the Vikings has been on offense which has managed just three touchdowns during the skid.

Johnson has been a major reason for the offensive struggles. He has just one touchdown pass with five interceptions and three lost fumbles in the last three games.

Last week, the Vikings were dissected by Brett Favre in a 23-17 loss to Green Bay. Favre threw for 347 yards and two touchdowns.