It was a terrific feeling to be watching the opening weekend of the National Football League. The Dolphins and Patriots turned out to be one of the better matchups in week 1. The game was tight due to the defenses and the familiarity of the teams with each other. The Dolphins should be credit for starting the game and the second half with touchdown drives. However, the Patriots dominated the game outside of those series and squandered their opportunity to win and take the early division lead. In this article, we examine the five major talking points that emerged from the game.
1. Mac Jones shines in debut-Mac Jones beat out Cam Newton as the starting quarterback in preseason and is now the long-term successor to Tom Brady. However, his play did not show he was feeling the pressure. He was poised, made the right reads, and delivered the ball accurately. Brian Flores’ defense brought pressure on the young QB but Jones negated the threat by getting the ball out, gliding around the rush, and setting the right protection. He finished with 29 completions of his 39 passes with 281 yards and a touchdown. He also completed 9 of 12 passes for 89 yards on third down. Jones didn’t even want to celebrate his first touchdown which shows his winning mentality. Yes, Patriots fans can be optimistic about Jones’ play under center.
Key Stat: Boston Sports Info tweeted a stat that Mac Jones’ 74.4% completion rate is the highest completion percentage of any rookie QB making their 1st NFL start in NFL history with a minimum of 25 attempts.
2. Running Backs Miscues- Entering the season, the Patriots’ strength on offense was its dynamic running game with Damien Harris, Rhamondre Stevenson, J.J. Taylor, and James White. Stevenson had a debut to forget as he fumbled on his only carry of the game during the first quarter and turned the ball over to the Dolphins. In the usual Belichick manner, he got benched and did not play for the rest of the game. I watched the game and kept wondering to myself, where is J.J. Taylor? It turns he was a healthy scratch. It left Damien Harris to become the workhorse, and he ended with 23 carries and 100 yards. However, he had the disastrous fumble on the Miami 11-yard line as the Patriots were about to take the lead under 4 minutes in the 4th quarter. It leads me to wonder whether if this running back group is ready to dominate and whether it was wise to trade Sony Michel after all.
3. New Weapons Look Potent- the Patriots looked devoid of weapons to threaten defenses in their previous two seasons. Then, Belichick decided to address the issue in free agency, and after week one, the difference in quality was evident. Nelson Agholor was the standout with five catches, 72 yards, and a touchdown. Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith started slow but Jones’ rapport with the duo caught fire in the second half. The duo finished with eight combine catches and 73 yards. All three players had a difficult preseason with injuries, and things will only get better with them doing more reps.
4. The defense has an indifferent start-the Patriots pass rush looks poised to dominate based on their week one performance. John Uche and Kyle Van Noy had sacks on Miami’s Tua Tagovailoa while Matt Judon’s pressure led to the big interception by Jonathan Jones. On the other hand, the Patriots’ secondary got exposed. Jaylen Waddle and Devante Parker had productive days with a combined eight catches for 142 yards and one touchdown.
5. Flags Galore-The Patriots were uncharacteristically sloppy in this game leading to eight penalties for 84 yards. The Dolphins, on the other hand, were only penalized five times for 28 yards. The costliest penalty occurred in the second quarter when Isaiah Wynn was called for a holding penalty which negated a touchdown run by Harris. The Patriots had to settle for a field goal, and those four points lost could have turned the result into a win. It goes against Belichick’s philosophy of not beating themselves.
Final Takeaway- It was a disappointing loss for the team. However, the play of Mac Jones and the new weapons can make us optimistic. In addition, Belichick’s defense tends to get better as the season goes on, Stephon Gilmore is likely to return soon, and the flags will cut down with greater attention to details. In the famous words of Belichick, “We are on to the Jets.”