The Patriots playing the Dolphins away from home has been like a horror house for New England. Heading into the matchup, the Patriots had lost 6 of their past eight games at the Dolphins. This past weekend, the team headed to South Florida to get rid of the kryptonite and maintain some momentum into the playoffs. Instead, the Dolphins jumped out to a lead and allowed the Patriots to self-destruct. Late in the second half, the team attempted to come back but key conversions by Tua and the Dolphins on 3rd down shattered their hopes. In this article, we discuss five takeaways from this game.
1. Bill Belichick needs to buy his players alarm clocks-the Patriots players failed to show up early in this game. The Dolphins moved the ball down on their opening drive with 13 plays for 77 yards in a 7 minute and 26-second drive. Tua completed it by throwing a short touchdown to Waddle to put them in the 7-0. On the Patriots’ first drive, Mac Jones then threw a terrible pass on third down which Xavien Howard intercepted and returned for a touchdown to put his team up 14-0. The Dolphins executed the same game plan as the Colts and Bills which is to get ahead early, and the Patriots’ comeback will likely fall short. The Patriots need to start fast to make any noise in the playoffs.
2. Mac Jones is starting to be inconsistent-last week Jones looked to have rediscovered his mojo against the Jaguars with a three-touchdown performance. The Patriots’ offensive struggles are due to his inconsistent play in the first half. He had the pick-six turnover in the first half but there was also the costly fumble in the third quarter when his team was already in field goal range. Jones completed deep throws to Jakobi Meyers and Hunter Henry that gave his team to complete the comeback. Quarterback is the most difficult position in sports, and a playoff team needs the man under center to play four complete quarters.
3. Penalties kill the chance to win- over the past two decades, the Patriots are a team known for playing clean football and not making mental mistakes. The Patriots gave up eight penalties for 78 yards while the Dolphins only suffered five penalties for 33 yards. Lawrence Guy suffered an illegal formation penalty on special teams that negated a three-and-out by the defense. The Patriots tried to draw an encroachment from the Dolphins defense but instead, Mac Jones, the quarterback, was called for a false start penalty. Let that sink in for a minute. Matt Judon had a roughing of the passer penalty while Jalen Mills had a pass interference that led to a touchdown by the Dolphins on the next play. Yes, these costly mental mistakes need to stop quickly.
4. Run defense is weak-another part of the Dolphins’ plan was to run the ball against the Patriots. The Dolphins outrushed the Patriots 195-134 on the ground. The Patriots’ defense failed to make tackles and allowed Duke Johnson to look like Barry Sanders. Johnson finished with 117 yards on 25 carries while Phillip Lindsay had 40 yards on 11 carries. Another concern for the Patriots, Tua ran for 38 yards on five carries, and the prospect of facing Josh Allen this week does not look enticing.
5. Patriots’ chance of success in the playoffs looks slim-the Patriots head into the playoffs sputtering after losing three of their last four games. The team is vulnerable, and the formula for success against them is tried and tested. The team faces a quick turnaround, and it will be tough for the team to buck their tendencies and address these issues before their next game. However, the slim chance is based on Bill Belichick and his brilliance to get his team ready for the hostile confines in Orchard Park, Buffalo to face the Bills on Saturday Night.
