The Patriots and Dolphins battled back and forth in a low-scoring and penalty-marred contest on Sunday, with Miami finally putting together a touchdown drive late in the fourth quarter that was the difference in the game.
New England responded with one final drive of their own, arguably their best of the game, but it fizzled out on downs at Miami's 17-yard line, sealing a fourth-straight loss.
The Patriots fell to 1-4 in 2024 with a 15-10 defeat with many of the same sloppy problems continuing to haunt the team across the board. Despite an early explosive touchdown play from Rhamondre Stevenson and an interception from Christian Gonzalez, the Patriots were unable to build a sustainable lead against a Dolphins team that cleaned up their mistakes at just the right time.
Here's how it went down in Foxborough.
1. Dolphins Grab Early Lead
Miami produced a scoring drive on their first possession of the game, with Anfernee Jennings' sack as the crucial play that held Miami to just a field goal. The Dolphins posted 38 yards on eight plays, kicking a 54-yard field goal to take an early 3-0 lead.
Marte Mapu, seeing his first action of the season, was immediately heavily involved in the defense, playing in multiple spots, while also leading the defensive huddle at times as the playcalled. It was an impressive effort from Mapu, who missed nearly all of training camp and was just activated this week. The second-year player played with just three days of true practice under his belt all season long.
Otherwise, New England had some problems on both sides of the ball to start the game. Jacoby Brissett was sacked on two of the team's first three plays, resulting in a quick three-and-out.
After Jennings' sack helped them hold Miami to a field goal on the first drive, New England was about to force a three-and-out on their second possession but a Too Many Men penalty on the punt return gave Miami a new set of downs.
It was a shaky start that suddenly took a dramatic shift in the Patriots favorites thanks to two of their young stars.
2. Gonzalez and Stevenson Spark Pats to Life
After the penalty gave Miami back the ball, Christian Gonzalez grabbed the second interception of his career two plays later to reverse their fortunes quickly. Gonzalez also picked up the other interception of his career last year at home against Miami.
It was an athletic play, as Gonzales waited on the route and undercut Odell Beckham Jr. for the pick. It just what the Patriots needed as Miami threatened to put together another scoring drive.
The offense responded off the turnover. First, Rhamondre Stevenson converted a third down catching a swing pass out of the backfield and powering forward to keep the drive alive. On the next play, Stevenson would follow outstanding blocking to the end zone with a 33-yard touchdown run. Michael Onwenu and Kayshon Boutte had notable blocks that helped Stevenson pick up extra yardage necessary to finish the run with a score.
Kendrick Bourne would also pick up a catch on the drive as he joined Mapu in making an early impact right off the reserve list.
After a rough start that included Brissett taking two sacks and a penalty that handed Miami new life, it was Gonzalez and Stevenson who got the Patriots on track in the first quarter with a 7-3 lead.
Josh Uche was a key part of holding that lead into the start of the second quarter, with a third-down sack that forced another Miami field goal attempt. This time the 41-yarder donked off the upright after a nine-play drive by the Dolphins that moved 47 yards.
3. Punt Block Doesn't Pay Off
The Patriots took three penalties on their first drive of the second quarter, the same amount of offensive plays they ran on the lackluster possession. New England vacillated between bad mistakes and big plays in the first half, getting enough key contributions at the right moments to offset the bad with the good.
They got another big play after the Patriots defense got a stop, forcing Miami to line up former Patriot Jake Bailey for a punt, backed up in their own territory. Brenden Schooler ducked under his blocker off the edge and got a hand on the ball for a block. Isaiah Bolden got the recovery, setting up the Patriots on Miami's 23-yard line.
Just like Gonzalez reproduced last year's interception against Miami, Schooler reproduced his own punt block from last year's matchup in Foxborough. This time he didn't have to time it up and come screaming off the edge, he used strong body position to make the play.
Penalties continued to add up for the Pats though, with two more calls on the drive stunting any positive movement. DeMario Douglas' 19-yard gain helped offset some of the lost yardage but ultimately the Patriots couldn't do enough to get into the end zone.
Joey Slye then missed the 33-yard field goal attempt as the Pats continued to ping-pong between good plays and bad ones.
Miami helped the Pats out on their drive with a big mistake of their own. Facing a third down from inside field goal range a wild snap rolled all the way back to New England's 42-yard line, forcing Miami to punt instead of putting more points on the board.
The Dolphins had success moving the ball in the first half but plays by New England and ill-timed mistakes held them to just three first-half points.
4. End of Half Problems Persist
Despite the Miami mistake that gave the Patriots back the ball near their own goal line before halftime, New England couldn't pick up a first down to run out the clock and head to the locker room. Two incompletions and a subpar punt by Bryce Baringer (43 yards with a 12-yard return) gave Miami another shot with starting field position at New England's 44-yard line with under a minute left and all three of their timeouts.
The Patriots defense held Miami to a 51-yard field goal attempt but the attempt never got off as another bad snap rolled to the holder and was quickly downed by the Patriots.
Once again, mistakes cost Miami points in New England territory but the Patriots couldn't do anything with the last possession, pitching their fourth three-and-out of the first half.
The Pats took a 7-3 lead into the locker room at the half, they were outgained in yardage 185 to 98 at that point.
5. Three Threes in the Third
It wasn't explosive or easy but the Patriots ground out a 10-play, 50-yard drive to open the third quarter, extending their lead to 10-3 with a 38-yard field goal by Slye. A Miami personal foul penalty helped move things along for New England, while a 16-yard run by Stevenson and a 13-yard completion to Kayshon Boutte on third down were the key plays that the offense executed themselves.
But penalties would continue to haunt New England, with Keion White taking both a horse collar penalty and a roughing the passer penalty on Miami's first drive of the second half. Those equaled an easy 30 yards for Miami, while the roughing the passer penalty was especially hard to swallow as it appeared the Patriots had gotten a third-down stop to get off the field on the play. Instead, Miami moved into Patriots territory.
They'd settle for a field goal, thanks in large part to Gonzalez who nearly intercepted a second pass before Tyreek Hill knocked it from his hands, and then had good coverage on Hill on third down to force a field goal attempt.
That attempt was good from 32 yards as Miami cut the lead to 10-6.
After New England's fifth three-and-out of the game, Miami put together a nine-play, 57-yard field goal drive that made it a one-point game. Newly promoted Jaquelin Roy's sack was one of the key plays that again forced Miami to settle for three.
Despite plenty of mistakes and sloppy areas, the Patriots third-down defense kept Miami contained.
6. Miami Finds Some Clutch
Despite two signs of life on their next possession, the Patriots offense remained stagnant as the game went into the fourth quarter. New England picked up a third-down conversion with a throw to Douglas, and Antonio Gibson ripped off a 24-yard run, but the drive stalled near midfield and forced another punt from Baringer.
Flags continued to rain down on Miami's ensuing drive, eliminating a big Dolphins rushing play but also giving Miami a new set of downs after a Christian Elliss pass interference call on a third down.
Miami didn't blink either way, posting their first touchdown drive of the game when they needed it most. The Patriots got a stop on the two-point conversion thanks to an athletic play from Keion White, but Miami still took a 15-10 lead with 4:24 left.
In all, it was a crushing 15-play, 80-yard drive that took up 7:36 of game time.
7. Pats Almost Come Back
The Pats didn't fold after Miami took the lead, executing their best drive since their field goal-scoring one at the start of the second half. Ja'Lynn Polk chipped in a catch and drew a penalty, while Gibson delivered another nice run to get them into Miami territory.
But that's when the flags started flying again with a Vederian Lowe holding call reversing the small bit of momentum that the offense had gathered. An illegal formation penalty on the next play was declined as New England faced a 3rd-and-8 from the Dolphins 31-yard line when the two-minute warning hit.
That's when Brissett hit Pop Douglas for 19 yards and a big first down. Suddenly, New England was set up with a first down on the 12-yard line and Brissett would immediately go for paydirt, hitting Polk for what was initially called for the go-ahead touchdown before it was overturned upon review.
Two more incompletions just about sealed the loss for the Patriots, who came so close to pulling off a last-minute comeback win. They'd get one more possession but time would run out on any miracles.
8. Patriots are now 1-4
The low-scoring and penalty-filled affair was par for the course in 2024 as far as the Patriots are concerned. There were signs of life at various moments throughout the contest but New England's offense couldn't put enough together to surpass 10 points.
Though the defense had a strong day on third down, they fell short in clutch time, enabling Miami to pick up their first touchdown of the game at the worst possible time.
The Patriots are back at home next weekend when they'll face the Houston Texans at Gillette Stadium for a 1pm kickoff.
DISCLAIMER: The views and thoughts expressed in this article are those of the writer and don't necessarily reflect those of the organization. Read Full Disclaimer
