It’s not about how you start, it’s about how you finish.
The New England Patriots took that saying to heart on Sunday against the Miami Dolphins. Going against a one-win opponent and enjoying the benefit of some extra rest, they played arguably their worst half of the season to star the Week 8 game. The result was a 13-3 deficit and a team looking less like a playoff contender and more like a middling team struggling to get above .500.
Luckily for the Patriots, the second half saw them do a 180-degree
turn. They looked much improved especially on offense and defense — special teams we’ll get to — and were able to score 21 unanswered points en route to a 24-19 victory.
Let’s take a look at the film and hand out some grades.
Patriots film review from NFL Week 8
Quarterback: If the Patriots were to come back from their 10-point deficit at the half, it needed to start with their most important player. Drake Maye answered the call, and delivered a near-perfect performance down the stretch: in the third and fourth quarters, when the team became more comfortable attacking Miami’s defense vertically, he went a combined 9-for-10 for 146 yards with two deep passing touchdowns and a rushing score on a well-executed fake pitch as well. Overall, he finished the game with +0.42 expected points added per play, and continued to look every bit as impressive as he had in October. And let’s not forget that Maye did all that while being without his nominal WR1, WR2, WR 4, TE1 and RB2, and with backups manning the left and right guard spots. | Grade: A
Running back: Aided by a good battle plan drawn up by offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, the Patriots had one of their best rushing days of the season so far. The main man, once again, was Rhamondre Stevenson: the veteran did not have any explosive runs, but he did have a success rate of 47.4% on his 19 carries for a combined 82 yards and caught all three of his pass targets. He also was again competitive in pass protection, despite giving up one hurry. Corey Kiner and Lan Larison also had their moments, with the former having the game’s longest run — a 20-yarder in the first quarter — and the latter earning his first two career carries for six total yards. | Grade: A
Wide receiver: Down A.J. Brown, Romeo Doubs and Mack Hollins, and losing tight end Hunter Henry in the second quarter, the Patriots relied heavily on Efton Chism, Kyle Williams and DeMario Douglas. The trio did have some ups and downs, including when Chism had the ball punched out on a short throw to the flat, but overall performed well. Chism made up for his turnover by catching all five of his targets, including a 12-yard reception on a 4th-and-3 in the second quarter. Williams scored a massive 43-yard touchdown on his only target in the third, serving predominately as a space-clearer for the underneath routes. Douglas extended just enough on a crucial fourth-down conversion and later showed some tremendous speed, quickness and vision on a 48-yard catch-and-run touchdown. The Patriots needed them to step up, and they did. | Grade: A-
Tight end: The tight end group was big part of the Patriots’ game plan, but losing Hunter Henry to a foot injury in the early second quarter forced the team to adapt; at that point, Henry had already caught three passes for 30 yards. Eli Raridon took a majority of snaps down the stretch, and primarily operated in the short and intermediate area while catching one 5-yard pass on three catchable targets. He also showed some improvement as a blocker in the run game, but was flagged for two false starts and unable to create movement on a pair of stuffed runs. The depth tight ends, Cameron Lomu and Tanner Arkin, both served as blockers and mostly did a serviceable job. | Grade: C
Offensive line: Have you heard Will Campbell’s name lately? No? That’s because he continues his ascent from offseason question mark to offensive pillar; he was very good against Miami and allowed just one hurry while also helping clear the way on some successful runs. Not everybody up front was quite that successful. Left guard Walter Rouse surrendered two quick pressures before getting benched for Ben Brown at the half, and center Jared Wilson again looked shaky with the snap. The right side had its ups and downs as well, with guard Matt Pryor failing to generate a consistent penetration in the run game but not giving up any quarterback disruptions, and right tackle Morgan Moses struggling at times with the speed rush around the edge. | Grade: C+
Defensive line: The Patriots’ run defense came to play on Sunday, and the play along the defensive line had a lot to do with it. The standout name among the group was Cory Durden, who registered three pressures including 1.5 sacks and helped stuff a pair of runs. The other DTs also had their moments, with Milton Williams and Christian Barmore — who both lined up inside and outside — challenging the interior offensive line beyond their five combined credited pressures, and Leonard Williams continuing to positively contribute in limited snaps. On the edge, Gabe Jacas’ knee injury forced him to miss most of the second half, but he continued showing his speed and power in his limited reps and helping create two sacks. Elijah Ponder played some off-ball linebacker to open the game and also looked good dropping out on an incompletion intended for tight end Will Kacmarek; he also was at the point of attack on a sack. Dre’Mont Jones, meanwhile, notched a team-leading five pressures even though him lining up offsides negated a Christian Elliss interception. | Grade: A
Linebacker: Speaking of Christian Elliss, he was disruptive coming downhill and like fellow starter- Robert Spillane did a good job finishing tackles; a point of emphasis at One Patriot Place after last week’s loss in Chicago. The two were moved out of the way on a 16-yard Ollie Gordon run in the fourth quarter — Spillane was pushed wide on a run blitz, Elliss unable to create a proper tackling form reaching around center Aaron Brewer — but in general the pair continues to be solid guarding the second level of New England’s defense. | Grade: A-
Cornerback: The Patriots relied heavily on zone coverage against one of the league’s most productive scramble quarterbacks, Malik Willis. The plan worked, with Willis gaining only two yards on his lone run of the day, but it created some openings in the passing game. New England did mix and match its coverages, including by the introduction of more quarters looks to complement their heavy usage of Cover 4, but Miami still found some openings. Two of those came in the direction of Christian Gonzalez, whose deep-zone drops created space underneath for gains of 23 and 18 yards in the second quarter. Gonzalez was his usual stout self in New England’s limited man reps, which is where returnee Carlton Davis showed some rust. He allowed a pair of third-down conversions when receivers were able to create some separation at the top of their routes. Marcus Jones limited the damage in man, while Charles Woods tripping over his own feet in Cover 4 allowed Kevin Coleman Jr. to get open for a 35-yard touchdown. | Grade: C+
Safety: Kevin Byard caught his first interception of the season when a pass intended for Caleb Douglas, who was open underneath New England’s Cover 2 structure, bounced off of defensive tackle DaQuan Jones’ helmet and into the safety’s waiting arms. It was a right place/right time-type of play, and some good finishing by the captain. Byard also was beaten in a tough 1-on-1 red zone matchup for a touchdown versus Malik Washington. Craig Woodson dropped an interception in the early third quarter and was a bit too hesitant on a 19-yard catch by tight end Greg Dulcich, but otherwise solid. Third option Jaylen Reed was on the field for 13 reps as well, and did get to the quarterback on a delayed rush. | Grade: C
Special teams: New England’s kicking game operation was not at its best last week in Chicago, and it again had some negative moments against the Dolphins. Among them was a 43-yard kickoff return in the first quarter, when Leonard Taylor was too aggressive getting downfield and an Andy Borregales shoe-string tackle prevented further damage. Speaking of Borregales, he missed a 40-yard field goal attempt and has now been unable to make four of 34 combined place kicks to bring his success rate to 88.2%. On the plus side, Marcus Jones averaged 11.7 yards on his three punt returns. | Grade: C-
How would you grade the Patriots’ performance against the Dolphins? Do you agree with our assessment? Please head down to the comment section to discuss with the rest of the community.
