The New England Patriots are in Miami this weekend, trying to regain some momentum after their Thursday night loss in Chicago 10 days ago. They will be shorthanded going up against the Dolphins, but a victory over their 1-5 division rivals is still essential if the Patriots want to stay competitive in the AFC East.
Naturally, our focus this week was mostly on that game. However, there are a lot more topics to discuss entering Week 8. And with that said: welcome to this week’s edition of our Sunday
Patriots Notes.
Finding the balance
The Patriots defense has struggled generating turnovers so far this season, ranking only 20th in the league with seven combined takeaways entering Week 8. For coordinator Zak Kuhr, New England’s man-heavy coverage scheme is part of the reason why that’s the case.
“You can put some of that on me as far as the calls,” he said. “I’m pretty sure in the league we’re like the second-most man coverage, and it’s harder — a lot harder. Ask those seven guys in the backend, at least, to go take the ball away when their number one rule is, ‘Hey, my man doesn’t catch the ball.’ And their eyes are on their man, not the quarterback. In that sense, you put a lot more on the front to try to disrupt it, but there’s only so much they can do.
“But as much as we can to put them in some better opportunities to go take that ball away, and then we talk about how low the percentage of that play is, every rep you can you have to take the attempt. Because if you don’t, your just making that percentage that much smaller. ”
For Kuhr, the challenge is to find a balance between playing tight coverage suited to New England’s defensive personnel — a group led by one of the best cover corners in the NFL, Christian Gonzalez — and incorporating more zone principles that allow the secondary be aggressive. So far, that balance has been off.
The Patriots have recovered four interceptions and three fumbles, ranking 16th and 19th in the respective categories. In order to get those numbers up, Kuhr believes his unit needs to find a way to disrupt the quarterback on a more regular basis either through the pass rush or schematic wrinkles.
“It’s a tough balance,” he said. “You can’t protect everybody and you can’t highlight everybody, as much as you want to. Like, ‘Hey, we have this guy, let’s let him do this; but we have this guy, let’s let him do that.’ There are a bunch of different skills that factor into that. But it’s a balance. We have really good man-coverage secondary players. Are you getting away from what you’re really good at for a chance to try to go take the ball away?
“And you can’t just call man every single snap because then those guys are going to get gassed. They can sub out those receivers, next line like in a hockey sub. And they just run verticals, and verticals again, and verticals again. So, we can’t just play man every snap, but there’s a tough balance, like ‘Hey, we’re really good at this’ but we also want to go make some highlighted plays and some game-changing plays. We’re trying to find a good balance between what that is.”
Ryan Miller stepping up
The Patriots are entering their game in Miami down three of their nominal top four wide receivers. Romeo Doubs and Mack Hollins are both on injured reserve, while A.J. Brown has been ruled out due to a knee issue.
This left the team with only three healthy wideouts on the active roster, and forced the promotion of a recent signing: ex-Dolphin Ryan Miller, who was elevated for the game from the practice squad.
“Ryan’s the newest to the group and he’s been a great addition,” said wide receiver coach Todd Downing. “He’s certainly brought some wisdom, has a little bit more experience than a couple of the other guys. He’s just sinking his teeth into the verbiage. Right now it’s a little Spanish-to-English translation-type deal for him, but he’s really doing a nice job of accelerating his learning and doing a good job with some of the routes on the show team.”
An undrafted free agent in 2023, Miller was waived by the Dolphins in mid-October after catching three passes for 92 yards and a touchdown in five games.
Players used this season
The Patriots’ injury situation has forced them to dig deep into their roster and practice squad, and the number of players they have used so far is a reflection of that. Through their first seven games, they employed 65 different players between offense, defense and special teams — third most in the league behind only the Panthers (67) and Eagles (66).
They have used 27 players on offense (9th), 31 on defense (2nd), and 58 on special teams (1st). While some of that has to do with the way the team uses its special teamers, the total volume speaks for itself and stands in stark contrast to 2025: last year, the Patriots ranked 19th with 70 players used.
Scramble prowess
Drake Maye is one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks not just due to his ability to deliver pin-point passes and perform well within the structure provided by offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, but also because he has all the tools a modern pro-level passer needs when it comes to play extension: Maye is as good as any QBs in football when it comes to scrambling, either turning into a runner or keeping plays alive as a passer.
“I think it’s an ongoing process with learning the guy that’s in the scramble drill,” he said. “I think one of the biggest things is that you want a deep element, an intermediate element and an outlet that you can throw to, and also me running is another chance. But the best thing I liked about our guys lately, they’ve been getting their eyes back to me. I think that’s the biggest thing. Make sure they’re looking for the ball, trying to see space, and not trying to run into the same area.
“Usually when you’re trying to go one way, you either try to settle or work to the sideline. Oftentimes you get in trouble when you’re trying to work back across the field, away from where I’m going. The guys have a great feel for it. I always tell them to try to come back to the football and keep coming back to it. Even if you’re running downhill and you end up with a 3-yard catch, it’s better than throwing it away. Those guys got a good feel for it, and I’m trying my best to try to hang in there and keep my eyes downfield when it’s a good pocket and go make plays when I feel like I can.”
Leonard Taylor’s development
The Patriots defensive line has had its ups and downs this season, but also some promising development in some areas. One of those is interior lineman Leonard Taylor, who first joined the team last season and appears to be in the middle of a Year 2 jump.
“He continues to improve,” said head coach Mike Vrabel. “He puts a lot of time in. He spends a lot of time with Clint [McMillan] and Abdullah [Anderson] to be able to play multiple spots. I think that he will continue to improve the more opportunities that he gets and the more comfortable that he gets. He came in last year, did a nice job for us.”
Taylor played minimal snaps in Week 1 and was a healthy scratch for the next two games. Since Week 4, however, he has seen regular action within the rotation, playing 22.8% of defensive snaps.
‘Eye poison’ awaiting
Ranking 30th in points per game (16.3), 27th in yards (293.5) and 29th in expected points added per play (-0.122), the Dolphins offense has not been particular successful so far this season. However, the numbers can be deceiving.
As Zak Kuhr pointed out this week, the unit led by coordinator Bobby Slowik does present a challenge especially in the run game.
“They do some great stuff schematically as far as what we call ‘eye poison’ — trying to get you eyes in the wrong spot,” Kuhr said. “Bobby does a great job putting those guys in good positions and messing with the defense, trying to get better angles for the offensive line, trying to get guys out of gaps.”
All-in on Mitch
The Patriots released punter Bryce Baringer, who had been with them since 2023, off injured reserve earlier this week. This means that Mitch Wishnowsky, who only joined the team ahead of the regular season opener, is now the main man at the position.
“He’s just done a great job coming in here and being consistent,” said special teams coordinator Jeremy Springer. “We came in on short notice after the injury to Bryce and we’ve told him what we need out of him, and he’s just delivered on that consistently and having a vet presence as well. A guy that’s been the league for a while, been in two Super Bowls. Nothing’s ever too big or too low for him. He’s easy to work with. It’s been really great working with him.”
Neither Springer nor head coach Mike Vrabel ruled out the possibility of Baringer returning to the Patriots at some point in the future. For now, however, the team is all-in on Wishnowsky.
Eli Raridon’s strong start
The Patriots have gotten some solid contributions from their rookie class so far, with tight end Eli Raridon in particular standing out. In his first six career games, the third-round selection has hauled in 12 passes for 168 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
For offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, his quick acclimatization to the NFL starts with his character and work ethic.
“He’s mature beyond his years in terms of the way that he approaches the game,” McDaniels said. “Eli’s a sponge. He’s a very quick learner. He processes a lot of information. He’s a very bright kid. He’s been out there safe for a couple of practices here and there when he got dinged up a little big. He’s out there all the time. He gives us an opportunity to rep and make a mistake and then correct it, and then he’s not an error repeater. Young players that don’t repeat errors have a chance to improve quickly, and I think that’s what we’ve seen.
“He’s given us a lot of confidence in the things that he does well, and you see that in the quarterback’s willingness to go to him in critical situations. He’s earned that.”
Hunter Henry’s leadership
Eli Raridon’s success is not just due to his natural skillset, but also the setting provided by the Patriots. One teammate in particular has received praise for his contributions in that regard: fellow tight end and team captain Hunter Henry.
“Hunter’s one of the best things for Eli that you can have in the room,” said Drake Maye. “He’s such a veteran presence. He’s a pro. He does everything the right way.”
“Kind of like Mack Hollins in the receiver room, Hunter Henry’s been pretty much the same in terms of how unselfish he’s been with Eli and all the young guys in that room,” said Josh McDaniels. “Just giving them his time and attention, helping them with little things when they’re in there.”
Week ahead
Following Sunday’s game in Miami, the Patriots will return home to Gillette Stadium: they will host the Green Bay Packers on Nov. 8 for a 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff. Before that game, however, there are multiple things on their itinerary.
They will hold their typical practice schedule with on-field days on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday; a practice report will be released after each of those sessions. They also will hold their traditional pre-game walkthrough on Saturday.
In addition, the organization will officially enshrine tight end Rob Gronkowski into the Patriots Hall of Fame. The event will take place on Saturday, Nov. 7 at 1 p.m. ET at Patriot Place Plaza. It is open to the general public and free to attend.
