The Miami Dolphins welcomed the New England Patriots to Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday afternoon, and Jeff Hafley's squad was handed a 24-19 loss, dropping to 1-6 to start their 2026 season.
This game was truly the tale of two halves, as Miami's defense was great in the first half, and the offense did just enough to build a 13-3 lead entering the midway point in the contest. However, after that, the defense fell apart, and the offense struggled to move the ball consistently.
Statistically, Malik Willis' day looked better than it was, as he finished with 211 passing yards, two touchdowns and an interception while completing 65.6% of his passes. A good chunk of that came late in the fourth quarter, as New England was trying to keep everything in front
of them. They failed that task, allowing Willis to hook up with Kevin Coleman Jr. for a long touchdown with just a few minutes to go.
Miami's rushing attack was also struggling to move the ball as they have recently. The team, as a whole, rushed for 74 yards on just 3.2 yards per attempt. Ollie Gordon II was the best ball carrier, rushing for 69 yards, but he wasn't very efficient, averaging just 3.6 yards per carry.
The defense was getting gashed consistently by Rhamondre Stevenson and Corey Kiner, who ran for 120 yards on 4.6 yards per attempt. Drake Maye didn't even use his legs well, outside of his two-yard touchdown run.
Maye did, however, move the ball very well through the air, completing 80% of his passes for 199 yards and two touchdowns. Both of his touchdowns, one to Kyle Williams and one to Demario Douglas, were deep shots that really turned his day around in the second half.
Miami can't afford to play like that, especially against a team missing most of their top weapons and playing with third-string guards. This was a harsh crash back to reality after a nice win against the New York Jets in Week 7.
This article originally appeared on Dolphins Wire: Instant analysis from Dolphins' Week 8 loss to Patriots
