New England Patriots: 5 observations from meltdown in Miami
A new meaning of 60 minutes of football
To have an opportunity to beat the Miami Dolphins in a place they always struggle, the New England Patriots had to play 60 minutes of football.
That is a mantra we hear a lot around these parts, but the players certainly learned that on Sunday afternoon.
With the hats and tee-shirts ready, the Patriots had smiles on their faces on the sideline with just seven seconds left in the game. Why wouldn’t they?
But the one more play they needed to play didn’t happen. Patriots defensive end Trey Flowers summed it up nicely (and of course with disappointment).
"“It was tough,” Flowers said following the game via NESN. “We had one more play left, and they scored. It’s going to be tough, but we still got a lot of games left, so gotta just bounce back.”"
It is how the New England Patriots respond as a team that is going to determine how far they go in the playoffs. That kind of last-second loss can sink a team’s spirit for more than a few games.
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Luckily for the Patriots they host the Buffalo Bills and New York Jets at Gillette Stadium the last two weeks of the season. Otherwise the team may be fighting for their AFC East lives. With the win, the Dolphins can mathematically still catch the Patriots for the division.
It would take a major collapse for the New England Patriots for that to happen.