The New England Patriots were stunned on what would be called the Miami miracle in a shocking 34-33 defeat to the Dolphins in the last seconds of the Week 14 matchup.
Something always goes wrong down in Miami for the New England Patriots.
Even on a day where Tom Brady looked once again like the ageless wonder. Even when Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman looked like the weapons they are. Even when Josh Gordon showed flashes of that 2013 guy who could take a slant pass and take it to the house. Even when the team blocked two punts on special teams, the Patriots found a unique way to lose to the desperate Miami Dolphins.
Yup, chalk Dolphins running back Kenyan Drake as the latest name Patriots fans will always remember. After two laterals, Drake scored a miraculous last-second touchdown to defeat the Patriots 34-33.
With all of Miami celebrating, the New England Patriots were left with their heads down and suddenly two games behind the Kansas City Chiefs for the top spot in the AFC.
Furthermore, the AFC East title was put on ice for at least another week. So, what happened?
While many people are labeling Sunday’s last second heroics as a miracle, it wouldn’t have happened if there weren’t a few meltdowns throughout the game. With the Patriots offense clicking, the game should’ve been put away late in the second quarter.
With the defense struggling to contain old man Frank Gore and…Brandon Bolden, the offense left too many points on the field. As is typically the case, those points came back to haunt the New England Patriots and may have changed the landscape of the AFC playoffs as it is probable the Super Bowl will now go throw Arrowhead stadium.
It will take a while for the shock to wear, but here are five observations from the 34-33 loss to the Miami Dolphins in Week 14.
The wrong running game was effective
The Miami Dolphins running backs, not the New England Patriots running backs were the story of this game.
While Kenyan Drake will go down as the hero, both Frank Gore and old friend Brandon Bolden made plays throughout the game that kept the Dolphins in the game.
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Let’s start with Gore.
On Sunday, the 35-year-old running back reverted back to his youth rushing for 92 yards on just 12 carries. That’s right, the Patriots’ defense allowed Gore to rush for 7.7 yards per carry. In doing so, Frank Gore passed LaDainian Tomlinson for 5th place on the NFL all-time list for yards from scrimmage.
The production not only sparked the Dolphins’ offense, but also propelled former Patriots running back Brandon Bolden to run through his former team. Bolden scored two rushing touchdowns, including a 54-yard touchdown on his first carry of the game.
Conversely, the New England Patriots running game never got on target.
Despite James Develin rushing for another touchdown (his fourth in three games), neither Sony Michel or Rex Burkhead could get going in the game. Much of that was due to Tom Brady’s target practice against the Dolphins’ secondary but give Miami’s front seven credit as well.
When Stephen Gostkowski misses kicks
The New England Patriots scored a touchdown on an impressive drive in this one, but a Stephen Gostkowski missed extra point quickly had fans wondering if it would come back to haunt the team.
Recent history has shown, when Gostkowski misses kicks it usually comes back to hurt the team in some way. Since the Patriots lost by just one point, it is easy to pin this game on the foot of the All-Pro kicker.
Given the fact that he also missed a very makable field goal in the second half, the four points he left on the field has fans calling for his head…or foot. He definitely doesn’t appear to be a franchise tag candidate in their eyes.
This isn’t just a one game overreaction. The backlash against Gostkowski is that these missed kicks seem to come in big games. With the team typically involved in tight games, those kicks end up being the difference in some way.
While Stephen Gostkowski is certainly a scapegoat in this one, he is not the only one. The New England Patriots certainly had the chance to beat the Dolphins despite his miscues.
Brady did his thing
The New England Patriots offense showed up in South Beach and it was all on the arm of Tom Brady.
The 41-year-old quarterback faced his horrors in Miami and put together an impressive game despite a late second quarter meltdown of his own. Distributing the ball to his big three playmakers Julian Edelman, Josh Gordon and Rob Gronkowski, Brady was simply locked in.
In all, he racked up 358 yards passing with 3 touchdowns. Tom Brady did take some hits and a critical sack, but he showed poise in the pocket and delivered some laser passes to move the chains.
One of his touchdowns to Cordarrelle Patterson was an absolute dot down the middle of the field that showed off the velocity he can still put on the ball and also showed certain critics that he does not have a noddle arm.
The end results of the game are not what the team wanted, but Brady’s performance is something he and the team can build off going forward. Expect an angry and very dialed in Tom Brady going into Week 15 against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Belichick criticized
The execution or lack thereof of the New England Patriots defense deserves to be criticized in this one.
The team certainly had its moments with key sacks and delivering pressure on Ryan Tannenhill, but in all they gave up too many big plays to an offense that is simply not that explosive.
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While some of it could’ve been by design. Bill Belichick is known for forcing a team to beat them in one facet of the game while taking away another. But, there are cases where the coach outsmarts himself. One of those cases presented itself on the last play of the game.
Up 34-28 with just seven seconds left in the game, the Miami Dolphins appeared well out of Hail Mary striking distance. Yet, Belichick had Rob Gronkowski in the game instead of an actual safety. As Gronkowski was the last defender Kenyan Drake had to escape for the winning touchdown, the decision came back to haunt Belichick.
Now, he is taking criticism from his own former players.
"“Coach Belichick outsmarted himself having Rob Gronkowski on the field for a 70-yard Hail Mary and keeping his best defensive player on the sidelines, Devin McCourty,” Rodney Harrison said during a segment of Football Night in America."
Given how slow Gronk looked in any trying to defend the play, any other player would’ve at least gotten there to force Drake out of bounds. If Belichick was so worried about an improbable Hail Mary, either Josh Gordon or Cordarrelle Patterson would’ve at least had the speed to make a play.
Well, second guesses are always part of the game. That decision on Sunday will live with Bill Belichick for a while.
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.
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.