Dolphins @ Patriots
Final Score: Dolphins 15, Patriots 10
Writer: Matt Bevins (MattBQBList)
This entire game was like watching paint dry, but if the paint was a metaphor for endless short drives and constant annoyance. The Patriots are in a position where everyone already has them penciled in for a 2025 top-three pick, and Jerod Mayo has nothing to lose at the helm. The Dolphins however are in total disarray, with the loss of Tua Tagovailoa and a rotation of injury bugs dogging their running back room. The game had somehow all signs of the Dolphins winning this one, even with third-string pick-up Tyler Huntley running the offense. The Dolphins likely wanted to get out of this game unscathed (they didn’t, unfortunately), while the Patriots are likely wondering if Rhamondre Stevenson was worth the deal. Stevenson broke himself off a pretty sweet 30-plus yard scamper, but there wasn’t much left to be gathered for their anemic offense. As a long-time Patriots fan, watching this team is painful. On the other side of the ball, the Dolphins lost De’Von Achane early on to a concussion and relied on the dual firing approach of Raheem Mostert and Jaylen Wright, who looked solid, if not unspectacular.
Three Up
- Both defenses – No, this game wasn’t that exciting, but the ability of both teams to squash the other out for most of this boxing match back and forth was quite impressive. The Patriots aren’t known for a dominant offense but they certainly have pieces on the defensive side to compete once they get a few more weapons on the offensive side.
- Jaylen Wright – Wright feels like the guy on the cusp of having a chance to break out. After Achane left the game early, he picked right up where they left off and looked to be an intriguing and exciting option for this offense. There was buzz for him the entire offseason and it’s hard not to see why now.
- Jonnu Smith – Jonnu Smith was on the Patriots up until last year, and while it didn’t feel quite like a “revenge game”, he had one of his most consistent games on the field, ending only one target behind Tyreek Hill.
Three Down
- Jacoby Brissett – Listen, I get it. He’s a great guy and a clubhouse leader, but there is absolutely zero reason to continue to have Jacoby Brissett continue to dole out mediocre game after mediocre game behind center. Drake Maye deserves at least to see what he has, and the sooner we see him the better.
- Patriots receiving core – This is one of the least impressive offerings for receivers we’ve seen in a while. There are a bunch of low-end #2 WR/high-end #3 wideouts, and while I feel like this makes Brissett look worse, it’s a “chicken or the football” type of conversation.
- De’Von Achane/the rotating injury theme in Miami – Poor Achane. One of the most enigmatic talents we’ve seen in a bit, every time he seems to get out ahead of the hype, he runs into an injury. It’s really unfortunate and not fair to him, as he could be a top-five rusher in the league. We need to find a way to see less head-to-head contact in this league.
Miami Dolphins
Quarterback
Tyler Huntley: 18/31, 1 INT | 3 carries, 7 rushing yards
You kind of find yourself feeling bad for Huntley. Someone who spent the beginning of their career behind Lamar Jackson got signed in street clothes and is now forced to try and live in the shadow of Tua. Huntley did a decent job of not losing the Dolphins games so far, but he’s not going to win many of them either. The Patriots’ defense did a solid enough job forcing him to get the ball out quickly, forcing the Dolphins to have someone like Hill play far closer to the line and unable to perform his usual route tree.
Running Back
Raheem Mostert: 19 carries, 80 yards | 2 targets, 2 receptions, 18 yards
Jaylen Wright: 13 carries, 86 yards
Alec Ingold: 1 carry, 3 yards, 1 TD
Devon Achane: 3 carries, 18 yards |1 rec, 1 target, -4 yards
The Dolphins have had a pretty solid set of options for rushers over the past few years, but the same issue of injuries just continues to arise. Achane looked spry and speedy and ended up getting hit helmet to helmet and getting brought to the ground in just the first quarter. Mostert got the immediate touches, but Wright looked a tad better and exceeded expectations (of which there were none for this game). He won’t see many receptions out of the backfield, as Mostert may, but he may end up locking up this job with Jeff Wilson unable to get out of team practice unharmed and Mostert having his share of injury woes in his prior life.
Of course, as this always goes, Alec Ingold, a fullback in theory, takes the lone touchdown that the Dolphins were able to take up today.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Tyreek Hill: 9 targets, 6 receptions, 69 yards
Jonnu Smith: 8 targets, 5 receptions, 62 yards
Jaylen Waddle: 8 targets, 4 receptions, 46 yards
Odell Beckham Jr.: 2 targets, 0 receptions
No one misses Tua more than these receivers. Huntley checked down, made short throws, and also threw an early-game pick that could have easily been avoided. He then almost threw another pick to Christian Gonzalez, if Hill hadn’t done his best center fielder impression. Hill mustered out a 69-yard effort on almost half of Huntley’s targets, while Smith and Mostert took almost all the remainder of the receptions in close-to-line receptions, trying to avoid the tenous pass rash at times. Don’t expect many fireworks, as one of the few deep pass targets taken to Jaylen Waddle was overthrown by roughly three yards out of bounds.
New England Patriots
Quarterback
Jacoby Brissett: 18/34, 160 yards | 1 carry, 10 yards
Brissett is not entirely the problem, but we’re learning he’s also not the solution. Playing the lead in a play where everyone knows the superior talent is just learning all their lines, we’re watching a slightly watered-down offensive scheme that can’t excite and often doesn’t lead us to a W. No interceptions were made during this performance, but not much was seen in this one, as we watched the team continue to move the ball only to require a field goal shot. With Brissett throwing consistent play-action and short passes to the players hovering near the line, this made the third-down offense look pretty rough, as Brissett couldn’t convert on half of his passes when going to third down.
Running Back
Rhamondre Stevenson: 12 carries, 89 yards, 1 TD | 4 targets, 4 receptions, 3 yards
Antonio Gibson: 6 carries, 52 yards | 1 target, 1 reception, 4 yards
The running game going into this game for New England was a total mystery, and predictably, it only got even more confusing as reporters were informed midway through the week that Stevenson likely wouldn’t start the game as the lead rusher, as he’s fumbled every game of the season before Week 5. Maybe the “benching” helped, as Stevenson only rushed 12 times to Antonio Gibson’s six, but he finished his off with a powerful 30-yard rush to paydirt and also kept the ball off the ground. It’s hard to see what they do in their next game, but it seems like this may lead us to another opportunity for Stevenson. Gibson was solid, as he almost averaged nine yards per carry, but Stevenson, with his solid performances, helped to remove pressure from Brissett’s pocket. If anything, this looks like a situation where we may continue to see a 75/25 split with Stevenson taking charge.
MONDRE makes people MISS!!@dreeday32 | #NEPats
📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/KCRJjzyqNq
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) October 6, 2024
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Demario Douglas: 9 targets, 6 receptions, 59 yards
Keyshawn Boutte: 2 targets, 2 receptions, 34 yards
Hunter Henry: 4 targets, 2 receptions, 32 yards
Ja’Lynn Polk: 6 targets, 1 reception, 13 yards
Austin Hooper: 3 targets, 1 reception, 9 yards
Kendrick Bourne: 1 target, 1 reception, 6 yards
The Patriots are throwing everything at the machine, hoping something will stick. Nothing seems to be doing it just yet, but we’ve found our number one receiver may be Demario “Pop” Douglas , and not anyone else. Brissett has found some form of comfort in passing to Douglas, as he was targeted nine times and found the most receiving yards in the game as well. While this has helped, there were times in which this game receiving-wise could have gone entirely differently. Just watching the last few minutes of the game was painful. With two different drives in the final four minutes of the game, Brissett showcased some late-game heroics that were unfortunately outweighed by some late-game blunders. Ja’Lynn Polk was a mere inch and a review call from taking the end-of-game lead. After a quick drive by the Dolphins returned the ball to the Patriots, Brissett made some great throws but inevitably threw a pass to Hunter Henry in the middle of the field without a single timeout left to stop the clock. This team can keep grinding, but there doesn’t seem to be much fantasy value remaining with this squad, for now.