Not even the return of Tom Brady could save the New England Patriots from a Week 1 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
But they did get their own version of “Return of the Mac” with quarterback Mac Jones lighting things up with 316 passing yards, three touchdowns and only one interception.
Buy Patriots TicketsThe offense looked competent, the defense was dominant, and some rookies showed real promise in their first ever NFL game. This week, the Patriots turn their focus to the Miami Dolphins and one of the more dynamic NFL offenses they’ll see all year.
Tyreek Hill and Jalen Waddle are too extremely fast receivers that should give the Patriots’ secondary trouble. Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa threw for 466 yards last week in their victory over the Los Angeles Chargers.
If the Patriots wish to come out with a Sunday Night Football victory on national tv and prove the critics wrong, they’ll need to have a few things go their way.
Here are three keys to the game against the Dolphins.
1
Take away Tua Tagovailoa's first reads
Tagovailoa has one of the fastest releases in the entire NFL, and he also makes great initial reads. He is accurate and quick and has a lot of—dare I say—Drew Brees in his game.
The big questions around Tagovailoa is his health. He’s had trouble staying on the field consistently in his career. New England will have to find a way to slow him down, as his decision-making and anticipation make him a top quarterback when healthy.
The Patriots will need to do their homework to challenge Tagovailoa and take away his first read with jams and early brackets. That should give New England’s front-seven plenty of time to crash a banged-up Dolphins offensive line and create troubles for Mac Jones’ former teammate under center.
2
Mitigate deep shots
Miami likes to keep the defenses honest with deep shots to speedsters Hill and Waddle to inversely set up more intermediate routes by backing off safeties, who are forced to respect the speed.
The Patriots will need to get creative with no Devin McCourty in the defense. McCourty was a player who patrolled the deep parts of the field like no other. This year, the defense looks a little different, and they have their hands full. But they might be able to take the deep shots away without the need of shadowing Hill or Waddle over the top.
Bill Belichick has doubled Hill on almost 40 percent of his routes, typically with Jonathan Jones and McCourty over the top in previous years. This time, it’ll most likely be a combination of Jones, assuming he’s healthy enough to play, and safety Jalen Mills.
Rookie first-round draft pick Christian Gonzalez should see a ton of one-on-one work against Waddle in what will be his next big regular season test.
3
Pound the rock and utilize play action
Last week, the Patriots threw the ball 54 times against Philadelphia. Most of that had to do with poor offensive line play in the run game and more quick throws to mitigate the elite pass rush of the Eagles.
This Miami defense might not have the same pass rush, but they have more balance, despite their injuries.
For the Patriots to win this week, they’ll need to run the ball more than they did last week, getting Ezekiel Elliott and Rhamondre Stevenson involved. By doing so, it will take Miami out of their two high safety looks and allow the Patriots to run RPOs and play action pass, which are two things Mac Jones thrives in.
