The New England Patriots had an opportunity to solidify a first round bye if they could simply defeat the once-hapless Miami Dolphins at Gillette Stadium, and they came up short. The offense was terrible. The defense was bad. The coaches failed to make adjustments and appeared to surrender prior to halftime.
What went wrong? Were there any positives?
The success of the running game was perhaps the lone bright spot for a Patriots offense that included a pick-six and featured a touchdown to a former linebacker out of necessity. There is not a lot of trust among Tom Brady and his skill players, and now they don't have a week to allow Julian Edelman to heal.
And on defense, Defensive Player of the Year candidate Stephon Gilmore was picked apart by Ryan Fitzpatrick and DeVante Parker, the latter of whom Gilmore held catchless in the first match-up. When the game was on the line, the defense couldn't stop the Dolphins from marching down the field.
And the coaching...what was going through their head before halftime?
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