New England Patriots @ Miami Dolphins - Final thoughts

We wanted the Pats to show some flight and provide a response to the disappointing loss against Las Vegas and they did it against Miami. A powerful first half set them up to ensure they secured their first win of the season. Two Drake Maye touchdown passes in the first half, to Mack Hollins and Kayshon Boutte, laid a solid foundation and put the Pats in a good position to set the tempo and tone of the game from the outset and assisted them in winning the game.

Borregales woes continue

Borregales missed two extra points out of three and was perfect in his field goal attempts. I do not see this as a massive issue, plenty of great kickers have had rough starts but when Parker Romo is playing lights out in Atlanta, the question must be asked if Vrabel and the coaching staff made the correct decision. Would putting Borregales on the practice squad have been a terrible decision? I mean, no, because him and Romo were neck and neck in camp but I believe he would have been claimed if we did that so it was too risky at the time.

Run D / Secondary had problems again

Run defense worsened a little, giving up 5 yards more in total rushing than last week, and got burned on a couple of long runs, notably Malik Washington's 18-yard rush with the 4th play of the second quarter which was a key play in a scoring drive that got Miami on the scoreboard for the first time.

Secondary again had trouble and gave up some long receptions, including a 47-yard pass to Tyreek Hill. The defense is also giving up significant yards after catch which is killing any momentum they build up. I also can't stress how frustrating it is watching them fail to get off the field on third and long time and time again. We need Christian Gonzalez back ASAP.

Ball security remains a problem

Bradbury and Maye both fumbled and while they both recovered theirs but ball security is job security and we need to cut out the fumbles. Bradbury really needs to clean up the snaps too, some wayward ones yesterday and a week ago.

Maye performs well

Drake had an awesome game yesterday and zero turnovers which will do wonders for his confidence. Very happy with his reads and throws yesterday which were much better than the Las Vegas game, where he seemed rattled. His connections with Boutte, Diggs, and Henry will continue to help him also. Boutte wasn't utilized that much yesterday but when he was he was effective again which is great to see.

Another Special Teams masterclass

ST chipped in with a TD yesterday after a promising game again Vegas too. We absolutely can use the Special Teams unit chipping in with big plays and scores. This team isn't good enough in any one unit to rely on them so we need a team that is multi-dimensional. I am happy with the performance but again there are tougher tests ahead but the guys are, at least, headed in the right direction.