The New England Patriots were defeated by the Miami Dolphins 24-17 on Sunday night in Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gilette Stadium

The Dolphins took a quick 10-0 lead early in the 2^nd quarter and extended the lead to 17-3 before halftime after Tua Tagovailoa threw a TD pass to Tyreek Hill. New England would charge back early in the 4^th quarter to close the deficit to 24-17.

After a missed field goal by Miami, the Patriots would get an opportunity to take the game late in the 4^th. On 1^st down while on the Miami 39 yard-line, Mac Jones was sacked by Bradley Chubb for 8 yards. Jones would then follow up with an incompletion on 2^nd down. On 3^rd and long, Jones completed a pass to Mike Gesicki for 14 yards. With the game on the line, Jones completed another pass to Gesicki, who was short of the 1^st down marker, so he pitched the ball to Cole Strange, but he was brought down inches short of the 1^st down ending the game.

With this win, Miami moves to 2-0 for the first time since 2018.

Miami’s Key Contributors

The Miami Dolphins were able to take this game behind their explosive offense and improved defense. Tagovailoa led the offense by going 21-30 on passes for 249 yards, 1 touchdown, and an interception. Running back Raheem Mostert also played a huge part on offense by racking up 121 yards on 18 carries and scoring 2 touchdowns.

The Dolphins defense kept Mac Jones under pressure throughout the game by totaling 4 sacks and 8 QB hits. Xavien Howard intercepted a pass intended for Devante Parker late in the 3^rd quarter in the red zone. He also recorded 6 tackles and a pass deflection.

New England’s Impact Players

For the New England Patriots, Mac Jones played another solid game. He completed 31 out of 42 passes for 231 yards, a TD, and an interception. Tight end Hunter Henry also shined for the 2^nd straight week, as he caught 6 passes for 52 yards and a TD.

On defense, rookie cornerback Christian Gonzalez continues to prove himself to be a rising star for the Patriots. He caught his 1^st career interception early in the 4^th quarter and added 6 tackles with a pass deflection.

Patriots Lingering Issues

New England’s injured offensive line continues to struggle. Last week against the Eagles they gave up 2 sacks and 7 QB hits. This week, with Cole Strange and Mike Onwenu returning to the lineup, they allowed 4 sacks and 8 QB hits.

“It’s part of this business there’s injuries”, said staring center David Andrews. “You got to take advantage of your reps at practice, take advantage of every opportunity. Appreciate Cole’s effort tonight coming back and really battling out there”.

“Look, it’s part of it there’s other teams in the league that have injuries and it’s a physical game”, said Andrews. “Who’s ever out there, me included, we got to be at our best every Sunday you only get 17 of them”.

Yet another week the Patriots come up short late in the game primarily because of mistakes made early in the game. New England’s first three possessions resulted in two punts and a Demario Douglas fumble, while being in scoring position. The Patriots only managed to score one field goal in the 1^st half after being in the Dolphins territory multiple times.

“We need to be a lot more disciplined”, said tight end Hunter Henry. “We’ve lost two weeks in a row [in] two close games. We fought back and had a chance there, but we’re putting ourselves in positions too early in games, like turning the ball over, both on their sides of the field”.

Next Up

Next week the Patriots our on the road for the 1st time this season, as they travel to take on the New York Jets on Sunday at 1:00 PM ET. Meanwhile, the Dolphins play their 1st home game this year, as they welcome the Denver Broncos to Miami on Sunday at 1:00 PM ET.