Whilst I was really excited for the season, I can’t hide my disappointment of yesterday’s 20-7 loss to the Miami Dolphins. The Patriots fell behind in the first half to a 17-0 deficit and never recovered, plus they encountered some potentially serious injuries. Here are the ups & downs from week 1.
Ups ⬆️
Jakobi Meyers
Meyers turned out to be one of the few bright sparks in an otherwise dull day for the Patriots as he hauled in 4 catches for 55 yards. The stats don’t scream out a special game, but the catches were far from easy.
In a game which saw the offense really struggle, Meyers once again showed why he’s such an important commodity. A good game for him.
Matthew Judon + Deatrich Wise Jr.
Judon had the difficult task of competing against Terron Armstead all day, but, he shone through with a nice play to record his first sack of the season. The defensive rushing attack had some success yesterday which was encouraging to see.
Like Judon, Wise also flashed on a number of occasions and again stood out with his sack on Tua, which caused a fumble that was recovered by the Dolphins.
Downs ⬇️
Mac Jones
Mac had a disappointing game where he never really looked comfortable against a solid Miami defense. He started well on the opening drive of the game, before a deep shot to DeVante Parker was picked off.
Jones took a number of hits, which left us all concerned after the game as he went straight into the X-Ray room for examination on his back. Fortunatley, the tests were negative and he was experiencing back spasms.
I like to stay positive when I can, but, I do fear for this season a little already, with Mac’s availability up in the air for Week 2, it’s going to be a long week.
Offensive Line
I don’t think the line played well at all, Trent Brown didn’t seem all that interested or impactful, and our rookie first-rounder was benched early on after missing a block which led to a sack. The questions will start up again about whether or not the unit are getting clear instructions from Matt Patricia, who is also the defacto OC. If the O-line doesn’t get things in order quick, we might not have a starting QB for the entire season.
Nelson Agholor
I feel a little harsh putting Agholor on here, but ball security is one of the biggest priorities for Bill, and he fumbled what was a promising late drive, after a good catch from Kendrick Bourne. Agholor will come back from this, but it summed up an awful day for the Pats attack.