The New England Patriots' streak of 10 consecutive opening-day wins
has come to an end, with the Miami Dolphins picking up a 33-20 win in
SunLife Stadium on Sunday. Things started poorly for the Patriots with a blocked punt that the
Dolphins turned into a short touchdown drive. The Patriots turned the
tide in time to take a 20-10 lead into the locker room for halftime,
taking advantage of three Miami turnovers in the first half.The Patriots' poor trench play caught up to them, though. Quarterback
Tom Brady was sacked four times, the most ever for him in a
season-opener. The Patriots' defensive line was moved off the ball in
the running game, and could not get pressure on Dolphins quarterback
Ryan Tannehill. That led to the Dolphins scoring 23 unanswered points to
win 33-20.
The Patriots' resiliency will be tested with the loss in their opening game. As is the case in just about every game, several players stood out,
some for better reasons than others. Here's a look at which players
performed well and others who struggled.
Stock Up:
Rob Gronkowski: We knew Rob Gronkowski wouldn't play
every snap, but he managed to make an impact even in limited playing
time. He caught four of the 11 passes thrown his way, going 40 yards and
catching the Patriots' lone passing touchdown. Gronkowski played 23 of
47 snaps in the first half before playing only 15 of 39 snaps in the
second half.
Julian Edelman: The Patriots turned to Julian
Edelman frequently in 2013, and they may do so once again this season.
Not only did Edelman reel in six of eight passes in his direction for 95
yards, but he also took two carries on reverses for 21 yards. Not
surprisingly, all of Edelman's yards came in the first half.
Shane Vereen: The Patriots could have their goal
line back in Shane Vereen. He plowed ahead for the Patriots' lone
rushing touchdown of the game behind some good blocks by the interior of
the Patriots' offensive line. It appears Vereen will once again be a
big part of the offensive game plan, as he accounted for 12 touches and
71 total yards of offense.
Stock Down:
Offensive line: There's no one person to blame for
the offensive line struggles against the Dolphins, it was a group
effort. As mentioned, Brady was sacked four times and hit many more. The
Patriots went to a lot of screens early, perhaps an indication that
they had an inclination that their offensive line might struggle.
Defensive line: The Patriots have been running more
3-4 defensive looks this preseason, and that continued on Sunday. There
will be more than a little second-guessing after the Patriots' poor
effort up front against the Dolphins. Knowshon Moreno and Lamar Miller
combined for 193 rushing yards, and the Patriots were moved off the ball
time after time like it was 2013 all over again. Vince Wilfork and
Jerod Mayo were expected to provide some assistance in that area, but
neither had the kind of impact that moves the needle.
Punt team: There was a bad feeling about this game
from an early stage, mainly as a result of Danny Aiken's low snap to
punter Ryan Allen that resulted in the first blocked punt of Allen's
career. Allen also had a bad punt that resulted in a 16-yard return by
rookie Jarvis Landry.
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