Miami Dolphins vs. New England Patriots: An Outright Disaster

A Dolfan Diaries Entry.

They are who I thought they were.

My feelings on the New England Patriots.

The box score indicates a dominating Patriots victory, but watching the game itself tells a different story.

Instead the game started out looking like it should've been a Dolphins blow out. They dominated time of possession, they were able to pick and choose what plays to run and run them successfully, almost like playing Madden on rookie level.

Ricky to the right. Ronnie to the left. Bess converting 3rd downs like they were going out of style.

But then came the screw ups.

First there was bringing in the wild cat on 3rd and 6 at midfield. You know by now how I feel about the wildcat. Based on the poll taken last week, you feel the same way too. Yet they run it, it failed. 

And thankfully we never saw it again.

Then came a Pats 3 and out, followed by another Dolphins long drive, this time for a touchdown.

7-0 Dolphins.

Another Pats 3 and out follows, then another great Dolphins drive ended by a poor decision by Chad Henne.

Now look, I love Chad Henne, I think he's the future, he has the ability and poise to be a great quarterback in the NFL. 

But Chad, listen. If you're throwing it to Brandon Marshall, throw it up. He's taller than most players on the field, and has the vertical leap to jump up and get it.

Instead he throws it low, interception.

Pats drive but only get a field goal. 

Dolphins 7, Patriots 3.

Another good drive, Ricky was even an ankle grab away from a touchdown. But again Chad Henne telegraphs who he's going to throw it too. Another interception, leading to another Patriots field goal, followed by halftime.

Dolphins 7, Patriots 6. Halftime.

Now lets look at each Dolphins first half drive: punt, TD, int, int. Four drives, time of possession: 13 minutes, 45 seconds.

Then it really got bad, and the special teams started to screw up.

First a 103 yard kickoff return by Ben Tate.

Dolphins 7, Patriots 13.

No biggie, just march on offense like you did in the first half right?

Nope, 3 and out. Ok no big deal just punt it away and force a 3 and out from them get the ball back and-

$#*! Blocked Punt!

An easy score for the Pats.

Dolphins 7 Patriots 20.

Then came some signs of life. The offense chewed its way up the field like they're capable of, leading to a Ricky Williams TD pass.

Dolphins 14 Patriots 20.

Within one score, just stop them Defense, oh no, Woodhead? Who the hell is this guy and why is he tearing apart our defense?

Dolphins 14 Patriots 27.

And that would be the last offensive touchdown scored by the Patriots all game. Oh it was also the FIRST offensive touchdown scored by the Patriots all day. Let's just say that the defense isn't responsible for this loss.

But hey, 15 minutes left, there's still a shot. Then came the blocked field goal for a touchdown, and this point I'm at right now: starting to write this article because the momentum is clearly on the Patriots side, the Dolphins fans are clearing Sun Life stadium faster than a gang would clear a murder scene, and I want to go to bed before 1am tonight and the information is still fresh.

Dolphins 14 Patriots 34.

So as I'm thinking of a headline and how to start this article (ok all I did was click on write next to my name and stare while hoping for the second coming of the Monday Night Miracle) The Dolphins start to drive again. So far, so good, even though we need three touchdowns. Finally they go for it on fourth and 2, just, why pass it? 

So its back on the defense, who force the Pats, not exactly playing to waste clock but to score again, into a 3 and out. Boom goes the punt, another chance right?

Instead of trying to score as quick as possible, they just took what the defense gave them. Yet still managed to give them a pick-6.

Dolphins 14 Patriots 41.

Game over and I begin writing. Now here I am, a good twenty minutes after this game is over, on this paragraph, figuring out what to say.

Really its this simple. The Patriots didn't beat Miami tonight. The Dolphins beat Miami. It should've been at least 21-0 at halftime. Henne was driving on both drives before both key mistakes. If its 21-0 at halftime, I'm almost certain that the Pats don't hang 35 points on the phins, mainly through defense and special teams.

As for the Dolphins special teams? They need to fix that. And I mean yesterday. In two weeks they get two punts blocked and a field goal blocked, along with a few great kick off returns and punt returns, and now that Chicago Bears game scares the crap out of me because if the Bears decide to use Hester as a punt returner than he'll be worth a good 21 points on his own.

Now what's the ceiling for this Dolphins team? My keyboard gently weeps as I type this but...

8-8.

And I picked them to win the AFC this year. Boy, do I feel like an idiot. 

Now there's a bye week, then the Packers, Steelers, Bengals, Ravens, Titans and Bears. 

They could be 2-8 by then.

Sorry fellow dolfans but, its not looking too good. I wish I could provide more hope, and more optimism, well, I'll try.

The Defense was solid today, the offense chewed up the field. Brandon Marshall and Chad Henne still need to get more accustomed to each other, and Henne is still 9-9 all time in his career. If he can cut down on dumb INT's than he'll be what I expect.

Like I stated at the begining of this article, the Patriots were what I thought they were, on defense.

But the Dolphins were terrible on special teams, and in the end, that killed us. Let the record show however that this game was winnable, and should've been a blow out on our side.

Maybe this bye week will allow the Dolphins to learn how to close out drives and close out teams.

And maybe my dream, my prediction, will come to fruition.

Thomas Galicia is a die-hard dolphins fan and will continue his Dolfan Diaries Series throughout the year. You could read his archive here. Leave a comment and tell him and the rest of the world what good you could find from this game and if the Dolphins are as screwed as Tom seems to think they are. Follow him on twitter, @thomasgalicia.