Dolphins vs. Patriots: What We Learned in New England's 27-24 Win over Miami

The New England Patriots faced a 17-0 deficit at the end of the first half against the Miami Dolphins, but were able to overcome the deficit for the 27-24 win at home in their Christmas Eve showdown.

It marked the first time since 2002 that the Patriots were able to overcome such a large halftime deficit to win the game.

It wasn't a pretty win, but those are the ones you learn and take away the most from. So what did we learn this week about the Pats?

Erik Frenz is the co-host of the PatsPropaganda and Frenz podcast. Follow Erik onTwitter.

Tom Brady Breaks Yet Another Record

Brady has broken plenty of records in his time, including touchdown passes in a single season and consecutive passes thrown without an interception.

Now, Brady holds another record: he is the first player in NFL history to post three seasons with 36 or more touchdown tosses. He was previously tied with Brett Favre, Dan Marino and Kurt Warner, who all have two.

The score came on a one-yard pass to Deion Branch in the back of the end zone on third down.

Another note: Brady scored a rushing touchdown in the third quarter, giving him back-to-back games with a rushing touchdown for the first time in his career. His fourth quarter rushing touchdown also marked the second time in his career with two rushing touchdowns.

Slow Starts Continue for Patriots Offense

The biggest problems New England faced versus Miami were in pass protection, as the Dolphins got to Brady three times in the first half. That resulted in Brady completing just three of his 14 attempts in the first 30 minutes of play, and just 37 yards for the first quarter.

New England's five drives in the first half resulted in 107 total yards and zero points. A tremendous amount of pressure by the Dolphins, including sacks from Yeremiah Bell, Karlos Dansby and Jason Taylor, messed with Tom Brady's rhythm and rendered the Pats offense paralyzed.

For only the second time this season, the Patriots were held scoreless in the first half. The last time was against the Giants.

Zoltan Mesko also had six punts in the first half, surpassing his season-high total of five in a full game. The previous high? Also against the Giants.

This is just further proof that the Patriots need a great day from their offense if they want to do damage in January, and further affirmation to those who were concerned a good defense could put the breaks on the New England offense.

But it wasn't all bad for New England...

Costly Mistakes Give the Patriots New Life

Down 17-3 in the third quarter, New England looked poised for loss No. 4 on the season.

As has been the case for much of the season though, the opponent let the Pats back into the game with a costly mishap at the most inopportune time. 

This one came in the form of a fumbled center-to-quarterback exchange. Vince Wilfork fell onto the ball and the Patriots were set up with a short field at the Dolphins 38-yard line. 

Another costly mistake came on a poorly-thrown ball by Matt Moore that was made even more egregious by the severe wind in New England.

Devin McCourty was able to position himself perfectly for an interception, taking away a Miami scoring opportunity and marking his first interception of the season.

Patriots Will Need to Count on Defensive Stars in the Playoffs

The Patriots got big a huge defensive performance in the second half as they were able to limit the Dolphins to just seven points. That performance came in large part at the hands of Devin McCourty and Jerod Mayo.

McCourty was able to grab his first interception of the season, making up for the nullified pick two weeks ago against the Redskins by a dubious penalty on defensive end Andre Carter.

And with Carter out, the Patriots will need a big performance from the rest of the D-line. Against Miami, Shaun Ellis was the one to step up with his first sack of the season, and as a team, the Pats picked up a season-high five sacks.

Mayo also got in on the action with his first sack of the season on a key third-down play in the fourth quarter, giving the Patriots the ball back with a three-point lead and under seven minutes remaining in the game. The linebacker's 13 tackles were a team high.

Second Half Adjustments and Better Protection Give Patriots a Lift

Again, the lack of protection on the offensive line gave Brady the biggest fits in the first half. Brady was sacked three times in the first half, and had a hard time finding rhythm.

He was sacked just once in the second half, however, as the Patriots found new life to overcome the 17-point deficit.

At one point in the third quarter, New England's entire O-line was comprised of substitutes from last year, with Nate Solder, Donald Thomas, Dan Connolly, Brian Waters and Marcus Cannon. But that combination proved to be enough. It was only when they finally started getting protection that the offense was able to find a rhythm and get the ball moving. 

A lot of the credit can also go to offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien, who made some great halftime adjustments to not only get Tom Brady more time in the pocket, but also to get his playmakers in better position to make plays, as they were able to draw in some routes to beat man coverage.

The Patriots were able to rack up 393 total yards and 27 points on offense in the second half, and were able to make adjustments against a Dolphins defense that has played much better down the stretch and proved in the first half that they are capable of slowing down a high-powered offense.

Side Note: Patriots Clinch First-Round Bye

With the Week 16 win, the Patriots clinched a first-round bye in the AFC playoffs. Their 12-3 record assures them of that much.

With a win or a Steelers loss next week, the Patriots can clinch the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC.

This also marks New England's ninth straight season with 10 or more wins, and ninth season out of the past 10 as AFC East champs.