Stephen Gostkowski before taking the field for his missed attempt of a 39 yard field goal.
By now you know that the Patriots held onto their lead against Miami after losing quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to a shoulder injury. Backup Jacoby Brissett came in and held his own with help from some spectacular running by LeGarrette Blount. So what else happened?
Missed Field Goal- One of the story-lines of the day was the missed field goal by kicker Stephen Gostkowski. While a miss from Gostkowski doesn't happen very often, I saw this one coming a mile way. No, it wasn't because the Patriots gave up on their offense and were happy with going for three to get their lead back up to double digits. It was the look on Gostkowski's face as he was taking the field. While you may have thought these pictures were of Gostkowski after he missed the chip shot, they are actually from while he was taking the field. While I don't know what he was thinking before the snap, in my head I was thinking that he might be mad that they went left on their third down play instead of running toward the center of the field. In that close, a kick from the left hash would be more difficult to make.
Defense- Amazing in the first half causing three 3 and outs and two turnovers. Second half, missed tackles, missed opportunities, etc. Malcolm Butler was target six times and each target led to a completion. Rookie Justin Coleman didn't look much better.
Duron Harmon- While his interception at the end of the game was huge and secured the win, it wasn't really necessary and was actually a little dangerous. With it being fourth down, all Harmon had to do was make sure it wasn't a completion and the game would be in the bag. Since he was making a play on the ball at its peak in the back of the end zone, a safer decision would have been to knock it out of bounds. By making a catch over Miami's DeVante Parker, he was putting the possibility of a simultaneous catch into play. According to Article 3 Item 5, a simultaneous catch goes to the offense. Although it was clear that Harmon was the player making the catch and Parker was trying to wrestle the ball away, had Parker been able to show mutual possession at the end of the play, we all know how Goodell's zebras would have ruled.
Defense- Amazing in the first half causing three 3 and outs and two turnovers. Second half, missed tackles, missed opportunities, etc. Malcolm Butler was target six times and each target led to a completion. Rookie Justin Coleman didn't look much better.
Duron Harmon- While his interception at the end of the game was huge and secured the win, it wasn't really necessary and was actually a little dangerous. With it being fourth down, all Harmon had to do was make sure it wasn't a completion and the game would be in the bag. Since he was making a play on the ball at its peak in the back of the end zone, a safer decision would have been to knock it out of bounds. By making a catch over Miami's DeVante Parker, he was putting the possibility of a simultaneous catch into play. According to Article 3 Item 5, a simultaneous catch goes to the offense. Although it was clear that Harmon was the player making the catch and Parker was trying to wrestle the ball away, had Parker been able to show mutual possession at the end of the play, we all know how Goodell's zebras would have ruled.
LeGarrette Blount- Remember when people thought Blount might not make the team this year and was all washed up? Well, maybe they need a job with the Steelers. Blount looks great. While the Dolphins knew Blount was getting the ball, they still couldn't stop him from having a stellar second half. When he wasn't going through the defense, he was going over.
Joe Thuney- The rookie had some inopportune holding calls. Hopefully, he can get things figured out.
On-field Call Changes- While the final calls may have been the correct call, the Dolphins were twice rewarded with an on-field call change. One was the picking up of a flag for setting an illegal pick on the offense. The second was for a sideline catch which was originally ruled out of bounds.
On-field Call Changes- While the final calls may have been the correct call, the Dolphins were twice rewarded with an on-field call change. One was the picking up of a flag for setting an illegal pick on the offense. The second was for a sideline catch which was originally ruled out of bounds.
If you like what you've read here, share with your friends and follow @BOSsportschick on twitter
RSS Feed
