Pats Cut Miamis Lead : 02 Pm
The Patriots needed a quick score, and Hunter Henry gave the New England offense a bit of a jolt. He jumpstarted the drive with a nice reception. The series ended with an 18-yard touchdown reception for Brandon Bolden. Its 27-17 with 6:32 to go. This is still a winnable game for the Patriots, but the margin for error has shrunk to just about zero.
Brandon Bolden scores again. fighting to stay alive in the AFC East race. #ForeverNE
NFL
New England Making A Run : 18 Pm
Good quick drive there by Jones and the Patriots. A 39-yard throw-and-catch between Jones and Meyers one of the nicest plays of the day got the Patriots into Miami territory. Harris and Henry also picked up some quality yardage to get New England into Miamis red zone. A DPI on Byron Jones put the Patriots at the 1-yard line, and Harris punched it in for his first touchdown of the day.
Damien Harris powers in to make it a 3-point game! #ForeverNE
Its 27-24 with 2:53 to go. Again, this is still a winnable game for New England, but the Patriots have to get a stop here.
Poor Starts Are A Huge Issue
The Patriots were outscored 38-7 in the first quarter over their last four games. They trailed 14-0 at the end of the first quarter in two of those matchups — Week 15 vs. Colts and Week 18 vs. Dolphins.
The only game during that span in which New England had a lead after the first quarter was in Week 17 versus the Jaguars. The Patriots led 7-3 en route to a 50-10 victory. Aside from the Jaguars game, the early deficit was too much for the Patriots to overcome each time.
The Pats fell behind by two scores just nine minutes into Sunday’s game when Dolphins cornerback Xavien Howard intercepted Patriots quarterback Mac Jones and ran it back for a touchdown.
OH MY, ! â
Miami Dolphins
Bad starts are a huge concern for the Patriots entering the playoffs, whether they play the Bills or Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC Wild Card Round. Each team has a star quarterback and an elite wide receiver as part of an explosive offense.
New England, as a run-first team with a rookie quarterback, is not built to overcome large deficits and beat quality opponents. If the Patriots have another lackluster start next weekend, their season will come to a disappointing end.
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Nfl Schedules Changes: Patriots Week 18 Game Vs Dolphins Moved To : 25 Pm
New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick AP
Fans will have to wait a little bit longer to watch the New England Patriots close out the regular season.
Monday morning, the NFL released a series of schedule changes for the final week of the regular season, moving a good number of games to the 4:25 p.m. lot. Among those games affected was the Patriots Week 18 matchup against the Miami Dolphins, which will air on TV via CBS.
The Patriots were originally scheduled to play at 1 p.m., the same time as a number of their AFC playoff rivals. By the time New England kicks off in Miami on Sunday, the team will know the results of a number of games that will affect their playoff positioning, including the Titans vs. the Texans and the Steelers vs. the Ravens.
Meanwhile, the Buffalo Bills regular-season finale against the New York Jets was also moved to 4:25 so as to let the battle for the AFC East to finish at the same time. The Patriots still have a shot at a division title if they beat the Dolphins and if Buffalo loses to New York.
Mondays schedule changes also featured the league moving two games to Saturday, Jan. 9. At 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, the Kansas City Chiefs will face the Denver Broncos on ESPN. Then at 8:15 p.m. on Saturday, the Dallas Cowboys will play the Philadelphia Eagles on ESPN/ABC.
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Dolphins Sweep Patriots As New England Heads To Playoffs As Wild
The Dolphins season is over, but they went out on a high note. Miami swept the Patriots for the first time since 2000.
The Dolphins opened the season with a 17-16 victory over the Patriots. They ended the season with a 33-24 victory over New England.
The Patriots needed a win and a Bills loss to the Jets to clinch the division title, and neither happened. New England heads to the postseason as a wild-card team.
The Dolphins miss the playoffs for a fifth consecutive season despite winning eight of their final nine games after a 1-7 start. They finished with a winning record for the second consecutive season.
Duke Johnson rushed for 117 yards and a touchdown on 25 attempts as the Dolphins rushed for 195 yards.
Tua Tagovailoa completed 15 of 22 passes for 109 yards and a touchdown. He also had five carries for 38 yards, including an 11-yarder for a first down with 1:48 left. Jaylen Waddle caught five passes for 27 yards and a touchdown.
The Patriots had three turnovers, including two by quarterback Mac Jones, and had eight penalties for 78 yards. Jones finished 20-of-30 for 261 yards with a touchdown and an interception. He also lost a fumble on a bad exchange with backup center Ted Karras after David Andrews had an equipment problem.
Xavien Howard returned an interception 37 yards for a touchdown on the Patriots first possession.
Hunter Henry caught five passes for 86 yards.
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Players The Patriots Need To Play Well To Beat The Dolphins
PHILADELPHIA, PA AUGUST 19: Head coach Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots talks to Mac Jones #10 against the Philadelphia Eagles in the first half of the preseason game at Lincoln Financial Field on August 19, 2021 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Patriots defeated the Eagles 35-0.
Another year, and another seemingly new era in New England. Mac Jones and the Patriots will have to be on top of their game to take down the Dolphins.
For the second consecutive year, the New England Patriots will have a new quarterback under center to start the season.
Rookie Mac Jones will be leading the Patriots offense in Foxboro against the Miami Dolphins. What will the Patriots need to do to beat their division rivals? Here are five players that will need to play well for the Patriots to beat Miami.
New England Patriots To Play On Saturday Of Nfl Wild Card Weekend
- to copyLink copied!
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FOXBOROUGH, Mass.
The New England Patriots will have one less day to prepare for their upcoming playoff game.
The NFL announced late Sunday evening that the Patriots will play their Wild Card Weekend playoff game this upcoming Saturday night against the Buffalo Bills.
Kickoff for the primetime rematch against the division rival Bills is slated for 8:15 p.m.
The Patriots playoff road was decided early Monday morning, when the Las Vegas Raiders beat the Los Angeles Chargers. The game was decided on the final play of overtime.
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Miami On The Board : 39 Pm
A few notes from that initial drive:
-Good job by Tua on that series, particularly in the passing game. No hesitation at all. Waddle is a really terrific target for him. Ended with a 7-yard pass to Waddle that made it 7-0 with 7:34 left in the first quarter. An efficient 13-play drive that took almost a half of the opening quarter.
Tua to Waddle! #FinsUp
NFL
-Waddle set a new NFL rookie record in the early going with his 102nd catch on the season, breaking Anquan Boldins old mark.
-Looks like Jamie Collins is getting a lot of Dona Hightowers reps in the middle, at least to start the game.
-Miami is wearing one of the best throwback uniforms in league history the old Dolphins look is just so sharp. Love them.
Folk Good From 43 : 20 Pm
I guess Rhamondre Stevenson is OK. After leaving with a head injury in the first half, he has returned to the game, and helped power the New England ground attack here early in the second half. Ultimately, that was a good start to the third quarter for the Patriots, as a three-pointer from Nick Folk from 43 yards was straight down the middle. Its 17-10 a one-score game with 8:27 to go in the third quarter.
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Since Brian Flores defected from the Patriots to be the Dolphins head coach in 2019, the two teams have met five times. The Dolphins are 3-2 in those games, winning two straight. On Sunday, the Dolphins will look to make it three consecutive wins over the Patriots at home.
With the AFC East title, plus postseason seeding on the line, Bill Belichick will surely up his game in the season finale. Flores and Belichick know each other well. However, I dont expect many tricks up Belichicks sleeve. He will attack his former assistant with what the Patriots do best, which is run the football and play sound defense.
- Check out our Patriots vs Dolphins Prop Bets
The Dolphins offense is a bottom 12 unit almost across the board. However, their one bright spot is passing yards, where they are ranked 15th.
Expect a heavy dose of Harris and Rhamondre Stevenson on Sunday afternoon.
Cbs Sports: Patriots Favored Over Dolphins In Week 18 Game
Tyler Sullivan writes: “The Patriots clinched a playoff spot in Week 17, but there is still plenty to play for in Week 18 as they could still win the division and there’s even an outside chance of leaping back up to the No. 1 seed in the AFC. With those stakes laid out there, this spread has moved up to Patriots -6.5 as they travel down to Miami to face the Dolphins, who were eliminated from the playoffs this weekend. Miami has played well at home as of late as they are 4-1 ATS in its last five games at Hard Rock Stadium, but New England has also been solid on the road and has covered in eight of its previous 10 games.”
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Has Mac Jones Hit The Rookie Wall
Mac Jones had a solid rookie campaign overall, but he finished the regular season with several lackluster performances in December/January.
Perhaps the Alabama product has hit a rookie wall. He’s played 17 games with the Patriots, four more than he did for the Crimson Tide last season.
Jones threw six touchdowns with five interceptions over the final four games of the regular season. He also wasn’t as accurate as he showed through the first 13 games.
Here’s a look at his stats during the last four games.
| Week | |
| 1 | 1 |
Jones’ struggles of late are not a good sign for the Patriots with the postseason soon to begin. He needs to raise his game another level and protect the football better for the Patriots to reach the AFC Divisional Round.
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Draft Kings: Patriots Will Cover Vs Dolphins In Week 18
Teddy Ricketson writes: “The Patriots are still in contention for the AFC East crown and they need a win against the Dolphins and Buffalo Bills loss to the New York Jets for it to happen. The Dolphins have been eliminated from playoff contention and are playing for pride. This matchup wraps up the regular season and these teams actually started the 2021 season facing off. In that game, the Dolphins came away with a 17-16 win. I dont think they will see the same result here as the Patriots’ defense is one of the best in the league. Patriots win AND they cover.”
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Prediction Or Nat Moore Was No Stanley Morgan
Its been 17 weeks since the Patriots lost to the Dolphins, but that opening defeat still follows them to some degree.
Had they won that game and presuming everything afterward occurred in the way and order that it did they would be entering this weekend with an 11-5 record and holding the inside track at the No. 1 seed.
Instead, theyre almost certainly going to end up as a wild-card team. One loss can make such a difference, and the first one of the season lingers.
The Patriots were sloppy that entire game, fumbling four times , going 1 for 4 in the red zone, and committing eight penalties. The defense also failed to pick up the offense and get a stop after Harriss miscue.
Its important Sunday that the Patriots show that they have permanently minimized the physical and mental mistakes that plagued them in the opener, and at assorted other times this season, including against the Bills just two weeks ago.
There wont be many surprises. The Patriots know the Dolphins will blitz Jones. The Dolphins know the Patriots will try to establish the run. The Patriots defense should have little trouble containing the Dolphins offense, which averages just 85.8 rushing yards per game. They know that Tagovailoa will depend on Waddle and unheralded tight end Mike Gesicki in a limited passing game.
Chad Finn can be reached at . Follow him on Twitter .
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What Happens If The Colts Lose : 23 Pm
Its 23-3 Jacksonville in the fourth quarter. While an Indy loss doesnt necessarily have an impact on New Englands playoff chances/seeding, the idea of the Colts suffering a season-ending defeat to a truly ghastly team like the Jags should bring a smile to the faces of New England fans all offseason. Oh yeah? Well, at least we didnt lose to Jacksonville.
Trevor Lawrence to Marvin Jones!!!!The Jacksonville lead 23-3!
NFL
Patriots Vs Dolphins Predictions Week 18
Posted: Jan 4, 2022Last updated: Jan 7, 2022
The New England Patriots will visit the Miami Dolphins in NFL Week 18. This upcoming Patriots-Dolphins meeting is slated for Sunday afternoon with a 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff on CBS.
We are entering NFL Week 18. While some games will have heavy playoff implications, others will not. Unfortunately, the Patriots-Dolphins game features one team with a playoff spot locked up and one club already eliminated .
While the Dolphins are out of it, they can still play spoiler to their AFC East rival Patriots to an extent. Exiting Week 17, the Patriots have secured the No. 5 seed in the AFC. However, seeding can change depending on how Week 18 falls out.
If the Kansas City Chiefs lose to the Denver Broncos, the Buffalo Bills lose to the New York Jets, and the Tennessee Titans lose to the Houston Texans, while the Patriots are victorious over the Dolphins, New England would then earn the coveted No. 1 seed, which includes home-field throughout the playoffs and a first-round bye.
It is not an easy road for New England to get the division title or the top seed, but the Patriots will be playing in a meaningful football game in Week 18. The Dolphins want to spoil the party.
Expect all starters on both sides to see a full game of action.
All NFL gameday odds are courtesy of Caesars Sportsbook and current as of 1:30 p.m. ET on Friday, January 7.
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Is This Tagovailoas Final Dolphins Start
This year has been one to forget for the Miami offense. Its struggles have led to the 27th-ranked offense in yards per drive and 28th in points per drive.
The biggest issue for this offense has been its play in the trenches. Per PFF, the Dolphins ranked fourth-worst in run blocking and worst in pass blocking. Against tougher defensive fronts these past two weeks, the flaws have shown even more. Miamis offense has scored just one touchdown and three field goals.
The No. 1 victim of the Dolphins blocking problems has been quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. Per Pro-Football-Reference, the Dolphins are tied for the second-lowest pocket time. This makes evaluating if the young quarterback should be their future or not difficult. Unfortunately, with the offseason approaching, this could be Tagovailoas last chance to prove himself to the Dolphins.
Coming into the year, the expectations for this team were mostly on the defense, and it did not disappoint. At first look, the defense looks middle of the pack because of its points and yards allowed per game. However, on a per-drive basis, its ranks in yards and points allowed jump to the top eight. Had Miamis offense been able to keep it off the field a little, we may be judging this defense differently.
