I think this loss is great news (hear me out)

[NG Pats Fan]

I know many will disagree with me(And I understand the major concerns for the O and D Lines) but I feel like this team still lacks a major offensive gamechanger at the WR position. A guy who is so dangerous he can take it to the house everytime he touches the ball(Two examples Percy Harvin and Cordarelle Patterson). We do not have that explosive weapon at WR. How many times have you seen our offense hit a stall at some point in the game, and all they need is that game changing play? Well we do not have that weapon at WR to change the game with one play. What I would give for a Demaryious Thomas level playmaker. I think it would take our offensive to another level, a championship level, and it will cover up for our O line deficiencies.

Our Offense is too predictable once again. We have no home run threats, and when opposing defenses realize that, they shut down our short game and force us to throw deep. We have no one to threaten the opposing defense over the top(Outside of a injured Aaron Dobson, who hasn't shown enough yet)

 

[Mogamedogz]

Rob Ninkovich has done this several times.

Yea, Rob is the closest thing we have to a consistent play maker. And that scares me.

 

[NG Pats Fan]

" We also need to figure out the defense quickly or Adrian Peterson will destroy us."

A Peterson? What about C Patterson? Cordarelle Patterson was one of my favorite players coming out of college. I'll say it again, he is the most dangerous player in the NFL with the ball in his hands. He can return kicks for Tds, catch balls for tds, or break long end a rounds for Tds(Like today 3 rush for 102 yards, 67 yard Td).

 

[Brady6]

I know many will disagree with me(And I understand the major concerns for the O and D Lines) but I feel like this deep still lacks a major offensive gamechanger at the WR position. A guy who is so dangerous he can take it to the house everytime he touches the ball(Two examples Percy Harvin and Cordarelle Patterson). We do not have that explosive weapon at WR. How many times have you seen our offense hit a stall at some point in the game, and all they need is that game changing play? Well we do not have that weapon at WR to change the game with one play. What I would give for a Demaryious Thomas level playmaker. I think it would take our offensive to another level, a championship level, and it will cover up for our O line deficiencies.

Our Offense is too predictable once again. We have no home run threats, and when opposing defenses realize that, they shut down our short game and force us to throw deep. We have no one to threaten the opposing defense over the top(Outside of a injured Aaron Dobson, who hasn't shown enough yet)

I really do not believe Harvin brings anything to the field that Edelman does not. Patterson you have a valid point, a big explosive WR, but we could not have him and make that draft day trade.

 

[203Pat]

" We also need to figure out the defense quickly or Adrian Peterson will destroy us."

A Peterson? What about C Patterson? Cordarelle Patterson was one of my favorite players coming out of college. I'll say it again, he is the most dangerous player in the NFL with the ball in his hands. He can return kicks for Tds, catch balls for tds, or break long end a rounds for Tds(Like today 3 rush for 102 yards, 67 yard Td).

He worries me as well but we made Knowshon Moreno look like Jim Brown.

 

[NG Pats Fan]

"I really do not believe Harvin brings anything to the field that Edelman does not"

Harvin brings speed to the game that Edelman cannot come close to matching.

 

[Froob]

Eh, tired about hearing the "last time_____ Patriots won the Super Bowl." Vikings could very well beat us next week if our lines play like absolute **** again. We don't have Scar anymore to fix this line and as a wise man once said "When you plant ish seeds you get ish weeds."

 

[Mogamedogz]

I know many will disagree with me(And I understand the major concerns for the O and D Lines) but I feel like this deep still lacks a major offensive gamechanger at the WR position. A guy who is so dangerous he can take it to the house everytime he touches the ball(Two examples Percy Harvin and Cordarelle Patterson). We do not have that explosive weapon at WR. How many times have you seen our offense hit a stall at some point in the game, and all they need is that game changing play? Well we do not have that weapon at WR to change the game with one play. What I would give for a Demaryious Thomas level playmaker. I think it would take our offensive to another level, a championship level, and it will cover up for our O line deficiencies.

Our Offense is too predictable once again. We have no home run threats, and when opposing defenses realize that, they shut down our short game and force us to throw deep. We have no one to threaten the opposing defense over the top(Outside of a injured Aaron Dobson, who hasn't shown enough yet)

You wont see another stud WR in this offense so long as BB is here IMO. He puts very little value on the position and the draft picks he's made have for the most part ended up being JAGs. Jury is still out on Dobson, but I wouldnt bet a buck that he's turning into any sort of elite player.

 

[NG Pats Fan]

I don't think any NFL Player,Fan or Coach would rate Julian Edelman on the same level as Percy Harvin.

 

[Saint Pat]

All we need is Tom Jackson saying that the Patriots Players hate Bill Belichick then the team is on the way to another Super Bowl win.

 

[Rob0729]

I know many will disagree with me(And I understand the major concerns for the O and D Lines) but I feel like this deep still lacks a major offensive gamechanger at the WR position. A guy who is so dangerous he can take it to the house everytime he touches the ball(Two examples Percy Harvin and Cordarelle Patterson). We do not have that explosive weapon at WR. How many times have you seen our offense hit a stall at some point in the game, and all they need is that game changing play? Well we do not have that weapon at WR to change the game with one play. What I would give for a Demaryious Thomas level playmaker. I think it would take our offensive to another level, a championship level, and it will cover up for our O line deficiencies.

Our Offense is too predictable once again. We have no home run threats, and when opposing defenses realize that, they shut down our short game and force us to throw deep. We have no one to threaten the opposing defense over the top(Outside of a injured Aaron Dobson, who hasn't shown enough yet)

Patterson has done it for like two or three games. Let's not overrate the guy. Let's see him be a game changer for a season. He had an impressive run today (67 yards for a TD), but he wasn't much of a factor in the passing game today (3 catches for 26 yards). Last year, he was a great kick returner and a mediocre offensive player except for a game or two at the end of the season.

And Gronk is a game changer. He just needs to get healthier/game ready and that will come with a little more experience. And before you say you can't count on him for an entire season, you can't count on Harvin either.

 

[TriplecHamp]

Revis is a GREAT defensive player, and he brings a ton of help to the unit overall, but I wouldnt classify him as a play maker. He's usually so good that QB's throw away from him (even if he didnt play his best game today).

And Jamie Collins?? Really?? Is that who we are hanging our hat on to make the big plays for us?? Let's pump the breaks a little, the kids cherry has barely been popped.

He sure as hell made a lot of plays with the Jets. Even if you don't consider him a playmaker, are you saying that Collins hasn't made a lot of plays? Ninkovich doesn't make plays? Mayo and Hightower don't make plays? They get beat, sure but they also can and have made game winning plays in the past.

Im far more concerned with our offensive playmaking capabilities than defensively. If Brady and co couldn't take advantage of the mismatches today with a depleted middle of Miami's defense we might have some problems moving foreword.

 

[IllegalContact]

Unless you're making a list of what doesn't work, the game sucked in every aspect and there was nothing good to take away from this game.

Let's hope every aspect of the game improves next week.

Revised needs to go back to his island

 

[mayoclinic]

In all 3 of our Super Bowl winning seasons we have sucked in week 1, we lost are first game in 2 of the 3 seasons.

2001 – Lost 23-17
2003 – Lost 31-0
2004 – Won 27-24

Belichick is the type of coach that like to try new things, mix it up, and he will keep trying something until he has seen that it will not work, and then he makes adjustments. He makes those better than any coach in the business, this loss will give him the insight he needs to make the adjustments, and we will move forward successfully as we did in are 3 SB seasons.

I am confident they will straighten out the OL and the defensive scheme. I also think players like Gronkowski, Easley, Vollmer, and Dobson are still works in progress; even Revis is just getting a feel for things. I still view us as strong contenders and I am glad that we highlighted our flaws early in the season so we can work them out now.

I agree with some of what you say, but "great news" is perhaps putting a bit too much spin on it.

One game does not a season make, so I agree with not over-reacting to one loss. As I see it, there were 3 levels of issues that showed up:

1. Possible conditioning and physicality issues. The Pats seemed to wilt in the 2nd half and self destructed, and were man-handled by the Dolphins. The heat and humidity may have played a role, including with the poor tackling, but it does make me question the teams conditioning, heart, and physicality.

2. Coaching and schematic issues. Rotating offensive linemen seemed like a recipe for disaster to me. Your OL needs consistency and needs to be in sync more than almost any other unit. Some of the offense's inability to protect and to move the ball in the 2nd half seemed related to that. On defense, using a 3-4 with Vellano and Jones as DEs just doesn't make sense; it seemed like the coaching staff was working for the other team in terms of neutralizing some of our potential playmakers and keeping some of the better players off of the field.

3. Personnel issues. The OL needs to be sorted out, and quick. There were significant mistakes and poor performances on all 3 squads today, some by players who had long ago been identified by many as potential problem points.

All of these problems are fixable, but they need major attention. It's discouraging to see a defense loaded with potential playmakers, only to play soft non-physical defense plagued with poor tackling and a lack of basic run defense. It's discouraging to see some of the offensive play selection and execution problems. In 2003 BB recognized a major weakness in run defense and addressed it; this year it seems like there is perhaps an OL need that requires more than just coaching or player maturation.

Having a big dose of humble pie served up at the beginning of the season isn't a bad thing, and I'd rather see this than have the team wilt down the stretch. But I think calling it a "great thing" may be going a bit too far.

The team was manhandled and got their asses whipped in all 3 phases of the games, and dominated in the 2nd half in a way that we've seldom seen before. Now we'll have to wait and see how they respond.

 

[Mack Herron]

In all my years (decades) of sports, I have developed the following philosophy: Winning is good. Losing, not as good.

 

[NG Pats Fan]

"Last year, he was a great kick returner and a mediocre offensive player except for a game or two at the end of the season."

Patterson got 9 total TD as a rookie last season. That is a lot for a rookie. When you watch the way he scored those touchdowns, you see a superstar with freak athletic ability. Patterson passes the eye test easily. As for Patterson's 9 touchdowns, It's more than our entire 2013 rookie WR draft class had combined. Expect Patterson to possibly double that total this year. If you drafted Patterson on your fantasy football team, you will love him by the end of the year.

 

[Mogamedogz]

He sure as hell made a lot of plays with the Jets. Even if you don't consider him a playmaker, are you saying that Collins hasn't made a lot of plays? Ninkovich doesn't make plays? Mayo and Hightower don't make plays? They get beat, sure but they also can and have made game winning plays in the past.

Revis is (hopefully not was) a stud. Agreed.

Ninko has made lots of big plays for us. Love him.

But Collins? Mayo?? Hightower?? Whaaaa? You think OC's are staying up at night worrying about these guys making game changing plays against them? Collins is still a pretty raw sophmore, Hightower isn't anything special, and Mayo is overrated by our fan base. He was selected what, 7th overall? He's hardly lived up to that high of a pick. He's a great tackler.. awesome. Where are the forced fumbles, the timely picks? The contagious fire??

It sucks being so critical of our guys. I hate it, believe me. But I cant pretend that things are something that they aren't. Sorry.

 

[mcmurtry86]

I don't think the loss today is the end of the world, but I don't think it is great news.

I wouldn't be surprised if the Pats go on a seven or eight game tear after this week, but it isn't because the Pats win Super Bowls when they lose the first game.

I think a lot of what happened today is correctable. The Pats did dominate the first half. It wasn't like they laid an egg the entire game.

The Pats allowed a 66.7 completion percentage to Tannehill and 5.4 YPC for the Dolphins RB's in the first half. The D deserves kudos for forcing 2 fumbles (the INT was more Tannehill's bad play than a good play by the D IMO) but other than those 2 takeaways, the D stunk in the first half. It was clear going into halftime that the Pats D, especially the front 7, was in trouble.

 

[Bruins29]

. But I cant pretend that things are something that they aren't. Sorry.

Can you pretend this was only one game of the season?

 

[Rob0729]

The Pats allowed a 66.7 completion percentage to Tannehill and 5.4 YPC for the Dolphins RB's in the first half. The D deserves kudos for forcing 2 fumbles (the INT was more Tannehill's bad play than a good play by the D IMO) but other than those 2 takeaways, the D stunk in the first half. It was clear going into halftime that the Pats D, especially the front 7, was in trouble.

They allowed only one TD in the first half and that was a gift by the punting team by putting the ball on the Pats' 13. In fact, the Pats did pretty well in the red zone all game.