I think most of the week 1 reactions are in fact overreactions, but I was really discouraged with what I saw from Trent Brown. He looked disinterested, unengaged, listless. Wynn, on the other hand, I was pleasantly surprised with; he didn't appear disgruntled and was moving well, quick out his stance, blocking well. LT is my biggest concern with the team from a long-term perspective over the course of this season. It needs to be priority #1 (or close to the top of the list) heading into the 2023 offseason (barring Herron or Cajuste becoming consistent, high quality starters between now and the end of the season, which I'm not betting on at the moment).
Yes, we always exaggerate on Monday and Tuesday after a loss. We should listen to the Dante interview to get some perspective.
I would note that the score would have been 20-14 if the PI was called. But, to be clear, 14 points isn't enough for an offense. And yes, it was very good to see good play from the right side of the OL. Andrews was, as usual, our best OL.
Yes, Brown was lost and Strange was lost. Dante believes that the issue with Brown is the lack of proper coaching. Dante believes that he can be very motivated. With regard to Strange, obviously he isn't ready, sort of OK for Game One. More serious is that we have 2 starting guards new at their position and NO, and NO, effective backup. Ferentz went in with predictable results. Ferentz is an OK backup center, and an emergency backup guard (2 injuries). But, I guess I should stop. Belichick has chosen Ferentz and Hines as his backups, and the team will live with that choice.
BOTTOM LINE
All aspects of the game were at least what should be expected for Game One with FOUR exceptions: Brown, Strange, Mac Jones, and the play calling. Obviously, it is difficult to judge play calling from afar. However, two things stand out. Usually, we try the continue something that is working until it doesn't, especially the running game. We ran pretty well until we didn't bother to run. The other failure was very obvious to the announcers. MIA had a serious weakness in the backfield, playing a very weak player opposite Howard. Brady and Josh would have picked on this player all day until MIA used resources to fix the situation, and then moved elsewhere. Judge, Patricia and Jones didn't focus on him at all. Even without Bourne, they were many targets that could have been used to test this player.
