Patriots Week 5 Preview of the Miami Dolphins and Morse’s Morsels
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This week we return home for a matchup with division rival the Miami Dolphins. They are a very talented team when healthy and they are not right now (sound familiar). They lost Tua Tagovailoa to his third concussion and many believe that he should hang up his spikes. He is on IR for his own sake. His replacement is Tyler “snoop” Huntley.
This will be the battle of the leagues two worst Offenses. Yes, that stat is correct from Pro Football Reference. The Patriots do not have the worst offense in the league, the Dolphins do despite the fact they have three healthy and far superior weapons than the Patriots do. Do you know the Dolphins have not led in any game they have played in this season! The Dolphins run motion at the snap of the ball 46% of the time. The league average is 26%. Of course, the Patriots and the unimaginative Alex Van Pelt Offense runs motion at the snap a league low 8%.
| Starter | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | |
| QB | Tyler Huntley | Tim Boyle | Skylar Thompson Q | Tua Tagovailoa IR |
| RB | De’Von Achane | Raheem Mostert Q | Jeff Wilson Q | Jaylen Wright |
| WR | Tyreek Hill | Malik Washington | Tahj Washington IR | |
| WR | Jaylen Waddle | Odell Beckham O | Grant DuBose IR | – |
| WR | Braxton Berrios | River Cracraft IR | Anthony Schwartz IR | |
| TE | Jonnu Smith | Durham Smythe | Julian Hill | Tanner Conner |
| FB | Alec Ingold | – | – | |
| LT | Terron Armstead Q | Patrick Paul | – | – |
| LG | Robert Jones | Isaiah Wynn O | Kion Smith IR | |
| C | Aaron Brewer | Andrew Meyer | – | |
| RG | Liam Eichenberg | Lester Cotton | – | |
| RT | Austin Jackson | Kendall Lamm | – |
Huntley was sniped off the Baltimore Ravens Practice Squad and had very little time to get ready for his 1st start after Skylar Thompson got hurt. He is a mobile QB that the Patriots will need to rush with discipline and stay in their pass rush lanes. Last week against the Titans he ran 8 times for 50 yards. In his previous 5 starts he has averaged over 10 runs per game.
Devon Archane has been the workhorse of the Offense. In fact, they have beaten him like a mule with too many carries and passes to him. Archane leads the team in receptions with 20 for 187 yards and TD. He is taking a pounding and won’t last the year if he continues to be used like this. Backup Raheem Mostert is hurt and is Questionable as is third stringer Jeff Wlson. Rookie Jaylen Wright should see some action if neither of the questionable RBs can go.
The Dolphins have two great WRs, but if the QB can’t get them the football, they are useless. Tyreek Hill has the ability to take a 5-yard pass and make it a TD any time he touches the ball. Hill is a controversial figure after pleading Guilty to Domestic Violence against his then girlfriend in college which hurt his draft status. Kansas City took a chance on him in the 5th round (# 165) of the 2016 draft. As a player there are few like him. At just 5’8 1/8” 191 pounds, he ran a 4.29 40-yard dash, 6.53 3-cone drill, and a 40.5” Vertical Leap. Hill has been a Pro Bowl selection in all 8 years he has been in the league and All-Pro 1st team 5 times and second team once. Jaylen Waddle is an underappreciated player in the league. In the last three season since his drafting in the first round (#6) in 2021, Waddle has had three consecutive 1,000-yard seasons. In 2021 he had 104 receptions for 1,015 yards; 2022 75 catches for 1356 yards and 2023 72 for 1,014 yards. Yet he has never garnered post season awards of either Pro Bowl or All Pro votes. I’d take him (and I did in my fantasy team) because he is so underrated. Former Patriots draft pick Braxton Berrios (6th round #210) is the third WR. He is better known for his Punt Return prowess. Berrios can be a very elusive slot receiver. Rookie Malik Washington is another small WR that had a breakout season last year for Virginia. He had 110 catches for 1426 yards and 9 TDs. That got him drafted by Miami in the 6th round #184. The 5’8” 191-pound Washington ran a 4.47 40-yard dash and a 6.87 3-cone drill. Last week he caught his 1st pass.
The Tight End room is led by former Patriot Jonnu Smith with 9 catches for 78 yards. Durham Smythe is the blocker and has just 2 catches. Julian Hill has 3 catches and Tanner Conner has also made 3 catches in his rookie season.
LT Terron Armstead is Questionable for this weekend and should be monitored. He was limited in practice recovering from a concussion. He didn’t play last week and is the rock of this line. The 2013 3rd (#75) round pick of the New Orleans Sanits was a 2nd team All Pro and 5 times Pro Bowl selection. The 6’5” 305-pound Tackle out of Arkansas -Pine Bluff ran a very impressive 4.71 40-yard dash. If he can’t go Rookie Patrick Paul out of Houston will be called on. He played in Armstead’s place last week and had a 63.7 Pass Blocking grade which is pretty good for a rookie. For the 2024 draft, he was one of the Left Tackles I researched as a possibility for the Pats. Miami took him in the 2nd round (# 55). IMO the 6’7” 332-pound tackle didn’t have good enough foot speed to play Left Tackle. It will be really interesting if he is matched up against Keion White (if he plays).
Left Guard has Robert Jones, a former UDFA (2021) from Middle Tennessee. Jones missed the 1st six games of 2024 and became the full-time starter in game 14 and finished as the starting guard in the last 4 games and has started all 4 games this year. PFF had a 51.0 Grade on Jones good for 64th in the league. At Center Aaron Brewer mans the position. Brewer signed as a UDFA with Tennessee in 2020 out of Texas State. The 6’1”, 295-pound OL, started 17 games at LG in 2022 and then switched to C in 2023 and started all 17 games. Brewer received a 66.3 grade from PFF good for 17th in the league. Right Guard is veteran Liam Eichenberg who has 38 starts. The 6’6” 302-pound 2nd round pick (#42) was taken in 2021 out of Notre Dame. His PFF grade is 68.7 good for 19th in the league. Right Tackle has Austin Jackson. He was the 1st round pick (#18) out of USC. The 6’5”, 322-pound Tackle ran a 5.07 40-yard dash. Since he was drafted, he has started 46 games. PFF has him with a 53.6 grade ranked 62nd in the league.
The Dolphins rank 26th in the league on Defense. They give up 119.5 yards a game on the ground but only 162.5 yards a game through the air. Their pass defense is good for 6th in the league. So far this year the Dolphins have Blitzed only 22.9% of the time. Look for that number to increase drastically against the Patriots until they prove they can make the defense pay for blitzing. In the past years the Vic Fangio’s Defense has blitzed on 1st down an amazing 38% of the time, the 3rd highest in the league.
| Starter | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | |
| LDE | Zach Sieler | – | – | – |
| NT | Benito Jones | Brandon Pili | – | – |
| RDE | Calais Campbell | Da’Shawn Hand | ||
| WLB | Jaelan Phillips D | Emmanuel Ogbah | Mohamed Kamara | Cameron Goode O |
| LILB | David Long Q | Anthony Walker | – | – |
| RILB | Jordyn Brooks | Duke Riley | Channing Tindall | – |
| SLB | Chop Robinson | Quinton Bell | Bradley Chubb O | Cam Brown IR |
| LCB | Kendall Fuller Q | Siran Neal | Ethan Bonner | |
| SS | Jordan Poyer Q | Marcus Maye | – | |
| FS | Jevon Holland | Elijah Campbell | Patrick McMorris IR | |
| RCB | Jalen Ramsey | Storm Duck | Cam Smith IR | |
| NB | Kader Kohou |
LDE Zach Siegler enters his 7th season and has 20 sacks for his career. The 2018 7th round pick (#234) by Baltimore out of Ferris State has made quite a career for himself. He came out for the draft as a 288-pound DL but ran a 4.87 40-yard dash which is phenomenal. He has started 32 straight games for Miami and had 10 sacks on the season lats year. Benito Jones is the NT. The 6’1” 335-pound space eater signed with Miami out of Ole Miss after not being drafted in 2020. He played the last two years for The Lions where he started 15 of 17 games last season. This year for the Dolphins he has started 2 of 4 games with only 4 tackles. Calais Campbell may be 38 but he is still a force on the DL. At 6’8” 307 pounds he takes up space. The 2008 2nd round pick (#50) by Arizona out of the University of Miami was selected as the Walter Payton Man of the Year in 2019. He is an All-Pro 1st team in 2019 and 2 x second team (2014, 2016), 6 x Pro Bowl and was named to the NFL’s All Decade Team. Not the dominating player he once was, he has 12 tackles this year to go along with 2 sacks. The primary backup is Da’Shawn Hand a 6’4” 307-pound DE from Alabama. He was taken in the 2018 draft in the 4th round (#114) by Detroit. He has bounced around a bit playing for his now 4th team. On the year he has 10 tackles and a sack.
Jaelan Phillips announced on Wednesday he will be out for the remainder of the season. In his stead will be Emmanuel Ogbah. In the 2016 draft he was selected in the 2nd Round (#32) by Cleveland. The 6’4” 275-pound DE/LB played collegiately for Oklahoma State. In his career he has 42.5 sacks and so far, this year he has 14 tackles and a sack. Last week against the Titans he had an interception which he caught between his legs! David Long is the LILB. Long can be exploited. He stands just 5’ 11”, 225-pounds. The 2016 draft pick of the Titans was taken in the 6th round (#188) out of the West Virginia University. In 2023 he started all 17 games but only had 64 tackles and one sack. His 40-time was pretty bad at 4.81. Jordyn Brooks mans the other inside backer position. The 2020 1st round pick of Seattle (#27) was the NFL leader in solo tackles in 2021. He stands just 6’ tall and 240-pound but runs a 4.54 40-yard dash. He was 2nd Team All-American playing for Texas Tech. Chop Robinson is a very exciting rookie out of Penn State. He was taken by Miami in the 1st Round (# 21) this year. The 6’3”, 254-pound outside backer can do it all and ran a blistering 4.48 40-yard dash. He has started slow, with only 4 tackles in 4 games. Sunday will be his 1st start. Robinson is replacing Bradley Chubb who is listed as Out for Sunday. Anthony Walker is a capable inside linebacker that has a history of injury problems and has bounced around the league. The 29-year-old is 6’1” 235-pounds. He was taken in the 2017 draft in the 5th round (#161) out of Northwestern. Duke Riley has disappointed since being drafted in the 3rd round of the 2017 draft (#75) out of LSU. The 30-year-old is 6’, 227-pounds and ran a 4.58 40-yard dash and a 6.89 3-cone drill.
In the secondary Left Corner is played by Kendal Fuller. The 2016 3rd round selection (#84) by Washington is a good cover corner but weak against the run. Last week he had a 70-coverage grade but also had a bad 30.7 run grade by PFF. He stands 5’11”, 198-pounds and runs an estimated 4.48 40-yard dash. He was unable to run at the combine or Pro Day due to a knee injury his Senior season at Virginia Tech. The 33-year-old Jordan Poyer signed with Miami after Buffalo decided to part ways with him after 7 years. The 6’, 191-pound safety was a 7th round (#218) selection out of Oregon State by Philadelphia. He made the All-Pro 1st team in 2021 and the Pro Bowl in 2022. He is the epitome of a self-made player. How much does he have left at age 33? PFF graded him as a mediocre 41 last week versus the Titans. Jevon Holland is very good Strong Safety. PFF had him with a 72.7 grade last week versus the Titans. The 2020 2nd round pick (#36) by Miami out of Oregon missed 7 games last season. In three years, he has started 40 of 44 games he has played in. He had 96 tackles in 2022 when he played all 17 games. Jalen Ramsey is the LCB. The 29-year-old was a 2017 1st round pick of the LA Rams (#5). He didn’t disappoint by being named All Pro 1st team 5 times and a Pro Bowler every year he has been in the league (7 times). He is one of the premiere players in the league and a shutdown corner. At 6’1”, 208-pounds he can cover big receivers as well as small quick ones. His overall grade from PFF for last week’s game was 78.9 but his run defense was even better at 87.9.
| Starter | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | |
| PK | Jason Sanders | – | – | – |
| P | Jake Bailey | – | – | – |
| H | Jake Bailey | |||
| PR | Braxton Berrios | Malik Washington | Tyreek Hill | River Cracraft IR |
| KR | Braxton Berrios | De’Von Achane | Malik Washington | Anthony Schwartz IR |
| LS | Blake Ferguson |
Jason Sanders finished 2023 ranked #23 in the league in kicker scoring. This year he is a little better at #20, probably because the offense is not as prolific as it has been years before. Former disgruntled Patriots punter Jake Bailey signed with Miami after his release by the Patriots. The former Pro Bowl punter had a beef with the Patriots medical staff of whether or not he was ready to play after injuring his back. The team ultimately suspended Bailey. The issue has been resolved since Bailey filed a grievance with the Players Association. In 2024 Bailey is ranked 22nd in punt average with a 47.6 average and 18th in net yards per punt with 41.9. He has kicked 7 of 16 punts inside the 20. Braxton Berrios is both the Punt Returner and primary Kickoff Returner. He has only returned 4 punts in 4 games. His return average would have been second best at 18.3 yard per return if had enough to qualify. As it stands, he is 23rd in the league.
Bryce Baringer is having a solid year punting and has 21 straight games with a 50-yard punt. This week he had 4 punts, with 3 inside the 10 and one at the 11. His punts were 39 yards to the 7, 61 yards to the 6, 40 to the 11 and 56 to the 9. After 4 games he is 6th in the league with a 51.6 average but leads the league with 13 of 20 punts inside the 20. His net average is 45.5 for 3rd in the league. Only one of his kicks has been kicked out of bounds.
Jerod Mayo indirectly called out Keion White and Rhamondre Stevenson without mentioning their names in his post-game press conference. Repeat Offender in White’s case is repeating his undisciplined pass rush, abandoning his rush lane and losing containment. I scream at the TV every time I see this because they are doing it over and over again. The only way to prevent this is to put him on the bench and let him stew. I would go so far as to make them inactive for the game and have them watch from the sideline. White is one of their better players and he is hurting the team with his undisciplined play. White really doesn’t have a position. He is not a good pass rusher from the edge and is a very good pass rusher from the DT position but is undersized and gets blown out from the DT position. I expect more from a second-round pick, not making the same mistake every week.
Stevenson’s fumbling problem is more psychological that what he is doing with the ball. Its’s not his fault that the defender has shot into the backfield as he is getting the handoff. It is his fault that he is getting stripped in a pile up because he just won’t go down. Again, he should have sat, and this is on Jerod Mayo and his coaching staff. Perhaps Mayo is not tough enough on his assistant coaches. Jerod Mayo is considering benching Stevenson in favor of Gibson because of the fumbling issue. The coaches are preaching “ball security = job security” and playing Stevenson after 4 straight games with a fumble sends the wrong message to the rest of the team. It appears that Stevenson is being benched in favor of Antonio Gibson according to Stevenson himself. When asked by reporters he said “the writing is on the wall”.
There is a popular saying among coaches right now known as “you’re either coaching it, or you’re allowing it to happen.” If a player is consistently rushing past the QB and abandoning his rush lane and losing containment, you’re either coaching it or you’re allowing it to happen. If a wide receiver flattens out a route rather than bending it to the flag, you’re either coaching it or you’re allowing it to happen. This from Chris Rumph the Defensive Ends coach at Clemson, a former Defensive Line coach for the Minnesota Vikings and has coached collegiately for 15 years. “If they’re not doing what you’re asking them to do, I hate to say it, but they’ve got to go. At the end of the day, those L’s and W’s are on your name. If you don’t cut it out, it’ll be you going out the door with them.” The Patriots Offensive Coordinator set up LT Demontrey Jacobs for failure by allowing the inexperienced second year player with all of 12 snaps of NFL experience to be matched up one-on-one against Nick Bosa. Bosa is one of the premiere pass rushers in the league. I haven’t seen the video but that happened at least 4 times.
I remember Kevin Faulk had a fumbling problem and Bill Belichick made him carry a football high and tight all over practice and anytime he was in the facility. His teammates were encouraged to knock the ball out of his hands. That corrected his fumbling problem.
Jacoby Brissett is not making any audibles at the Line of Scrimmage (LOS). He is either not seeing the defense or doesn’t have the confidence in changing a play he knows that won’t work. Additionally, the Patriots are dead last in having motion at the snap. They are only doing that at 8% of the offensive plays. League average is 22% and the Dolphins lead the league at 45%. Look for that number to be 80% when they play the Patriots. They put Tyreek Hill in motion to beat press coverage at the LOS. Why can’t the Patriots do that with their WRs who are having trouble beating press coverage. Brissett is getting 2.97 seconds to pass, which is plenty of time. He is indecisive, not willing to lead a receiver or look off a safety. Brissett is holding onto the ball too much.
Opposing Defensive Coordinators so totally disrespect the Patriots receivers that they press at the LOS, loading the box with 9 or 10 players. They have confidence their DBs can handle the Patriots WR one-on-one with or without any safety help.
I want to see more pace with the Patriots offense. Play with a purpose and let’s use no huddle offense and keep the opposing defensive players on the field.
Both Pop Douglas and Ja’Lynn Polk are throwing temper tantrums out on the field. When Brissett threw the interception, Douglas was jumping up and down because he didn’t get the ball (he was wide open). Polk was open as well and he walked off the field rather than chase down Fre Warner who took it to the house. Douglas was wide open on that interception and Brissett isn’t looking for him or can’t see him because he is so small.
Andrews was the one indispensable player on the team. His loss is devastating to a group that was already struggling. He made all the calls on the line, he was the leader of the line group, and the longest tenured Team Captain. I will say that Nick Leverett came in a did a credible job. Not great but you didn’t see him making the mistakes that the other lineman did. As a result of Andrews injury, the Pats will start a 5th straight different Offensive Line group. You can’t win this way! They are starting a player at LT that has 1 game plus 12 snaps, and had an 18.8 PFF Pass Blocking rating. LG Sidy Sow wasn’t ready to play, and it showed. I would rather see Zach Thomas in there. RG Layden Robinson has struggled all year. When Caeden Wallace is ready to play, I would like to see him at RT and move Onwenu back to RG. I am assuming that Vederian Lowe will be back at LT soon.
WR Kendrick Bourne, LB Sione Takitaki and S/LB Marte Mapu will all start practicing this week with a four-week window to activate them from PUP. I expect Bourne to be activated this week and possibly start Sunday versus the Dolphins. The Patriots have one open spot on the 53-man roster and will have a 2nd when David Andrews goes on IR. I expect Bourne to be activated and possibly start.
OL Jerome Carvin was re-signed to the Practice Squad. Carvin is 6’5” 310 pounds out of University of Tennessee who played both Guard positions as well as Center for the Vols. In his 43 starts in the SEC, he played 21 games at LG, 5 at C, and 17 at RG. He originally signed as a UDFA with KC last year and was cut, Chicago signed him to their Practice Squad where he remained all year. He signed a future contract with them and participated in training camp but was released at cutdown day. The Patriots signed him to the PS but was released when they signed Jaquelin Roy. Carvin had a very bad 5.49 40-yard dash at his Pro day.
TE Jack Westover was also added to the PS. The University of Washington product had a 4.75 40-yard dash, and an impressive 7.08 3-cone drill. In his final season at Washington, he had 41 catches for 391 yards and 4 TDs. He was signed this year as a UDFA by Seattle and was released with an injury settlement in August.
Who would of thought that 7 of the top 8 Offensive Linemen are either injured or have left the team with Mental Health issues. On today’s injury report were both Layden Robinson and Nick Leverett. This after Mayo confirmed that David Andrews will have season ending shoulder surgery. We will see a 5th straight different line combination in 5 games. How does this lineup grab you? LT Vederian Lowe, LG Michael Jordan, C Bryan Hudson (who?), RG Sidy Sow and RT Michael Onwenu as your starting line. Hudson is a Practice Squad guy that we added after cut down day. He is an UDFA from Louisville. The 6’4”, 297-pound center is very familiar with the zone blocking scheme that he played at Louisville. The Patriots signed him after Detroit released him at cutdown day. I got a chance to watch some of his plays from the pre-season and he looked good. NFL Draftbuzz had this to say about Hudson “Showing some nastiness to his game, he will sustain blocks through the whistle, thriving when he’s in the phone booth.”
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So Mark, why is AVPs offense unimaginative period, and secondly specific to running motion pre-snap vs at the snap? Cuz they run pre-snap motion a lot. Not all teams do the same stuff and or have an edict to conform to league average stats. I get what your saying…. do something to change the game, but the offense is limited on what they can do given their inability to execute the needed blocking assignments, and AVP has to work with that. At-the-snap motion won’t fix that and as for Brisset, the eyeball test has him not getting enough time to… Read more »