Patriots 41, Dolphins 14 (10/4/2010)

Belichick calls it "the kicking game," but on Monday night they were truly "special teams."  The Pats survived a tough first half and blew the doors off the joint after the break, putting up a 41-14 victory in Miami.  The win ties the Patriots with the Jets for first place in the AFC East (both teams at 3-1), and the bye week gives them some extra time to bask in the glow of a well-deserved victory.

It was the kind of special teams destruction usually reserved for college and high school games, and frankly something akin to what we saw around these parts in the Patriots 2001 Super Bowl run.  The Dolphins have had their special teams problems this year -- getting a punt blocked against the Jets, and apparently twice in the pre-season.  But they completely melted down against the Pats, and Miami already fired the special teams coach as a result.

The special teams dominance actually started with some less remarkable and often unnoticed plays in the first half.  Zoltan Mesko booted a 60-yard punt to change field position in the first quarter, and he pulled down two errant snaps on Stephen Gostkowski's field goals.  And not only did Gostkowski put those two through the uprights, he nailed his kickoffs, sending five of the seven into (or through) the end zone for touchbacks.  And Miami is not built to drive a long field, so winning the field position battle was important to staying in the game in the first half.

The Patriots started the second half with a big special teams play that was a harbinger of things to come.  Brandon Tate looped around a perfect block by Sammy Morris and outran an out-of-position Bobby Carpenter around the edge before scooting up the sideline for a touchdown --  his second touchdown on a kickoff return this year.  Interestingly, both have come on the opening kickoff of the second half.

Patrick Chung kept the special teams train rolling, with a blocked punt to end the next Dolphins drive.  Two Miami blockers (one of which was Bobby Carpenter again) whiffed on the play, allowing Chung an inside lane, which is a big no-no on special teams.  An inside move is the quickest way to the kicker, so special teamers are taught never to let anyone them to the inside.  Two plays later, BenJarvus Green-Ellis ran the ball in for a touchdown on a great draw-play call.

After the teams traded touchdowns, Chung struck again, blocking a field goal attempt.  This time special teams scored it by themselves; backup defensive back Jarrad Page knocked the bouncing ball forward and Kyle Arrington scored his first NFL touchdown on a 35-yard return.  And that effectively put the game out of reach.

Chung wasn't done either.  On the defensive side, he picked off a Chad Henne pass and returned it for a touchdown in the fourth quarter.  And that put him in good company, the Patriots picked off four passes on the night.  Rob Ninkovich snagged the first two INTs of his career, both times reading the play perfectly and undercutting the route for the pick.  Good thing he did, too -- those plays were both in the first half, when the outcome was still in doubt.

The Pats defense tried some unconventional fronts, putting Mike Wright and Myron Pryor on the nose and shifting Vince Wilfork to the left, only to watch the Dolphins run the other way.  The plan produced uneven pressure at best, a few sacks and some hurries.  But most of Henne's bad performance should be chalked up to poor reads and bad choices.  He had a lot of time, but for this week at least, the Patriots bend-but-don't-break defense proved the perfect choice to defeat an overmatched quarterback. 

On offense, the Pats tried passing from an empty backfield, and the plan seemed sure to get Brady injured.  So they ran the ball more, using up clock and getting some rest for their defense.  Green-Ellis and Danny Woodhead combined for 112 yards on 24 carries, and a touchdown each.  Pretty respectable for two undrafted free agents.  (Trivia question: name another undrafted free agent who led the Patriots in a significant category in this game.  Answer below.)  Green-Ellis runs with power and gets every yard the play can get, and Woodhead is a smallish guy who is tough to find when he runs inside, and he's been very exciting (and excitable) since coming to the team two weeks ago.

With the running game in gear, and facing multiple short fields after turnovers, Tom Brady finished with pedestrian numbers: 19 of 24 for 153 yards and a touchdown.  Not going to light the world on fire with those numbers, but frankly he didn't have many yards to gain for most of the game.  The O-line did a good job protecting him once they returned to a staple of their offense: short, ball-control passing.  Wes Welker got involved, and ended up with 8 grabs for 70 yards.  And tight end Aaron Hernandez continues to be a focal point, catching 5 passes before Miami adjusted their scheme to the rookie.

The coaching staff deserves special mention.  Special teams coach Scott O'Brien exploited the Dolphins scheme brilliantly.  It was the Patriots best special teams performance since the playoff win over Pittsburgh in 2002 (two touchdowns, one on a punt return and one on a blocked field goal return).

And the defensive staff did their homework, putting players in position for three INTs and stopping Miami short on a late fourth down.  Belichick took three defensive timeouts in the second half, twice stopping the drive cold within two plays.  A masterful job on special teams, and for a change, much improved halftime adjustments.

And on offense, they changed their plans when Miami made it clear they would not be beaten on long passes by Brady.  The Patriots ran more and used short passes to keep the chains and the clock moving.  All around, a great job by the coaching staff, against a team that came pretty close to sweeping them in 2009.

So where does that leave us?  3-1 is a lot better than 2-2, especially going into a bye week with a difficult schedule to follow.  The win puts them in a first place tie in the AFC East, and gives them a 2-1 division record so far.  Here's hoping Fred Taylor can get healthy over the bye week, because they will need more than three healthy running backs for the balance of the season.

Statistical Oddity of the Week: By now you've probably heard that the Patriots are the first team to score touchdowns passing, rushing, on an interception return, a kickoff return, and a return of a blocked field goal in the same game.  Interestingly, what no team had ever done in NFL history, the Patriots did in one half of football -- scoring all those touchdowns after halftime on Monday.  Hope you didn't fall asleep :)

Weekly Water-cooler Wisdom: "Brandon Tate... worth the wait."

Keep the faith (and enjoy the week off),

- Scott

PS.  3-1!

PPS.  Trivia answer:

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Undrafted Wes Welker led the team in receptions (8) and yards (70).  Give yourself a half-point if you guessed Rob Ninkovich (who led with 2 interceptions) -- but he was drafted by New Orleans in 2006 (fifth round).