Well the Patriots started off 2011 on a positive note with a 38-24 win over the Miami Dolphins on the road. The big story of the game was that reigning NFL MVP Tom Brady threw for a team record 517 yards.
Brady’s performance was the first 500 plus yard game in the NFL since 1996 when Boomer Esiason did it. He also set a Monday Night Football record for most passing yardage on a MNF game.
It was the fifth highest passing yard total in the history of the NFL and the first time in his career that Brady had thrown for 500-yards in a game his previous high going into last night was 410 yards.
Also Monday night former Miami WR Wes Welker had a pair of TD catches, 8 catches for 160 yards overall and extended his streak of games played with at least one catch to 80 games, 66 of those have come as a Patriot. The last game Welker played in that he did not catch a pass was on Christmas Eve, 2005 when he was a Dolphin.
Other offensive news from the opening game is that the tight ends played a huge part in Brady’s performance as Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez combined for 13 catches and 2 touchdowns.
The bad news offensively is that C Dan Koppen broke his ankle just prior to half time and he is expected to miss between 6 and 10 weeks. Look for Dan Connolly to fill in at center as he did last night.
Also the team promoted OL Thomas Welch prior to the game from the practice squad because they needed some depth on the line for the game as Ryan Wendell and Sebastian Vollmer were both out. If was a prophetic move with Koppen going down and Connolly having to move from the guard rotation to center. With the promotion of Welch the team released LB Jeff Tarpinian, who had already been declared out of the game, to make room on the 53-man roster.
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Defensively the team still has some things to work on. People will look at the yardage they gave up to Miami. 488 total yards allowed on 390 passing and 98 on the ground but you have to look at a few things.
New England was playing with a large lead most of the second half and that leads to soft yardage. This was especially so on the last three Miami drives that saw them score one “blow out game touchdown” by Reggie Bush, get stopped on 4th and goal and get picked on the goal line to end to end the game while gaining 211 yards on those three drives.
In at least the final drive by the Dolphins, if not the last two, CB Kyle Arrington, was playing defensive end.
This explains a portion of the 25 first downs allowed, the yardage allowed and Miami’s 4th down efficiency (4 for 5).
There were things the defense did well. One was the pass rush they had four sacks plus numerous pressures, hits and 1 INT and they also caused a fumble. They came up big on two “and goal to go” situations.
First in the third quarter 2nd year CB Devin McCourty and then rookie CB Ras-I Dowling both broke up passes intended for WR Brandon Marshall in the end zone. Prior to this with the ball on the two-yard line on first down they stuffed a run attempt.
Then in the fourth quarter after Devon Best came up short at the pylon the Dolphins went for it on 4th and goal from the one-yard line and Dowling once again came up big defending a corner fade very well.
Another positive was Miami’s 3rd down conversion percentage of 14.2 % (2 for 14). That’s a significant improvement over some of the numbers that were put up in that category last season.
One thing they need to do is some better overall pass coverage. They were beaten a few times on plays that should have been covered better. Overall though you can’t complain about the win, on the road, in Miami, on Monday night.
Last Friday the Patriots worked out several players among them were former Patriots OL Quinn Ojinnaka along with DE Everett Brown, OL Pat McQuistan, DE Carl Ihenacho, DE Jeremy Jarmon and former UConn OL Donald Thomas.
Ojinnaka appeared in 8 games with New England in 2010, mostly played in field goal protection package. Thomas and McQuistan are former Dolphins and like Belichick is known to do he worked out an opponents former players. Anything for an edge.
Then last Saturday they worked out seven more players they were TE Daniel Hardy, CB LeQuan Lewis, DB Prince Miller, TE Shawn Nelson, S Mana Silva, DB Josh Victorian and DB Jamar Wall.
Nelson is the most accomplished of the group he has 20 catches and 1 TD for Buffalo where he played 12 games in 2009.
The Patriots are one of only a few teams whose captains do not wear the “C” on their jerseys.
It seems former New York Jets head coach Eric Mangini has some regrets about how the video taping controversy was handled.
Head coach Bill Belichick met with the media via conference call for his day after post mortem on the win.
Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien met with the media on Tuesday via conference call as well. He spoke extremely well of Connolly and the job he did filling in for Koppen.
Seems Albert Haynesworth loves powerboats and that was how he met his best friend in 2005 while in Rhode Island.
Talking about life in the NFL with the Gronkowski Brothers.
Rookie Nate Solder started in his first NFL game and did a very good job on Miami pass rusher Cameron Wake.
Aaron Hernandez made it rain after his touchdown catch.
Brady is nominated for FedEx Air Player of the Week you can vote for him through noon on Friday.
Tarpinian cleared waivers earlier Tuesday and was re-signed by the Patriots to the practice squad in the afternoon.
Welch who, as we wrote in the beginning of this post, was promoted Monday night to the 53-man roster was released on Tuesday afternoon. This leaves a roster spot open on the regular roster look for the team to sign another offensive lineman, one with center/guard experience, to fill in during Koppen’s absence.
Speaking of releases, the poor sap that got stiff-armed by Wes Welker on the 99-yard TD pass, Benny Sapp got pushed to the unemployment line today by Miami. Despite being out run by Welker who, according to Tom E. Curran of Comcast Sports Net, “looked like Secretariat”, Sapp did make a nice play tipping Brady’s pass that led to the Miami interception in the 3rd quarter.
Patriots-Dolphins earned a 10.6 rating last night nationally making it the fourth most watched cable television show in 2011.
New England plays the San Diego Chargers Sunday at 4:15 p.m. in the 2011 Home Opener. Look for the Sox & Dawgs “In The Red Zone Game Preview” available on Friday morning.
Follow Steve on Twitter @djstevem
