MIAMI (PSF)—The Patriots fell to 2-6 after being defeated 31-17 on the road by the Dolphins, the current AFC East leaders.

Offense:

The Patriots’ offense had a slow start, punting on their first two possessions, but after a defensive turnover, the Patriots were able to put points up on the board first.

Quarterback Mac Jones connected with his favorite wide receiver Kendrick Bourne for a 24-yard touchdown to put the Patriots up 7-0. Those would be the only points the Patriots would score in the first half.

The Dolphins responded with a touchdown by WR Tyreek Hill, tying the game up at the end of the first quarter.

The second quarter was dominated by Miami as they scored another touchdown.

The Patriots started marching down the field, but this drive was cut short when Jones’ pass intended for Bourne was intercepted by cornerback Jalen Ramsey. Ramsey ran it back 49 yards which set the Dolphins up for a 30-yard field goal.

Miami led 17-7 at the half.

The Patriots’ defense came up with a big turnover to start the second half with great field position for the offense. The offense was only able to get a 38-yard field goal out of this drive.

The Dolphins scored another touchdown to make the score 10-24 in the middle of the third quarter.

The next four drives consisted of punts by both teams before the Patriots finally scored another touchdown.

The Pats decided to go for it on 4th and goal on the three-yard line. The risk was rewarded when WR Juju Smith-Schuster hauled in a three-yard touchdown, making it a one-score game with a little over eight minutes left in the fourth quarter.

Miami quickly responded on their next drive with a wide-open 31-yard touchdown by WR Jaylen Waddle.

With a little under three minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Patriots’ ability to win this game was slim to none, but they could still make the score closer. Unfortunately, New England went four-and-out, turning it over on downs and the game ended with a Dolphins victory.

Jones did not perform as well as he did against the Bills. His completion rate dropped back down to 65% and his average yards per pass also dropped down to 5.6.

The dominant Dolphins defense rattled the Patriots offense by pressuring Jones the entire afternoon. He was sacked three times for 20 yards and was hit seven times.

The Patriots’ run game was quiet this game, only rushing for 77 yards.

The Patriots had WR DeVante Parker and Bourne get hurt in this game. Parker was ruled out in the third quarter after sustaining a head injury. Bourne was ruled out at the beginning of the fourth quarter with a knee injury. His MRI on Monday revealed that he has torn his ACL and sadly his season is over.

Bourne has had an impressive season as Jones’ favorite target so his absence will be a huge hit to this offense.

Defense:

The Patriots’ defense played aggressively against Miami’s electric offense.

After forcing a punt on the first drive, the defense came up with a big takeaway on Miami’s second possession. Safety Kyle Dugger intercepted Tua Tagovailoa’s pass intended for Hill, setting up the Patriots’ first touchdown of the game.

The Patriots were able to make another key turnover at the beginning of the second half when linebacker Anfernee Jennings recovered a fumble by Tagovailoa. This gave the Patriots the chance to score a field goal to make it a seven-point game.

The Pats defense was able to hold the Dolphins to just 78 rushing yards but gave up 312 yards in the air.

Both Waddle and Hill found the endzone in this game and had over 100 yards receiving. This electrifying duo is hard to defend because of their speed, which was exemplified when Hill smoked cornerback J.C. Jackson on his touchdown catch.

The Patriots need to work on their fourth down defense as they let the Dolphins covert on all three of their attempts. They did have a good defensive red zone stop after Ramsey’s interception, though.

This was seen when the Patriots played the Bills, but the defense needs to be more aggressive when they are tackling. There were several missed tackles again and it was also taking several players to get a receiver down.

The defense was able to sack Tagovailoa twice, one by Christian Barmore and the other by Dugger. Dugger had a great game with the sack, interception and led the team with nine total tackles.

Takeaways and Looking Forward:

The penalties were still high for the Patriots this game as they ended with seven penalties for 45 yards. The Patriots gave Miami two first downs from penalties which is critical for a game that was in reach for them.

Even though the Patriots lost, they are slowly but surely showing progress.

The Patriots will be back at Gillette Stadium on Nov. 5 to take on the 3-5 Washington Commanders.