AFC East week four recap: Dolphins get dominated by Patriots
Week four in the NFL is in the books and things got a little tighter following this past weekend in the AFC East.
After a week 3 that was full of surprises within the division, week 4 was more of what we expected to see from each team. Although it was not a surprise that the Dolphins lost to the Patriots in Gillette Stadium, it was a major disappointment that they failed to compete. Both the Jets and the Bills lost decisively in their respective road matchups. Here’s a recap of what went down in week 4 of the AFC East.
The Dolphins set their sights on taking full advantage of the AFC East with a win against the team that has dominated the division for the better part of two decades. Losers of two straight, the Patriots dominated them instead. Miami was banged up entering this ball game, highlighted by the inactive status of safety Reshad Jones for the second straight week. The Pro Bowler is a key factor of the Dolphins defense, but I don’t think it would have made much difference for Miami with him in this one.
After keeping it close in the 1st quarter, trailing just 3-0, the Patriots blew it open in the 2nd quarter with a trio of touchdowns, and entered halftime with a 24-0 lead. The Dolphins would never recover as they failed to get anything going on offense all afternoon. For the second straight week, Miami’s run game was putrid. Kenyan Drake finished with only three rushing attempts for a total of three yards. It was the second game in a row where he mustered just three yards on the ground.
Frank Gore scored his first touchdown as a Dolphin in garbage time to avoid the shutout, but it was another horrible showing by Miami’s run game. The Dolphins have a combined 97 yards rushing in their games against the Raiders and the Patriots. Entering the games against Miami, both teams were ranked last in run defense.
If Miami is to have any shot at rebounding, they’re going to have to figure out a way to get their run game going again. Unfortunately, they’ll have to do it without their starting center Daniel Kilgore, who tore his triceps Sunday, and is now out for the season. Miami already lost Josh Sitton for the year a couple of weeks back, and now they find themselves thin on the offensive line…again.
It doesn’t get easier for the Dolphins as they travel to Cincinnati to take on a red-hot Bengals team, who are also 3-1 on the season.
New England Patriots
Are they finished? Is their time up? The same old questions and same record that we keep playing anytime the Patriots get off to a slow start only for them to show us they’re far from done. After losing to Jacksonville and Detroit in consecutive weeks, people were once again ready to write off the Patriots, but alas they aren’t ready to go away just yet. New England took their frustrations out on the Dolphins as they dominated in all three phases of the game.
The 38-7 route was a statement that they are still the team to beat in the division. Miami still holds a one-game lead within the division, but for how long? The Patriots are starting to get some of their players back from injury and suspension. Wide receiver Julian Edelman will make his long-awaited return this Thursday night when the Patriots play host to the Colts.
Meanwhile, the Dolphins, the only other team with any chance to compete with the Patriots to take the division, continue to lose many of their starters to season-ending injuries. Miami does not possess the depth to withstand the significant losses.
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New York Jets
The Jets are starting to come back down to reality now with their third straight loss. Remember when ESPN analysts had the Jets finishing the season at 11-5? Or when they were all in after their blowout victory in Detroit?
To be honest, I believe the Jets have made some pretty good moves for their future, but future being the key word. Growing pains for Sam Darnold and their young group of guys we’re going to happen so I’m not sure why anyone bought into the hype on this team so quickly. As expected, the Jets were outmatched by the Jaguars on Sunday, losing 31-12. Darnold showed some struggles again, finishing just 17 of 34 for 167 yards and one score. He did protect the football this time as he finished with zero interceptions after throwing five in the first three weeks.
The Jets head back home next week against the Broncos. They catch Denver on a short week with the Broncos playing the Chiefs on Monday Night Football this week.
Buffalo Bills
Lightning could not strike twice for Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills. After shocking everyone in week 3 with their dominant win against the Vikings in Minnesota, Buffalo got hit hard with a dose of reality in Green Bay. Allen completed just 48.5% of his passes Sunday with two interceptions. The end result was a shutout loss at Lambeau for the Bills. This is the result we about expected to see of Buffalo this coming season.
The Bills may have surprised Minnesota last week, but this will continue to be a long season for Buffalo as they are just not a very good team. Bills fans can expect more weeks like this one, and a very high draft pick should be in order for 2019. They’ll play host to the 3-1 Titans next weekend.