It feels like a million years ago at this point, but Cam Newton kicked off this weird, winding, COVID-altered New England Patriots season by running all over the Miami Dolphins.
Newton's first appearance in a Patriots uniform was arguably his best to date from a rushing perspective. The 31-year-old quarterback carried the ball 15 times (still a season high) for 75 yards (1 yard off his season high) and two touchdowns, tearing apart a newly assembled Dolphins defense.
The Patriots racked up 217 rushing yards as a team -- with a franchise-record six players tallying at least 20 -- en route to a 21-11 win at Gillette Stadium.
They'll face a much tougher challenge in Sunday's rematch.
After an early-season adjustment period, the Dolphins, who added several key pieces in free agency, have morphed into one of the NFL's most formidable defenses. Only the Pittsburgh Steelers have allowed fewer points per game this season.
That defense, paired with promising play from rookie quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, has propelled the Dolphins to a 8-5 record, putting them in playoff position in the competitive AFC.
"I think what changed is we just communicate better," Dolphins linebacker Jerome Baker told reporters this week, via a team-released transcript. "We take pride in making sure teams don’t run on us. I think that’s the main thing. We have extra meetings just for players. We did pretty much all we can to get that under control. This week is going to be a big challenge, but it’s definitely going to work out."
Teams have been able to move the ball against the Dolphins -- they rank in the bottom half of the NFL in most yardage-based metrics -- but excellent third-down defense (first in the league) and a knack for creating turnovers (25, tied for first with Pittsburgh) have prevented most from piling up points.
Dolphins safety (and former Patriots cornerback) Eric Rowe said Miami's defense has made "huge strides" since its season-opening loss.
"We’re a lot different than the team in September, which you should be, right?" Rowe told reporters. "They’re a lot different team than who they were in September. How us as a defense, we were still trying to come together. We only had training camp, a couple weeks of practice, no game, no game reps; and then now until today, you can kind of see how we’re doing as a defense. We’re all playing with a lot of energy and getting a turnover each game, trying to make good stops."
The Patriots have deemphasized the read-option concepts that gave the Dolphins fits in Week 1, but their run game has been the strength of their offense throughout the season. They enter Week 15 ranked in the top 10 in most rushing categories, including carries (first), yards per game (fifth), yards per carry (ninth) and touchdowns (T-third), but could be without lead back Damien Harris, who left last week's loss to the Los Angeles Rams with a back injury.
As for Newton, he remains a dangerous ball-carrying threat, ranking tied for third among all players with 11 rushing touchdowns and third among quarterbacks behind Lamar Jackson and Kyler Murray with 451 rushing yards. But it was telling that Dolphins head coach Brian Flores made no mention of Newton's passing prowess while praising the QB during a Wednesday video call with New England reporters.
The Patriots rank 29th in the NFL in passing yards per game, 20th in yards per pass attempt, 31st in interception rate and 32nd in passing touchdowns, and Newton hasn't thrown for more than 120 yards in a game since Week 11.
"I think he’s a very good player in this league," Flores said of Newton, who was benched in the loss to the Rams. "I think he does a really good job extending plays. I think his ability to scramble is something that you always have to take into consideration on every snap. I think he’s a leader. I think he’s a problem. So we’ve got to do a good job from a pass-rush standpoint to try to keep him in the pocket, not let him extend plays and allow his receivers to get more time and get open.
"Good player, good team, good run game, good defense, good special teams. We’re going to have to play well this week."
