The Patriotsneeded a good win to restore confidence after a few down weeks against San Francisco and Jacksonville. They got it by shutting out the Miami Dolphins 28-0 at Gillette Stadium. New England has a week to work out the rest of the wrinkles after earing a first-round playoff bye.
| More NFL Black Monday |
| Related content |
|
Offense: A-
It was a good day that didn’t quite feel good enough for the offense. Tom Brady completed 61 percent of his passes, but he seemed to struggle a little bit when throwing downfield. TE Aaron Hernandez also struggled catching the ball early in the game. It was still a solid effort, and was made even better by Stevan Ridley leading the charge as the running backs picked up 167 yards. Harping on the downfield passes seem somewhat moot considering that the game plan clearly focused on attacking horizontally with screens and softening up the front seven with runs up the gut. Previous game’s grade: C
Defense: A
Solid coverage made it possible for the defense to record a season-high seven sacks. That’s a solid effort considering that starting cornerbacks Aqib Talib and Alfonzo Dennard didn’t play due to injury, and leading pass rusher Rob Ninkovich was knocked out of action in the first half with a hip injury. But really the explanation that is needed is this: Zero points allowed. Previous game’s grade: C
Special Teams: B+
Wind was a factor throughout the game, so the Patriots often elected to go for it on fourth down instead of risking a missed field goal. Still, P Zoltan Mesko had a productive day, logging a 56-yard punt, and the return men did a good enough job. Previous game’s grade: B
Coaching: A
Again, the team pitched a shutout and came out realitively quick after a few weeks where focus early in games was an issue. It may be too soon to say that everything is back on track after a slow finish to the season, but things are closer to reaching that point. Previous game’s grade: C
Nick Underhill covers the Patriots for MassLive.com. Follow him on Twitter @CBSPats or @Nick_Underhill.
