The Patriots looked broken in Week 1

Concern rising as the Patriots offense gets out to a nightmarish start in Miami.

Fall came early in New England this year.

This is not a commentary on the weather in the northeast, a variation on the old saying that if you dislike the weather in New England, give it 10 minutes. No, it is a commentary instead on the mental well-being of the Boston-area sports fan.

After all, the Boston Red Sox got off to a slow start, and after fighting to get into second place in the American League East by early July, they faded as summer drew to a close, forced to watch teams like Toronto, Tampa Bay and Baltimore rise above them in the standings.

And forcing area sports fans to dream of Mac Jones, the New England Patriots and yes, fall.

However, after the start to the 2022 season from the Patriots, it looks like winter is coming.

Following a summer filled with palace intrigue, questions over playcallers, offensive emphasis, and the development of their second-year quarterback, the new-look Patriots offense took the field Sunday afternoon for their season opener against the Miami Dolphins.

The results were not pretty.

The Patriots managed just a single scoring drive in the season opener, falling 20-7 to the Dolphins on the road. They managed just 271 yards of total offense, and turned the football over three times in the loss.

New England opened the game on offense, and just when it looked like they would start the campaign with a touchdown (perhaps silencing the concern coming from the Boston-area all summer) Mac Jones looked to connect with new wide receiver DeVante Parker. However, the Miami defense came away with the ball on a deflection:

There was a lot of contact between Parker and cornerback Xavien Howard on the route, and many Patriots fans were looking for relief in the form of a yellow flag for pass interference, but the relief never came. Instead, the Dolphins took over possession thanks to Jevon Holland’s interception.

New England fans would be looking for more than relief later in the first half, as Jones coughed up the football midway through the second quarter:

Boundary blitzes and perimeter pressures were an issue for Jones last season, and his ability to spot those designs presnap was an area of focus for the Patriots during training camp. On this play, with the tight end having a free release, Jones might be expecting this play to be blocked up, with the left tackle fanning outside to pick up the blitzer. However, left tackle Trent Brown, part of the three-man slide to the left, takes the inside rusher and leaves safety Brandon Jones free. Jones never checks to see if the protection is holding, assuming that it will, and pays the price.

For his part, Brandon Jones does a tremendous job timing this blitz. Perhaps the Dolphins also viewed boundary blitzes and perimeter pressures as a priority in the days leading up to this game…

By halftime, the Patriots trailed 17-0, thanks to a big touchdown from Jaylen Waddle prior to the break, and with the New England offense sputtering, it did not seem like a comeback was in the cards. Jones finished the first half having completed 9 of 12 passes for 87 yards and the interception, for an NFL passer rating of just 60.1. New England was held to just 108 yards of offense in the first half, and only 7 first downs.

Perhaps some miraculous halftime adjustments would provide the answer?

For a while, it looked like that was exactly what was happening. After the New England defense forced a Miami punt on the first possession of the second half, the Patriots offense put together their first touchdown drive of the season. Despite starting inside their own ten-yard line, Jones and company marched the length of the field. They received contributions on the ground from both Damien Harris and Rhamondre Stevenson, and used some tempo on the drive to catch the Dolphins with too many men on the field at one point.

The drive ended with this short touchdown strike from Jones to running back Ty Montgomery:

Miami rushes just three on this third-and-goal play, dropping eight into coverage. The Patriots run a slant/flat combination to the right side, with Parker slicing inside on the quick slant while Montgomery releases to the flat out of the backfield. Howard sticks on Parker’s slant route, while no one matches Montgomery to the flat, and the running back makes the catch and barrel rolls into the end zone for New England’s first points.

They would also be their last points.

The Patriots failed to score again on the afternoon, and the critical point might have come early in the fourth quarter. After Montgomery was stopped on an inside run on a third down near midfield with just over ten minutes remaining, the Patriots burned their first time out to strategize for fourth down. Trailing 20-7, this felt like a make-or-break moment for New England.

They broke.

Once more, the Dolphins dropped eight into coverage. This time, however, the numbers advantage worked. Jones’ fourth-down attempt in the direction of Hunter Henry fell incomplete — and would have been nullified for a holding call on Brown — and Miami took over.

The Patriots would get one final chance for points, but once more the offense sputtered. Nelson Agholor fumbled the ball away in Miami territory with just over five minutes remaining, and the Dolphins recovered. Miami was able to salt the game away, sending the visitors home with the loss.

And perhaps more worrisome, sending Jones to the X-Ray room at Hard Rock Stadium:

For Patriots fans looking for hope, they might need an extra shade of rose on their glasses. While the NFL is at times packaged hope, thanks to free agency and the draft making every fan base believe they are just one move away from it being truly their year, the Sunday night after an opening-season loss is often the toughest night of the football year.

Sure, Patriots fans can point to slow starts from teams of the past, or they can point to what they saw in spurts from Harris and Stevenson in the running game. They can look at the moments when Jones was comfortable in the pocket, and made quick decisions with the football. They can point to the New England defense holding Miami to just 13 offensive points. They can also look to what Kendrick Bourne did on his only target of the game, as he gets behind the coverage for this 41-yard gain:

However, those moments might be of little solace this evening. After all, Patriots fans were treated to an offensive display from the Buffalo Bills on the opening night of the season, and New England now faces three games that look a little more difficult tonight than when the schedule was announced. They’ll face a trip to Pittsburgh to take on the Steelers next week, a defense which frustrated Joe Burrow on Sunday (but could be without T.J. Watt after suffering an injury against Cincinnati). Then they’ll square off with Lamar Jackson and Aaron Rodgers in successive weeks.

Not exactly a smooth way to start the year.

While Patriots teams in the past under Bill Belichick have used the first four games of the year as an extended preseason, the inconsistencies from the offense which cropped up during training camp and continued into the first game of the season indicate that more work is necessary. Belichick has long maintained that he wants his teams playing their best football as the season goes on, and that time of the football calendar is a long way off.

But you might forgive the Patriots fan who tonight mentioned that they feel a bit of a nip in the air. Because in Week 1, it seems like winter is coming.