Dating back to 1966, Miami, FL has been a house of horrors for the New England Patriots.
Heading into Sunday, the Patriots all-time record in South Beach was 16-43, with even the likes of Tom Brady (8-10) and Bill Belichick (9-15) struggling to find consistent success when playing on the road against their AFC East rival.
On top of the scope of history working against them, the Patriots had lost 8 of their last 9 matchups with Miami, with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa sporting a 7-0 career record against the Flying Elvis.
But on Sunday, none of that mattered.
The Patriots got their train on the tracks for the first time in 2025, beating the Dolphins (0-2) 33-27 and looking like the offense New England fans were hoping for upon Josh McDaniels returning to 1 Patriot Place earlier this year.
Here’s your Ups & Downs column for Week 2:
Ups:
- Drake Maye: That’s the guy we were all ready for!
An efficient day as a passer, a smart day as a runner, and a winner under center for the fourth time in his professional career.
Maye was 19 of 23 passing for 230 yards with 2 touchdowns and no turnovers. And after only accounting for 11 rushing yards in Week 1, Maye’s wheels accounted for 31 yards on 10 carries in Week 2, consistently showing great judgement when becoming a rusher (i.e. not trying to truck dudes like Earl Campbell).
Here were the highlights:
- On the opening drive of the day of the Patriots offense, Maye found tight end Austin Hooper for a 22-yard catch on 1st and 10 from the Miami 33 off a play action fake to Antonio Gibson. This set the Patriots up for a 1st and 10 from the Miami 11, leading to a touchdown pass from Maye to Hollins from 8 yards out just two plays later.
Maye’s ball to Hooper was perfectly timed, finding the 6-foot-4 veteran in space while giving him enough room up the sideline to make the grab in bounds and keep the drive moving. This was the type of throw Maye was sailing in Week 1 against the Raiders, missing open pass catchers in space and ultimately leading to the stagnation of their offense.
- On the second drive of the game, Maye connected with his favorite target from Week 1 yet again. And this time, it was in the end zone.
On 3rd and 6 from the Miami 16, Maye fit a ball perfectly over multiple defenders to Kayshon Boutte, with the third-year receiver coming up with the catch as he dove forward to the ground. It was a beautiful ball from Maye paired with a great effort from Boutte, showing once again that these two have real chemistry that Patriots fans should continue to be excited by.
- With 1:49 to go in the 3rd quarter, the Patriots were faced with a 3rd and 3 from their own 24 yard line down 20-15. Had New England gone three-and-out in this part of the field, it would have been a steep hill to climb for the Patriots to come away with a win.
Maye stayed calm in the pocket, let the play develop, and found a streaking Rhamondre Stevenson in stride up the left sideline for a gain of 55 yards - the longest pass play of his young career. It’s the type of throw we saw No 12 make countless times during his time in New England. You keep converting on these semi-gotta-have-it situations, and you’re going to be set up for success.
- Two plays later on a 1st and goal from the Dolphins 6, Maye broke out the legs, scoring on a bootleg touchdown at the pylon to give the Patriots a 23-20 lead. To make the play even sweeter, he outran old friend Matthew Judon for the score (as an aside, the orange sleeves don’t hit the same as the red ones used to).
Beat you with his arm. Beat you with his legs.
This is the player the Patriots need in 2025. This is the guy that was handed a Pro Bowl alternate spot almost entirely based on potential rather than production.
Let’s hope today’s performance was the jumping off point Maye needed within this McDaniels offense.
- Running Backs: In Week 1, Rhamondre Stevenson, TreVeyon Henderson and Gibson combined for 45 rushing yards on 13 carries.
The running game was not working, and McDaniels opted to abandon that entire phase of the game throughout the second half.
When he was asked on Thursday what he learned about his running backs in Week 1, he not-so-jokingly answered, “That they need the ball more.”
It looks like he took his own advice, as all three backs were huge factors in Sunday’s win.
New England’s three-headed monster in the backfield combined for 91 rushing yards on 19 carries, with Stevenson and Gibson looking comfortable while doing the bulk of that damage.
On top of the carries, this unit also served as an impact pass catching group, with all three combining for 8 catches on 8 targets for 119 receiving yards.
Spelling Maye’s big play ability with a stable running game will unlock the young QB in a way Patriots fans should get excited for - if, of course, this is more than a one-week thing. But with all of us having watched years and years of McDaniels’ coached football, don’t be shocked if all three guys remain heavily involved in the game plan on a week to week basis.
And if they can catch the ball like James White, it’s only going to make Maye’s life that much easier.
…and oh yeah, how about that kick return touchdown for Gibson!
Immediately following a deflating punt return touchdown for Miami that we’ll discuss later, the Dolphins kicked it off to Gibson.
The crafty six-year veteran found a hole, and couldn’t be caught for a 90-yard score.
Up the right sideline he went, and the Patriots were back on top. An extra point later, and New England had a 30-27 lead.
That’s the second straight week that Gibson has been able to break a big one in the kickoff game. In Week 1, he took the Patriots first kick return of the year 41 yards to the Patriots 47 yard line to set up their first offensive series of 2025.
Gibson is clearly a weapon in his phase of the game. And with the way the kickoff rules are now, it’s going to be hard for teams to stay away from putting the ball in Gibson’s hands on these plays.
Excited to watch him cook in this spot all season.
- Milton Williams: Two sacks on the day, including the game sealing sack in the fourth quarter.
After a dominant Week 1 performance, he followed it up with another one in the Miami heat.
Money well spent, Eliot!
Some Ups, Some Downs:
- TreVeyon Henderson: Wait what???
Yes, he’s going to appear in multiple sections this week, because his much-discussed ability to pass block was not as consistent as you would like it to be given how often it’s lauded as being one of his best attributes.
On the third drive of the game for New England, I saw two instances within a three-play sequence where Henderson straight up missed his man.
One of those resulted in a 5-yard sack by Chop Robinson, and the other saw Maye just barely avoid a sack while completing a 7-yard pass to Hooper.
On the first drive of the second half, Henderson’s shaky day in pass pro was on display again. On 3rd and 7 from their own 20, Henderson got beat by a blitzing Jordyn Brooks, with the linebacker pulling Maye down for a loss of 11.
If we're going to continually be told by the analysts who cover this team that it’s one of his great strengths, then we need to see it on display when those opportunities arise.
- K’Lavon Chaisson: He had a sack on the day to go along with 6 QB pressures, but he also had multiple offside penalties, one of which negating an interception.
This guy is likely going to be your top pass rusher this season. Getting him on the board with a sack is great. But if you’re ever putting yourself in a position to be compared to Dee Ford, you’re going to get some sort of demerit.
Downs:
- Andy Borregales: In Week 1, it was the missed 40-yard field goal in a light rain to open his professional career.
In Week 2, it was a missed extra point after the Patriots opening drive touchdown.
That alone was going to have the 2025 sixth-round pick in this section.
But on the following offensive possession, after an exclamation point touchdown pass from Maye to Boutte, Borregales went wide right again.
What should have been 14-0 in the first quarter was, instead, 12-0.
Fast forward to the fourth quarter, and Borregales was handed an opportunity to kick a 57-yard field goal to help possibly seal the win for the Patriots…
…and he nailed it! Unreal!
Andrew Catalon said on the CBS broadcast that Borregales may have saved his job with that kick, and he might be right.
But just moments later, it was another boneheaded kick for the rookie that put the Patriots in a bad spot.
This time, it was on the kickoff, where the ball did not reach the required landing zone based on the new kickoff rules. This gave the Dolphins the ball on their own 40 yard line, giving them a real chance to win the ballgame with the score 33-27 and 1:47 to go.
Three plays later, Tagovailoa found running back De’Von Achane for 18 yards, putting Miami in real striking distance of a victory.
Luckily for Borregales, Milton Williams picked up his second sack of the day with under a minute to go to seal the win for the Patriots.
Crisis averted, but holy crap.
Borregales grew up in the Miami area, and played his college football home games at Hard Rock Stadium. This homecoming for the 22-year-old was supposed to help the rookie settle in after his Week 1 miss.
Instead, it looks like the opposite happened.
This team is not good enough to shoot itself in the foot (no pun intended).
Let’s not let this linger. This leash needs to be even shorter than it was already.
Unfortunately for the Patriots, Parker Romo was signed this past week by the Falcons.
So if Borregales isn’t going to be the guy, it’ll have to be a brand new face/foot in Foxborough.
Important aside - please stop drafting kickers.
- The Garrett Bradbury/Punt Coverage Sequence: Just brutal football, man.
On 2nd and 13 from the Patriots 21, center Garrett Bradbury snapped a bad ball to Maye, forcing the QB to chase it down over his head and fall on it for a loss of 13.
That set up a 3rd and 26 from the New England 8, which was too much to overcome.
This forced the Patriots to bomb a punt from in their end zone, which led to their punt coverage team having almost too much space to cover, with Jason McCourty describing it on the broadcast as “out punting the coverage.”
And yep, that ended up being the case.
Dolphins speedster Malik Washington made All-Pro special teamer Brenden Schooler miss, and returned the punt 74 yards to the house to give the Dolphins a 27-23 lead.
At that moment, it felt like the Patriots were going to lose. Fortunately for them, that wasn’t the case.
But man, the Pats can’t have that type of play from Bradbury. None of this happens if not for his brutal shotgun snap.
- Jumpy Offensive Tackles: On the second drive of the game, rookie left tackle Will Campbell was called for a false start to set up a 2nd and 12 from the Patriots 33.
That was his third false start penalty already on the season.
The knock on the No. 4 overall pick from the past spring was his arm length, or lack thereof. The thought of false starts being an issue for a guy who started at LSU from his first day on campus wasn’t even on the table.
Maybe it’s jitters? Who knows. Whatever it is, it’s going to have to stop.
In the second quarter, it was Morgan Moses on the other side of the line with a false start of his own on a 2nd and 5 from the Dolphins 43.
And he wasn’t done, being called for yet another false start at the top of the fourth quarter to set the Patriots up with a 1st and 15 from their own 8.
The Patriots ended up putting points on the board on two of those three possessions. So in the micro, no big deal. But on a macro level, this can’t be an ongoing trend.
And just when you thought the false starts were done for the day, Moses was called for jumping early for a third time. That forced the Patriots to kick a 57-yard field goal on 4th and 7 to help seal the game instead of allowing the offense to potentially go for it on 4th down, which would have ended the game.
I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again:
This team is not good enough to shoot itself in the foot.
A 12-year veteran and a fourth overall pick need to know the snap count.
- Hunter Henry: After qualifying for “Ups” in Week 1, Henry had a rough start in Week 2.
On consecutive plays, Henry was responsible for both a sack and a dropped ball.
Henry is supposed to be one of the leaders of this team. That means he’s supposed to be a part of setting the tone of the ballgame for his offense.
Lucky for Henry, a mix of Maye finding guys in space and a solid run game led to a touchdown on drive No. 1.
Fast forward to the 4th quarter, and Henry was called for an illegal shift penalty to set up a 1st and 15 from the Patriots 19.
Shall I say it again?
This team is not good enough to shoot itself in the foot.
With Henry entrenched as Maye’s go-to guy, the performance from the veteran tight end needs to be more consistent moving forward.
A quiet game for Henry overall, ending the game with 1 catch for 9 yards.
- Alex Austin: With Christian Gonzalez missing his second straight game as he continues rehabbing from a hamstring injury suffered on July 28, cornerback Alex Austin will remain an important piece in this defense.
If he’s going to continue to be the primary replacement, we’re going to continue holding him to the same standard we would for any starting cornerback in the NFL.
And on 3rd and 13 from the Miami 26 with 14:07 to go in the third quarter, Austin looked like a backup in over his head as Tagovailoa found Tyreek Hill 47 yards down field to keep their drive alive. Four plays later, Miami was kicking a field goal to take their first lead of the season at 17-15.
The play worked for Miami, and it’ll count just the same for your fantasy team. But make no mistake about it, this was not a good throw by the 27-year-old.
That thing hung up there, and Hill had to come back on the ball for it to fall into his lap. Had Austin not lost track of the ball or his man, it would have been an easy pick that would have flipped the second half momentum.
When you play secondary in the NFL, one mistake can be enough to land you on this list. It’s the nature of the business.
Get well soon, Gonzo.
- The CBS telecast: As someone who has worked on hundreds of play-by-play broadcasts on the radio side, I almost feel guilty including this.
But when the technical difficulties started towards the end of the first quarter bleeding into the second quarter, a crucial mistake was made by the producers in the CBS booth.
We really couldn’t figure out a backup mic situation for Jason McCourty? Given the twin’s intimate knowledge of this year’s team having called two preseason games, wouldn’t it have made sense for Charles Davis to hand his headset over to the bald head of McCourty?
It was only for a few minutes, but it was a weird, muffled few minutes without a yellow line, crowd noise or graphics that could have been slightly better had the headset been handed over.
Up next for New England: Patriots Hall of Fame induction weekend, with Julian Edelman and Bill Parcells set to receive their red jackets in a ceremony on Saturday.
Both legends will be honored again on Sunday while the Patriots host the Steelers (1-1) in Week 3, with kickoff set for 1:00 p.m. ET.
As of publishing, FanDuel has the Patriots as a 1.5-point home dog. You can get them on the moneyline at +116. The total is listed at 41.5.
Tune in each and every Monday throughout the football season to Patriots Monday on WEEI. Head coach Mike Vrabel joins The Greg Hill Show at 6:30 a.m. ET, and quarterback Drake Maye joins WEEI Afternoons.