Dolfan Radio | Week 8 recap
By Brad Michaels • November 2, 2026
Patriots 24, Dolphins 19. Hard Rock. The first half was good. The third QTR was not.
We led 13–3 at the half. Willis had the ball. Gordon was running. The line was holding. It looked like the Jets win carried over. Then the third quarter started, and it looked like San Francisco. Two drives. Six plays. One yard. New England scored twice. The lead was gone. We finished 24–19. We are 1–6.
Willis was 21 of 32 for 211 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. The first score was the one-yarder to Washington that made it 13–3. The second was the thirty-five-yarder to Coleman that made it 24–19 with two minutes left. He took care of the ball for most of the day. The interception came after the damage was done. Gordon carried it nineteen times for 69 yards. That is not enough when you are trying to hold a lead. Wright had limited carries. The run game was not the problem in the first half. It was the problem in the second.
The defense got the quarterback on the ground. Chop had two sacks. That is a career high. The secondary still guessed. Maye was 16 of 20 for 199 yards and two touchdowns. He ran for another. Stevenson carried it nineteen times for 82 yards. Williams had the forty-three-yard score. Douglas had the forty-eight-yard score. The tight ends and the backs still got free. That is still a problem. Special teams still needs work. Those things did not cost the game by themselves. The third quarter did.
The first half was good. The third QTR was not.
Gordon lost his cool. He ran his mouth at Spillane after a five-yard gain. The flag was unsportsmanlike conduct. Fifteen yards. Third-and-five became third-and-twenty. We punted. Maye scored. The lead was gone. Gordon was still hot on the sideline. Hafley had to tell him to sit down. Willis told him he was wrong. Gordon said it himself after the game. He has to keep his mouth shut and go back to the huddle. I like the fire. I do not like the cost. You cannot help the team if you are hurting it. That is not growing pains. That is avoidable.
Maye hit Williams for 43 yards. Vrabel challenged the call. It stood as a touchdown. Then Maye faked the pitch and ran it in from the two. That was 17–13. The third quarter was over. The lead was gone. That is what happened. We had the ball. We had the lead. Then we did not.
We see the good. Willis takes care of the ball. Gordon can run. Chop can get there. The line can hold for a half. Then the focus leaves, and the third quarter looks like the second half in Santa Clara. That is the problem. It is not talent. It is focus. It is the same mistakes that keep showing up. The penalties. The coverages. The moments where a young player decides the play is about him instead of the team. Those things can be fixed. They have to be fixed. The first win is done. This one is not. The next one is Detroit. Play the whole game. Do not lose focus in the third. Do not lose your cool. That is the work.