Dolphins Patriots Week 18 Preview

it's our final preview show of the season. Week number eighteen is here. Dolphins and Patriots on tap. Will break it down as we do each Thursday, here, position by position, some key stats, tell you how the Dolphins can win the game and give you the three keys to victory. From somewhere in South Florida. This is the Drivetime Podcast, Miami Dolphins US through the US one more time, shall we?

But first, before we do the game preview, a quick reminder, please go ahead and check out our YouTube channel for the media availabilities on Wednesday. They were really good. We had some good moments with Mac Collins. I thought Christian Wilkins talked a lot about run defense and how you play it and how to play with in the scheme of defense. I like the way he talked about Emmanuel Ogbon what he's done for his career at this stage

of their career. Mike Asiki talked about his leadership role, about playing with Hunter Long and kind of helping the rookie come along in his game. To have had some comments about the Patriots defense that I thought were very interesting and and kind of intriguing for the matchup on Sunday. He also floated out the idea of training specifically for cold weather games in the off season, and some other really good insight there from QB one. Lots of good stuff.

Go check out our YouTube channel. So the Patriots. I always find it fascinating playing a team in the first week of the season and then again the final week of the season as you kind of see how you know, every team in the National Football League, like every season is a story, and that to me is what makes it fascinating for all thirty two teams, not just the teams that are in contention or the top of the conference type of teams. Like I find all thirty two

teams stories to be intriguing. I guess the best drama

in the world to me. And so with this Patriots team, you kind of see where they've come from Week one, a bit of a slow start after I think it was one in three to begin the season, they have that great winning streak that gets them in prime position back on top of the a f C East, drop a couple of games to the Colts and Bills, respectively, and then show up last week of the fifty burger on the Jacksonville Jaguars to clinch a playoff berth for them here after a one year hiatus from the playoffs.

After that's what they've known for so many years. They're in New England and divisional round trips or skipping to the divisional round with the first round by for so many years, and so many conference championship games, and so many Super Bowl wins and a few losses here and there. But where they arrived or how they got to where they are right now, it began back in free agency. And you know, last year the Patriots had so many opt outs in different circumstances and situations that just put

them shorthanded in a lot of those games. And they still found ways to win a lot of those games they played last season, But they went out this offseason and gave themselves depth and gave themselves a shot in the arm to the areas of strength and add to their areas of weakness, and that in that free agent spending spree, they put their first round draft pick towards a quarterback who's played every game for them this year.

And there are some of the you know, same old names you've come to recognize there with the Patriots, whether it's a Dietrich Wise or a Lawrence guy, or on the other line on the offensive side, a Shack Mason, all these guys who have been just stalwarts and institutions for all these really good Patriot teams. And they're, you know, just as many of those guys making big plays as there are newcomers making big plays for this tenant six

football team. And they're gonna stress discipline and fundamentals and not making mistakes and not beating themselves and being aware and situations that other teams just have not really executed on that same level for the last two decades. Now. I just think you have to play your best game to beat these guys, because they're not gonna beat themselves, So you have to bring your a game against this team because the on the one or two occasions a year they that they maybe make some mistakes and and

lose a game. That way, Uh, you're gonna be lucky to get that draw. So you better bring your best game against them every single year, one year without playoffs and then right back in it. That's what this team does. They find a way to get into the tournament and then make some noise once they are there. But at this position, it's new this year like it was last year.

At the quarterback with the Dolphins, safety is going up against Mac Jones as we start our positional preview here with the Dolphins safeties versus England quarterback and Mac Jones. You know, he has the high completion percentage, The football comes out really quick. He plays with a high aptitude, especially for a first year player. And you know, I go back to watching the Colts in season hard Knocks

and they kind of showed you. And that's one of the beauties of the Hard Knocks program with some of the almost invasive level access you'd yet to game plans and different things of that nature, and they talked about how this guy is gonna get the football out quick, stay healthy onto the next play and get to take

the profit where you can get it. And you know, we heard to a talk about the Patriots defense on Wednesday and how they can kind of force you to play a type of game that they want you to play, and how if that means taking the checkyard, check down yards and go in ten yards at a time, that's what he'll do. And I think mac Jones embodies that idea and that philosophy quite well, that you take with

the defense gives you and don't force it. And of course you'll have a couple of times in the game where you have to make the big time throws and stick it in there. But if you stay on schedule and really compliment what the offense does and compet with the defense does, you can find a way to win a lot of football games. And we've seen them do that this year ten wins and six losses. You know, this guy is not gonna keep it on the around

the end on his own read. He's not gonna scramble and drop the arm for a side side arm throw across the body type of throw. But he's an efficient player that plays really well within the structure of the scheme. So how do you slow that well, you have to confuse him and try to force him into those off off script and off scheme plays and and force him to make plays outside the structure and see if he

can do it. Maybe he can, but that's he's been really good and efficient within the structure this season and they did a good job keeping him in that system. So how do you get him into those confusing type of looks, force him to throw into coverage and those types of things. You have to make it difficult on him by changing the picture post snap. Now, in the

first matchup, here's how the Dolphins dialed it up. Forty dropbacks from Matt Jones twenty one blitz is on s. According to Pro Football Focus, when he was blitzed in that game, he was sixteen for twenty for a buck thirty eight when he was not blitzed, thirteen for nineteen for one and a touchdown pass when he was kept clean six with eight yards per pass, and when under pressure he was eight for thirteen, averaging five point seven

yards per pass and a touchdown in that game. So really those numbers tell you the key is, and this is really a truth across all spectrums of football, getting pressure with your four down line and your four bring and just four bodies after the quarterback. Now, I thought I was interesting Wednesday in his media that Bill Belichick said the Dolphins have done a good job of mixing up their calls and doing a lot on defense. And that's something we've talked about with the all twenty two

reviews here on the Tuesday editions of the Drivetime podcast. Now, in game one, the Dolphins safeties looked different than they do in this game. First of all, Jason mccordy was healthy. He played seventy four snaps in that game and played really well in that game and had a very very good pass breakup on a deep pass. In that game. Eric Road played sixty five snaps, Javon Holland played four,

and Brandon Jones played eleven. So now those two younger players, Javon and Brandon are playing just about every snap of of most games, while Eric Rowe kind of has a thirty to forty fluctuating type of snap workload per game. But they all play really good. And mccordy is not available right now, but the personnel's change a little bit, and I just I'll be curious to see if they bring those safeties, the two guys that lead all safeties

and QB pressures this year. If they play off, if it's a lot of big nickel and three safety packages, what will that look like. That's gonna be a theme throughout this podcast, just kind of not really sure what we're gonna see because both these teams are sold multiple

and can do so much. Just to kind of finish the point here, MAX numbers against the blitz this season are against rather clean versus pressure and blitz and not blitzing when he's kept clean seventy one point six percent for seven point five yards per pass, fifteen touchdowns, eight picks. When he's pressured, a big drop off in completion percentage of fifty five point one percent, six point one yards

per throw, six touchdowns and four interceptions. But again with this offensive line, with that play caller and Josh McDaniels, and with the quarterback in the way, he's able to win pre snap and get the football out on time. That has a All of those elements play into not getting a lot of pressure on Mac. But when one of those things happens, maybe you can affect the passing game,

get pressure and have success that way. When he's blitzed sixty four and a half percent completion for six point seven yards per pass, seven touchdowns and three picks, and when you don't blitz him, the completion percentnge goes up to sixty seven point five yards per past, fourteen touchdowns and eight interceptions. And of course, a big part of the matchup is the Patriots skill players, the receivers and

tight ends versus the Dolphins cornerbacks. And if you look across the matchups from the week one game back in Foxborough, it was spread all over the place. Jacobe Myers had nine targets against six different defenders, and the same thing which true of most of their top pass catchers or top past targets. Hunter Henry matchup on Eric Rowe, Xaviing Howard and Brandon Jones for one target each called all three of those for thirty one yards in that game.

And going into that game, I think john who Smith was maybe a little more kind of the one a to the one being Hunter Henry, and that's kind of flipped so far as far as snap counts go. But Johnny in that game had five targets against five different defenders, and he did play more in that game than Hunter

Henry did. But I think it'll be more about matching up on a play by play basis based on alignment and assignment, and they can really mix up their personnel groupings two from eleven and well and thirteen and twenty two personnel. Jacoby Myers, though the receiver, was their top

target getting this show with one hundred eighteen targets. He's caught seventy nine of those for seven hundred ninety six yards, and he caught his first career touchdown a few weeks back, and he has two on the season now, and I

love the way they got him that touchdown. On the whole team celebrated along with him because he's a he's been a good player who's really put the work in and kind of climbed up the depth chart, and now he's kind of the go to guy there the hundred eighteen targets, and he does it with really good route running.

He's got a lot of core strength and ability to kind of sink the hips and explode out of those breaks and use his body to not only keep himself free of defenders but stay on balance during the kind

of physical exchange of each and every route. Now Kendrick Boorne has sixty six targets for fifty two catches a high catch percentage for seven seventy six And I just wanted to write this about both he and Myers and really the entire receiving corps that when you look at the Patriots receiver, they typically carried a lot of the same traits from year to year, and those are a smart player that understands coverage and concepts, that knows how to playoff of leverage and where soft spots are in

the zone. And that's what Born kind of makes me think of. He was a big part of those Niners offenses and all the misdirection and kind of opening up those windows and finding those windows when you get a false step from a linebacker based on the motion you you present for that linebacker in the eye Candy, I like the way he can understand the way a defense moves and reacts to what you do and then find those soft spots. And that's what Jacobe Myers does pretty well,

I think too. And you continue this receiving corps here. Christian Wilkerson is a new guy there. He's I think fourteen targets, but I'm not really familiar with his game, but he's part of the equation there as well. And then to kill Harry, a former first round draft pick out of Arizona State. He has twenty one targets this year, twelve catches, a buck eighty four and when he was at his peak, or when he is at his peak, it's all about run after the catch. He'll be involved

in the screen game. He can block as well, so he does a little bit of the dirty work there in that Patriots receiver's room, which is also a trait that really again one of those things that you kind of the negotiables for the Patriots and that receiving corps. At the tight end position, Hunter Henry has sixty nine targets, He's caught forty five for five seventeen and nine touchdowns. And we talked about the leverage of understanding the defense

and all those things that the receiving corps does. It extends the tight ends here for this team as well. I watched a real good bit of Hunter Henry when he was a free agent. Uh was last year, Yeah, I guess it was last year. And the only real concern I have when watching him was there wasn't one the concern with him was the medical because he's missed so many games in his career, but he's found his

health and he's producing there for the Patriots. He's a multidimensional player who will be involved in the running game and the passing game, and when he's on the field, you have to be real careful and real sound with your substitutions and your responsibilities because they can get to multiple different looks with him kind of being the chess piece that can extend to here's a classic in line. Why, here's the guy that goes out to the slot. Here's

an h BAC that can do multiple things. So you have to keep an eye on Hunter Henry and then Johnny Smith forty five targets, twenty eight catches to forty nine, super athletic. He was a yeah, a monster in Tennessee. And again, Henry's emergence has kind of slanted the snap counts a little bit more in his favor seven eight to five oh one. But they still use both these guys plenty and they both really factor into the running game.

So how do you match up? You know, Xavien Howard has had another really good year here he'll play his thirty second game in two years out of possible thirty three here when he starts on Sunday for the Dolphins, and Brian Floor has mentioned the flexibility that he offers and the ability to, hey, we need to go cover that guy, can you go do it? And yeah, he does that, and you know, I'm not real sure who

that would be in this Patriots game. Most likely going to be some variety We've We've seen that all year long. And that's where Byron Jones kind of comes in because as he continues to do a good job this year himself, having him an X allows you to switch up how you do that. Maybe each Byron that goes and gets that guy, maybe it switches up how you bracket where you can go man up. And the Patriots again offensive versatility makes it really hard to forecast how that will go.

But every time we get to this part of the matchup, I always feel good about X and Byron because these are two of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. Nick Needum didn't play as much in the opener back in Week one, but he's again had a second really nice year here of kicking inside of the slot, played some safety a little bit earlier this year as well. But you know, a guy that continues to evolve his game, I'll be curious to see what his ever evolving roles

in this one. He didn't play a whole lot in that first season opener to the Patriots offensive line Dolphins defensive one. We'll get to that here in just one second, but real quick, a short break back here on the Thursday edition of the Drive Time podcast previewing Dolphins and Patriots, and we move into the trenches on the Patriots offense and Dolphins defensive line. And that's been a huge part of this Patriots team success for really as long back

as I can remember. I mean, Dante scarnekiet is one of the greatest football coaches of all times, and he's kind of set the mode in the in the tempo for how things are done there in New England. He left for a little bit and came back, and the way he taught things is still kind of having an effect there. And they just continue to have six tests upfront, even with different personnel and different coaching. They the offensive line of the Patriots is a bit of an institution.

It helps them in the running game. They're very good in the past protection game. They're smart, they identify where different looks are coming from. They squeeze it when they have to, they extend when they have to. They can go isa on either side of the offensive line with some with two pretty good tackles there as well. It's a deep group. They have guys that can step off

the bench and fill in as well. I'll be curious to see if the Dolphins can win with some of the games they run up front, because you know that's that's a big part of the Dolphin's pass rush plan. They have so many different packages and looks and calls they can get to that that are adaptable based upon the personnel and the looks you see in the front you're playing. I'll be curious se if Mimi can have success with that against this good Patriots offensive line. It

was tough going the first time around. Can they get more pressure on mac Jones this time, whether it's with the blitz or if it's with four man pressure. That's another element I'm curious to look at and this game is is it going to be for man pressure? Is it gonna be blitz? Is I mean Trent Brown, the Patriots right tackle, he was injured back in that Week one game pretty early on. If I recall and Emmanuel Ogba,

who primarily rushes off the offensive lines right side. He plays multiple spots like all these guys do, but the majority of his snaps come from that position, and he had a pretty successful day back in Week one. I'm looking forward to that matchup because Ogbah wins so consistently with the length and the size and the power that he can generate from that pass rush position and the

way he can lock out against the running game. But Trent Brown's like the most the biggest marvel in the National Football League for his athletic ability paired with the size that he offers at that position. So it's big on big, it's good on good there for the Patriots and the Dolphins. And I'm also curious about Jalen Phillips because you know, back in Week one, maybe his role has expanded a little bit since then with more snap

counts and more workload and obviously more production. Can he find a way to kind of crack this Patriots code and have some production as a rookie against this really tough Patriots offensive line in his rookie season finale. And then lastly, here I'm curious about Ted Carriss because he played pretty well for the Dolphins last year back in New England there playing well for them, and you know,

he obviously knows this Dolphins front pretty well. You know, a Christian Wilkins, is Zach Steeler, and Adam Butler because he used play with him in New England as well, and even a ray Kwon Davis for his second season here with the Miami Dolphins. I'm curiously, do they know his tricks? Does he know their tricks? He's gonna pass

those along? Are they gonna pass it along? I mean the lack of It's tough to confuse a division opponent, especially one that's this kind of closely tied together with some ex players being on either side of the football. But I'm curious to see about how they attack Ted Harris in this game and if he can best them or if they can best him on that Patriots interior front. But it's a good matchup there. I love this Dolphins defensive line. Patriots offensive line brings it as well. To me.

That's kind of the marquee matchup of the game. And we finished up here at the Patriots offense with the running backs against the Miami linebackers. Huge fan of Patriots backfield. I think Damian Harris is one of the better running backs in the National Football League. He's scheme diverse, gap razone outside or inside. He's got power, he can be

a slasher, and the way he finishes runs. Big fan of that smooth runner with excellent feeling vision, just kind of all the traits to check off the box and you see about an Alabama running back coming out. He's another one of those guys man. And then Romandre Stevenson was a guy that the Dolphins had the Senior Bowl back in mobile back in February, and he winds up going i think in the fourth round of the Patriots.

Just another one of these big, bruising types of backs that has phenomenal contact balance and he can, you know, invite bodies to the box, to the party and and try to slip through some of those first and second level tackles. The once he does that, he can get rolling on the back end and create some big plays through his power and yards after contact. And then J. J. Taylor's kind of a scat back that can do multiple things. He's very fluid, very diverse, and very dynamic in the

passing game as well. And then Yacob Johnson their fullback.

I mean, this guy factors into the game. Man. Fullbacks, you know, kind of a lost art in the modern game of football, but a lot of these coaches that you know, go that have success in this league have gone to the fullback here, and Jacob Johnson is one of those guys for the Patriots and he really helps them as well in their misdirection game because a lot of times your eyes fall that fullback in the running game, and they know how to utilize him to kind of

send some tracks out there and and send some some false alarms in terms of where the play is going. And you have to be discipline with your eyes to be able to handle that. So big game here for Jerome Baker, there's a lot on his plate with the complement of backs and tight ends they have, whether it's in coverage, whether it's in the running game, the kind of the multiple run looks they have, like we mentioned, their ability to game plan from multiple different types of

schemes and personnel. And then Land and Roberts also, this to me is a big e rob game. This guy is one of the most physical thumpers in the NFL, and the Patriots love to run the football. Again some head knock and going on there with the rob and this Patriots run game mentioned some of the Patriots versatility in terms of their personnel usage. There fifty percent of the time in eleven personnel. That's five percent below the

league average. And I kind of assumed this number would be higher just based upon watching them and the personnel they have, But twelve personnel is just fifteen percent, that's six percent below the average. But then this one makes sense. Twenty one personnel. We mentioned Yakob Johnson. They have a deep backfield, they can go to two running backs in the game as well. Percent of the time they're in twenty one personnel. That trails only Baltimore and San Francisco.

San Francisco's way out there. But they have Kyle you check, and use him more than anybody else. And then the Patriots or that rather, the Ravens have Patrick Ricard. They use him as well. So thirty six percent for the Niners, percent for the Ravens, and then of the Patriots, And just for you know, completion's sake, here the Falcons, we're not twenty percent of the time, they've got Corrodibell Patterson and Mike Davis there. The Vikings nineteen percent at the time.

They also use c. J. Hand their fullback I had of Dalvin Cook. And the reason I get this far into it is after nineteen percent there's a big drop off down to twelve percent. For the Cleveland Browns is the next highest figure of twenty one personnel, so the Patriots utilize that package as much as anybody. And then twenty two personnel with two backs, two tight ends five that's five percent. And they can also go heavy. They can roll up heavy offensive line and get a six

or even seventh fan out there. They did that back in the opener in week number one. Lots and lots and lots to prepare for and to get ready for before we jump over to the other side of the preview here and talk about the Dolphins offense versus the Patriots defense. A short break Draft Time Podcast Thursday edition your host Travis Wingfield previewing Dolphins and Patriots a Week eighteen,

our final game of the season. Will also have John Conjemmi on the podcast on Friday to break the game down with him, answer your mail bad questions and pick the NFL game for the last time this regular season before we get to next week with the recap podcast, the All twenty two podcasts, and then eventually head into

offseason mode. Will update you on what that looks like next week, but for now, Dolphins quarterbacks quarterback versus Patriots safeties, and we start here with Tua and in the first game against the Patriots, they really played coverage on him and only blitzed a handful of times. It was four

blitz is in that game for the Patriots. And you know, I mentioned the projects I did in terms of just doing some minimal charting on the podcast yesterday, and the difference between blitz is for how teams attacked Miami, how

Miami attacked opposing teams, and the splits. And there wasn't really so much instructive data in the wins and losses in terms of the blitz numbers, but you could see as you go through that project that some teams planned to come after him and others didn't, and the Patriots did not in that game, and he wound up actually having one of the better days statistically against this Patriots defense we've seen this season. If you want to talk about yards and passer rating and and all that fun stuff,

because they are very, very, very good. And it kind of starts in that back end, and it kind of starts now, or it used to or still does with Devin mccordy, but now Kyle Dugger is a big part of that defense as well. He is rangy, he is smart, he is instinctive. If he can like the Dolphins we talked about, you can mixure coverages with him. He can buzz, he can come in and kind of rob the middle of the football field. He can get deep into the post. He can come down and match up as well. He

factors into the running game. I can't say enough things about Kyle Dugger. He's very good. And that's you know, Devin mccorty, even at this late stage of his career, he is one of the best, one of the best to do it. And those two guys together, with the the way they kind a match and the way they roll coverage and the way they cap they create opportunities for interceptions, and the way the Patriots can play some of that press trail technique and they bracket over the top.

They just do such a good job of funneling to help and and creating balls up in the air and tip passes and contested coverage and that's how they get so many takeaways and that's how they play so good on defense year in and year out. And to me,

it's a lot of that starts with the defense. So for to H, he's gonna have to identify those two guys also, Adrian Phillips, he's a big time player in that big nickel defense they run there and different dime packages and things they get into their deep uh deep sub packages. Easy for me to say, but for two can be very important for him to be able to recognize where those guys are, how they rotate post snap, and kind of how that dictates where the coverage might

be to open up some of the matchups underneath. And you've got to be so precise against this Patriots defense and beat them with anticipation and beat them with kind of fitting windows and the intermediate portions of the field, because they can they can take away a deep part of the field, they can put pressure on you quickly, and with some of that seven or eight man coverage they can a You're gonna have to find some of those windows and sometimes they're not easy to find against

this Patriots defense. For the Dolphins receivers and tight ends versus the nick the corners of the Patriots. If you go back and watch the Titans game, they often had an extra defender to to Jylan Waddle's side, and whether it was you know, a four by three or two by three or whatever the case may have been, with how they covered versus pressure, Waddle got a lot of attention in that game. They bracketed him and he found

some of those soft spots. But you have to imagine Jalen gets similar treatment in this game as kind of the Dolphins top target and kept past catcher and yards and all the statt that he leads Miami m But again, the Patriots kind of built front to back. Even though it's good at all levels. This Dolphins, this Patriots secondary is his choice. I mean j C. Jackson, He's he's right up there with Xavian Howard for my money as one of the top ball hawks in the NFL. Trebon

Digs obviously joins that category this season. You know, Joy Alexander and Green Bays. There's plenty of them out there, but these two guys are two of the very best and just the way he covers and the way he plays and the way he competes, and it's so impressive the way they generate takeaways with the way they play.

I'm a hard to explain this, but the way they kind of play in terms of you know, he plays that underneath trail and he has a way of just kind of staying in the right position to flash a window to the quarterback and then take it away to last second. That's kind of what X does. And some of those over routes and those crossing routes they can they have a way of doing that with their whole secondary and it just generates so many balls in the air that get picked off. So j C. Jackson is

really good. Jalen Mills is having a good year for them, the kind of the other perimeter cornerback for the Patriots. He was an addition from the from the Eagles, i believe last season, and he was in perfect coverage on that one deep ball to Albert Wilson back in the season opener when it looked like Miami might will be able to still a twenty five yard touchdown pass from tah Up to Albert Wilson. This group is deep justin

Bethel there as well. He plays on special teams. But how they match up, I think it just kind of goes like we talked about on the other side of the football, It's gonna be all over the place. You're gonna have different matchups throughout the course of the game.

But again, you have to throw against this Patriots secondary with excellent anticipation and if they give you those one on one opportunities in the vertical game, you're gonna have to find a way to hit one of one of them or two of them to kind of get them to back off. I thought the too long passes to Waddle and Parker last time around were huge keys in that game, and you'll see them get aggressive and take the football away if you live in that short box

all game long. So finding variety and the passing game also a key for TWA and these Dolphins receivers, and it will also be a key on the Dolphins offensive front against US Patriots multiple defensive front to win that matchup and give the passing offense enough time to do their thing and create enough yards and the running game to have the offense be able to stay on schedule to get to those passing opportunities. It all starts up front. And you know, the Patriots for years have played what

I call big man football. They have so many guys that are large human beings who are difficult to move and can physically compete for sixty minutes and wear on you. And they also provide a lot of the things that Dolphins have different types of fronts and flexibility. They run all kinds of games and stunts and have packages for days. And those rego hards they went on early downs to

help set them up for key downs. They know when to get aggressive, they know when they can kind of back off and play a little bit of ben but don't break. But those guys up front, I mean, year in and year out. Dietrich Wise twenty five pressures this year, nineteen run stops, Lawrence Guy fifteen pressures, twenty nine run stops, Devon God shall we know him fifteen pressures, nineteen run stops.

And then Christian Barmore was kind of the Jenga piece here, the rookie from Alabama who set the record for most pressures by a rookie defensive tackle from Pro Football Focus, forty five of them. And then he has nineteen run stops as well. He's had a fantastic, fantastic year, explosive off the football quick. You have to keep an eye on him and make sure maybe it's a wham block, maybe it's a double, Maybe it's a back that steps up into the a gap and mugs up right away

and chips and kind of slows that lamentum down. Have to find a way to take care of Christian Barmore now if they bring extra rushers, and that continues to be one of my main questions here. We'll find out in a few days. These are the guys and Matt jude On he's coming. He's gonna bring pressure. Sixty one

pressures for jude On this season. Josh j has fifteen, was Kyle van Noy, and Jamie Collins has been there for part of the season though, so his pressure numbers are not up to those guys standards, but he's a player that factors in as well. He also drops into coverage and does so much for them to disguise things in terms of getting out and kind of playing that hook, kind of playing the curl flat role, and he can

just do multiple things there for them. But again back to the past, rush game, Matt Judeon, You're gonna have to find a way to get this guy blocked. Number eight. He comes into like a blur, got the red sleeves on. I don't know if I'm down here in South Florida, but you can you notice him before the snap on every single play. You have to I d him and get him blocked because he can kind of generate pressures

on his own. And that goes a long way with just the four man pressure packages they have, but also their ability to be multiple and send multiple looks at you. For the Dolphins offensive line a little bit different last time around, although it wasn't because at left tackle, Liam Eichenberg was in there before he moved a guard before going back to left tackle, but that was his first pro game at left tackle. I thought he played pretty well on that one. Curious see how he finishes the

season here with the bookend game because the Patriots. Austin Jackson did not play in that game, but he'll be back to make a his season debut against the Patriots, i should say, or his first game against the Patriots this season in week number eighteen. And then we'll have Michael Dieter, Big Rob and Jesse Davis to round out the group. They're to battle with these guys and we'll see how it goes. And I'm curious to seeing what the Patriots do here. Can the Dolphins get some push

and create some yards in the running game. If they can do that, I think they'll have some success in this game. Let's go ahead and finish up here the Dolphins running back and the Patriots linebackers. The theme continues. Big man football man Dante high Tower. He's so good. This guy is such a good player. He factors in off the football in the middle part of the field. He comes down off the edge, can rush from those positions. He can cover tight ends and disrupt and chip that

way to the pressures, the run stops. It's all there for him. He's kind of like Christian barn More. We talked about the way he took that d line to a different level. Dante high Tower is one that kind of stirs the drink there. I think that was a big reason why this year's defense is playing up to a much more usual standard than we saw lash of the Patriots defense. His absence, and then Jawan Bentley kind

of also one of these thumper types. Guys that can kind of range sidelines land but also just brings the physicality and sets the tone there for that defense. I wrote down July and Javanny Tava as well, the former Lions draft pick who I thought was a good fit and that type of defense. He's a virtual type of player there that can give them some more depth at the linebacker position. And I'll just be curious see how

Miami does this. You know, I believe that kind of some chips and chips and dumps of the running backs and the screen game could be a good way to kind of calm down with the Patriots do in terms of their multiple looks and the mixing they can do. Is that Myles gaskin the way he factored in the passing game. Does Duke Johnson gets some more run here back after the last time he played in this building he had a big time breakout game against the Jets.

What does Philip Lindsay's role look like? This whole matchup is like, well, the Patriots can do this, but they can also do that, and the Dolphins canna attack it this way, but they also couldn't do that. So it's tough to forecast. That's why I just kind of wanted to give you guys the players here and we'll see what happens comes Sunday. Now, as far as the special teams, they are twenty one in d v O A are

the Patriots in Miami's twenty nine. In the kicking game their money thirty five or thirty eight Nick Folk, he is thirty for thirty on kicks under fifty yard. That's a very nice asset to have. In the punting game, forty six points for Jacob Bailey for forty seven point three yards average. He's a lefty has they typically have

of their in New England and the return game. It feels like there are fewer teams that have guys who do this, but they really just have one guy, Gunnar Olshowsky when he's healthy twenty four point returns, averaging twelve yards per punt return. Also averages twenty three point one yards on on seventeen kickoff returns, so he can make some plays back there as well for them. My three

keys of the game win the red zone. We talked about it last or really I guess with the Patriots in the Week one game, they were able to go open down the field with the Dolphins one on defense and the red zone, and that helped them preserve the victory. Number two, stop the run. We saw what happened last week how Miami was not able to get after Ryan Tannehill in the past rush game because the Titans had

so much success in the ground game. Third and short gave him opportunities to stay multiple in the way they do things. And then number three play smart, disciplined football for sixty minutes. The Patriots will, so you have to do it too. The Dolphins will win this game if they win on early downs on defense, and the Patriots wi win this game if they execute offensively in the red zone. That's my time for the final game preview

edition of the Drivetime Podcast this season. We'll have John Conjemmy on tomorrow to break this thing down further, as well as the mailbag in the week eighteen picks. Trying to bring that thing home over. I think I have to win a certain amount of games to get that. This week, we'll try our best again. We'll have more postgame content next week for you guys after the Patriots game. That's onto the off season, but that's for another day

until next time. That's gonna be my time. You all, please be sure to subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcast, Leave us a rating, leave us a review. You can follow me on Twitter at Wingfield NFL, follow the team at Miami Dolphins. Check out the Fish Tank Podcast as well as our YouTube channel for all the Dolphins media availabilities and Dolphins Today. Last, but not least, Miami Dolphins dot Com Until next time defends up Caroline, Daddy is coming home? Is that we're going see