The New England Patriots closed out the regular season with a 33-24 loss to the Miami Dolphins on Sunday at Hard Rock Stadium. Here are seven things we learned in that Week 18 matchup:
1. New loss, same template On Sunday, it was an early 17-0 deficit that the Patriots cut to 27-24 with 2:53 remaining before failing to sufficiently slow Tua Tagovailoa and the Dolphins’ offense on their final drive.
The Patriots went 1-3 over the final four weeks of the regular season, and all three losses followed an eerily similar pattern. New England started slowly in all three, committed costly penalties, lost the turnover battle. In each, the Patriots trailed by double digits, then staged a late rally that fell just short.