The Patriots were seconds away on Sunday from moving to 10-3 and gaining solid control of a first round bye in the AFC playoffs. A miracle in Miami, however, flipped the script and the Pats will likely have to win out to nail down one of the top two seeds.
The Patriots held a 33-28 lead with 21 seconds remaining as the fans at Hard Rock Stadium filtered out, but an all-time game-winning play for a touchdown incredibly dealt the Pats a 34-33 loss. Initial receiver Kenny Stills tossed a lateral pass to DeVante Parker, and Parker flipped one to Kenyan Drake – who got several huge blocks down the field to beat the Patriots defense for the game-winning TD.
“I kind of blacked out,” Drake told CBS Sports with the leftover crowd in Miami still humming with hysteria. “We practice it all the time. It’s not the best situation to be in but it worked to perfection. They made some hell of some blocks out there. It’s all about getting the win.”
The Patriots have now dropped five of their last six games in Miami.
There was plenty of good by the Pats that was overshadowed by that final special teams gaffe, which saw lumbering tight end Rob Gronkowski as the “safety” on the Patriots defense during the Miami miracle.
Offensively, Gronk had his best game since Week 1 as he caught eight passes for 107 yards and a touchdown. Josh Gordon (five catches, 96 yards) and Julian Edelman (nine catches, 86 yards) also had big games.
Yardage-wise, Brady has his best game of the 2018 season as he passed for 358 yards while completing 27-of-43 passes. Number 12 posted three TD passes on the day with zero picks.
But the Patriots defense, which looked elite a week earlier against the Vikings, was routinely burned by Ryan Tannehill, Stills, Frank Gore, and even Brandon Bolden on Sunday.
Tannehill was an efficient 14-of-19 for 265 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions while posting a 155.2 passer rating. Stills caught eight balls for 135 yards and a TD.
An incredible special teams day by the Patriots’ Albert McClellan will also be forgotten by this afternoon. McClellan, who signed with the Patriots in November after being cut by the Ravens, had two punt blocks in the first half on Sunday.
