New England Patriots at Miami Dolphins: Top 5 Takeaways From Week 17
By Hal Bent
4 – Powerful Performance by Offensive Line
The Patriots have struggled for the past three years in Miami mainly due to pressure from the Dolphins’ front four. The Dolphins have been one of the teams who consistently have been able to pressure Tom Brady with four pass rushers and flood the passing lanes.
This week was different as the New England offensive line was stout. ProFootballFocus.com gave high grades to tackles Nate Solder (87.1 grade) and Marcus Cannon (80.1 grade) for the Miami game. The tackles shut down defensive ends Cameron Wake and Andre Branch and kept them off of Brady all game.
The run blocking struggled in the second-half but the pass blocking was great from start to finish (well, except for the one pass attempt by Jimmy Garoppolo, but back-ups were on the field on the offensive line at that point). The Dolphins had no sacks and were credited with just one quarterback hurry (Wake).
Suh–the highest paid defensive tackle in the NFL–created no pressure on Tom Brady. Guards Joe Thuney and Shaq Mason along with center David Andrews held their own against one of the best defensive tackles in the NFL. Suh got near Brady once during the game and was pushed around in the running game.
New England started the same five offensive linemen (Solder, Thuney, Andrews, Mason, and Cannon) for the eleventh straight game. After so many injuries and ineffectiveness last season, the return of Dante Scarnecchia and a return to health has been huge for revitalizing the running game and keeping a 39 year-old quarterback upright and healthy.
After so many years of the Patriots’ offensive line being overpowered by the Dolphins’ pass rush and pushed around trying to run the ball (see: final game of the 2015 season debacle), it was a great sign heading into the playoffs to see the Patriots’ line clicking on all cylinders.