Miami Dolphins Game 1 — The Five Biggest Plays

The Miami Dolphins opened the 2020 season with a 21-11 loss against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium, and we break down the five biggest plays of the game.

1. Cam Newton's 4-yard run on fourth-and-1 in the fourth quarter: There really was no doubt New England would go for the first down after Newton's initial run for a first down was overturned by replay — as it should have been — given the score at the time. Remember, New England held only a 14-11 lead at the time and a field goal would have given the Dolphins a chance to win the game with a touchdown. It also should have been expected that it would be Newton who would carry the ball given his success to that point. That made it all the more disappointing that the Dolphins didn't come close to stopping that run.

2. Julian Edelman's 25-yard run plus unsportsmanlike conduct: This was the first play on the drive after the Dolphins made it 14-11, and whatever momentum they had gained was gone just like that. This was yet another example of the Dolphins failing to contain the edge. CBS analyst pointed the finger at safety Eric Rowe and he indeed took a big angle, but there also was nobody else from the front seven to stop Edelman from getting outside on the end-around. As for Jerome Baker's late hit out of bounds, that was a tough one because he was chasing the play and lost track of the sideline and the contact really wasn't that major, though Edelman sold it with a nice little acting job. But that one play took New England from its 25 to the Dolphins 37.

3. The Adrian Phillips interception at the end of the first half: The Dolphins were trailing only 7-3 and were threatening to score after driving from their 8-yard line to the Patriots 47-yard line. But Fitzpatrick didn't see safety Adrian Phillips lying in wait underneath the deep slant run by Jakeem Grant, who hadn't gained separation from the defensive back to begin with. This was a forced pass, and really the only one of Fitzpatrick's interceptions that was on him.

4. Newton's 7-yard run in the second quarter: This was the key play in New England's first touchdown drive, as Newton just ran a simply draw play on third-and-5 from the Dolphins 24-yard line. As with everything else on this day for Newton, this simply was too easy. Newton scored on a keeper four plays later to give New England its first touchdown of the season.

5. Newton's 10-yard pass to Julian Edelman on the first play of the second half: There wasn't anything special about that play in particular, except it sparked a way-too-easy touchdown drive for the Patriots to start the second half. After hurting the Dolphins with the running game in the first half, the Patriots went to the air on their first drive after halftime. Newton completed two passes to Edelman and then a swing pass to James White moved the ball from the 25 to the Dolphins 38-yard line. Five plays later, Newton scored his second rushing touchdown for a 14-3 lead.

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