Jerod Mayo on Patriots’ penalty woes against Dolphins: ‘It starts with me’
"It’s my job to continue to prepare not only them, but our coaches to go out here and play better football.”
The final score in Sunday’s game between the Patriots and Dolphins mapped out a 34-15 loss for New England.
But in reality, this game was far more uncompetitive than whatever can be gleaned from a 19-point disparity.
New England spotted Miami 31 unanswered points to open the game, with porous offensive-line play keeping Drake Maye’s aerial attack grounded and a regressing defense dissected by Tua Tagovailoa (four touchdowns, 317 passing yards).
“The last thing I told the guys, ‘It’s all about us,’ and this is before the game,” Jerod Mayo said after a lackluster showing in Miami Gardens. “I said, ‘It’s about us. It’s not about anybody else. It’s about us and making a commitment to one another.’ That’s what the game really came down to.
“It’s us going out there, kicking ourselves in the butt or stomping our toe against the wall because of penalties. We don’t have a team…. I don’t think any team wants to go backwards in any [case], but we did that today.”
To make matters worse, New England kept on shooting itself in the foot due to a parade of penalties.
New England was whistled for 13 total penalties on Sunday, 10 of which were accepted by Miami for a total of 75 total yards. While penalty totals can sometimes be inflated by post-snap calls made by the officials such as pass interference — New England was whistled for six pre-snap infractions.
Be it tackles in Vederian Lowe and Demontrey Jacobs whistled for false starts or both Austin Hooper and Anfernee Jennings not lining up properly as part of neutral-zone infractions — New England had way too many self-inflicted miscues that either stalled momentum or gifted an already lethal Miami offense easy yards.
Sunday’s loss might have represented a frustrating low point for New England when it comes to penalty issues. But it’s also far from an outlier, with the Patriots entering Week 12 averaging 7.73 penalties per contest.
“Look, it starts with me. It starts with me,” Mayo said. “We’ve had these hiccups of games where the penalties really affected us, and it did today.”
Be it the offensive line or an overall defense that has been eroded by injuries, absences, and an overall decline in play, Drake Maye has been arguably the one part of the roster that has moved in the right direction for New England as of late.
And while Maye’s turnover woes (one interception, one strip sack) reared their collective head on Sunday, New England’s repeated miscues in pass protection and discipline have lingered for much longer.
New England might roll with the punches with a rookie QB like Maye when it comes to his growing pains. But the Patriots don’t have the margin for error in place to remain competitive with so many flags hitting the gridiron.
“I mean, that’s why we’re coaches. We got to find a solution, whether that’s… You got to figure out what lever to pull to get a guy going,” Mayo said. “Sometimes, look, it could look good during the week, and then you get into the game, and it’s a surprise.”
The Patriots’ personnel on the field also left a lot to be desired. Both Jacobs and Lowe struggled to keep the pocket clean for Maye, while multiple stalwarts in New England’s secondary had no answers for Jaylen Waddle (eight catches, 144 yards, 1 TD) and Jonnu Smith (nine catches, 87 yards, 1 TD).
Even though Mayo bemoaned New England’s lapses in execution, he added that just about everyone in the Patriots’ locker room on Sunday will want to burn the tape the following morning.
“Look, once those guys cross the white lines, there’s nothing I can do for them,” Mayo said. “There’s nothing any coach can do for them once they cross the white line. It’s my job to continue to prepare not only them, but our coaches to go out here and play better football.”
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