Five takeaways as the Patriots throttle the Dolphins 38-10 in the season finale
No team has ever gone from four to 14 wins in a season’s time.
That is, until the New England Patriots hired Mike Vrabel and turned around the future of the franchise.
The Patriots spanked the Miami Dolphins 38-19, a one-sided affair that looks even worse considering that the Patriots appear to not be going anywhere any time soon.
Outside special teams, where Dolphins’ star defensive tackle Zach Sieler blocked a field goal, there wasn’t an area in which the Patriots didn’t dominate. Offensively, Patriots quarterback Drake Maye threw only four incompletions and accounted for more than 230 yards of total offense. It also didn’t hurt that Rhamondre Stevenson, who scored three total touchdowns, had the game of his life.
Defensively, they allowed only 200 yards to the Dolphins as well as forced two turnovers. The Dolphins’ sole touchdown came in the second quarter off of a two-yard pitch-and-catch from Quinn Ewers, who completed 70% of his passes for 137 yards before injuring his knee in the game’s waning moments, to Malik Washington.
With the 2025 season now in the rearview mirror, the Dolphins will now have to answer serious questions about the future of the franchise as the search for the next general manager — and potentially franchise quarterback — will officially begin.
“It can be done,” linebacker Jordyn Brooks said of the one-year turnaround of the Patriots. “The mindset for us as players in the offseason is how can we get better? As men. As football players. As leaders.”
RUN DEFENSE IS ONCE AGAIN LACKLUSTER
Four touchdowns and 243 yards.
That’s how much the Dolphins allowed on the ground as TreyVeon Henderson and Rhamondre Stevenson ran rampant over the defense.
“They ran the ball well,” said Brooks who led the team in tackles with nine. “Their o-line blocked for them well. They made more plays than we did today and that was the result.”
This should come as no surprise – the Dolphins’ run defense has been rather dismal all year – yet they most recently had their second-best performance during the previous game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers who rushed for just 53 yards on the day.
Stevenson led all rushers with 131 yards and two touchdowns on seven carries followed by Henderson who added another 53 yards and a pair of scores. Maye also had some timely scrambles that led to 41 yards.
OFFENSE MISSES DE’VON ACHANE
The loss of Achane was always going to be huge.
In 16 games, he rushed for a team-high 1,350 yards as well as led the team in catches with 67 en route to his first Pro Bowl selection. Unfortunately, a shoulder injury kept Achane from suiting up and the two biggest beneficiaries of his absence – Jaylen Wright and Ollie Gordon II – didn’t step up.
Wright finished with 23 yards on 13 carries while Gordon didn’t even crack 10 yards (nine attempt for the same amount of yards). Receiver Malik Washington finished second in rushing yards with 22.
TURNOVER MARGIN
The biggest indicator to wins and losses?
Turnovers. Turnovers. Turnovers.
Unfortunately, the Dolphins lost the turnover battle.
Wright’s second quarter fumble led to the first turnover while Ewers’ red zone interception on the Dolphins’ opening drive of the second half resulted in another giveaway. The pick was by far the most egregious considering the Dolphins happened to be in scoring position, and it also led to a Patriots touchdown.
“It goes back to the interception I threw,” Ewers said when asked what happened in the second half. “We came out third quarter and I thought we responded well after we had a pretty decent distance to get the first down on the first three plays. We started to drive down the field, we were in great position, and then I just tried to force a throw at the end of the day which was kind of the turning point in the game which is unfortunate.”
MORE THIRD QUARTER WOES
The Dolphins’ third quarter woes plunged to new depths when the Patriots outscored them 14-0 in the period.
“This game, it didn’t feel on the field like Pittsburgh and Cincinnati game, however, it kind of played out that way,” coach Mike McDaniel said, referring to the back-to-back games in which the Dolphins were outscored by a combined margin of 35 to 0.
What made the latest lopsided third quarter even worse was that the Dolphins could’ve made the season finale a bit competitive in the game’s final moments. Not only did the Dolphins drive deep into Patriots territory to open the quarter as previously mentioned, they happened to be down just seven points at the time. If they walk away with a touchdown and extra point, Miami has tied the game and now all the pressure would’ve been on the Patriots to make something happen.
Instead, the Dolphins will end the season with a third-quarter scoring deficit of 130-27.
“I have a strong motivation to take the offseason to kind of figure out what we can do from a controllable standpoint, from schematic standpoint, from how we operate because the game is won in the second half,” McDaniel said. “When things don’t fall in your favor, you have to be able to adjust.”
This story was originally published January 4, 2026 at 7:26 PM.
