Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - New England Patriots - Miami Dolphins Recap: Mac Jones Missed Opportunities, Kendrick Bourne Injury

Episode Date: October 31, 2023

Just one week removed from an exciting upset victory over the Buffalo Bills, the New England Patriots left multiple opportunities on the Hard Rock Stadium field in their 31-17 loss in Week 8 to the Miami Dolphins. Host Mike D’Abate welcomes Thomas ‘Murph’ Murphy of E2G Sports to discuss the Pats miscues, Mac Jones game-changing interception and the season-ending injury to receiver Kendrick Bourne.Find and follow Locked On Patriots on your favorite podcast platforms:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/locked-on-patriots-daily-podcast-on-new-england-patriots/id1140512627?i=1000632782469 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1c5ZxFmwg3WbfxAU3tR5Ve?si=k196wH-yRqifUcQQz8SjIQStitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/locked-on-patriotsAnd follow host Mike D’Abate on Twitter, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the New England Patriots and talking with fans.Twitter: @mdabateNFLSupport Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!DoorDashGet 50% off up to $10 value when you spend $15 or more on your FIRST order, when you download the DoorDash app and enter code LOCKED23. Subject to change. Terms apply.Jase MedicalGet $20 off these lifesaving antibiotics with Jase Medical by using code LOCKEDON at checkout on jasemedical.com.PrizePicksGo to PrizePicks.com/lockedonnfl and use code lockedonnfl for a first deposit match up to $100!GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase. Last minute tickets. Lowest Price. Guaranteed.eBay MotorsFor parts that fit, head to eBay Motors and look for the green check. Stay in the game with eBay Guaranteed Fit at eBayMotos.com. Let’s ride. eBay Guaranteed Fit only available to US customers. Eligible items only. Exclusions apply.LinkedInLinkedIn Jobs helps you find the qualified candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONNFL. Terms and conditions apply.FanDuelScore early this NFL season with FanDuel, America’s Number One Sportsbook! Right now, NEW customers get ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS in BONUS BETS with any winning FIVE DOLLAR MONEYLINE BET! That’s A HUNDRED AND FIFTY BUCKS – if your team wins!  Visit FanDuel.com/LOCKEDON to get started.FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You are Locked On Patriots, your daily New England Patriots podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Hello to all of you, Foxborough faithful. Thank you once again for making Locked On Patriots a daily part of your New England Patriots coverage and hopefully your first listen every day. Remember, Locked On Patriots, available on all platforms, including YouTube. So download, subscribe to follow wherever you get your podcasts. You get the latest episode as soon as it's available.

I'm your host, Mike DeBay. I cover your New England Patriots for Patriots Country of Sports Illustrated. So reach out to me and let me know what's on your mind on Twitter, on the Bird app, on X, whatever you happen to call it. My good friend here next to me calls it Zitter. That works for me at M-D-A-B-A-T-E-N-F-L. And while you're out there showing some social media love to lockdown patriots please give our account there a follow as well at lo underscore patriots

and pats fans as you can see it is monday it's another melancholy monday it is definitely mailbag monday because we will get to a mailbag question today as well, but it is hashtag luck on Murph Monday. And joining me as always is the legendary Connor Murphy, Fisto himself, Thomas Murphy of E2G Sports. Thank you so much for coming to me in friendship today and joining me on this Monday, Don Murphy. Oh, man, my pleasure. My pleasure. It's not Monday unless we get together, Michael, and chop up another Patriot loss. Yeah, unfortunately, these are piling up. That news from Patriots camp coming just before Murph and I went live here today to record today's episode. Kendrick Bourne, unfortunately, suffering a torn ACL in yesterday's loss to the Miami Dolphins.

And unfortunately, that means now the Patriots will be without foreign services for the remainder of the season. Initial hope was that Kendrick might have suffered an MCL injury, which would have meant that maybe a return to the field could have been possible in 2023. Underwent an MRI. The further tests revealed that it was indeed a torn ACL. Mike Garofalo of NFL Network first to report it. And of course, Murph. Kendrick suffered this injury in the first play of the fourth quarter, attempting to come down with a third and nine at the Pat's 16-yard line. Automatically spent some time in the blue pop-up medical temp.

He went directly back and he was very quickly ruled out. You knew it couldn't be good at that point. And unfortunately, it is bad news. And it's just added to the Patriots' 31-17 defeat from the Dolphins. It drops them to 2-6. Folks, we are going to break down all the ins and outs, the ups and downs of the game today.

So fear not. But we'd be remiss if we didn't begin with Kendrick. How big of a loss is this for the New England Patriots? It's huge. It's humongous. It's the Lord humongous. It's Mac's favorite weapon. It's his Lord humongous. It's Mac's favorite weapon. It's his good friend.

He always knows that when he needs that catch, if he can get the ball there, that Bourne is going to come down with it. There's nobody on this roster right now that has the synergy that Kendrick Bourne has with Mac Jones. And this is just, you know, along with Devontae Parker going down yesterday and his – I'm just going to go out and say it. I don't think we're going to see Devontae Parker come next week either. This is going to end up being a very difficult time for the Patriots

to try to scrape together any semblance of a decent season. Yeah, and unfortunately, when you lose the heart and soul of your offense, which, you know, you can really make the argument that Kendrick was the heart and soul of this year. One of the very few bright spots, their top receiver, 37 catches, 40 406 yards four touchdowns he caught three passes on four targets for 36 with a touchdown before exiting Sunday's game these are not blockbuster numbers here folks we're not going to put these up there with Tyreek Hill and what he's doing down in Miami right now but what Kendrick always did for the Patriots and what he continues to do and hopefully we'll continue to see him in a Patriots uniform. We'll get to that in just a moment as well, folks, because this does have implications even beyond this season.

That versatility, that ability to win from any alignment, whether it be the Z receiver, whether it be the X, the perimeter, the slot, Kendrick could do it all, and he always did it with a positivity. And you can see the way he feeds off of it with Mac Jones. Mac, obviously, when he spoke to the media last night, was very somber for a lot of reasons. But one of the big reasons why he was, he was worried about his friend Kendrick. He was worried about his top receiver. And you could hear it.

And he said it very plain out. He says, I have a lot of love for KB. He's one of my best friends on the team. But he's also one of the best receivers on this team. Really hope he's okay. Unfortunately, worst case scenario here for the Pats and Kendrick Bourne. team but he's also one of the best receivers on this team really hope he's okay unfortunately worst case scenario here for the pats in kendrick bourne so certainly wish him the best the tip of the cap a nod to the gods and again i alluded to the implications beyond this season kendrick's in

a contract year this is a third year of a three-year contract that he signed in 2021 obviously you can take him off of the trade market i know i you know a lot of people were saying last night when they thought that it might be an mcl injury maybe a mild sprain something that could still allow him to be moved he was a valuable asset and current nfl nflpa collective bargaining agreement does allow for the trade of injured players folks sure that's not happening right now. You just wonder what this means for his future because he is entering free agency. The majority of Patriots fans right now are hoping we haven't seen the last of Kendrick going in the Patriots uniform.

Right. I was hoping that he would sign an extension early on in camp. That didn't happen. It came down to how Kendrick was going to react to yet another change at offensive coordinator and see how this all works out. It was working out fantastic. It was really working out well. I mean, after everything that he went through and Mack went through last year with Tweedledum and Tweedledummer, I was really hoping that he was going to have this type of season. And it was still on the upswing. You know, things were getting better and better.

And I was hoping that he, I still hope that the Patriots will find a way to get something done, a one year plus an option deal, something of that ilk this offseason. Because this kid is a fantastic locker room guy. He's a solid wide receiver. By no means, folks, am I calling him a number one. As Mike said earlier, you know, there are seven number one wide receivers in this league right now. Seven.

Okay? But Kendrick is a solid tier three wide receiver. These are the guys that we've complained about all year long that there aren't enough depth pieces. This is one of the depth pieces that you want to keep around. I mean, whether it be aligning from numerous positions on the field and being effective in all of them, a lot of people forget that Kendrick is one of those jack of all trades that's just willing to do anything. Not only that he can do it, he's willing to do it. And there is a synergy between those two. And when you have a player that's not only willing, but also able, it really makes the world

a difference and it puts a lot of pressure on this wide receiver score right now because as you stated obviously and we'll talk about this in a little bit when it comes to officiating folks as you can see on the placard that is a topic that will be discussed here um davante parker is probably looking at being out for sunday's game I would be very surprised after the hit that he took and seeing how he looked being held back to the locker room yesterday that he will not still be in concussion protocol, especially his history here as well. I'm thinking two to three weeks that he's not going to be here either. Devontae really absorbed a very, very difficult hit, and we certainly hope the best for him. We hope he's going to be okay.

I know Devontae has taken a lot of hits, including some on this show as well, folks, but injury is the great equalizer, and you never want to see anyone have to go through that, and we just hope the best for him, but it's next man up, and there aren't a lot of next men left in that stable, Murph. You're talking Pop Douglas. He's going to be the young question number one guy now. With him drawing the target, that puts a lot of pressure on Jalen Rager, Keyshawn Butek we need to see him out there on the field Bill you've got to take him off a double secret probation this absolutely is not the time to continue to play Dean Wormer you need him out there and whether it's good bad or indifferent you got to give the kid a shot. Somebody's got to step up here. When you look at this roster top to bottom,

who do you think takes that next step here logistically now? You know, with the two of them out, Boutte has got to be in the mix next week. I don't know why he hasn't been. It's god-awful to me. I am not inside, so I do not know the, the, um, the relationship that he has with O'Brien and with Bill Belichick. Um, I know he sent out a very cryptic tweet, uh, or, or Instagram post last week that said, free me, free me, you know, that did not help. That did not help, uh, Kayshawn's, uh, situation here, you know, we've got to go back.

Tyquan Thornton, I was really shocked, did not make the start yesterday. Because, as I said in my keys, that the Dolphins are a little suspect over the top. You know, and I was looking for somebody to take the top off of this defense. And Thornton was not a part of the plan. So he's going to have to step up also. Yeah, without question. And I'm glad you led into that because Murph on the field, taking the injury part of this off because the Patriots had their share, whether it be Parker, whether it be Bowen,

let's not forget Juwan Bentley leaving the game as well with a hamstring injury. Patriots had their share of injuries and they had their share of battles with the officials, but I also saw a lot of unturned keys left on that field on Sunday. And I think that's the biggest reason why the Patriots are facing a two and six record now, as opposed to a three and five. Which of those keys that we discussed here on Friday that Murph eloquently laid out for us were not turned and how much did it hurt the New England Patriots? We're going to talk about that in just a moment when this episode of the Locked On Patriots podcast continues, a proud part of a Locked On podcast network our partners over at eBay Motors have teamed up with Locked On Fantasy Football host Vinny Iyer to bring you some of the best fantasy picks each week all season long.

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I know it's not alliteration, folks, but there's no other way to put it. But the saving grace here, folks, is that it is hashtag LockedOnMurphMonday, and we're always honored to welcome in the wisdom and counsel of my good friend Thomas Murphy of E2G Sports. Murph, we talked a lot about the loss of Kendrick Bourne and what it means to this team, but it was the same old story for the New England Patriots on Sunday yesterday in Miami. You take a step forward, but you take two steps back, and we were all riding that era of good feelings for the Patriots

putting together their first complete game victory of 2023 against the Bills just one week ago, but Patriots once again surrendering 390 total yards of offense to Miami, two of 11 when it came to third and fourth down conversions, and only one of nine on third down. Murph, if there is a monster key that you consistently put in your weeklies every week, it's win the battle on third down. The Patriots didn't do it. I know you were steamed up yesterday for the better part of the day. Floor is yours, my friend. Of your unturned keys, which bothered you the most? And which do you think were the biggest contributors to the Patriots loss yesterday?

Well, the turnover battle, of course, you know, Mac throwing that, that God awful interception as the Patriots were driving. And, you know, it was just a one score game at the time. And you can't do that. You can't throw, you can't lob that. It was the play side for God's sakes. It was the play side, you know, and you, and you throw that softball up there with these, these cornerbacks. And, and it's a and I said it all last week, man.

He's going to get snagged. He's going to get – somebody is going to pick six. One of these floaters that he's putting up out there, you know, stop with the touch and put some juice on the ball. And I don't want to hear that Mack doesn't have the arm. We've all seen him put that juice on the ball. He wasn't throwing across, across the field. There was no need to do that. So that, that was one that win the turnover battle. I think the numbers were actually in the Patriots favor in that, but unfortunately it didn't, it didn't end up that way. Even,

even though, you know, turning the ball over right there, it was terrible. It was at least a 10-point swing, you know, at least a 10-point swing right there. The other one is the fact that they went away from the run, okay? Run the rock. Run it, run it, run it. Run the rock. And that did not happen. They went away.

I'm not sure off the top of my head how many carries they had, but it was terrible. You know, it was it was there to be had. They were begging you to do it and you didn't. You got down a score or two and we started throwing the ball all over the place. And unfortunately, that didn't work. And the last one was probably the most important was the fact that they did not dial up enough pressure. I don't care who was on this, who was out on Sunday. All right. You have to. I told you.

We said it last week, Friday. You have to win in the trenches, and you have to get pressure on this kid. Get him on his ass and keep him there. This happened in the first quarter the patriots were playing well it was a they got out to an early lead they did not pressure tua enough i'm glad that you mentioned the defense we'll get back to the defense in just a moment uh 17 carries between uh ramond ray stevenson and ezekiel 17. it should have been 28. yeah it should have been 28. um one carry for demario d. One carry for Demario Douglas with four yards.

A total of 77 yards for all Patriots rushers yesterday, including a two-yard backup from Matt Jones. So not enough of the run game early without any question. I'm so glad that you mentioned the interception because initially on the first watch, the first thing that I thought of was Jalen Ramsey just baited him into that. He made it look like he's going to go for Parker switches back to born and he's off to the races.

It was really, I think the second watch after I heard Max post game comments that I really realized what Mac meant when he says, I didn't put enough on it, you know, force it enough. And he knew it, he knew the coverage,

he knew what was going to happen. And it was just a bad throw. It really was a poor throw. And at this stage of your career, at this stage in the Patriots season, knowing how vital that was, because the Pats were really threatening in that drive. They're down 14-7. They're going 52 yards at this point. You're almost assured, the way Chad Ryland's been kicking the ball lately of at least three to tack on, but maybe even seven, if they're able to complete that, or maybe, you know, give themselves an

opportunity to get into the red zone. Um, but that was just a backbreaker, uh, without any question. It really was. And, and to have it happen in the first half, you just saw the, the, the, uh, the air come out of the Patriots tires, you know, And then it was like, we've got to throw the ball. We've got to throw the, no, you didn't. You didn't have to throw the ball. All right. Shake it off and get into the next huddle and make things happen. And that did not happen.

It's, it's, it, I said to, I talked to Matt Chatham this morning and it was like, you know, it, he has, this is the aggravating thing. Okay. He has the clubs in his bag. He just keeps picking the wrong club. And last week he got away with picking the wrong club. He got that sand wedge out and that's what it was. It's a sand wedge shot out there to the left hand side.

I don't play golf people. I don't, I don't. But you just saw, as soon as you see that air underneath, you know, that somebody is going to come over after watching the tape from last week and say, mine, mine, give it to me. And the results were what they were. And unfortunately it put the Patriots in a 17 to seven hole at halftime they just weren't able to dig their way out of it i will give max credit showed some buoyancy in the second half 12 plays 81 yards three yard touchdown pass to juju smith schuster late trying to give his team a little bit

of a spark uh where we didn't see that in the two previous egregious losses uh that the patriots had um a little more head hanging from mac on that. I think there was at least the effort to try to bounce back. But I know we'd like to talk about those big round men up front. I thought the offensive line regressed a little bit from their performance the week before when you're allowing the second half sacks, Christian Wilkins, Jalen Phillips, Bradley Chubb, each getting one. Trent Brown, I believe it was on the Bradley Chubb set. It looked like he thought the play was over. Notable here on

Trent Brown, though, folks, reported by several reporters on the scene. I did not make the trip to Miami, but several media beat writers did and said that Trent Brown walking around the locker room with a noble limp. That's something to watch this week, folks. Before we get on Trent for quitting on the play, there could have been an injury reason why he was a little bit more

hampered yesterday than not. So keep that in mind. That Cole Strange got hurt again yesterday. And I just feel, I feel really terrible for this kid. This has just been a nightmare injury type season for him. He just cannot get and stay right. And, um, and that's when things started to break down. You saw a mafia out there again. It just, it was not happening that that synergy from last week, that, that collective view that, uh, that the offensive line we saw last week was not there this week. And, um, and it was, it was painfully evident. Yeah, absolutely. And again, folks, you know,

unfortunately the Patriots now find themselves at two and six and really staring directly in the face playoff irrelevance for the first time in a good long while. And not something that will sit well in new England. Definitely not in the front office. Definitely not on the field. Absolutely not in the coach's room. You have to wonder whether or not significant changes will be made with the trade deadline looming at 4 p.m. tomorrow afternoon on Halloween of all days.

It's going to be an interesting time for the New England Patriots. And, of course, we'll bring you the very latest right here on Locked On Patriots and a special trade deadline episode tomorrow here on Locked On. So stay locked in to Locked On Patriots for that. But the Patriots in a special trade deadline episode tomorrow here on Lockdown. So stay locked in to Lockdown Patriots for that. But the Patriots secondary yesterday, we talked a lot about using that big nickel to try to control the big play. Miami, once again, had an answer to what New England wanted to do, and they threw it back right at them. Tua Tagovailoa, 30 to 45 passes, 324 yards. Jalen Waddell,

seven catches for 121 yards and a touchdown. Tyreek Hill, eight catches, 112 yards and a score. Jonathan Jones looked like he's still visibly limited by his injuries. I think he did. He put out a gallant effort, did everything he could, but the Dolphins challenged J.C. Jackson. And in a lot of ways, Murph, when you go back and look at how J.C. performed against Miami in the first game he played against them this season with the Chargers, you saw a lot of the same elements. Challenge him in coverage where you know he has difficulty. Bait him into a DPI call, which, well, we'll talk about that in a minute. But ultimately, the Dolphins knew, I think, what the Patriots wanted to do yesterday, and they just had the answers to the test before it was even passed out.

Yeah, they really did. And the Patriots kind of helped them out there. There was far too much zone yesterday, not enough man-to-man. I understand, folks. I do, the guys that they're dealing with, but, um, you just see it. He'll he'll for as much as I can't stand him. All right. He's not a stupid football player.

If you're going to sit there in, in, um, in this zone, he is going to find the open spot and give his quarterback the opportunity to hit him. That's what he did his entire career in, uh, in Kansas city. And he's brought that mentality over here and he's taught, you know, everybody else on that UC zone, find an open spot and, and wait for junior to find you. He's going to find you. And when you don't pressure the quarterback, when you don't pressure the quarterback, like I told you to, um, that's what happens. They gave him too much time back there. He was able to

find soft spots in the, in the defense, in this zone, they should have been in man more. They should have, they should have allowed, uh, um, uh, what they should have done with the front line was, was put more pressure on him to get the ball out early and not give these guys time to find the soft spots that was in that zone defense. Yeah, and unfortunately, the Patriots missing a little bit too much up front in the defensive front, a tough game for Dietrich Wise yesterday. Christian Barmore did have his moments where, you know,

he came in, made a couple of nice tackles, but the loss of Juwan Bentley in the middle part of that defense was really, really rough. You're missing your play caller at that point, but it did lead to, I think, a bright spot here, folks. And if we are taking away a silver lining, I think this young gentleman may have been the silver lining to take away from the Patriots loss to the dolphins.

Who am I referring to? I think Murph knows who I'm referring to. And maybe you all do out there to the guy that showed up yesterday in a big way, I think could have been a lot more egregious of a loss for the Pats. If this guy didn't bring his a game, we're going to talk about that gentleman and the Patriots defensive backfield in just a moment.

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of the ins and outs, the ups and downs of the Patriots, 31-17 loss all of the ins and outs, the ups and downs of the Patriots, 31-17 loss to the Miami Dolphins, dropping them further into last place in the AFC East, last place in the AFC, and now unfortunately, folks, probably on the drastic outside looking in when it comes to any playoff aspirations. But Murph, we've talked a lot about all the negatives, Mac Jones' regression, the offensive line, the defensive problems the Patriots had. Obviously, we opened the show today by talking about the loss of Kendrick Bourne and how difficult that's going to be to come back from.

But there were some silver linings yesterday on the field. Patriots did show that they can come down and try to play a little bit from behind, that this team is not dead on arrival as soon as the other team takes a lead. The Patriots did battle back a little bit, obviously in a losing effort, but the effort was there. But I think a defensive effort from Kyle Duggar yesterday is something that the Patriots can feel optimistic about.

He's been really incirculated in trade rumors because of his contract status. I think what he did on the field yesterday proves that the Patriots need to keep him in a Patriots uniform. That's right, folks. I think he's that important. Was Kyle Duggar a silver lining yesterday, Glenn? He was. He honestly was. Kyle Duggar had a fantastic game yesterday.

He played right into his hands. He had a nice sack. And I don't know if I i would give anything to to put him here but trading him away right now would be a definite mistake i'm not gonna i'm not gonna hang a uh a um uh a franchise tag on him but let's work something out here people it's been a long time since the patriots uh gave uh an extension to anybody that they've drafted. I think you have to go back to a certain punter that is down in Miami right now to find that. But no, Kyle Duggar is somebody who should be here for the foreseeable future.

We talk here on Locked On Patriots and so many other shows about, um, depth and, you know, whether or not you have the depth, um, there's, there's really no depth at this position whatsoever. And to create a hole that you can, you could fill automatically without doing anything except cash. Um, I think is ridiculous. I think it's ridiculous. You're not going to bring anybody in off the street

that is going to know this system the way that Duggar does, somebody that is as versatile as he is. He can play down in the box. He can play some out there in center field. But this is a man that plays three different positions out there. You never know where he's coming from. Always gives you 100%, and you can't turn your back on that. You really can't.

So, yeah, he was definitely a silver lining yesterday, and I want to see him around here for a very long time. Another silver lining that not a lot of people are talking about right now is Pharoah Brown. He is really coming into his own here in New England. This is a guy that you did not hear a lot about before he came here. But he just catches everything that's thrown his way. Everything. He makes first downs.

He puts his head down and he gets it i don't want to call him ben coats here people that's not what i'm doing never mind you know uh rob gronkowski but when you finally have a tight end that can catch the ball and block he's somebody that i want to keep here yeah without question and now you see why bill belichick and the patriots offensive brain trust has been eyeing this kid for a good number of years now you see why Bill Belichick and the Patriots Offensive Brain Trust has been eyeing this kid for a good number of years now. You know, his experience in Cleveland and in Houston. Farrell Brown just really becomes another in the long line of typical Patriots signings. We see things in him that not everyone else sees.

When he comes here, we're going to extract it and bring it out of him. So even though the Patriots have not had that many of those lately, folks, and I know the track record is a little thin when it comes to bringing players in and impact players, Farrell Brown is proving to be one of those guys that can continue to get better and better. And I think that was another silver lining yesterday as well, Murph. So definitely a good choice there. Kyle Duggar, again, once again, proving his effort. I thought the way that he made the read, you want to talk about baiting with Ramsey earlier. That was a very very good really nice when it came to miles brian when it came to kyle duggar coming right in on the hook zone and that was really i think text

i was a happy camper i was a real happy camper when when that went down and and i there's there's more of that on the table. Absolutely. Bring him back. Yeah. And to what I talk about lower is not an easy quarterback to confuse folks. Kyle basically made him throw it right to him. And he made the play.

And then, of course, the side sack that Murph was talking about. And, of course, taking the command of the Patriots defense in the absence of Juwan Bentley. And it was a smart set. He had a clean shot there. He made sure that he didn't come down on him with full weight and add a 15-yard penalty into what was a 10-yard loss, and that was brilliant.

Last week, Barmore got that flag thrown at him, and Duggar learned from it and said, hey, I've got a clean shot, but we're going to make this a clean hit. There are things to take away, goods to take away from the field. Hope you can find at least a couple. And what I know has become a very disappointing season for your New England Patriots. And it was a disappointing game on multiple fronts yesterday, Murph.

And in no way will Murph and I sit up here and tell you that the Patriots lost the game by two touchdowns simply because of poor officiating but if we did not spend at least a few minutes on today's show to wrap it up talking about how several questionable calls yesterday going against the New England Patriots favor hurt them in a lot of different situations we wouldn't be doing our job this was egregious yesterday Murph and I tried a week complaining about the officials off of lockdown Patriots you don't hear it a lot on these airwaves but unfortunately folks yeah you're going to hear it today because the officials deserve it right you know Murph I don't know about you but when the league comes down as that eye in the sky

that everybody talks about and tells you to reverse a call on the field, that should really be a red flag. I'm not going to ask you what you thought of the officiating yesterday, because I think we all know that answer. But to your estimation, how egregious was it and how big of a role did it play in the Patriots' poor performance or inability to really find any traction and maybe get themselves back into this game? Well, once Devonta Parker was knocked out of this game, it completely changed the game plan.

It was obvious that he was going to end up being a very big part of the game plan, whether it was as a, um, as a decoy or as a, um, as a target. And what happened yesterday with him to him was unforgivable. Okay. You cannot look at that play in any way, shape, live slowed down or anything else that he wasn't hit directly in under the chin and to his face mask with the crown of the helmet. That should have been a penalty. It's a penalty all day, every day. I do not know why it was not yesterday.

That was a play that needed to be reviewed. I know you can't throw a red flag on it. You can't ask somebody to go upstairs and look at it. But that flag needed to be thrown there. All right. We're talking about a league that keeps talking about eliminating these kind of hits and these kind of injuries. And to allow that to happen was disgusting. Yeah, absolutely.

You know, whether the play is reviewable or not, Murph, bottom line, this is a league that preaches player safety as being their most important tenant in the NFL. We're going to protect our players. We're going to make sure that the players have a safe environment on the field and make sure that they're protected. Two flags could have been thrown on that play. Yeah, this is something that the NFL needs to instill in their referees and whatever you have to do to make sure that they're watching helmet to helmet contact. Because if concussion prevention is what you are supposed to be doing, NFL, this is what you need to do. You need to take any and all measures to make sure that that happens. The human element of officiating is always going to be there. Officials are going to miss calls. I'm not going to accuse anyone of foul play or anything like that without proper evidence. So I'm not going to go that step.

But when you look at this helmet to helmet that knocked Parker out of the game, it was egregious. It was overt. The reason behind him not getting that call to me is just I don't think there is one that exists. Matthew Slater was very outspoken after the game on this. Several Patriots players were, but he absolutely believes that Deshaun Elliott is going to be fine for this. He should be. And, you know, this was just, again, it flies in the face of everything the NFL tells you about player safety. And then they allow something like this to happen on the field. Like I said, two flags could have been thrown at this one one was the helmet to helmet and the other one was was hitting a

defenseless receiver yeah okay either either flag could have been thrown there they threw it later they threw it later all right and said that no it was unsportsmanlike that's not what that flag was thrown for okay and Junior was not even standing up when that flag came in exactly okay would not even standing up right all right and that flag had been thrown and then they covered themselves later they covered themselves by saying oh no it was taunting it was unsportsmanlike, and that's what it's for. This officiating crew was maddening. It was really maddening with how inconsistent they were. To me, I think one of the more blatant offenses was missing on the illegal shift with the Dolphins. It was, and you honestly, I brought it up on Friday,

the fact that on every single time that the dolphins are in motion, they've got this wide angle and they're coming back in towards the line of scrimmage. You can't do that. You can't do that. All right? In no way, shape, or form can you motion towards the line of scrimmage. And they did it on every single motion play that they had on sunday all right and until the flags come out they're gonna keep doing it and i don't blame them

yeah and you know what and i'm laughing right along with you because you predicted this on friday you said right here on these airwaves i'm wondering how they're gonna call this and we got our answer folks so you know bottom line uh those calls just continue to pile up uh Murph and I I think tipped our hand earlier on what we felt uh about the DPI on JC Jackson yeah there's a slight jersey tug there you want to call that whatever if it were me I wouldn't have called it and I say that and I say this very honestly folks I wouldn't have called it if it was a Patriots player I wouldn't have called it if it was a Dolphins player I don't think that was a DPI but there's an argument to be made there but when you're missing the helmet to helmet that to me is really

I think the most egregious and then when you miss the illegal shift on that and then all of a sudden it sets a precedent for the Dolphins to be able to do it just like you said it really it takes a lot of the wind out of the sails and I'm sorry, one more, one more that I've really got to get off my chest is the non-fumble. Okay. The forward progress. All right. You play until the whistle. All right.

There was not a whistle blown there until that ball was batted out of Junior's hands. And you can believe this. All right. If he had gained four more yards there, then they would have given it to him. Because forward progress had not stopped. He was still moving forward. He was still lurching forward when that ball was knocked out of his hands. This was just one of the most horrid called games that I have ever seen.

I'm 50-ish, okay? And that's how bad this was. The missed calls, the ignorance by these Zebras on Sunday, yesterday. And I don't want to hear, go back and look what happened in Philadelphia. I'm not talking about that. Okay, you folks in Miami go back and complain about what happened in Philadelphia and you did and I said early in the game

that well it really looks like you know what you're complained about and everything that he did he did it worked it worked okay and there was just I don't know I'm at a loss I'm at a loss yeah I'm at a loss.

Yeah, I think we're all at a loss and unfortunately Murph, most importantly the Patriots are at a loss once again. And at 2-6 folks where do the Patriots go from here? Well, tomorrow once again, a special trade deadline episode of Locked On Patriots to wrap up all the

moves that are going to be made. Will the Patriots be active? Most of the beat writers and talking heads are thinking they will be active, but it's not a slam dunk, folks. Just when you think the Patriots are going to zig, they zag. So we're going to talk about all of that here tomorrow, but in the meantime, I want to thank

my good friend, the Count of Murphy, Fisto himself, a legendary Green King of Sting, Thomas Murphy of E2G Sports for lending his wisdom and counsel and his Dunlop-like leadership here on Locked On Patriots. So well needed on a day where Patriots fans needed something to either get angry about or maybe look forward to. I think we gave you guys at least a couple of tidbits to walk away with today.

So Murph, thank you so much. But please enlighten all of our listeners throughout the week where they can reach out to you, interact with you and what we can look forward to coming from the great pen, the great voice of Thomas Murphy. Of course, you can find me over that e2gsports.com. Everything I've got happening for this MLB postseason. I've got a nice little Patriots column coming up this week. And, you know, of course, the Monster Keys will be out on Friday as they are every week.

Let's hope they turn them. Because, you know, as we saw last week, you turn the keys and you won. And this week you didn't. And look what happened. But other than that, yeah, find me on the Zitter app at TMURF207. And you can keep up with everything that I've got going on. Absolutely, folks. And once again, definitely check out anything Team Murph 207. You can keep up with everything that I've got going on. Absolutely, folks. And once again, definitely check out anything that Murph does,

whether it be pen to paper, whether it be voice to microphone, it's always appointment listening, appointment reading. You're entertained, but most importantly, you're well-informed. And you can't ask for anything more as a fan of professional sports. And, folks, once again, we thank you for taking time out of your schedule to join us here on Locked On Patriots. Don't forget to tune in tomorrow to trade deadline day

here on Locked On Patriots. But in the meantime, we encourage you to stay safe and to stay well and to always be the change that you wish to see in the world. On behalf of my good friend, the counter Murphy Fisto himself,

Thomas Murphy, I'm Mike DeBate. Have a great day, everyone. And we'll see you back here again tomorrow on Locked on Patriots. There's a kitten on my feet. That's why I'm smiling.