For years, it had seemed like the New England Patriots were impervious to non-Eli-related pain. While other fanbases dealt with heartbreaking losses on a regular basis, the Patriots were overcoming 25-point Super Bowl deficits or avoiding 1-yard runs to Marshawn Lynch.
Maybe Super Bowl LII changed something in New England because on Sunday, the Dolphins pulled off the incredible. They won the game on one of those hook-and-ladder (and continued lateral) plays that never work because it's the NFL. But it worked here mainly because the Patriots played the very predictable situation so terribly.
The Dolphins were trailing by five points from their own 30-yard line, needing a touchdown to win the game.
Ryan Tannehill had battled shoulder injuries for much of this season, so it would have been asking a lot to have him throw 70-plus yards on the fly. It wasn't going to happen – they needed a lateral play. But what did the Patriots do?
THEY BROUGHT IN ROB GRONKOWSKI.
Source: Read Full Article