Patriots' path to beating the Dolphins boils down to one key factor

New England Patriots - Linebackers Robert Spillane (L) and Christian Elliss (R) | Bob DeChiara-Imagn ImagesThe New England Patriots' hyped offseason was dampened after a disappointing Week 1 performance against the Raiders, which ended in a 20-13 loss. The offense was anemic: Drake Maye was streaky, and the run game was nonexistent. Defensively, the unit was solid overall but allowed some key plays to alter the game. Things will need to change if they want to take down the Dolphins.

Miami has no shortage of weapons, despite their embarrassing 33-8 loss against the Colts. Tua Tagovailoa is a polarizing but generally accurate quarterback, De'Von Achane leads the backfield, and the duo of…