Ding-dong, the Pats are dead! The Pats are dead, The Pats are dead. Ding-dong, the wicked Pats are deaaad!
OK, maybe the official end of the New England Patriots’ remarkable dynasty wasn’t quite so dramatic, but for a brief moment Sunday, anyone observing football for the past 19 years had to wonder if there was a sliver of Belichickian magic left. The Patriots marched to the locker room at the half up 6-0 over the Miami Dolphins thanks to a cocktail of clunky play by the hosts and sheer luck. A Cam Newton fumble, recovered by Xavien Howard and returned for 86 yards and a score that was reversed because it had touched a Dolphins defender.