The New England Patriots would have felt pretty satisfied with their 33-27 win over the Miami Dolphins in Week 2. But the outing was far from perfect. Six of their players got banged up, and one of them was rookie safety Craig Woodson. He looked quite shaken after he attempted to tackle the Dolphins’ WR Malik Washington in the third quarter, leading to a helmet-to-helmet collision. Woodson made his way to the blue medical tent on the sidelines for a checkup. The medical team cleared him to return to the game before the end of the third quarter, and so, he missed four defensive snaps.

The collision happened during a play, which started at 6:13 on the clock. And the replay of the incident showed that Washington had lowered his head right before the clash, increasing the impact. Hence, the latest Gameday Accountability report had the receiver mentioned for ‘Unnecessary Roughness’ and has been fined $5,611.

As per Rule 12 Section 2 Article 10 of the league’s rulebook: “It is a foul if a player: (a) lowers his head and makes forcible contact with his helmet against an opponent; or (b) uses any part of his helmet or facemask to butt or make forcible contact to an opponent’s head or neck.”

If we go back to last season, Washington had two penalties against the Patriots. The first one came in Week 5 when the WR was called for a blindside block. The second one came in Week 12 after he received an illegal motion penalty.

Regardless, in Week 2 against the Pats, he had a standout moment despite the fine. The second-year receiver finished with one catch for two yards on two targets and added three carries for 23 yards. In the fourth quarter, the player fielded a punt, spun off a tackle, and took it 74 yards to the end zone. It was the Dolphins’ first punt return touchdown since Jakeem Grant’s in 2020, against the Rams.

With that, Washington became the team’s 14th player with a punt return TD. But it doesn’t end there. He also became the franchise’s seventh player to score both on a punt return and a rushing touchdown in his Dolphins tenure.

After a loss to the Pats, the team was hopeful for its first win this season. However, Miami also lost to the Buffalo Bills. The Dolphins are now 0-3. So, no doubt the fingers are being pointed at HC Mike McDaniel.

Mike McDaniel’s seat is not going to cool down anytime soon

The team’s 0-3 start is enough to test patience in Miami. Despite the early struggles, the front office insists it’s standing by McDaniel and general manager Chris Grier. Owner Stephen Ross has shown support. And NFL insider Ari Meirov has reminded fans that McDaniel signed an extension just last August. However, support in September can look very different by December if the losses keep piling up.

The frustration boiled over after Sunday’s defeat to Buffalo, where McDaniel called out the NFL for ignoring what he believed was a Josh Allen fumble at the end of the first half. On the play, Allen and his offense lined up, but the QB appeared to fumble it and took a knee as he recovered the ball. An official blew the whistle. Allen tossed the ball to an official and jogged away to the locker room.

Speaking to the media on Friday, McDaniel said he had contacted the league to discuss that play. He also admitted that it was a test of his “mental discipline” not to erupt in the moment because, as per him, it was a fumble with a clean center-quarterback exchange. However, the NFL’s rules suggest that an official will declare the ball dead if a QB drops to his knee or simulates the act of dropping to one knee, behind or beyond the line of scrimmage.

And since Allen dropped a knee, the official declared the ball dead. It will be interesting to see what the league has to say about it.