The Patriots have a reverse TD on the replay and lose to the Dolphins for their fourth straight loss

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) – The New England Patriots may have come close to beating the Miami Dolphins.

Instead, the Patriots lost 15-10 to the Miami Dolphins on Sunday after a diving bid by rookie wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk following a game-winning touchdown catch with 1:02 left was denied on replay.

The Patriots committed 12 penalties and allowed 193 rushing yards to a Miami team that had averaged 97.8 yards on the ground through the first four games. New England has the worst record in the NFL at 1-4 and has dropped four straight points since winning in Cincinnati earlier in the season.

“I think there’s no doubt that we’re strong, but we have to be better in terms of execution,” coach Jerod Mayo said. “I would also say that as time went on, our fundamentals started to deteriorate.”

So did New England’s scoring, which was questionable at best late in the game. After a timeout with the ball at Miami’s 36-yard line, quarterback Jacoby Brissett passed from 25 yards to tight end Hunter Henry. The Patriots didn’t have another chance to run the game as the game clock expired before Brissett could miss another play.

“We have to play better. There is no magical thing we have to do. We just have to play better. We have to play better. We have to play better with good fundamentals. We have to do all these little things better,” Brissett said after failing to pass 200 yards for the fifth straight game. “When we go back and watch this movie, it’s not about this person, this person, this play, this play. We just have to play better as a team.”

Mayo said the right decision was made to deny Polk the touchdown. It was a tough game for Patriots fans, who then had to watch as Henry was penalized for a false start on fourth down at the Miami 12.

“We talk about pre-snap and post-snap penalties all the time. It just wasn’t a good day,” Mayo said.

Of the dozen or so penalties, the one that proved to be the most critical came on a pass that allowed the Dolphins to take the lead on Alec Ingold’s three-yard touchdown run with 4:27 left. Miami continued to stay on the field after New England defenseman Christian Elliss was called for pass interference in the 3rd and 13th minutes.

“We just have to do a better job of penalties overall, whether it’s holding, pass interference or whatever,” Mayo said. “Look, I don’t think the judges are just looking to sign anyone in particular. I just think we have to play smarter.

Brendan McGair, Associated Press