How Will Patriots Look to Slow Down Dolphins’ Tyreek Hill?

No receiver has caught more touchdowns against the Patriots since 2017 than Tyreek Hill, and only Stefon Diggs has racked up as many receiving yards vs New England in that span. Now, following a blockbuster trade that sent Hill from the Kansas City Chiefs to the Miami Dolphins, the Patriots will be seeing both receivers at least twice a year for the foreseeable future.

Hill joins a star-studded offense that already featured record-breaking blazer Jaylen Waddle and human glue-trap Mike Gesicki. Miami also signed electric playmakers Chase Edmonds Cedrick Wilson in free agency..

The Dolphins’ offensive overhaul might be daunting for Patriots fans, who watched top corner J.C. Jackson sign with the Chargers in free agency. New England also has an unsettled (but promising) situation at cornerback with multiple young players fighting for a spot behind veterans Jalen Mills and Jonathan Jones.

Fortunately, no team outside of the AFC West has more experience scheming for Tyreek Hill than the Patriots. Bill Belichick and Co have faced the Cheetah five times since 2017, making key adjustments over the years to wrangle the speedster.

Here’s how the Patriots’ plan for Hill has changed since the receiver’s breakout 2017 season.

2017-2018 (REGULAR SEASON): SOFT ZONES LEAD TO BIG PLAYS

Tyreek Hill terrorized the Patriots’ defense in their first two meetings from 2017 to 2018. And frankly, New England didn’t put up much of a fight. 

The league’s fastest man caught seven passes for 130+ yards and a 75-yard touchdown in each game, both of which saw the Chiefs put up 40+ points.

Hill racked up these stats by running uncontested through New England’s spot drop zones and burning an overmatched Devin McCourty for two of his three scores with Patrick Mahomes under center.

Though Hill’s explosiveness makes him virtually impossible to completely shut down, the Patriots needed a solution that could at least keep them competitive.

They found that answer during the teams’ third meeting in the 2018  AFC Championship Game.

2018 AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME: A SECRET WEAPON EMERGES

With their season on the line, New England went all out to contain Hill in the AFC title game. Their game plan featured a heavy dose of “1 Double 10,” a variation of cover-one designed to bracket the speedster. 

Devin McCourty’s discipline, recognition, and speed made him a perfect candidate for the role of deep safety on these double teams. Even when the Patriots didn’t explicitly double Hill, McCourty would shade heavily to his side and respect his presence while trying to read the quarterback.

But who would shadow Hill in man converge? 

Though many expected shutdown corner Stephon Gilmore to get the call, New England appointed slot corner Jonathan Jones. Jones matched Hill’s physical profile as another twitchy athlete with rare speed, but the corner’s scrappiness at the catch point and patience when out of phase made this matchup truly competitive.

The Patriots’ new strategy was a resounding success, holding Hill to fewer than 50 receiving yards and no scores on only three targets.

Hills’ only reception came on the Chiefs’ infamous “Wasp” concept with then-rookie Keion Crossen in coverage.Jones spent most of his snaps against Hill in press alignments on the boundary, bumping inside in some critical situations. The corner provided tight coverage while mirroring his assignment in a “trail” technique. Jones nearly picked off the only catchable pass that came his way, chasing Hill down from behind against Wasp and getting his head around at the last second.

Mahomes did what Mahomes does and found his other playmakers to keep things competitive, but eliminating Hill went a long way in securing the Patriots’ eventual Super Bowl berth.

2019: RATS AND ROBBERS

After shutting Hill down in the playoffs, Jones was trusted to handle the Cheetah without dedicated safety help in future matchups. This freed the defense to scheme against the offense’s favorite concepts, rather than focusing attention on one player.

When the Chiefs came to town in 2019, the Patriots’ top priority was suffocating their staple crossers and hi-low concepts. This revised plan heavily featured Devin McCourty in the box on passing downs as a “rat” from the line of scrimmage or “robber” from depth,  following the quarterback’s eyes to deter or attack throws over the middle.

If KC didn’t need many yards to convert against man coverage, the Patriots would have linebackers drop into coverage from the line of scrimmage to “cut” shallow crossing routes.

In one long yardage situation, Jon Jones passed Hill off to McCourty and assumed the safety’s role in the middle of the field. This wrinkle didn’t show up often, but it would play a more prominent role when the teams met again the following season.

Jon Jones ultimately rose to the challenge of covering Hill without help, keeping the 3x All-Pro out of the end zone and under the century mark for a second time. 

Most of Hill’s production came underneath when Jones was forced to give him space or fight through traffic, but the receiver had a quality win vs two-deep man where he made an excellent catch against blanket coverage on 3rd & long.

2020: COVERAGE OVER PASS RUSH

When the Patriots and Chiefs met in 2020, New England stuck to a lot of single-high man coverage with Jones following Hill. But this time the defense emphasized coverage over pass rush, rushing just three defenders while dropping two linebackers into underneath zones.

To muck up the middle of the field in long yardage situations, the Patriots secondary would switch assignments downfield or have two deep safeties buzz down in a double robber look.

Hill was able to run away from coverage on a couple routes over the middle, but Jones was competitive downfield and allowed fewer than 80 yards for a third consecutive matchup. The receiver’s lone score came on a nearly indefensible jet pass in the low red area.

LOOKING AHEAD

Don’t expect a drastically different game-plan from the Patriots from what they’ve shown recently against Tua Tagovailoa under center. If Tagovailoa can pick apart their soft zones with RPOs and quick-hitters, Tyreek Hill and the Dolphins’ playmakers will turn easy completions into big plays.

This means New England’s defense will need to stop the run early and play tight man coverage as often as possible.

The Patriots’ plan against Tagovailoa in last season’s opener wasn’t dissimilar from how they defended the Chiefs’ passing attack in 2020. In both games, the Patriots prioritized extra defenders in coverage while pushing the pocket with a three-man rush.

Jonathan Jones will likely remain the top option against Hill, especially with Jones becoming  a full-time starter this season.

That means Jalen Mills, who’s had an excellent training camp by all reports, should line up across from Jaylen Waddle. At least in base packages or when Waddle aligns wide. If Mills doesn’t follow Waddle into the slot, that responsibility could fall to veteran Myles Bryant or rookie Marcus Jones.

Waddle scored in  each game against the Patriots in 2021, with both coming on bootleg concepts near the goal line, He made an impressive catch on a slot fade against Jonathan Jones.

The Patriots have the personnel to stifle Miami’s passing game, and Jon Jones’ history against Hill warrants optimism for their potential rematch. But starting the season 1-0 will take strong run defense and consistent tackling to avoid manageable or short yardage situations where Tagovailoa thrives.