Tyreek Hill, after Dolphins' fifth straight loss: ‘We're just in a mud puddle'

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — The Dolphins had just lost 23-21 to the New England Patriots on Sunday, meaning they had just lost control of the race for the final AFC wild-card spot.

They had also just lost their fifth game in a row, even though most of the games were there for the taking. So no, you don’t go from 8-3 to 8-8 and immediately move on to the next week.

“Right now, man, we’re just in a mud puddle,” receiver Tyreek Hill said.

More:Instant takeaways from Miami Dolphins' 23-21 loss to the New England Patriots

Hill was speaking in a near-silent visitors locker room at Gillette Stadium. The Dolphins had a 14-10 lead in the third quarter, but once again, any second-half lead they had wasn’t enough. Not only did another game slip from their grasp, but now it’s all they can do to make sure the same doesn’t apply to the season as a whole.

“It sucks, man,” Hill said. “Honestly. Sorry, guys, it sucks. I can’t explain the feeling as a competitor.”

Hill knows competing is the only way out of the mud puddle. The Dolphins play host to the New York Jets next weekend (time and date TBA). Win that, and if the favored Buffalo Bills beat the visiting Patriots, the Dolphins would still earn a playoff berth that seemed a cinch just over a month ago.

Lose to the Jets and they won’t even go home with a winning record.

“We’ve still got a long ways to go,” guard Rob Hunt said. “We’ve still got a breath.”

Running back Jeff Wilson: “We’ve still got everything in front of us.”

As disappointed as Hill was, he still found a way to come back to the notion that the Dolphins have realistic hope. Perhaps it’s based on the team’s five-game winning streak before this five-game losing streak.

“We’re going to find a way to get this thing on a roll,” Hill said. When that happens, he added, “A lot of people, they’re not going to want to face the Dolphins.”

Sunday marked the fourth straight game the defense allowed at least one key, late, sustained drive that proved costly.

First, the Chargers drove 79 yards in 17 plays for a fourth-quarter field goal to extend their lead to 23-14 in a 23-17 win.

Then Buffalo beat Miami 32-29 on the strength of a 15-play, 86-yard drive for a field goal to end the game. It followed a seven-play, 75-yard drive for a touchdown, also in the fourth quarter.

Last week, Green Bay went 78 yards in 11 plays to tie the score at 20 in the fourth quarter before winning 26-20.

Sunday, New England took possession on its 11-yard line with 9:43 left, leading 16-14. Five minutes later, the Patriots were up 23-14.

“I don’t have much to say,” linebacker Jaelan Phillips said. “We’ve all got to look at ourselves in the mirror. It doesn’t accomplish anything to point fingers or try to figure out whose fault it was. The reality is it’s all our faults. So we’ve got to be accountable, look in the mirror and readjust.”

Hill was holding himself accountable for a fourth-quarter pass from Skylar Thompson that ricocheted off him and was intercepted by Jonathan Jones.

“You know what, I'm going to take that,” Hill said, referring to the blame. “They pay me a lot of money to make those plays. So I’ve just got to make the play for my guy Skylar. It doesn't matter where it's at, you know, so I should be able to make that play.”

On the Patriots’ final touchdown drive, Mac Jones completed passes of 16 and 25 yards before Keion Crossen was called for a 22-yard pass interference penalty. Finally, Jones found Jakobi Meyers wide open for a 1-yard touchdown. The play began with linebacker Duke Riley scrambling to cover for someone who’d missed an assignment.

“Stuff happens in a game pretty fast,” safety Jevon Holland said. “You’ve just got to make adjustments on that play. It got the best of us.”

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Tyreek Hill says slumping Dolphins are stuck ‘in a mud puddle'