The New England Patriots sit on top of the AFC East for the first time since 2019. Week after week, the Pats Nation watched this group handle business at Gillette Stadium. Now, with Week 18 ahead, the focus shifts to the Miami Dolphins‘ game. And head coach Mike Vrabel is not easing up.

As the conversation turned sharp after the last game, Vrabel was asked about Dolphins quarterback Quinn Ewers. Instead of brushing it off, he explained that this matchup comes with energy and risk.

“I saw an energy at that Tampa Bay game. I saw youthful energy. A guy that’s trying to take advantage of his opportunity, and again, sometimes when you put younger players in there, especially quarterbacks, you see them getting up and celebrating,” he said.

“He had a big scramble at the end of the game, and in five minutes there was a first down. It was a big play for him. A lot of energy. He seems to have good command of the operation. There’s a lot of moving parts with that offense, the shifts, the motions, the jet motions, the ball handling. It’s not just standard. He’s under center, he’s in the gun, he’s in the pistol, and then being able to execute the play action and the boot game. I think he’s gotten off to a good start.”

Ewers completed 14 passes in 22 attempts for 172 yards with 2 touchdowns against the Buccaneers on Sunday. Now, the Dolphins are turning to the rookie quarterback for the fourth time.

Miami grabbed him late in the 2025 NFL Draft in the seventh round. At first, he was just a backup behind Tua Tagovailoa and Zach Wilson. However, by Week 7, things changed, and he climbed to QB2. That same week, he saw the field when Tagovailoa was benched late. After that, opportunity kicked the door open.

With Tagovailoa sidelined for the year, Ewers became the guy. Three straight starts, and one of them ended in a 20-17 win over the Buccaneers. Across those games, he completed 39 of 60 throws. That is a 65 percent completion rate. He also pushed the ball for 485 yards. So he did well, but the offense of the team is also great, especially their run game.

The Dolphins rely a lot on outside zone runs, which are designed to stretch the defense sideways and force defenders to chase instead of sitting in one spot. The idea is to create space, whether the runner bounces it outside or plants his foot and cuts back inside, which is often part of the design. That approach fits Miami perfectly because they’re loaded with speed, letting runners reach open space fast and get to the next level.

On top of that, Mike McDaniel adds angle blocks on the front side and pulls blockers from different spots, which keeps defenses guessing. All of that together, from formation variety to smart blocking movement, is what makes this run game so hard to stop. However, the Pats’ defense is also locked in. Christian Gonzalez made that clear.

“Quinn’s looked good coming in. He’s got a lot of arm talent, can make a lot of throws,” he said ahead of the matchup. “It’s another challenge, like it is every week. We’re excited as a defense.”

And in Foxborough, excitement still comes with caution. Nevertheless, there are some good updates too.

Mike Vrabel provides Will Campbell update

On Friday, Mike Vrabel met the media with something positive for Pats Nation. Vrabel said it “looks good” for both Will Campbell and Milton Williams to come off injured reserve. Then, Vrabel added context without over-promising.

“We’ll see how they respond from today’s work. Tried to get them a full week of work in, but I think it looks good. Both of them were able to work the whole week, and we’ll see where we’re at tomorrow,” he said.

Getting both players back before the postseason is massive for New England. Campbell has been out since Week 12 after spraining his MCL against the Bengals. That absence hurt. Meanwhile, Williams landed on IR after a high ankle sprain versus the Jets back on Nov. 13. Both losses tested depth and patience.

More importantly, these are not replaceable pieces. Both matter in the trenches. Campbell, the fourth overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, brought calm to the left side of the line. According to Pro Football Focus, he posted a 76.1 pass protection grade. He allowed just 25 pressures on 452 chances. That includes 16 hurries, five sacks, and four QB hits.

So now, as the Pats push toward the playoffs, getting healthy players back at the right moment could be the quiet edge that Vrabel has been waiting for.