For a fan base that’s seen a lot of success over the last two decades, we sure wring our hands over the smallest missteps.

The latest example of this comes in the aftermath of the New England Patriots 27-20 loss to the Miami Dolphins on Monday night. For most of the game, the Patriots looked dreadful on both sides of the ball. Tom Brady threw two interceptions, both times trying to force the ball into tight coverage. Miami held the ball for just over 36 minutes, grinding out scoring drives. The head-shaking stat of the game was the Patriots’ third down conversion rate, 0 for 11.

The game can be found in that 0 for 11. It’s close to impossible to win when you fail to convert a single third down. That the Patriots were within a touchdown in the final minute after going 0 for 11 on third down is a testament as to how important that failure was.

For many fans, a Patriots loss can’t just be a loss. It has to be a harbinger of something worse, every time. Lose at Miami? No way this team wins in Pittsburgh.

Settle down. While Monday’s loss was ugly, it’s also not a sign the Patriots are sliding into mediocrity. That wasn’t the case after the season-opening loss to Kansas City, and it wasn’t the case after the week four loss to Carolina. That’s the thing around these parts. Losses happen so infrequently, we fail to put them in proper perspective.

Divisional games are hard. Divisional games on the road are harder. Have you already forgotten the 24-17 win over the Jets two months ago? The Jets took an early 14-0 lead, and the Patriots escaped New Jersey with a victory that felt closer than the seven-point margin. Miami has always been a miserable trip for the Patriots. New England lost at the Orange Bowl so often in the 70s, it wouldn’t be surprising to learn John Hannah and Steve Nelson offered to push the plunger when the place was finally demolished. Since 2013, the Patriots have one win in Miami. Monday’s loss was disheartening, but not completely out of the blue.

Sometimes, you just get your butt kicked. Sometimes, you can’t get out of your own way. It’s how you react in the aftermath that matters.

As good as the Patriots have been in the Bill Belichick-Tom Brady era, the road to greatness has had some giant, unexpected potholes. Three in recent seasons come to mind.

Of course, the big one is another Monday Night Football disaster, the 41-14 loss at Kansas City early in the 2014 season. Remember Belichick repeating “We’re on to Cincinnati” over and over at his press conference? “We’re on to…” became a rallying cry. New England followed the Chiefs loss with a 43-17 win over the Bengals.

In 2015, a bad Eagles team came to Gillette Stadium and beat the Patriots, 35-28. Like Miami on Monday, Philadelphia was an inferior opponent that played very well on a night the Patriots played poorly. Mew England followed that loss with a 27-6 win over Houston.

Going back to 2010, the Patriots lost an early November game in Cleveland (yes, Cleveland), 34-14. That Browns team went 5-11, but looked like a Super Bowl contender that day against a Patriots team that looked like it overslept right through the first half. That still might be the most inexplicable loss of the Belichick-Brady era. The following week, the Patriots went to Pittsburgh and won, 39-26. You might remember that game as the one in which many Patriots fans realized this Rob Gronkowski kid might be pretty good. Gronk caught three touchdowns.

Be disappointed in Monday’s loss, but don’t be discouraged. It’s hard to win in the NFL. More often than not, the Patriots make it look easy, and that’s why these losses are jarring.

Travis Lazarczyk — 861-9242

tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @TLazarczykMTM

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