FOXBORO — Patriots rookie wide receiver Demario Douglas was taught a lesson on Sunday night: fumble and you might not see the field again.
Douglas did not appear to play any offensive snaps after losing a fumble on the final play of the first quarter in the Patriots’ 24-17 Week 2 loss to the Dolphins. Douglas caught a target from quarterback Mac Jones on third-and-8 from the Dolphins’ 39-yard line. He had enough yards to convert the third down before Dolphins edge defender Bradley Chubb chopped at his arm from behind, dislodging the football. Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson jumped on the football but couldn’t secure it. Chubb came away with the recovery.
“Just something to learn from,” Douglas said.
Douglas said he wasn’t told that he wouldn’t return to the game on offense. He said he wanted to get back on the field.
“I believe I could have made a difference, but the offense did a good job still moving that ball,” Douglas said.
The promising rookie caught two passes for 19 yards and showed off his impressive agility on both grabs before the fumble. He did still return punts for the Patriots after Marcus Jones left the game with a shoulder injury and didn’t return.
Douglas was seen holding a ball on the sideline. He said running back Ty Montgomery handed it to him and told him to hold it high and tight.
Head coach Bill Belichick was asked why Douglas didn’t play on offense after the fumble.
Here are the exchanges:
Q: Bill, what went into the decision to keep Demario Douglas off the field after his first quarter fumble?
BB: Yeah, we played all of our skill players. They all played.
Q: I don’t think we saw him take another offensive snap after that play.
BB: Look, we had a lot of production on offense. [DeVante] Parker had a good day. [Mike] Gesicki had a good day. Hunter [Henry] had a good day, JuJu [Smith-Schuster], KB [Kendrick Bourne]. So, you know, a lot of good players. Can’t play everybody.
Q: Bill, was the plan to not use Demario Douglas after the first half on offense?
BB: He returned punts.
Q: Well, on offense –
BB: We played all of our – yeah, look, we could talk about this every week. And there will be somebody that played less than somebody else. We’ve got a lot of skilled players.
Q: He didn’t get on offense after the fumble, though.
BB: Yeah, okay.
Douglas played 33 total snaps throughout the entirety of the Patriots’ Week 1 loss to the Eagles. He did return two punts for 12 yards with a fair catch after Marcus Jones left the game.
The Patriots gained 288 yards on offense. Parker caught six passes on eight targets for 57 yards. Henry had six catches on seven targets for 52 yards with a touchdown. Gesicki caught five passes on six targets for 33 yards. Bourne caught four passes on nine targets for 29 yards. Douglas and JuJu Smith-Schuster shared snaps in Week 1 out of the slot. Smith-Schuster caught five passes on six targets for 28 yards.
Quarterback Mac Jones went 31-of-42 for 231 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
“Yeah, I think Pop [Douglas], obviously, a young player and just trying to keep him encouraged,” Jones said. “Obviously, one of my close buddies. So it’s going to happen. Young players, you know, there’s going to be mistakes. But for him, it’s a learning experience for all of us. And myself included with the interception.
“You can’t have the turnovers. Got to work on it, address the situation, and then get better at it. So for him, you know, I told him, just keep your head up and, you know, just practice every day holding onto the ball, people hitting at it, things you can do to get better.”
Belichick has benched players after fumbles in the past. The Patriots also had more talented teams at the time who could overcome key losses on offense. This team is now 0-2 on the young season.
“Not sure, really,” Bourne was asked about the decision to bench Douglas. “Coaches, that’s their job. You just gotta have better ball security as a group. Not just Pop, everybody. No turnovers. Receivers gotta go up and catch the ball, bat it down when it’s tough plays.”
Patriots wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster said the team will rally behind the rookie wideout.
“As a rookie, it’s tough. You go into the game and you make a great play, and then it turns over. It’s a tough situation. I would say this, though, with that being said, we’re just going to come back from it and keep him up, lift him up and keep working hard.”