Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Pass ‘D’, special teams struggle in close loss
The losses are stacking up for the Dolphins, and the trade rumors continue to swirl.
If there was ever a time for an organization to panic and make a risky move like trading for quarterback Deshaun Watson, who has 22 sexual assault or misconduct allegations made against him in a civil suit, it’s now. The Dolphins are coming off a 30-28 fourth-quarter loss to the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday that delivered the franchise’s sixth consecutive loss.
If Xavien Howard or rookie Jevon Holland broke up acriticalpasstorookieKylePittsandtheMiamidefense heldfirm,keepingtheFalconsoutoffield-goalrangelate inthefourthquarter,we’dprobablybetalkingaboutTua TagovailoaleadingtheDolphinstoacome-from-behind victory with a four-touchdown performance.
But that isn’t Miami’s reality, so the franchise could spend the next week contemplating whether to build around Tagovailoa or trade a substantial amount of resources for Watson, who could be unable to play for a long time, depending on his legal fate.
Here is the South Florida Sun Sentinel’s report card, evaluating how the Dolphins performed against the Falcons:
Passing game: B
Tagovailoa’s second game back from the rib injury that sidelined him for three games turned into his first four-touchdown pass outing. Tagovailoa completed 32-of-40 passes for 291 yards, but he did throw two interceptions that cost the team at least six points. He put the Dolphins in position to win the game by throwing a 4-yard touchdown pass to Mack Hollins, securing a one-point lead with two minutes left in the fourth quarter. The 109.5 passer rating he finished the Falcons game with was the second highest of his career, which is remarkable considering he threw those two interceptions.
Running game: A
The Dolphins committed to running the football for the first time all season, and that determination produced Miami’s second 100-yard rushing performance. The Dolphins gained 132 yards on 29 carries, and none of Miami’s runs were longer than 16 yards. So it was a byproduct of staying committed to running the ball. Myles Gaskin’s 4.5 yards per carry average for the game indicates that he’s the best tailback option, and the carries should slant in his favor. That will likely be the case, because Malcolm Brown was placed on injured reserve Monday.
Defending the pass: D
Matt Ryan completed 25-of-40 passes, throwing for 336 yards and two touchdowns. The Dolphins only sacked him once, and Howard pulled down his second interception of the season. But when Miami needed to stop Ryan late in the fourth quarter, he only needed two passes to Pitts to put the Falcons in scoring position. Pitts finished the game with a career-high seven receptions for 163 yards, which is a complete embarrassment for the Dolphins, considering the entire defense was trying to stop him.
Defending the run: B
For the second straight game, the Dolphins defense held an opponent to fewer than 100 rushing yards, which serves as proof that Miami’s run defense is tightening up. Last week, the Dolphins limited Jacksonville to 84 rushing yards and a touchdown on 19 carries, and this week Miami held the Falcons to 72 rushing yards and a touchdown on 22 carries. What makes Sunday’s run defense even more impressive is the fact that the Dolphins did it with Jerome Baker missing most of the game because of a knee injury in the first half. Sam Eguavoen did an admirable job filling in for Baker as the defense’s play-caller.
Special teams: F
There has been nothing special about the Dolphins’ special teams unit all season. The return game has been stagnant, if not non-existent. Michael Palardy’s punts have been lackluster all season, but he did average 51.3 yards and a net of 45.7 yards against the Falcons. Jason Sanders had a 49-yard field-goal attempt blocked Sunday, and that kick could have provided the 3 points the Dolphins needed to win.
Coaching: C
Progress is being made with the offensive line (only allowed one sack), run game (132 rushing yards) and run defense (72 rushing yards from the Falcons), which indicates that Miami is fixing some of the team’s major issues this season. But the Dolphins’ struggles with third-down defense (Falcons converted 6 of 13) remain an issue, and Miami’s offense continues to stall in the second quarter, when the Dolphins have been outscored, 64-9, this season. The Dolphins are also committing more penalties than they have in Flores’ previous two seasons, and that needs to get cleaned up.
Stock up
Holland, the Dolphins’ 2021 second-round pick, has taken over as Miami’s starting free safety, which means he’s responsible for the back-end communication in the secondary. While Holland’s play and decision-making haven’t been perfect, he’s showing improvement every week. The five tackles, one sack and one pass breakup he produced against the Falcons is a sign that he’s becoming the playmaker he has potential to be.
Stock down
Eric Rowe was a reliable contributor last season. Miami could count on him to lock down the opposition’s best tight end on most occasions in 2020. This season it looks as if the Dolphins are trying to hide him in coverage because teams are seemingly going after the seven-year veteran. Rowe finished Sunday’s game with a team-high nine tackles, but plenty of those stops were a byproduct of him wrapping up a defender he let catch a pass.