The Miami Dolphins came into week five after a poor game 10 days ago against the Cincinnati Bengals. They came out firing today trying to duplicate that performance.
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The big news before the start of today’s matchup against the Tennessee Titans was the loss of Laremy Tunsil. During pre-game warmups Tunsil injured his ankle and was ruled out. With the injury to Branden Albert, Tunsil’s injury catapulted Billy Turner from a weak depth option to the starting left tackle.
That has been the story of the first half for Miami as quarterback Ryan Tannehill has litte-to-no room to maneuver in the pocket and no time to set up to pass. Although the line isn’t any help Tannehill continues to show no pocket presence and hesitation to roll out of the pocket.
Running back Jay Ajayi, however, is having a solid first half. Ajayi punched the ball in at the end of the half to tie the game at 14.
The real positive from today’s first half? Rookie Jakeem Grant. Grant finally got room and made the Titans special teams unit miss on his way to a 51-yard punt return for a touchdown.
The negatives? Miami’s run defense. The defensive front seven has looked, giving up 166 rushing yards on 23 carries. To top it off they let quarterback Marcus Mariota drive the Titans down the field for another touchdown right before the half.
After just 30 minutes we can all see why head coach Adam Gase benched Byron Maxwell last week. He’s missed tackles, taken horrible angles in pursuit – resulted in a Mariota rushing touchdown – and failed to pick up a fumble laying at his feet that he forced.
Miami will have the ball to start the 2nd half. They must continue to use Ajayi on the ground to keep Tennessee off the field, and move Tannehill out of the pocket into space to find receivers down the field.