Miami Dolphins post game recap the good, bad, and ugly
In this week’s recap, The Miami Dolphins got smashed against the Lions in a game very similar to the one in New England. The defense got manhandled and the offense sputtered once again in a game that was brutal to watch.
Following the Miami Dolphins match up with the Lions, we take a broad look at what went well, what needs work, and what should be alarming. The good games and the bad have lessons to be learned and we look at the apparent ones.
Good:
The 2018 rookies
Minkah, Baker, and Gesicki continue making fantastic strides in their young careers. Baker went down with an injury in the fourth, but he showing has already been extremely strong. As long as this group continues to grow, the future in Miami will be bright.
The tight-ends
Can enough be said about Nick O’Leary? The guy is just good old fashioned football. No gloves, no fear, no attitude, just good grinding football. An excellent free agency snag by the Dolphins and he continues to show his dividends. Mix that with Gesicki starting to master his craft and you may have a great young duo for the next 8 years.
Receiver blocking
The best part of watching big runs by Kenyon Drake or Albert Wilson is how the blocking develops downfield. Enough can’t be said about how this group gets physical and allows things to happen when Gase gets it to the fast playmakers.
Bad:
Injuries
Remember when we considered the biggest strength of this team out of preseason was their health? That is a distant memory now as player after player is hitting the turf and not coming back up. Baker, Gisicki, Gore, and Stills all went down and some came back while others didn’t.
Tackling
The scary thing about watching this defense against the Lions is that they won’t have any time to fix anything before next Thursday against the Texans. In the fourth quarter, Golden Tate ran through 4 tackles while almost icing the game. Poor angles, nobody wrapping up, and Johnson running through tackles like he was a hot knife and running through butter created a bad day. It will get worse against Deshaun Watson and Deandre Hopkins.
Jesse Davis
Does any explanation need to be put here? The only reason he doesn’t end up in the ugly category is that he is what we thought he was. Bad.
Ugly:
Run Defense
What in the world happened to Miami’s stout defense? Rookie Kerryon Johnson looking like Barry Sanders today against a defense that has been excellent against the run. Poor tackling and reads littered an ugly day against an average rushing team.
Defensive Scheme
It seems insanely apparent that one team had two weeks to game plan and the other went through an emotional roller coaster. However, there is no excuse for a talented defense to come out and get rushed on as the Lions did. The entire game saw Miami reeling drive after drive. When the defense seemed to get a stop, self-inflicted damage appeared in the form of yellow flags.
Physicality
It is easy to imagine Matt Patricia calling his old pal Bill Belichick and asked what he needed to do to dominate Miami as the Patriots did. Easy, abuse the physicality of the defensive and offensive line and don’t let Miami’s speed get to you. The same formula has shown up this week as Miami got punished drive after drive by a superior physicality and they paid the ultimate price.
Final Thoughts:
Miami continues to find ways to prove the media right. The wins and the losses seem to have the same storyline. A slow start, a scramble to catch up, and either Miami gets punished at the lines, or they manage to stop the bleeding. Today the bleeding was way too severe and Miami takes their third loss.