The Miami Dolphins were destroyed on Sunday in San Francisco, and a big part of that reason is that the secondary played horribly.
It's hard to fault the safety unit that spent the day cleaning up the mess from the cornerbacks. The Dolphins' corners struggled against the Raiders' average WRs in Week 1, but against the exceptional 49ers receivers, they were lost.
At some point, DC Sean Duggan and Jeff Hafley have to figure something out. They made the decision to invest nothing more than a first-round pick in Chris Johnson, with most of the others being holdovers from last season.
Miami Dolphins cornerbacks are a going to be a problem all season long
Chris Johnson was that aforementioned first-round pick. While his Week 1 tape showed that some of the defensive problems were not his fault, he did nothing to show he was capable in week two. Johnson missed tackles, missed assignments, and left George Kittle wide open on several plays. Maybe we will learn those were not his fault, but the optics are not good for the rookie. He has a lot to learn, and maybe it's time Miami moves him back outside.
Jason Marshall Jr. is a Mike McDaniel/Chris Grier holdover. The second-year player hasn't looked horrible until this weekend. The 49ers were able to move the ball at will, especially in the second half. The coverage was bad on both sides of the ball, and Marshall won't get a pass for that. He has to get better.
JuJu Brents was probably the best coverage corner in Week 2, but that isn't saying much as he, too, gave up long receptions and let the 49ers move the ball downfield at will.
The secondary was so bad on Sunday that Brock Purdy had just two incomplete passes in Week 2 as he threw for 287 yards and two touchdowns. He completed 18 straight passes at one point before the 49ers pulled him with just over 6:00 minutes left in the game.
Kittle was nearly unstoppable—no, not nearly; he was unstoppable. Miami's secondary couldn't cover him, and at times it looked like they didn't know who was supposed to be responsible for him. The TE caught four passes for 80 yards and a touchdown.
The entire 49ers receiver unit were able to exploit the Dolphins inexperienced cornerbacks.
The hype surrounding Johnson may eventually pay off, but after two weeks, the rookie corner isn't impressing enough.
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