Why DC Anthony Weaver has been a bright spot for the Dolphins

When it comes to key characteristics a coach can be judged on while assessing the product on the field, there's no question the list includes preparation, execution, adjustments and accountability. Thus far for the Miami Dolphins, Mike McDaniel isn't delivering at all for any of them.

McDaniel has failed in each of those categories ever since Tua Tagovailoa went down in the Week 2 loss to the Buffalo Bills. McDaniel isn't doing enough to change his offensive system, thinking Skylar Thompson, Tim Boyle and Tyler Huntley can do what Tagovailoa can. Yeah, that's a big mistake.

The game plan for the past two weeks has sucked.  There is no other way to sum that up. In the loss to the Seahawks, only 18 carries were posted? De'Von Achane and Jaylen Wright needed to see the ball more. Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle only targeted 10 times vs. the Seahawks? Inexcusable.

Mike McDaniel isn't getting the job done for the Miami Dolphins

In taking a closer look at things, it's clear that McDaniel and Chris Grier were not prepared for a Tua injury. The past two losses have been rough to watch. The Monday Night Football loss to the Titans felt like rock bottom. Giving McDaniel grades for the past two weeks is actually easy, because he's done nothing right:

Preparation - failed - McDaniel didn’t alter his game plan based on quarterback availability.

Execution - failed - How many times did we see McDaniel run down the sideline?
How many penalties is this team going to record?

Adjustments - failed - No halftime adjustments - headstrong on implementing the plan that is failing right before his eyes. Running the ball inside, showed a yards per carry of 4.7 and for some reason it was rarely called.

Accountability - failed - McDaniel is giving vague answers on how he has to be better, but it's time for him to actually change things up. His words won't matter if we don't see changes.

On a bright side, though, and taking a 180, one of the things that the Miami Dolphins got right this offseason was hiring Anthony Weaver. The Dolphins defense has been fun to watch and has played with a passion that has been missing in South Florida.  Players are loving his style and more importantly, Weaver is evolving his coaching techniques and principles.  

Think about this, the defense has made adjustments in each game after the initial execution might not have worked out to his favor. While the Dolphins gave up 31 points to Tennessee, which included a garbage-time TD run for Tony Pollard, it doesn't take away from what Weaver did prior to the MNF debacle:

In Week 1 against Jacksonville Miami gave up 17 points in the first half.  In the second half, zero points.
In Week 2 against Buffalo, Miami gave up 24 points in the first half.  In the second half, seven points.
In Week 3 against Seattle, Miami gave up 17 points in the first half.  In the second half, seven points.

What do the above results showcase? Adjustments. Weaver looked at his initial game plan and noticed that adjustments were needed to help this team. Those adjustments created confusion for the opposing offenses, thereby rendering more three and outs and more importantly getting the defense off the field.

Where Weaver needs help is preparation.  In his first three games, his initial game plan hasn’t worked.  Which is okay - as strategies evolve, Weaver must do his best to counter, as the tape is out there on how to attack. The best part of this is that Weaver isn’t taking this sitting down, his counterpunch is vicious, and opposing teams are struggling to figure it out. Miami just needs Weaver to deliver the counterpunch at the start of the game, and if he figures that out, then the Dolphins defense becomes legit.

The puzzling thing in all of this is how McDaniel is not adopting his strategy. He can actually see the difference on the opposite side of the field. It just doesn’t make sense. Dolphins fans can remember the stubbornness of a former coach (cough cough Brian Flores) and the outcome that led to. If McDaniel continues his stubbornness, history tends to repeat itself, but the good news in all of this is that their replacement coach might already be on the sideline in Weaver.