Hard Rock Stadium Miami Dolphins – Courtesy: Shutterstock – Image by YES Market Media
The Miami Dolphins lost 33-8 against the Indianapolis Colts on the road Sunday to start the season.
In every aspect, the Colts were far superior to the Dolphins. Honestly, it’s hard to find anything good about the Dolphins’ performance. Almost everyone agrees that this was the worst performance of the Mike McDaniel era.
This is all the information you need to know.
A Drive-By-Drive Analysis
Using a lot of deception and play action in the passing game to create open receivers, the Colts started the game by going straight down the field for a field goal. On the first drive, tight end Tyler Warren had three catches for forty-five yards.
Miami’s offensive struggled almost instantly after falling down 3-0. On the third play, starting guard James Daniels was sidelined due to a pec injury, and on the fifth play, Tua Tagovailoa sailed a pass to Tyreek Hill for an interception.
Then, on a 14-play, 84-yard drive that took just over eight minutes off the clock, the Colts drove down the field to make the score 10-0. On that drive, the Colts relied on running back Jonathan Taylor to find the running game.
When RB De’Von Achane failed to spot a slot blitz from Kenny Moore II, who struck Tagovailoa and forced a turnover, the Dolphins’ offense was forced to replay their first drive. The Colts scored a touchdown on a Daniel Jones quarterback sneak after driving five plays and forty-two yards to take a 17-0 lead.
The Dolphins stopped the Colts on their subsequent possession after punting on their subsequent drive. The Colts’ drive was prolonged, though, when Matthew Judon was flagged for colliding with the punter. As the half came to an end, they kicked a field goal to increase the score to 20–0.
Tagovailoa then committed another turnover to start the second half for the Dolphins. Holding onto the ball, he left the pocket and delivered a pass straight to a dropping defensive end (Laiatu Latu). Given how long Latu hung onto the ball, it’s really difficult to see how Tua missed him.
To increase the score to 23-0, Indianapolis drove down the field once more and nailed another field goal. Minkah Fitzpatrick may have avoided a pass interference call, and Jones had Warren in the end zone corner but threw it a little high.
On its subsequent drive, Miami’s offense managed to string together a pair of first downs and get down to the Colts’ 41-yard line. But when three consecutive incompletions resulted in a turnover on downs, the drive faltered there.
The Colts finally scored another touchdown to make it 30-0 after a lengthy drive. The complete drive included a holding call on Jack Jones that turned the Colts’ first and 30 into a first and 10. We won’t go into the specifics.
On the subsequent drive, the Dolphins scored their first touchdown of the season when Tagovailoa found Achane on an RB screen. In order to make it 30-8, they also converted the two-point conversion. But it was far too little, much too late.
The final score was 33-8 after the Colts added a field goal in garbage time.
The Offensive Recap
There isn’t much that the Dolphins’ offense can learn from this game. The team only managed 106 yards and was shut out for three quarters. The Colts had 418 yards for the game, while the offense only managed 211.
Perhaps the worst game of Tagovailoa’s career was played. Putting aside the statistics, he was wrong and made a number of cruel choices. His poor ball security led to a fumble, and he was responsible for both interceptions. With the exception of the 2021 game against Buffalo, where he was finished after four tries, his final passer rating of 51.7 was the lowest of his career.
He completed 14 of 23 passes for 114 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions at the end of the game. Zach Wilson, the backup, took his position during the team’s last drive.
Tyreek Hill, who had four catches for 40 yards, topped the team in receiving. It wasn’t a nice day for anyone, as Jaylen Waddle had three catches for forty yards.
Regarding the running game, not much can be said. The Colts took a significant lead early on and controlled the time of possession. Ollie Gordon, a rookie, only managed four yards on two carries, while Achane finished with 55 yards on seven carries.
The Dolphins’ offensive line was not producing much movement up front and appeared to be struggling to keep up with some of the Colts’ more inventive blitzes. However, pass catchers Tanner Conner and Achane were under some pressure.
Defensive Review
At moments, Daniel Jones looked like a young Peyton Manning thanks to the Dolphins’ defense. Jones rarely threw into narrow windows down the field and was precise and decisive. Jones finished with 272 yards, one score, and zero turnovers after completing 22 of 29 passes.
Storm Duck, the starting cornerback, was having a lot of trouble before he went down, but he left the game in the second quarter and never came back. He most certainly caused the wide-open Michael Pittman Jr. touchdown (All-22 review forthcoming).
Warren also caused issues for linebackers, safeties, and cornerbacks. On seven catches, he finished with 76 yards.
However, it was anticipated that the secondary would have some difficulties. The defensive line was more of a worry. Throughout the game, they only recorded one sack and a small number of pressures. For the majority of the game, Miami’s supposedly renowned pass rush was absent.
In the trenches against the run, they were also harassed. The Colts’ offensive line was pushed at will during the game, and running back Jonathan Taylor finished with 71 yards on 18 runs. Two rushing touchdowns and 156 running yards were their final totals.
Indianapolis simply ran through Miami’s defense, converting multiple third-and-short and fourth-and-short situations. Judon’s penalty on the punt negated Miami’s lone stop, and the Colts ultimately scored on every possession during the game.
In Week 2, the Dolphins will play the New England Patriots at home in an attempt to recover.
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Chris began his writing as a hobby while attending Florida Southern College in Lakeland, Florida. Today he and his wife live in the Orlando area with their three children and dog.
