OK, The Miami Dolphins Might Be Really, Really Bad
Miami suffers another brutal loss, raising questions about coaching and defense.
I spent most of last week trying to argue that the Miami Dolphins might not be as bad as they appeared in Week 1 against the Indianapolis Colts. I wrote about it and talked about it on OutKick's "Don't at Me" with Dan Dakich.
But after a disastrous loss at home against the New England Patriots on Sunday, there's not much left to argue about. The Miami Dolphins are bad. Really bad. Like, could be the worst team in the NFL, bad.
The Patriots entered the matchup coming off a 20-13 loss against the Las Vegas Raiders. The Raiders don't exactly have a vaunted defense, but they held New England to just 13 points.
The Patriots scored 15 points in the first half against the Dolphins after posting touchdowns on each of the first two drives (while missing both extra points) and then converted a field goal on the third. Miami, which allowed Indianapolis to score on all seven of its offensive drives last week, went 10 consecutive drives without getting a single stop. That's bad.
The streak only ended because the Patriots took a knee to end the first half.
Dolphins show some fight, but still lose again
Miami, to its credit, rebounded after falling into an early hole and took the lead in the third quarter. While the defense finally started to get some stops in the second half, they were helped tremendously by an undisciplined Patriots team that committed 12 penalties in the game.
It even looked like the Dolphins were going to win after Malik Washington returned a punt 74 yards for a touchdown to give Miami a four-point lead with just over 10 minutes left.
However, they incredibly allowed New England's Antonio Gibson to take the ensuing kickoff down the sideline for a 90-yard go-ahead touchdown.
Tua Tagovailoa threw an interception on the next drive, the Patriots kicked a field goal, and the Dolphins got the ball back down by six points with less than two minutes remaining. It appeared they scored a go-ahead touchdown of their own, but De'Von Achane just stepped out of bounds.
Miami still had an opportunity, but committed multiple inexcusable penalties – including a false start and a delay of game – immediately following the Achane play that put them behind the chains. Ultimately, they couldn't get it done and lost to the Patriots.
Penalties were a problem for both teams, as Miami committed 10 in the contest. Many of the fouls against the Dolphins showed that the team was poorly-coached, and Mike McDaniel should be firmly on the hot seat at this point.
Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel on the sideline during the team’s Week 2 loss to the New England Patriots, as questions grow about discipline and coaching.
(Nathan Ray Seebeck/Imagn Images)
Losing to the Colts by 25 points was bad, but losing to the Patriots at home was worse. While the Dolphins have some big-time playmakers on offense – namely Achane, Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill – the unit looks discombobulated.
The defense is a complete disaster. They allowed exactly 33 points in each of their first two games, and they faced Daniel Jones and Drake Maye. What do you think is going to happen when Miami heads to Buffalo for Thursday Night Football this week? My goodness, Josh Allen must be licking his chops looking ahead to that one.
Several NFL teams have struggled early, but the Dolphins may be making the strongest case as the league’s worst.