NFL
By: Rick
No one expected the Miami Dolphins to pull out a win. As a fan, you always have hope, but when it comes to Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, they’re usually up against it. Luckily for the fans, it wasn’t as bad as it looked, unless, of course, you add the injury to star running back De’Von Achane, who may miss some time. The game was in reach at one point, but it quickly slipped away. There was plenty to walk away feeling optimistic about.
Score Doesn’t Tell The Tale
This one ended up being a blowout, but the Dolphins weren’t as bad as they were last week, and last week they weren’t as bad as game one. Miami is getting better; they need to clean up some mistakes and game planning. Kenneth Walker III has been running all over the league so far, and the Dolphins kept him to under 100 yards at only 3.8 YPC. They also didn’t let Mahomes run all over them, only allowing him one rush for 1 yard. The problem is, yes, they keep Travis Kelce to only two catches, but both were game-changing plays. Miami went stride for stride statistically and won the time of possession. For all intents and purposes, they should’ve won this game with a more polished approach.
Coaching Matters
It wasn’t exactly the most impressive day in terms of coaching decisions. There were multiple fourth-down plays that the Dolphins decided against punting. Losing the field-position battle wasted a lot of potential. As much as I love an aggressive approach, you don’t give a team like Kansas City, with weapons like Walker, Kelce, Mahomes, and Rice, who the legendary Andy Reid, a turnover on downs at midfield, coaches. I get it; it showed faith in your defense, but you could’ve had the same faith from their own 10-yard line rather than midfield. There’s a time to gamble and a time to play it safe, and when your offense is down as many weapons as it is, can you guess which Miami should’ve done?
Questionable QB Play
At the end of the day, Malik needs to get better. He probably wants back a few plays and got lucky on a few others, but the role is challenging because, at the end of the day, it all falls on the quarterback. Some of his decisions to throw into tight or double coverage when the intended receiver wasn’t open slowed them down. Running the ball at the end of the game with no timeouts and not being aware of the sideline to stop the clock closed a door. Throwing a dart to an open receiver on 3rd and 1 instead of just taking the first down and living to play another down, or floating an easy one right to him, was another nail in the coffin.
The truth is, the Miami Dolphins played their butts off; they just needed to play a clean game, and they didn’t. They needed to make the right calls, and they didn’t. This season will bring growing pains, grit, and grumbles, but the nucleus is there. The chatter on social media about not winning a game isn’t exactly the whole story. This was a winnable game against a tough opponent, but the Dolphins still need to learn how to win the right way with an inexperienced team.
