What's Wrong With the Dolphins Pass Rush And How It Can Get Fixed
The pass rush was among the many issues the Miami Dolphins needed to address in the offseason, and it's pretty clear it's an issue that remains unsolved.
It's also clear the Dolphins are going to have problems on defense until that situation gets fixed.
So how does it get fixed? More importantly, can it get fixed?
Let's start by looking at the numbers.
Through two games, the Dolphins have three sacks — two against New England and one against Buffalo — and that's tied for 19th in the NFL. It's interestingly also the same number of sacks the Dolphins had after two games in 2017, 2018 and 2019.
The last time the Dolphins had more than two sacks through two games was in 2016 when they had five, though they also started 0-2 that season.
The more troubling stat for the Dolphins when it comes to their pass rush so far this season is the seven quarterback hits, which is tied for 28th in the league and represents a better figure than only the Vikings, Bengals and Panthers — three other 0-2 teams.
Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen earned AFC Offensive Player of the Week honors for Week 2 after passing for 417 yards against the Dolphins, and a big part of his success was great pass protection.
The one sack the Dolphins had in the game came on a play where Allen simply held the ball too long in the pocket before Andrew Van Ginkel and Emmanuel Ogbah brought him down.
So how does the problem get fixed?
For starters, it's not like the Dolphins have a proven stud pass rusher who's automatically going to start getting to the quarterback.
Despite the offseason additions of Ogbah, Shaq Lawson and Kyle Van Noy, the Dolphins have nobody on the roster who had more than 6.5 sacks in 2019 — and that was Van Noy with New England.
Now, it's fair to point out that the Patriots didn't have a player on their roster last season who finished with more than seven sacks (Jamie Collins), but New England ended up with 47 sacks as a team.
The Dolphins had 23 sacks in 2019, with Taco Charlton leading the team with five sacks.
Of the players currently on the roster, it would appear Ogbah is the one most likely to get to the quarterback on a regular basis.
Along with his half-sack against Buffalo, Ogbah had pressure on another play, though Allen was able to avoid the rush and get out of the pocket. Ogbah had five sacks in 10 games for Kansas City last season.
The more realistic scenario for the Dolphins will be a team approach, with a bunch of different players having to pitch in. And a lot of the pressure is going to be coming from well-timed blitzes, such as what Jerome Baker did when he got to New England quarterback Cam Newton in the opener.
Beyond mere sacks, though, what the Dolphins need to start doing is affecting the quarterback, which they didn't do nearly enough in the first two games.
The game at Jacksonville represents an opportunity for the pass rush to get going because quarterback Gardner Minshew was sacked six times in the first two games and he's got a habit of trying to make something happen on every play, therefore making him more vulnerable.
Minshew or no Minshew, the Dolphins simply have to get the pass rush cranking — and soon.
"We’ve got to play better and that’s really what it boils down to," head coach Brian Flores said. "We need more pressure on the quarterback. I think every team is looking for that. We need to find ways to get more pressure on the quarterback. That’s what we’ve been talking about the last few days. We’re always trying to get better and that’s in a lot of different phases – offensively, defensively, in the kicking game – so whether it’s the run game, whether it’s the pass game, whether it’s the pass rush, whether it’s setting the edge, whether it’s the screen game; we’re looking to improve and make the necessary adjustments so we can be better in those areas.”
