Dolphins Week 13 Highlights and Lowlights
A look at the highlights and lowlights for the Miami Dolphins in their 19-7 victory against the Cincinnati Bengals at Hard Rock Stadium.
HIGHLIGHTS
FIRST HALF
-- Christian Wilkins broke through the line of scrimmage to drop Giovani Bernard for a 1-yard loss when Cincinnati went to the run for the third time in their first three offensive plays.
-- Byron Jones had good coverage down the sideline on rookie Tee Higgins and it would have taken a perfect pass by Brandon Allen to complete the third-and-3 pass. Instead, Higgins caught the ball out of bounds.
-- After giving up a couple of completions, Xavien Howard did it again. He had tight coverage downfield against Tyler Boyd and turned his head around to locate the ball, before jumping up to make his eighth interception of the season. It was textbook cornerback play.
-- Tua Tagovailoa had a quick strike over the middle to Lynn Bowden Jr., who held on for an 8-yard gain and a first down after taking a big hit.
-- DeVante Parker drew two pass interference penalties on Bengals CB William Jackson III on the drive after Cincinnati took a 7-0 lead.
-- Bowden showed some nice moves and quickness when he took a handoff on the last play of the first quarter and gained 11 yards.
-- Kyle Van Noy ended a Bengals drive with a sack on third-and-3, though credit has to go to the coverage in the secondary on that play.
-- Myles Gaskin turned what should have been a loss inside the Dolphins 5-yard line into a 16-yard gain after he broke a tackle on a screen pass.
-- Jakeem Grant took a shovel pass and did some zigzagging to gain 20 yards.
-- Byron Jones messed up an option pass from wide receiver Tyler Boyd to quarterback Brandon Allen by getting after Boyd and hurrying his throw.
-- The Dolphins got a break when Cincinnati was penalized 15 yards after both Xavien Howard and Tyler Boyd were ejected, turning a 38-yard field goal attempt into a 53-yarder that Randy Bullock missed wide left.
-- Jason Sanders closed out the first half by driving a 48-yard field goal attempt right down the middle, making him 2-for-2 in the game.
SECOND HALF
-- Tua was on fire on the first drive of the second half, with a nice throw over the middle to tight end Mike Gesicki and later a nifty 35-yard completion to Myles Gaskin after he rolled to his left under some pressure.
-- The drive ended when Gesicki won a one-on-one battle with Cincinnati DB LeShaun Sims to catch a 5-yard touchdown pass on second-and-goal.
-- The defense forced a three-and-out on the first drive of the second half, a series highlighted by Shaq Lawson leading the way to drop Giovani Bernard for a 1-yard loss on first down.
-- For the second time in the game, Grant took a shovel pass and turned it into a big gain, this time going to the right and picking up 22 yards.
-- Gesicki made an insane catch when he reached out with his right hand to snag a pass over the middle, though he took a big hit after completing the 29-yard gain.
-- Van Noy had a second sack when he looped behind a teammate and came in clean on Allen.
-- Tua had a 9-yard completion to Parker after he made a great sidestep to avoid an oncoming rusher and Parker caught the ball just off the ground.
-- Gaskin had a nice burst up the middle on a 14-yard gain on the first play of the fourth quarter.
-- The Dolphins had a sack-fest in the fourth quarter, with Shaq Lawson getting two by himself and splitting one with Van Noy, and Zach Sieler also getting a sack.
-- Emmanuel Ogbah forced an incompletion when he leveled QB Brandon Allen and it appeared for a while as though it would produce a third defensive touchdown started by him. But Christian Wilkins' apparent touchdown was overturned after review.
-- Nik Needham made it two interceptions in two weeks when he ended Cincinnati's final drive by catching a pass that had been deflected. The pick punctuated a brilliant defensive second half by the Dolphins.
LOWLIGHTS
FIRST HALF
-- Cincinnati's first offensive play resulted in a 9-yard run by Giovani Bernard after he found a seam on the left side of the Dolphins defensive line.
-- Jakeem Grant made the risky decision to catch a punt just outside his 5-yard line after the first drive instead of calling for a fair catch.
-- The Dolphins' first possession was a forgettable three-and-out with two short gains on runs and an incompletion from Tua Tagovailoa to a well-covered Mike Gesicki.
-- Before he came up with his pick, Howard was beaten for a couple of completions by impressive Bengals rookie wide receiver Tee Higgins.
-- Safety Eric Rowe, linebacker Elandon Roberts and guard Ereck Flowers all left the game in the first quarter because of injuries.
-- Byron Jones took a straight-line angle at Tyler Boyd on a quick third-and-2 pass to the outside and got himself boxed out by tight end Drew Sample blocking Brandon Jones, and just like that a 5-yard gain became a 72-yard touchdown for the Bengals.
-- The Dolphins settled for a field goal after having a first-and-goal from the 7-yard line and running three straight times, a curious choice considering they came in ranked 30th in rushing yards per game and 32nd in rushing yards per play.
-- Of course, that field goal came after an apparent touchdown run by punter Matt Haack off the unique formation the Dolphins used last year for "Moutaineer Shot" was nullified because rookie offensive linemen Austin Jackson and Robert Hunt failed to report as eligible receivers.
-- Rookie first-round pick Noah Igbinoghene was called for holding on a punt return, forcing the Dolphins to start a drive at their 9-yard line.
-- Grant should have had a 91-yard touchdown but he dropped a perfectly thrown pass by Tua after he got behind the Cincy defense.
-- Tua failed to notice blitzing safety Vonn Bell coming from his left and he took a big shot on a third-down incompletion, though a touchdown on a fumble return was overturned after review.
-- The Dolphins committed a penalty on three consecutive plays on Cincinnati's ensuing possession.
-- Howard got ejected with a minute left in the first half for throwing a punch at Boyd.
SECOND HALF
-- Tackle Robert Hunt committed a false start on the first drive to turn a second-and-5 into a second-and-10.
-- Tua and Jakeem Grant weren't on the same page when Grant cut off a route about 15 yards downfield while Tua threw the ball deep down the left sideline.
-- The Dolphins had to settle for a field goal in the third quarter after having a first-and-goal at the 9-yard, with the third-down play from the 5 failing when Parker couldn't haul it a jump ball over Jackson.
-- Grant took an unnecessary shot on a punt return when he failed to call for a fair catch and was drilled immediately after trying to field the punt. The Bengals were called for roughness on the play, but this still should serve as a teaching moment for Grant.
-- Tua had a great second half, but he badly missed on a third-down throw in the fourth quarter that would have given him his first career 300-yard game when he bounced a pass to Grant.
-- Lawson jumped offside to turn a third-and-15 situation into a third-and-10.
-- Gaskin produced the longest run by a Dolphins running back this year when he broke loose for a 29-yard run, but he was stripped at the end of the run and the 36-yard fumble return by safety Vonn Bell gave the Bengals their only real threat of the second half.
