Miami Dolphins Week 14 Report Card
The Dolphins couldn't overcome a 30-point run by the Kansas City Chiefs at Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday and dropped a 33-27 decision against the defending Super Bowl champions.
It was a game filled with highs and lows, as reflected in the weekly report card:
Quarterbacks
Tua Tagovailoa put together the first 300-yard passing game of his young NFL career while engineering a fourth-quarter comeback attempt that fell just short. Tua also threw his first career interception, which came as the result of an underthrown ball that was deflected by a Chiefs defensive back after early pressure disrupted the timing of the play. Tagovailoa showed his usual accuracy as several throws, most notably the threaded 29-yard touchdown pass to Mike Gesicki in the fourth quarter, though it should be noted that ball went through the hands of safety Juan Thornhill, whose misplay allowed Gesicki to make the catch. Tua added a rushing touchdown on a sneak later in the fourth quarter, but his passer rating ended up at 83.3, well below the mark he brought into the game. Tua's performance will be remembered for the fourth quarter, but it was a bit spotty in the first three. Grade: B
Running backs
Everybody by now knows the Dolphins were without their top three rushing leaders, which put the onus on newcomers DeAndre Washington and second-year player Patrick Laird, Washington got the start and had 13 rushing attempts, though he averaged only 2.7 yards per carry. He also had two receptions. Laird had 19 yards on four carries and one reception. The longest play by any running back was a 10-yard catch by Washington. Elijah McGuire did not play after being elevated from the practice squad. The running backs didn't make much happen, but they also didn't get a lot of help from the offensive line. Grade: C+
Wide receivers
The story of the game for the wide receivers was injuries, as DeVante Parker and Jakeem Grant both left the game in the first half and did not return. While they were in the game, though, each failed to come down with a clearly catchable ball, each in a critical situation. Grant dropped a low third-down pass from Tua in the first quarter, while Parker failed to make the catch after high-pointing a pass in the end zone over the defender. That incompletion also came on third down and it forced the Dolphins to settle for a field goal. Lynn Bowden Jr. led the Dolphins in receptions with seven and Mack Hollins was a big factor in the fourth quarter. Parker went without a catch; Grant's best play was an 18-yard reception and he also had a 12-yard gain on a shovel pass. Antonio Callaway again was a non-factor on offense as he failed to have a catch on two targets. The two drops when there were no great catches was disappointing. Grade: C-
Tight ends
Gesicki had another big game, though his day unfortunately ended early because of a shoulder injury at the end of a short reception. Before he left, Gesicki had two touchdown catches, including the tough 29-yard catch that required great concentration. Adam Shaheen and Durham Smythe each caught two passes on three targets. Considering the Dolphins averaged 3.3 yards in the running game, it's clear the blocking up front was less than perfect and the tight ends have to take some of the blame. Grade: B-
Offensive line
This was not a great outing for the young Dolphins offensive line, which had to go without starting left guard Ereck Flowers. Besides the previously mentioned 3.3-yard rushing average, the Dolphins also gave up four sacks, though one of them came when Tagovailoa held the ball too long. But one that didn't fit in that category was the one that killed the Dolphins' scoring opportunity at the end of the first half when Frank Clark quickly got around left tackle Austin Jackson to drop Tagovailoa. The line did play a relatively clean game in terms of penalties, with the only flags coming against Jesse Davis and Solomon Kindley for being illegally downfield. Grade: C-
Defensive line
This obviously was a major assignment for the Dolphins defense, which came up with a lot of plays but also gave up a lot of them. The guys up front helped shut down Clyde Edwards-Helaire, who gained only 32 yards on 16 carries. Zach Sieler had three tackles for loss in the running game, though all came after Kansas City had scored 30 points. Christian Wilkins split a sack with Jerome Baker to stop a drive in the fourth quarter and Emmanuel Ogbah had a quarterback hit and he played a big role on the play where Baker sacked Patrick Mahomes for a 30-yard loss by keeping him from being able to get outside the pocket. Ogbah also recovered the loose ball when Byron Jones fumbled on his interception return. Raekwon Davis led the group with five tackles. Grade: B-
Linebackers
It certainly was an eventful day for the linebackers, starting with Baker's 30-yard sack, part of his 2.5-sack performance. Baker also teamed with safety Brandon Jones for a tackle for loss on a running play. Shaq Lawson appeared to be one of the culprits on the 32-yard touchdown run by Tyreek Hill because he took an inside angle at the line while Hill ran by him. Sam Eguavoen also failed to keep Hill from getting outside on that touchdown run. Lawson also later was flagged for a roughing-the-passer penalty when he needlessly tackled Mahomes to the ground clearly he had released the ball. Andrew Van Ginkel again made things happen, as he caused the tip that led to the Byron Jones interception. He also had a quarterback hit and a tackle for loss. Lawson also had a quarterback hit. Kamu Grugier-Hill recovered the fumble inside the Dolphins 10-yard line in the fourth quarter. Grugier-Hill badly missed a tackle near the sideline that allowed Edwards-Helaire to turn a 4- or 5-yard gain on a short pass in the third quarter into a 26-yard pick-up. Grade: B-
Secondary
The Dolphins defensive backs knew they'd be busy against Mahomes and that speedy group of receivers and it was a tough day outside of the takeaways — interceptions by Jones, safety Eric Rowe and, of course, Xavien Howard. Jones also caused the third-quarter fumble that Grugier-Hill recovered. Rowe had his hands full with Travis Kelce, who again proved he's the best tight end in the NFL with 136 receiving yards. Howard's interception was spectacular, but he also had a bad play at a key moment when he gave Hill a big cushion at the line of scrimmage, which gave the Chiefs an easy completion on the key fourth-and-1 play late in the game. Byron Jones' inability to disengage from a blocking receiver also was a key factor in Hill's 32-yard touchdown and Hill juked Rowe in the open field around the 10-yard line. Hill later burned the Dolphins for a 44-yard touchdown catch when Clayton Fejedelem, in the game at the time while Bobby McCain was injured, got caught leaning forward to allow Hill to easily sprint by him when he was providing deep help. Picking off Patrick Mahomes three times was great; allowing 393 passing yards, even to him, wasn't. Grade: C+
Special teams
This game featured a battle between two of the best special teams groups in the NFL, and the Dolphins lost this one. Badly. Of course, the play that stands out is the punt return for a touchdown, which gave Kansas City two scores in a span of 1:02 and was devastating. The play started with a low, short punt that allowed Mecole Hardman to quickly get to the edge and no Dolphins player was able to slow him down. That, of course, came two quarters after Jason Sanders had only his second missed field goal attempt of the season, a 45-yarder that he pushed wide right. Sanders did come back to make two kicks, from 31 and 44 yards. Haack also had only his second touchback of the season. Grant lost 4 yards on his only punt return before leaving the game and Antonio Callaway had a return of 11 yards as his replacement. But the touchdown is what stands out here. Grade: D
