Joe Nicholson-USA Today Sports
Dolphins vs. Seahawks: Instant reaction
The Miami Dolphins put forth a valiant effort against Seattle and actually had a chance to beat a very good team, but they also made enough mistakes to come up short.
In the end, the 31-23 loss was the result of the offense's inability to finish drives and some bad breakdowns on defense, none bigger than what happened at the end of the first half.
I don't care how good Russell Wilson is, it's simply unforgivable to let an opponent drive 75 yards in 21 seconds at the end of the half the way the Dolphins did.
That drive, coming right after the Dolphins had kicked their third field goal to make it a 10-9 game, was just crushing.
Of course, the big gaffe was allowed David Moore to get wide open behind the secondary while Wilson was scrambling to his left. Overhead cameras showed rookie first-round pick Noah Igbinoghene covering Moore at first, but then letting him go to cover someone else underneath and safety Jamal Perry trying to come over to help — but way too late.
Not knowing what the defensive call was, it's unfair to point the finger at either player, but it's obvious it was a busted coverage — and just an awful one at that.
That one play undid all the good the Dolphins defense had done to that point in the first half.
Yes, the Dolphins allowed a lot of completions, but they managed to limit the damage, in part because of Seattle's strange decision to pass up a chip-shot field goal to go for the first down on fourth-and-3. The Dolphins made them pay for that bold decision by getting to Wilson for a sack, with Emmanuel Ogbah getting there first and Zach Sieler (who should be playing more) right behind.
Ogbah later had a tackle for a 4-yard loss on a running play as he continues his strong play since the disappointing opener at New England.
The other free agent defensive lineman picked up this offseason, Shaq Lawson, had a sack in the third quarter but he injured himself in the process.
Cornerback Xavien Howard gave up some completions against DK Metcalf, but that's going to happen, particularly against a receiver with Metcalf's unique skill set.
But Howard came up with a huge play with his second interception in two games when he undercut Metcalf in the end zone and dove to pick off Wilson on the first drive of the second half.
Howard had a bad whiff on Metcalf after a short completion late in the game, and that allowed Metcalf to take a short pass to the 1-yard line to set up Chris Carson's touchdown that made it 31-15.
On the other side, it was another rather rough afternoon for Igbinoghene, regardless of what happened on the big play late in the first half.
The rookie from Auburn has clear physical ability, but he's got to stop his habit of peeking into the backfield and letting the receiver get behind him, which was happened on the fourth-quarter touchdown pass to Moore that all but clinched the win for Seattle.
The pick kept Seattle from adding to their 17-9 lead.
On offense, Ryan Fitzpatrick again put up good numbers, but he wasn't nearly as efficient as the previous two weeks.
The one interception in the first half wasn't his fault because his arm was hit as he was throwing the ball, but Fitzpatrick got lucky when Seattle dropped two passes that should have been fairly easy picks.
The culprit on the pick was left tackle Austin Jackson, who let the Seattle pass rusher get around him to get his hand on Fitzpatrick's arm.
Fitzpatrick's second interception can be excused a little bit because the Dolphins were in desperation mode at that point, though obviously it wasn't good.
The offensive line actually a tough time with the Seattle defensive line in pass protection and guard Ereck Flowers had a holding penalty that killed a drive.
Jackson missed some time in the second half because of a foot injury, with Julien Davenport taking his spot in the lineup for a few series.
But the big problem on offense — and the biggest difference in this game — was the inability to finish drives, though it's nice to be able to rely on kicker Jason Sanders, who hasn't missed a field goal this season.
