Miami Dolphins Week 6 Report Card
It's another week with a lot of good grades for the Miami Dolphins, which figures after their 24-point victory against the New York Jets.
Quarterbacks
You'll notice right away the difference with this position because we had to use the plural form for the first time all season. That means that the Dolphins used more than one quarterback and that means Tua Tagovailoa. Before we get to the rookie, though, let's assess Ryan Fitzpatrick's work. Three touchdown passes is always a good day's work for any quarterback, and Fitzpatrick came up with some memorable plays, such as his lead block on a Myles Gaskin running play and his left-handed passes as a Jets defender had him in his grasp. Still, it wasn't Fitzpatrick's best performance because he badly forced a throw to Mike Gesicki that resulted in a pick and he tossed two interceptions on the day. Fitzpatrick also had only one rushing attempt and wasn't a factor with his scrambling the way he usually is. He also was only 1-for-6 on third down. Now for Tua. He played five snaps and did everything that was asked, including completing two passes and producing the Dolphins' only third-down conversion in the game. Grade: B+
Running backs
As we wrote about earlier Monday, we're not buying the notion that Gaskin had extra motivation because of the Dolphins' interest in Le'Veon Bell, but it doesn't change the fact he had his most productive game as an NFL player. Gaskin ran hard and caught the ball, but that's something he's shown all season. Matt Breida wasn't much of a factor on offense after a couple of productive games. Patrick Laird got some snaps late and had the distinction of catching Tagovailoa's first NFL pass. Grade: B
Wide receivers
It was actually a fairly quiet game for the wide receivers. Jakeem Grant tied Gaskin for the team lead in receptions with four, while Preston Williams had a touchdown catch for a second consecutive game. Williams failed to win a one-on-one with defensive back Marcus Maye on the Jets' second interception when Fitzpatrick chucked it deep, though that was the intent on the play. DeVante Parker had only three catches on eight targets before leaving with a groin injury. Isaiah Ford was not targeted once in 18 snaps. Grade: C
Tight ends
It was a very good day for the tight ends, who scored two of the three touchdowns — one each by Adam Shaheen and Durham Smythe. Shaheen later had a 43-yard reception to set up Smythe's score. The Dolphins tight ends also deserve their share of the credit for Gaskin being able to average 5.1 yards per carry. Mike Gesicki was shut out in the catch department, though he was targeted only twice. Grade: B+
Offensive line
The Dolphins played their second game with their new-look offensive line with Robert Hunt at right tackle and Jesse Davis at left tackle, and it was another solid effort. Gaskin's per-carry average speaks well for the job up front. Ryan Fitzpatrick had solid protection for most of the game, though he was sacked twice. One of them appeared to fall on the shoulders of guard Solomon Kindley, who also had the lone penalty on the unit. The Jets had three tackles for loss on running plays, including stopping Gaskin on a third-and-1. Grade: B-
Defensive line
It's going to be tough to complain about anything on defense considering the shutout and the Jets gaining only 263 total yards. The only blemish on defense, really, was a 34-yard run by third-string running back Ty Johnson. The Dolphins had a lot of good performances up front, starting with Emmanuel Ogbah, who had two sacks, Christian Wilkins, who had a sack and two passes batted at the line of scrimmage, and Zach Sieler, who had a tackle for loss and QB hit. Raekwon Davis also had a solid outing starting in place of Davon Godchaux. Grade: A
Linebackers
The Dolphins played without Kyle Van Noy, who was inactive, and lost Andrew Van Ginkel and Kamu Grugier-Hill to injuries during the game. Elandon Roberts was the best player in the group, contributing a tackle for loss and a quarterback hit. Sam Eguavoen got extended playing time and contributed a tackle for loss, though he got blocked on the 34-yard Jets run. Van Ginkel gave the Jets a first down when he was called for illegal contact on a third-and-long. Grade: B-
Secondary
Another game, another pick for Xavien Howard. And another strong game. The Dolphins pass defense held Joe Flacco to a 50.0 passer rating, but some of the credit goes to the pass rush and some to Flacco being off target, particularly on deep throws early in the game. Byron Jones was solid in coverage, but he shares some of the blame for the long Jets run. Eric Rowe led the Dolphins in tackles with nine and broke up a pass. Bobby McCain had a quiet game, while Nik Needham had some issues in the slot trying to cover Jamison Crowde, which is not an easy assignment. Given that the Jets' longest pass play was 22 yards, it's not like a lot of damage was done. Grade: A-
Special teams
This was Jakeem Grant's best outing on special teams this season, with four punt returns of at least 14 yards, including one good for 30 yards. Jason Sanders made his only field goal attempt, and Matt Haack didn't have a single one of his seven punts returned (six fair catches, one downed). Sanders put four of his kickoffs in the end zone for touchbacks, and Jets returner Vyncint Smith muffed the only one who fielded and ended up being tackled at the 9. Tough to ask for more from the special teams. Grade: A
