Saturday Dolphins Mailbag: Tyreek, Tannehill, Ogbah, and More

Part 2 of the All Dolphins bye weekend mailbag:

From Gary (@Dolfano):

Why do they play so conservative against Phi, KC and dink and dunk.. Why not go to 5 wide with mix of RBs and put pressure on them. We have the fastest guys in the league.

Hey Gary, it’s not quite that simple. For one, they have to make sure they block the other team. For another, everybody has to be in sync, and that’s a lot easier to do at home without crowd noise being an impediment.

From TheHotChili (@ImBoomBoomPow):

What’s up with Ogbah? I thought with Chubb and Phillips, he would be racking up the stats. Instead he rides the bench.

Simply put, he just doesn’t have a clear defined role in this scheme because he’s not as quick off the ball as AVG (why he’s fourth behind him) and he’s not physical enough to get a lot of playing time on the line. The reality is that Ogbah pretty much is 4-3 defensive end on a team that plays either with three or sometimes even two down linemen.

From mr. mojo risin’ @dennisgriffin7):

When the Titans come to town for Monday night football in December, what do you think the fan reaction will be when they show Tannehill on the big screen (as he won't be on the field since he won't be getting his starting job back)? Personally I will clap for him.

Hey Dennis, that’s a great question. Because Tannehill was very polarizing when he was Dolphins QB, I would expect a mix of cheers and boos (though I would hope it would be more cheers because he always was classy with the fans).

From Mad doggo (@Dogadoodle72):

How about we name the offense “the dr jekyll and mr hyde offense” for how they play at home vs on the road.

Ha! Cute. I’ll just say they’re not the first offense to look different depending on whether it’s a home or away game.

From wally (@WallyDolfan):

Is the defense steadily getting better while the offense is in steady decline?

Hey Wally, absolutely on the defense, but I wouldn’t say the offense is in a steady decline because it did play well against the Patriots in Week 8.

From James (@Jay7kilo):

I remember you and Omar really hyping up Ahmed during the offseason/preseason. It looks like his production didn’t transfer to the regular season; what do you think happened? With River Cracraft coming back, the WR room is packed. Who do you think will be the odd man or odd men out of the rotation?

Hey James, yeah, we did miss the boat on Ahmed, who looked great in the preseason but has struggled to make things happen in the regular season. Part of the problem is an inability to make defenders miss or break tackles, so he’s always only getting what the blocking provides. As for the WR room, seems pretty clear that Robbie Chosen will be the odd man out since he was the last one in.

From Thomas Hudson (via email):

Hi Alain, as always I appreciate what you do. I have seen the expected group of people this week coming out and saying that the Dolphins can't beat a quality team because Tua is too limited. I saw one that held up the Dolphins yards per carry in the losses as proof that Tua is the problem. But it seemed to me like they kept getting in trouble early against the Chiefs because they couldn't run the ball early. So I checked, and I am not sure I believe my research and math. As far as I can tell, in the first halves of the three losses, Miami running backs carried the ball 16 times for 29 yards total. The running back part is because Waddle had a 12-yard run against the Chiefs. And that number is even worse than it looks because in the first two drives against the Bills, Mostert and Achane had 4 carries for 16 yards and 2 TDs. Their longest run in the first half against the Eagles was 1 yard and Mostert did not have a single run in that half that gained yards. So the questions. First, could this possibly be right? Surely I missed something and it wasn't that bad. And second, if I didn't miss something, why is no one talking about this? This is atrocious production from the run game.

Hey Thomas, no, you are correct and maybe it should be discussed more, but it hasn’t been because of other issues, and against the Eagles and Chiefs, the Dolphins still had a chance in the fourth quarter, running game problems or not. I personally never put either loss on Tua or him being too limited because the offense is a full team operation that needs contributions from everybody and when it’s humming it’s not just Tua but guys all around doing their job.

From Lev (@miamilev):

Do you think McDaniel makes adjustments to communication for the offense during the bye. Crowd noise seems to mess this offense all kinda up.

Hey Lev, McDaniel will evaluate and examine everything during the bye, but you also have to understand at some point there’s not a whole lot you can do to combat crowd noise when you have an offense that does as much pre-snap motion as the Dolphins do.

From Noles 1994 (@Noles1994):

What needs to be changed, improved for the Dolphins to take the next step and beat the top teams ... To stop shooting themselves in the foot like they have?

It might as simple as making plays down the stretch. They totally were in that game against K.C. and were the better team by the end of the fourth quarter, except they had those two mishaps at the end with the miscommunication between Tua and Wilson and then the shotgun snap that got away. Maybe those things don’t happen the next time the Dolphins have a chance late to beat a good team.

From Jason Gragnano (@GragnanoJ):

Outside looking in, how do you beat this team? Throw off O timing & make Tua hold ball over 3sec seems to be the answer in losses. With that, how do you counter? Evolve run game?

Hey Jason, yes, I do think that’s the formula to beat the Dolphins, along with being physical near the line with Tyreek Hill. You counter that maybe with more quick throws like screens and, yes, perhaps a bigger commitment to the run game.

From Jeff (via email):

Hello Alain, I think you and I both share that excitement for the upcoming season of Hard Knocks: In Season. I think the fans of the team really want to see some of the magic of what is going on behind the scenes and what it really is like day to day for this team, especially at this moment. Given all the things being said outside of the building, from your perspective covering the team, what is the one question you hope to have answered through the episodes of the show, if any?

Hey Jeff, that’s an awesome question, but before I answer, understand that the Dolphins will have some editorial control and you won’t see anything that could hurt their “competitive advantage.” Having said that, I think I might be curious to see who the clear leaders are on each side of the ball. You know the main group of guys, but who is THE guy on offense and defense?

From Dave (@angryvet59):

The offense has continued to struggle on the road. McDaniel is smart & sure he sees it. Simplify ? Also, Tyreek's postgame comments seemed cavalier to me. By no means did he lose the game but the fumble (great play by defenders) was a factor. No accountability it sounded like.

Hey Dave, I’m not sure drastic changes need to be made on the road because we have to remember they’ve played good teams on the road. As for Tyreek’s postgame comments, I’m right with you. Wasn’t particularly thrilled to hear him say he thought he played well when he had two drops and a fumble that was returned for a touchdown in a seven-point game.

From Mick (@Mrac317):

Does Mike McDaniel suffer from Adam Gase nose in the playbook syndrome when coaching in tough games on the road?

Hey Mick, if you’re asking whether McDaniel neglects the defense, I would counter by asking you whether that matters. Vic Fangio is a highly respected defensive mind who’s a former head coach on top of that, so if he had full control of the defense and McDaniel focused only on the offense, it wouldn’t bother me one iota.

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