Miami Dolphins Cannot Overcome Mistakes in Last-Second Loss

For the second time in three games against an NFC North team, the Miami Dolphins defense could not prevent its opponent from reaching the end zone to claim victory in the final minute of the game. This time, the Dolphins lost 20-16 at the hands of the Detroit Lions, leaving Miami at 5-4 on the season.

Similar to the Dolphins’ loss to the Green Bay Packers in Week 5, Miami had a sluggish first half filled with bad offensive line play and a defense that struggled to step up in the crucial waning moments.

The comparisons leak over to the special teams side as well, as defensive tackle Earl Mitchell blocked a Matt Prater field goal, allowing Dion Jordan to return it to the Lions’ 4-yard line. Against the Packers, it was rookie Chris McCain that made the big play, blocking a punt in the first quarter.

Unfortunately for the Dolphins, there were too many miscues throughout the game to defeat a very good Lions team. It began early in the first quarter, when the Lions successfully executed a fake punt for a 24-yard gain, setting up a 26-yard field goal.

After a three-and-out by the Dolphins offense, Calvin Johnson reminded everyone that he’s the premier wide receiver in the NFL by beating Brent Grimes on a 49-yard touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford. That 10-0 lead held for the Lions until there were 17 seconds left in the half, when Miami hit a field goal to narrow the deficit.

The second half is where the mistakes started stacking up in place of the poor execution that littered the first half. Just 40 seconds in, running back Daniel Thomas was stripped by Lions defensive end Ezekiel Ansah, giving the Lions excellent field position. Miami effectively lost advantage of getting an extra second-half possession with that fumble.

Despite being an excellent unit, Miami’s defense failed to get off the field late in the third and fourth quarters, which is reminiscent of its Week 2, 3 and 5 performances.

"

Cortland Finnegan injured his left ankle and his return is questionable.

— Omar Kelly (@OmarKelly) November 9, 2014"

Cortland Finnegan suffered a left ankle injury, according to Omar Kelly of the Sun-Sentinel, and his absence left second-year cornerback Jamar Taylor to defend Golden Tate. The results weren’t good, as Miami switched to play more Cover 3, which allowed Tate to accrue considerable yards across the middle of the field.

Detroit was able to run 22 plays for 124 yards in the final 13 minutes and 17 seconds of the game because of the poor execution by Miami’s defense. Miami only helped the Lions’ comeback win by committing two penalties on the final two drives and when coach Joe Philbin called two timeouts on the Lions’ last set of plays.

Although the offense came alive in the second half with a gritty performance by quarterback Ryan Tannehill, two key plays by Dolphins playmakers certainly did not help the unit seal the victory.

Tannehill created an opportunity to score a touchdown when he evaded pressure, rolled to his right and delivered a strike to tight end Charles Clay in the end zone, but Clay couldn’t hold on, and the Dolphins settled for another field goal.

With 3:47 left in the game, Miami tried to get just one first down and run out the remaining game clock. On second down, Miami handed the ball off to rookie running back Damien Williams, who had a good game but tried to create too much instead of taking what the defense was giving him.

He could’ve ran straight up the middle for a small gain, which would’ve led to Miami having a 3rd-and-short situation, but instead he bounced outside for no gain. That forced Miami to throw the ball on third down, and that was folded when the Lions smothered the Dolphins receivers.

There were simply too many plays where Miami did not execute on offense or defense to win against a very good Lions team. Winning this game would’ve been a huge boost to the Dolphins' playoff aspirations, but now they are left with a must-win game against their nemesis on Thursday night.

As Miami moves on to the Buffalo Bills, it must keep in mind the importance of sharp execution every play. Without that high-level execution, beating similar-quality teams becomes much harder than it already is.

All stats used are from sports-reference.com.

Ian Wharton is a Miami Dolphins Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report, contributor for Optimum Scouting and analyst for FinDepth. 

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