Biggest Takeaways from Miami Dolphins' Week 9 Loss
The Dan Campbell honeymoon is over.
The Miami Dolphins interim head coach stormed out of the gate with two straight wins after being promoted to the top spot on the coaching staff, but after suffering a 33-17 loss to the Buffalo Bills, his team is on the ropes, and so is his dream of being a head coach.
That being said, with a clean catch here and a better block there, the Dolphins might have been in better position to come away with the victory and move to .500 through eight games. Instead, they sit at 3-5 and could be staring down the barrel of a loaded gun that, if fired, would end their playoff hopes once and for all.
Some of the biggest problems were in the execution by the players, but Campbell himself was not free of blame for his shortcomings during the game on Sunday. Whether it's the coaching staff or the players, there is plenty of blame to go around. Here are some of the key takeaways from Sunday's game.
Dan Campbell's Decision-Making Cost the Dolphins Key Points
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No team ever lost a game because of two plays, but there are definitely two key decisions—and two key mistakes—made by head coach Dan Campbell.
The first of those mistakes came at the end of the first half, with the Dolphins moving closer and closer to the goal line. Running back Lamar Miller was tackled in bounds with 22 seconds left, and the Dolphins didn't use their final timeout, instead hurrying to the line to get the ball snapped.
"In hindsight, yeah, I should have used a timeout there," Campbell said, per Chris Perkins of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
The Dolphins had a chance to score—two chances, in fact—but they were held to no points on the drive. They might have had even more opportunities to score, and they might have made more of those opportunities, if they had more time.
The other decision was on 3rd-and-4 with 2:36 left in the third quarter. The Dolphins were behind 19-14 when the Bills were called for an offensive holding penalty on an incomplete third-down pass. Had Campbell declined the penalty, the Bills would have had to try for a field goal and—at worst—the Dolphins would have been behind 22-14. Instead, Campbell accepted the penalty and gave the Bills one more chance to convert.
Not only did the Bills convert but quarterback Tyrod Taylor hit wide receiver Sammy Watkins in stride for a touchdown that put them ahead 26-14.
The Dolphins are still hopeful that Campbell can be the head coach of the future, but Sunday's miscues were proof that he is still learning on the fly.
Brent Grimes Admittedly Had a Very Tough Day
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Brent Grimes is the best cornerback in the Dolphins secondary, but he has been one of their worst over the past two weeks during the Dolphins' back-to-back losses.
Against the Bills, Grimes yielded a reception on all five passes thrown his way, including a 44-yard touchdown bomb from Tyrod Taylor to Sammy Watkins (shown above). The Dolphins cornerback has given up nine receptions on 11 targets for 195 yards and two touchdowns over the past two games, according to Pro Football Focus.
Grimes made no bones about what was wrong with the Dolphins pass defense on Sunday.
"Uh, me," he said, according to Hal Habib of the Palm Beach Post. "I messed up. Made some mistakes at the line, and when you do that in this league, they can make big plays, so I take the blame for it. I didn't bring my 'A' game today."
He was playing well up until two weeks ago. He had given up just 20 receptions on 37 throws into his coverage for 287 yards, and he had two picks. If he can rediscover that form, the Dolphins defense could get back on track. If not, the team might be in trouble.
Dolphins Offensive Line Still a Weak Link
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The Dolphins offensive line has been brutal at times this year but appeared to have turned things around in the two games immediately following Campbell's promotion to interim head coach. The line was protecting quarterback Ryan Tannehill and running the ball well better than they have in a long time.
Then, the past two games happened, and that group is back on the downslide. In the past two games, the Dolphins have rushed for 119 yards and Tannehill has been sacked seven times.
According to Pro Football Focus, Tannehill was sacked just two times and pressured just nine times in 38 dropbacks on Sunday against the Bills. That's not bad, at least by the Dolphins' standards (Tannehill has been pressured on 36.8 percent of his dropbacks, 14th out of 29 quarterbacks).
The Dolphins offensive line has shown it can play at a high level. The sooner it gets back to that level, the sooner the offense can reach its full potential once again.
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Dolphins Run Defense Can Still Be Gashed
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The Dolphins front seven was a rag doll in the first four games of the season, giving up more than 120 rushing yards in each of those games at an average of 160.5. After Campbell took the reigns as head coach, the front seven immediately turned it around and allowed fewer than 100 rushing yards in each of the next three games at an average of 76.3 yards per game.
Against the Bills, the Dolphins run defense was even worse than anything we saw in those first four games. It yielded 266 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 36 carries, paving the way for 112 rushing yards by LeSean McCoy for the most productive day he's had since November 27, 2014.
The Dolphins didn't necessarily miss tackles—in fact, according to Pro Football Focus, they missed just four tackles on the day. Their issues were more a result of their lack of push up front and their inability to close those gaps in the front seven.
Dolphins Are on the Fringe of Elimination
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The Dolphins are not ready to admit that their season is over. In fact, Campbell is hopeful the Dolphins can still make a run and get to the postseason.
"Absolutely, I don't see why not," Campbell said. "I've been part of teams where all of a sudden you make a run and win seven straight. I've been part of teams that won six straight. You were counted out and all of a sudden you were the hottest team going in [to the playoffs]."
At 3-5, the Dolphins would need a small miracle to get into the playoffs. Their margin for error is almost nonexistent, and while the second half of the schedule isn't brutal, there are still three teams with winning records left for the Dolphins to face. A 5-3 record in the second half of the season might bring some optimism, but it's not going to get the Dolphins to the postseason.
Unless otherwise noted, all quotes obtained from team news release and all statistics obtained from ProFootballFocus.com.
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