Miami Dolphins Football: Grades for Their Monday Night Perfomance

Monday night was not the start the Miami Dolphins hoped for.

As Tom Brady cruised to a team record in passing yards, his New England Patriots handily beat the Dolphins 38-24.  The Dolphins defense was exposed in the secondary as the Patriots had their way, running up over 600 yards of offense and four touchdowns.

There were encouraging signs from Chad Henne and the offense, and halfway through the 4th quarter Miami was on the goal line with a chance to pull within one score.

Nevertheless, a repeat defensive performance will sink the Dolphins into the AFC East cellar. Indication that the Dolphins can hang with the elite teams for four quarters is yet to be seen.

Quarterback

The entire offseason, fans and pundits alike have said the Miami Dolphins will go as far as Chad Henne can take them.

Henne played one of his best statistical games ever on Monday. Unfortunately, he didn’t get much help.

The Miami signal-caller threw for 416 yards, the third-highest passing total of all Week 1 quarterbacks. He also threw for two scores, ran for another, and led his team in rushing.

Dolphin fans can exhale about the quarterback question for this week. Henne had a blemish-free game besides a meaningless 4th quarter interception. Tom Brady’s record night and the Patriots dominance overshadowed Henne’s strong numbers.

Grade: A-

Running Back

Reggie Bush was finally promised a chance to be a feature back. His debut, however, was anything but a feature story.

He generated little production rushing but had some success in the short-passing game. Regardless, It seemed the Dolphins coaching staff was reluctant to unleash Bush for 20-plus carries or use him in the slot as expected.

Miami management made another questionable move cutting Lousaka Polite last week, and it showed in short-yardage situations. 

Additionally, Daniel Thomas’s injury hurt the team’s ability to wear down the Patriot’s front seven with only Bush to run between the tackles.

Grade: C+

Wide Receiver

The receiving corps was able to stretch the Patriots secondary, but they could not match the production of Tom Brady’s offensive arsenal.

Brandon Marshall had a standout game, catching almost 140 yards. However, he only caught half his targets, and he failed to bring down two potential touchdowns that resulted instead in a Dolphins field goal.

The rest of Henne’s supporting cast played their roles particularly well. Both Davone Bess and Brian Hartline caught touchdowns, while Anthony Fasano provided a feasible pass catcher and blocker.

Grade: B-

Offensive Line

After a couple of seasons of endless rotations, head coach Tony Sparano may have settled on a starting unit. Unfortunately, the lockout seemed to affect this group’s cohesion. 

They gave up four sacks and had several holding calls on pivotal drives. Marc Colombo seemed like he was up to his old tricks, holding any lineman that came his way.

This game wasn’t this unit’s best, but it seems like they finally have a group that will start together for the long term.

Grade: B-

Defensive Line and Linebacker

The key to beating the Patriots is pressuring Tom Brady. The Dolphins defensive line couldn’t even get a finger on him. 

Last year’s defensive star Cameron Wake had so much trouble with rookie Nate Solder that it was featured throughout ESPN’s first-half telecast. The television broadcast rarely called out any of the linebacker core all night for notable play.

While they forced the game's only true turnover, thanks to Jared Odrick, the Dolphins defensive line clearly lost in the trenches. Concurrently, no linebacker could keep up with the athleticism of New England’s tight ends, who proved to be the Dolphins red-zone kryptonite.

Grade: D

Defensive Back

As good as Tom Brady and the New England passing attack were, the Dolphins secondary seemed invisible.

With every completion Brady threw, it seemed like the defensive backs were always a few steps behind. Vontae Davis’s claim that the Dolphins sport the best cornerback tandem looks like child’s play today. The safeties were either getting beat deep or were too slow coming down to stop a short gain.

Davis, Sean Smith, and Nolan Carroll had a game that they would rather forget. This unit couldn’t stop New England’s tight ends or Wes Welker, who’s not usually known as a burner, for 99 yards.

This was the worst kind of debut this Dolphin’s secondary could have had, and they may be looking for free-agent help soon.

Grade: F

Special Teams

The last time the Dolphins and Patriots faced off on Monday night, the special teams proved to be Miami’s downfall. 

Tonight they did not have as much significance.

Brandon Fields stood out, as he was able to return some lengthy punts, but the coverage team allowed Julian Edelman to jump-start the Patriots into decent field position.

Dan Carpenter hit on all of his attempts. On the other hand, Clyde Gates failed to spark in the return game.

In summary, the Dolphins special teams did not impress, but average will suffice on some nights.

Grade: B

Coaching

The Dolphins game plan may not be a reflection of this low mark. We are talking about a team that was average last season and which was only a touchdown behind the AFC’s top seed through three quarters.

But the Dolphins coaching staff managed to squander pivotal chances that allowed their chances to slip away.

The call for a fade to Brian Hartline on 4th and goal is preposterous considering that they could have called Marshall's number or ran the quarterback sneak. Calling on an unproven receiver to make a play not in his skill set allowed the Patriots to take control of the game for good. 

Also, the Dolphins defensive scheme did not having any success in slowing down the Patriots passing attack, which racked up over 500 yards. Miami's personnel looked outmatched by the Patriot’s game plan and array of weapons.

This is not the first time Belichick has outcoached his opponent and won convincingly, but this is the third straight year the Dolphins haven’t matched up defensively to high-profile passing attacks.

Grade: D

Overall

Grade: C-