The Dolphins traveled to Denver on Sunday only to be absolutely embarrassed in their 20-13 loss.
The Dolphins got off to a very hot start taking the 7-0 lead only a few minutes in. But when the Broncos took the 10-7 lead, they never looked back.
O-Line was NOT good
The O-Line allowed 6 sacks total, and all of them seemed to be at the worst moments possible. It felt like every third down where the Dolphins needed to convert, Tua would either be sacked or have to get rid of the ball quicker than he would’ve liked to.
Not Capitalizing on Chances
The Broncos had some awful turnovers, in which the Dolphins didn’t really capitalize on. I’m mainly talking about the Melvin Gordon fumble on the one yard line. If he were to score there, it would’ve made the game 27-13, which would almost be an insurmountable lead for the Dolphins to come back with only 5 minutes to go. Instead, it remained a 20-13 game. The Dolphins weren’t able to convert with Fitzpatrick in at QB, as they drove about halfway down the field and couldn’t convert on a fourth down, which put the game away.
Tua’s Benching
Tua Tagovailoa endured a poor performance on Sunday against the Broncos, ultimately finding himself replaced by Ryan Fitzpatrick when the Dolphins came out for their second possession of the fourth quarter. This move came after Tua got injured, but turns out, the injury has nothing to do with the move. Miami coach Brian Flores said that Tagovailoa (who was sacked by Broncos pass rusher Bradley Chubb on his final play before being pulled) was not injured while adding that he believed Fitzpatrick gave them the best chance to win at that point in the game. Flores has named Tua the starter next week, which also indicates the injury is nothing big.
Flores, on the decision to stick with Tua as the starter: “He’s talented player, young player, developing player. We have a lot of confidence in him. That’s why he’s the starter.”
No need to panic
This loss was bound to happen. The Dolphins were looking to win their 6th straight! With a young team, that’s going to happen. There might be a reason to worry about Tua’s health, but game shouldn’t say anything. The Dolphins are a young team which has surpassed everyones expectations. Hopefully Tua is fine and can bounce back next week against an easy Jets team. If not, at least Flores has Fitzmagic to rely on.