Scooter & Hum: Day 1,321, Quasi-Quarantine: Dolphins-Eagles Game 7 Review

So, the penalty count was 10 on Miami and zero on Philadelphia.

Pause.

Read that again.

In what felt like a WWE scenario, referee Brad Allen and his crew -- who should be investigated for cheating, betting, or both -- dramatically tilted the game in the home team's favor. In the rewatch, there were 14 missed calls that should have gone against Philadelphia and four calls that were either just bad or iffy against the Dolphins. On a side note, I'd also like to shout out the bootlicking broadcasting crew of Mike Tirico and Cris Collinsworth, who delivered a particularly gutless performance in completely ignoring the officiating discrepancy and blatant errors.

Missing eight starters who represented 14 Pro Bowls, the 'Fins held strong despite a lot of challenges. The soon-to-be-illegal "tush push" play was used successfully four times by Philly, who dominated possession (36:43 to 23:17) and ran 20 more plays than the visitors. Despite winning the turnover battle, Miami could never seem to get the bounce or call they needed. The popular narrative is that the Dolphins are too much of a finesse team to beat strong teams on the road (their wins have come against teams with an 8-25 record), and that perception will have staying power until Miami can change it.

Hopefully on a level playing field.

On to the just-keep-it-fair recap ...

Offense

Miami was called for a delay of game on its first offensive snap of the contest, portending struggles to come on that side of the ball. The 'Fins managed just 45 rushing yards on 12 carries (-7 yards in the first half), putting the team in awful down-and-distance scenarios all night long. As a result, the Dolphins were four of 11 on third-down conversions and did not get a first down on either fourth-down try. Miami did not score a touchdown on its only red-zone visit and seemed largely out of sync for most of the evening.
Tua Tagovailoa connected on 23 of 32 passes for 216 yards and a touchdown, doing a notable job of fielding poor snaps. However, he was sacked three times, threw off his back foot quite a bit, was intercepted, and rushed once for negative-three yards. Overall, Tua earned an 85.7 grade from Pro Football Focus, but had a 16.7 pass rating when under pressure, according to NextGenStats.
The rotation at running back was a little difficult to understand at times. Raheem Mostert only got 26 snaps, and though he lost eight yards on his first three carries, he did rip off 36 yards on back-to-back carries in the third quarter. Overall, he rushed nine times for 45 yards and caught one of three targets for six yards. Salvon Ahmed got 18 snaps, losing three yards on two carries and failing to gain a yard on one reception (two targets). In his first game back from injury, Jeff Wilson only got seven snaps, catching a four-yard pass. Alec Ingold got a season-low 12 snaps and did not get a touch.
At receiver, Tyreek Hill led the way as usual, reeling in 11 of 15 targets for 88 yards and a touchdown, earning a 77.7 PFF grade in 38 snaps. However, he uncharacteristically dropped a couple of passes, including a touchdown, and he had another score called back on a marginal holding call. Jaylen Waddle was limited by an in-game back injury but still managed to catch all six targets for 63 yards in 22 snaps. Cedrick Wilson stepped up in a big way in his 29 snaps, snaring two of three targets for 48 yards, including a clutch 29-yarder. He was going to attempt a pass on a trick play at one point, but was instead sacked for a damaging seven-yard loss. Braxton Berrios also got 29 snaps, catching one of two targets for seven yards, and Robbie Chosen was inactive in this one. Route spacing seemed to be more of an issue in this game than we've seen all year, mirroring the overall sloppiness that marked most of the night for Miami.
Durham Smythe dominated time at tight end, making some key blocks in his 45 snaps. Julian Hill got 14 snaps and was called for holding, while Tanner Conner got a single snap from scrimmage. No tight end was targeted in the passing game.
The offensive line was already missing starters Terron Armstead (left tackle) and Conner Williams (center), and things got worse quickly when left guard Isaiah Wynn was lost for the contest after just five snaps. Lester Cotton came in for 44 snaps in relief, was called for a hold (which negated a touchdown) and a false start, and has been graded at 43.0 by PFF over his last 56 snaps. On the right side of the line, Robert Hunt (84.5 PFF grade and zero allowed pressures) and Austin Jackson (one pressure allowed) played well, though Jackson was called for a false start and a highly questionable unnecessary roughness. Eichenberg had a few snapping issues and made a tackle after an interception. It's clear that injuries are taking a real toll up front, making Miami's upcoming bye (week 10) even more crucial.

Defense

Using favorable officiating, the controversial "tush push," and a physical style, the Eagles controlled the ball and the tempo, only punting once. Philadelphia was just four of 12 on third down but converted all four fourth-down attempts and were gifted three of its 26 first downs on penalties. Miami held up well against the Eagles rushing attack, limiting the home team to just 2.9 yards per carry. Philly scored touchdowns on four of six trips to the red zone to capitalize on opportunities -- earned and otherwise.
At defensive end, Christian Wilkins played 69 snaps, making six tackles, a quarterback hit, and a fumble recovery. Those contributions were offset by three penalties -- two mind-numbing offsides calls and an iffy late hit on the quarterback. Zach Sieler was quiet, making a single solo tackle and being whistled for offsides in 65 snaps. While both players are uniquely equipped to play more snaps than most defensive linemen, the snap counts are way too high, and Miami is going to need more options at defensive end down the stretch.
Raekwon Davis had two assisted tackles and overall played solid in his 39 snaps on the interior. Da'Shawn Hand got five snaps in this one, a reduction in playing time from recent games.
Bradley Chubb led the way as usual at outside linebacker, recording seven tackles, two sacks, a stop for loss, a quarterback hit, a forced fumble, and seven pressures in his 65 snaps. Jaelan Phillips came back in a big way, posting seven tackles, a sack, a stop for loss, and two quarterback hits in 50 snaps, earning a 76.2 PFF grade. Andrew Van Ginkel collected six tackles, a stop for loss, and a quarterback hit, earning a 78.4 PFF grade in 43 snaps, though he looked much less comfortable playing in his reps at inside linebacker. Emmanuel Ogbah got just three snaps, and the Dolphins are likely to need much more from him the rest of the way -- likely in more of a pure defensive end role.
Prior to injury, David Long had his best game as a 'Fin, registering four tackles and a pass breakup in 37 snaps to earn a 78.9 PFF grade to lead the inside 'backers. Jerome Baker was active, notching 11 tackles, six solos, a stop for loss, a pass breakup, an interception, and a defensive touchdown in 72 snaps. Duke Riley played six snaps in reserve, but it was mostly Van Ginkel who filled in for Long when he was out.
At corner, Kader Kohou and Eli Apple played all 72 snaps with Xavien Howard missing the game due to injury. Kohou had six solos and a pass breakup, while Apple added four solos, two pass breakups, and a holding call. Parry Nickerson assumed a much larger role in the nickel, contributing two solos in 45 snaps on his way to a 79.1 grade from PFF. Though active, rookie second-rounder Cam Smith did not get a snap, as defensive coordinator Vic Fangio still views him as not ready for scrimmage action yet.
Safeties DeShon Elliott (72 snaps) and Jevon Holland (68 snaps) struggled at times, with Elliott making four tackles and Holland posting six tackles and five solos. Holland had to leave with concussion symptoms briefly, creating space for Elijah Campbell (one solo tackle in five snaps) and Brandon Jones (four snaps) to play some. Holland's injury will bear monitoring, as he has largely held the secondary together thus far this season.

Special teams

Jason Sanders was perfect in limited action, making a field goal and two extra points.
Jake Bailey overcame an early shank to average 45 yards on three punts. He had a touchback, but he placed one inside the 20-yard line and uncorked a 59-yarder.
Berrios provided a spark in the return game, averaging 26.3 yards on four kickoffs and adding a 16-yard punt return.
Among offensive players, Smythe (12), Claypool (10), and Conner (10) led the way in special-teams snaps, while Riley, Campbell, and Cameron Goode paced defenders with 19 third-phase snaps, with Jones adding 16. Claypool made a coverage tackle, though Campbell was penalized again, this time with a false start.

Momentum plays

The early energy on defense was lacking for Miami, with both Apple and Baker loafing on key completions to tight end Dallas Goedert. After Philly converted its first two third-down attempts, Chubb stopped Jalen Hurts on a designed third-down run to end a 12-play, seven-minute drive with an early field goal.
A 15-yard pass to Hill got the 'Fins an initial first down, but a series of busted plays ended the drive and set up Bailey for a terrible 31-yard punt.
Three plays later, Chubb struck again, getting a strip sack alongside Phillips, with Wilkins pouncing on the loose ball to set up Miami at Philly's 23-yard line.
A 16-yard strike to Waddle (despite Moestert being in the same area) converted a 3rd & 9 for the Dolphins. Three plays later, Tua hit Hill with a dart for a touchdown, but a late flag that appeared to reward a dive by an Eagles defensive lineman nullified the score with a hold. Tua missed Smythe on a slant on the next play (the play would not have resulted in a score either way), instead throwing incomplete on a short out. The 'Fins settled for a disappointing 40-yard field goal by Sanders to tie the score at three.
A fourth-down tush push resulted in a first down for Philadelphia, then a dumb/questionable personal foul on Wilkins extended the drive again. A screen to Goedert led to a 19-yard touchdown, with Chubb nearly forcing a fumble in pursuit. The extra point pushed the Eagles ahead, 10-3.
A three-and-out by Miami followed, lowlighted by an uncalled interference on a third-down throw to Berrios.
Philly put together a 12-play, 80-yard drive, aided by two more missed calls. Chubb was held without a call and hit Hurts, with a flutter ball somehow being caught instead of intercepted by Baker. Two plays later, on 4th & 3, Chubb barely missed another sack and Phillips was dramatically held without a call, allowing Hurts to find A.J. Brown for 32 yards. Hurts was pushed across the goal line on the next play to extend the advantage to 17-3 on a drive marked by game-turning officiating.
With the game quickly slipping away, Miami made a tactical error on 3rd & 18, snapping the ball just before the two-minute warning, essentially giving the home team another timeout. Fortunately, Wilson saved the coaching staff with a stellar 29-yard sideline grab. A 15-yarder to Hill kept the momentum going, but an uncalled hands to the face on the Eagles led to a sack. On 3rd & 8, Tua threw a perfect ball to Hill, who beat triple coverage to track the ball over his shoulder and reel in the 27-yard touchdown that trimmed the margin to 17-10.
Phillips powered through yet another uncalled hold on Lane Johnson to sack Hurts on the final play of the half, with Sieler also providing pressure.
Tua found Hill for 17 yards to jumpstart the second half, followed by two strong runs by Moestert. A questionable perimeter holding call on Julian Hill brought back a 10-yard gain by Tyreek, putting Miami way behind the chains and forcing a punt after an eight-play possession.
On the ensuing Philly drive, Long pressure resulted in an another uncalled hold, then a screen to DeAndre Swift featured an uncalled illegal block on Phillips. However, Apple made a great play on a pass breakup, leading to a punt that Berrios returned for 16 yards.
Starting on their own 36-yard line, the 'Fins got moving on the strength of 21- and 15-yard bursts by Moestert. Three plays later, Tua found Hill with a perfect pass, but the receiver dropped the ball just as he was crossing into the end zone. On the following play, Tua targeted Wilson along the sideline, but a blatant facemask just in front of the official somehow went uncalled, the most concrete proof that the fix was in. A shocked Miami sideline went ballistic when it realized that the fourth-down interference was going to go unpenalized, giving the ball back to the home team.
Karma struck on the next play, when a well-timed Kohou blitz led to a deflection that Baker caught and returned 22 yards for a pick-six. With the score tied at 17, a million "ball don't lie" tweets and texts followed.
Of course, the reprieve was temporary, as the first play of the Eagles' next drive featured an egregious uncalled hold on Sieler, allowing Hurts to run for 12 yards. To add insult to injury, a friendly-fire collision between Holland and Long put both players out of the game, further depleting an already thin defense. A 25-yard strike to DeVonta Smith followed and after another deflected pass somehow fell harmlessly to the turf, Hurts found Goedert racing past Apple for 10 yards on 3rd & 7. On the next play, Van Ginkel and Kohou ran into each other and missed a tackle on Brown, who ran into the end zone from 14 yards out to make it 24-17, Philadelphia.
As the fourth quarter began, a Hill drop in the midst of uncalled pass interference set up a difficult 3rd & 12, but Tua calmly found Waddle for a first down. An RPO to Wilson netted 19 more, but a couple of poor snaps led to a 3rd & 8. With Moestert and Waddle running in the same vicinity, Tua back-footed an ill-advised pass that resulted in an interception when clear interference on Moestert went -- wait for it -- uncalled.
Two more fourth-down pushes sandwiched another pass that was deflected without being intercepted. A 3rd & 4 offsides by Wilkins gave the Eagles a free first down, but a clear false start on Lane Johnson on the same play was uncalled yet again, so offsetting penalties did not occur. Under Van Ginkel pressure (the pass rusher pulled off the play based on how the game was being officiated), Hurts found Brown for 42 yards between Kohou and Elliott. A spinning run by Kenneth Gainwell saw him break a Holland tackle and surge into the end zone to make the score 31-17 and cap a demoralizing 13-play, 83-yard drive.
Back-to-back sacks of Tua marked the next Miami possession, which ended when a fourth-down throw to Hill fell incomplete. Fitting for this game, the throw was both nonsensical (a three-yard out needing 10 yards) and featured clear, uncalled interference.
A 22-yard run by Swift on the following possession allowed the Eagles to kneel on it three times to end a semi-ridiculous contest.