Scooter & Hum: Day 1,683, Quasi-Quarantine: Dolphins-Colts Game 6 Review

I was at this game!

Mike McDaniel should be fired for this travesty!

Yes, I'm saying that targeting Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle once in the first 55 minutes is a fireable offense. That's $35M a year in receiver averaging roughly $9M a target. On top of that, the Dolphins were called for nine penalties and lost the turnover battle yet again (2-1).

The sad thing is that Indianapolis is in a similar situation (the stats were almost mirror images). There were scattered boos aimed at the Colts offense generally and perhaps quarterback Anthony Richardson (who was brutal in identifying blitzes) specifically. But there is at least hope in Indianapolis, while very little remains on South Beach.

On to the it-somehow-got-worse recap ...

Offense

In another brutal display, the 'Fins managed just 18 first downs but somehow got 337 total yards. The unit converted six of 15 third downs and misfired on its lone fourth-down attempt. Miami averaged just 5.3 yards per pass, showing no ability or willingness to stretch the field. Settling for field-goal attempts remained an issue, as the Dolphins scored touchdowns on just one of three red-zone visits. To crystallize the ineptitude, here are the Miami second-half possessions: three punts, two fumbles, a missed field goal, and a turnover on downs.
Tyler Huntley started again at quarterback, hitting seven of 13 passes for 87 yards and a touchdown while running five times for 20 yards and taking two sacks. Even when he escaped the pocket, Huntley did not look downfield, and he missed his last three throws before being injured on a rollout throwaway. Tim Boyle came on and connected on eight of 13 passes for 74 yards, adding a four-yard scramble. Tellingly, even Boyle -- the fourth-string quarterback -- was desperately trying to get the play calls to come in faster.
At running back, De'Von Achane led the way with 15 carries for 77 yards, adding two receptions for eight yards on three targets in 40 snaps. Raheem Mostert ran 11 times for 50 yards and had a big gainer called back by penalty, but he also coughed up a key fumble and was used sparingly afterward (23 snaps). Rookie Jaylen Wright had five carries for 33 yards, but did not get nearly enough snaps (six) or touches. Alec Ingold carried twice for negative one yard -- managing to fumble on the first attempt and fail to convert a 3rd & 1 on the second -- and was whistled for a laughable low block. He did have a 25-yard catch on a wheel route and made some strong second-level blocks in his 27 snaps. If you're looking for optimism, the commitment to and re-emergence of the 'Fins run game has been apparent in recent weeks.
Not to beat a dead horse, but Waddle had an 11-yard catch on two targets (hey, he also had an assisted tackle in 59 snaps), while Hill had an eight-yarder on two targets, with a five-yard run thrown in as part of his 62 snaps. Somehow, Malik Washington led the wideouts in targets with three in four snaps, grabbing two for nine yards. Odell Beckham contributed two more targets without a catch and appeared to be afraid of contact in his 11 snaps, leading this observer to believe that the No. 3 WR spot for the Dolphins is official haunted. Braxton Berrios played five snaps from scrimmage before leaving with a season-ending injury, ending his campaign with zero receptions. The dissemination of targets is complete coaching misconduct, and it's highly questionable at this point whether McDaniel possesses the self-awareness to evolve from it.
At tight end, Jonnu Smith was the lone bright spot offensively, reeling in all seven targets for 96 yards and a score, while getting whistled for an offsides in his 34 snaps. Julian Hill had a four-yard catch on two targets in 36 plays, getting called for his weekly penalty (a false start on special teams) and giving up a sack when he was unwisely matched up with rookie end Laiatu Latu. Durham Smythe was not targeted, but was called for a holding penalty on an awful call that erased a massive play for Miami. He contributed a number of strong blocks, but he was reduced to 17 snaps. Overall, the 'Fins got great mileage from a fake toss play that freed Smith over the middle multiple times. A third of the way through the campaign, Smith has become Miami's only dependable receiving target.
The offensive line helped the 'Fins average 4.7 yards per carry and rack up 188 yards on the ground. The passing game was horrific and the front allowed five hits and two sacks, but that was as attributable to bad pocket awareness and an inability to find open receivers as anything else. Left tackle Austin Jackson had an illegal-formation penalty and struggled overall, while right guard Liam Eichenberg was flagged for a costly facemask penalty.

Defense

The Dolphins were credited with four quarterback hits and zero sacks, though they would have likely picked up five against a normal quarterback. The unit held the Colts to 284 yards, four of 13 third-down conversions, and touchdowns on just one of three red-zone trips. Getting turnovers remains a problem, as Miami got a single recovery on an unforced fumble.
On on the interior, Calais Campbell posted five solo stops and three tackles for losses in 37 snaps, while Zach Sieler added four tackles, three solos, and a fumble recovery in 52 snaps. Da'Shawn Hand recorded three solos, a tackle for loss, and a quarterback hit in 37 snaps, with reserve Benito Jones contributing two assisted tackles in 27 snaps.
Without Emmanuel Ogbah, edge players Tyus Bowser (37 snaps) and Chop Robinson (38 snaps) each had two tackles and one solo, with Quinton Bell chipping in with two assisted tackles in nine snaps. Rookie Mohamed Kamara saw his first action, picking up an assisted tackle and a quarterback hit in 16 snaps. Bowser had a neutral-zone infraction and Robinson missed two tackles on one play at one point. Despite solid energy, this position group -- granted, decimated yet again by injury -- is not playing winning football.
At inside linebacker, Jordyn Brooks led the way as usual, collecting seven tackles, five solos, one stop for loss, and a pass breakup in 62 snaps. David Long notched four tackles and two solos in 42 snaps, though he had some problematic run fits along the way. Anthony Walker didn't record a statistic in 20 snaps against his old team, and Duke Riley played one snap from scrimmage.
Jalen Ramsey was extremely active as a blitzer, registering two quarterback hits to go with four tackles and two solos in 62 snaps. He could have had three sacks on his own, and narrowly missed a couple of big plays against behemoth quarterback Richardson. Kendall Fuller racked up seven tackles, six solos, a pass breakup, and a pass interference penalty in 62 snaps, while slot Kader Kohou had an assisted tackle and two pass breakups in 49 snaps. This was a winning performance from this position group, with Fuller and Kohou making big third-down plays.
With Jevon Holland out at safety, Jordan Poyer was back with eight tackles and six solos and Marcus Maye collected five tackles and two solos. The duo played all 62 snaps.

Special teams

Jason Sanders connected on a 33-yard field goal and made his first extra point in four games -- but only one. He hit the crossbar from 54 yards on a crucial miss at a pivotal moment in the game.
Jake Bailey overcome a couple of shaky punts early to average 47.7 yards on six boots (including a 59-yarder), with three placed inside the 20-yard line.
Berrios had a 16-yard kickoff return and 18 yards on two punt returns before getting injured.
The 'Fins got solo special-teams tackles from Siran Neal, Ingold, and Storm Duck, while Anthony Walker and Julian Hill assisted on stops.

Momentum plays

Three straight three-and-outs ensued after Indy took the opening kickoff, but Miami's second possession got going with a key third-down offsides call on former Dolphin Raekwon Davis that resulted in a free first down. Huntley's keeper converted a 3rd & 1, then he hit Smith for 18 yards two plays later. Mostert ripped off an 11-yard run, then -- after a sloppy sack -- Huntley paid off the drive with a third-and-goal completion to Smith for 10 yards and a 7-0 lead.
The Colts answered with a promising drive of their own, jumpstarted by two carries for 19 and eight yards by Tyler Goodson. Richardson found Adonai Mitchell for 14 yards, then offsetting penalties erased a 28-yard completion to Alec Pierce to Miami's one-yard line. A Richardson scramble -- after escaping a Sieler sack -- went for 22 yards to set up Indy on the 'Fins' eight-yard line, but a fumbled shotgun snap was somehow scooped up by Sieler for a massive turnover two plays later.
The Dolphins immediately went in the wrong direction thanks to a terrible low-block call on Ingold, but Huntley connected with Smith again for 15 yards before Achane darted for a 15-yard run. Huntley tried to scramble for a first down on 3rd & 9, but reserve Indianapolis linebacker Grant Stuard ran him down and out of bounds, forcing a poor 33-yard punt by Bailey.
Indy went three-and-out, and Mostert went to work with jaunts of nine and 32 yards. However, the second of these was called back on an unbelievably bad call, a phantom hold on Smythe on the perimeter. Huntley ran twice for a first down, but a facemask penalty on Eichenberg proved too much to overcome. Another subpar punt (39 yards) by Bailey ensued, capping a drive that saw the 'Fins commit three penalties and call timeout on 3rd & 18.
After an initial first down, the Colts had to punt again. A swing pass to Ingold covered 25 yards, and Achane followed up with a 14-yard run just ahead of the two-minute warning. On 3rd & 3, Huntley found Smith again, this time for 13 yards. Three plays later, Beckham short-armed a 3rd & 4 pass, forcing Miami to settle for a 33-yard field goal and a 10-0 advantage.
With just 22 seconds remaining, Indy somewhat surprisingly came out firing on what would turn out to be a monumental drive. Richardson threw an absolute dart on an out pattern to Pierce (he burned Ramsey badly), but the wideout dropped it on the sidelines. Undaunted, the quarterback layered a beautiful ball to Michael Pittman for a 33-yard pickup, allowing the Colts to drill a 52-yard field goal with no time remaining to give the home crowd a lift and narrow the margin to 10-3.
Miami got the ball to start the second half, and Achane started the drive with a 12-yard carry. However, the 'Fins were unable to convert a 3rd & 2 on the first target of the game (yes, you read that right) to Tyreek Hill, on a well-thrown ball that would have hit Hill in stride deep down the left sideline -- if he had been looking. The inexplicable incompletion forced a punt, but Indianapolis returned the favor with a three-and-out.
A promising seven-yard run by Mostert ended the possession swiftly, as he coughed up the ball and Segun Olubi (who forced it as well) recovered and returned it 18 yards.
Taking over at Miami's 28-yard line, Indy got 12-yard runs from Richardson and receiver Ashton Dulin on back-to-back plays. After a false start, back-to-back runs by Goodson covered nine yards and a touchdown, trimming the lead to 10-7 with 9:08 left in the third quarter.
After yet another Dolphins' three-and-out that saw Huntley injure his shoulder on a rollout, the visitors seemed to finally get a break when another strong blitz by Jaylen Ramsey resulted in a Richardson fumble that was recovered by Robinson to set up Miami on Indy's 19-yard line. However, the call was overturned on replay on a fairly controversial decision, and the home team ended up punting.
With good field position at their own 45-yard line and Huntley sidelined due to injury, the 'Fins turned to Wright, who carried four straight times for 30 yards. Fourth-string signal-caller Tim Boyle found Smith for 12 yards to convert a 3rd & 8, but Ingold fumbled on the next play, resulting in a brutal red-zone turnover.
The teams traded three-and-outs (marked by a key third-down breakup by Kohou on defense and unflagged late hit on Boyle on offense) before Indianapolis found some offensive momentum. Richardson hooked up with Mitchell for 16 yards and Trey Sermon for 13 more on a trick play. The quarterback then hit Pierce for 10 to convert a 3rd & 8 before Sermon carried three times in a row for 24 yards. The drive stalled at Miami's four-yard line, forcing the Colts to settle for a 22-yard field goal to go ahead, 13-10.
After Berrios was injured on the ensuing kickoff, Boyle found Smith for 18 yards and Mostert ripped off a 14-yarder (his first carry since his fumble early in the third quarter). Boyle connected with Waddle for 11 yards, but the Dolphins doubled down on bad decisions. First, the team went to Ingold for a 3rd & 1 carry, which was blown up immediately for no gain. Then, McDaniel settled for a 54-yard field goal instead of going for it on 4th & 1, and the Sanders boot fairly predictably clanged off the left upright.
Taking over at its own 43-yard line, Indy got a small break when a Richardson out pass went just off the fingertips of Poyer and to Pittman for a 21-yard gain. Richardson then got eight yards on a keeper to convert a 3rd & 4, forcing Miami to burn its remaining timeouts. The "D" stopped the Colts' ground game, but the home team nailed a 38-yard field goal to extend its lead to 16-10.
With no timeouts remaining, the 'Fins finally decided to involve Tyreek Hill, hitting him for eight yards. A Boyle scramble that was ended by a massive hit converted a 3rd & 3, and the signal-caller hit Achane for nine yards. As the clock ran, Boyle found Achane again, but the running back both lost a yard and failed to get out of bounds (Boyle's fault). Boyle was forced to spike the ball with 11 seconds remaining, but his 4th & 2 pass was somehow targeted to Washington -- and it sailed roughly eight yards out of bounds.
A Richardson kneeldown put an end to yet another squandered game from the Dolphins.