On a day that Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis threw two interceptions and lost a fumble and again generally struggled, coach Jeff Hafley said the turnovers are not acceptable and made clear the team’s sputtering passing game must be better.
Willis at times has shown an aversion for check-downs and instead has attempted riskier or unwise throws, something that happened multiple times in Sunday’s 31-24 loss to Cincinnati.
Asked if Willis needs to develop more consistency on taking, and executing, “simple safe plays,” Hafley said: “I have to assess the film and I’ll have a clear answer for you tomorrow. He made some splash plays with his feet. I will say this: We will need more consistency in our pass game in general for all 11 players to be better in order for us to take the next step.”
Willis orchestrated two late TD drives and finished 15 for 27 for 137 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions, equal to a poor 51 passer rating. He also ran eight times for 74 yards and a touchdown.
“You can’t turn the ball over three times,” Hafley said, referring to Willis’ two picks and a costly fourth-quarter fumble. “You are never going to win a game turning the ball over three times. And we get down to the 1-yard line, you’ve got to score.”
Willis took an unnecessary sack on that series when Miami went backwards, and settled for a field goal, after getting to the Bengals 1.
How do you improve turnovers?
“We’ve got to look hard at that during the bye week,” Hafley said. “We talk about ball security all the time. We work on it. We’ve got to do a better job of putting him in those situations, and he’s got to have the awareness to protect the ball as well. We’re not going to win games if we’re fumbling the ball like that.”
WSVN’s Josh Moser said several players said the game plan was good, but they couldn’t execute it well enough.
Asked by Moser why it’s not translating, Hafley said: “That’s a broad statement. I appreciate our guys saying that and not pointing the finger. They’re putting it on themselves. I think coaches need to put it on themselves too. I think everybody in that locker room needs to put it on themselves.
“That shows a lot with the guys saying the plan was right. Clearly, it’s both. The plan needs to be better, the execution needs to be better. Just not good enough to win.”
Hafley addressed other issues, as the team heads into its bye week:
▪ On injuries: “We got pretty beat up out there today.” He had no update on guard Jonah Savaiinaea, who was the only injured Dolphins player who didn’t return to the game. (Jordyn Brooks and JuJu Brents returned).
▪ On another special teams failure: “You can’t open up the game and have a kickoff return go down within the 10-yard line. That’s a tough way to spot them seven points We kept having self inflicted moments that weren’t good enough.”
▪ He said the bye week will be “a good time to get healthy” and “will be a good time to look hard and evaluate the players, evaluate how we’re coaching, the scheme, what certain guys can do and go back to work.”
▪ Asked if Ollie Gordon II (who ran 18 times for 88 yards) has established himself as the lead back, Hafley said: “I am extremely proud of how he’s played, how hard he’s run. He’s taken a big step in his career. I give the offensive line credit. They did a really good job against a very good front.”
Jaylen Wright had another underwhelming game (six carries, 11 yards).
▪ On what he wants to see from his team after the bye: “I want to see more consistency. I want to see better execution. I want to see the same fight.. energy, connection. [But] we need to execute better. That’s not just talking about the players. That’s everybody.”
▪ On his team at 0-5: “There’s some positives and some negatives. Ultimately, we haven’t won, so we need to be better.”
▪ On the two TDs caught against Jacob Rodriguez: “The tight end [Mike Gesicki] did a really nice job going in and whipping back out. I’ll look closer on the second [TD pass, to Samaje Perrine], an angle route. We should have been inside out. I’ll look back to see if we can help him more, where his help was.”
▪ On Ja’Marr Chase’s incredible 45-yard TD catch that made it a 28-10 game: “We were right there. I thought we would go up and make a play. I thought the guys did a pretty good job on Ja’Marr all day. He’s the best receiver in our league. We were right there. That was a heck of a catch he made.”
▪ Asked about the team’s identity, he said essentially: “We’re a tough physical team” but that everybody needs to execute better.
▪ Asked how to keep spirits up on an 0-5 team, Hafley said: “We’ve got really, good guys. I don’t think that’s going to be an issue.”
Here’s my piece on eight issues that Hafley and Jon-Eric Sullivan must discuss and what I would do.
This story was originally published October 11, 2026 at 5:13 PM.
Miami Herald
Barry Jackson has written for the Miami Herald since 1986 and has written the Florida Sports Buzz column since 2002.