MIAMI GARDENS — There wasn’t much consequence for the Miami Dolphins’ Sunday and a lot for the Tampa Bay Bucs.
So, the Dolphins had a good day and settled for being spoilers, if nothing else.
Here are 10 thoughts on the game:
1. Is Quinn Ewers (deep breath) The Man? That will be the “talk” question. The answer is it’s silly to pronounce anything meaningful after two games. If your hope was he’d look better than a seventh-round rookie backup, mission accomplished. He completed 14 of 22 for 172 yards, two touchdowns and a 118 rating — mostly in a good first half. He threw a nice 11-yard touchdown to tight end Greg Dulcich. His throw of the day was one of time and place as much as execution. On third-and-11 from the Dolphins’ 3 early in the fourth quarter, Ewers threw a 15-yard completion to tight end Julian Hill. That said Mike McDaniel wasn’t holding Ewers’ hand this game — the easy call would be a run there — and Ewers did fine in the first half. Three points in the second half reminded everyone to not go crazy. The Dolphins are still in the market for a franchise quarterback. Ewers is throwing his hat in the ring to compete for the job next summer.
2. Consequence of the day: With early games recorded, the Dolphins dropped from 11th to 12th in the NFL draft order because of the win. It appears they can’t drop lower than 13th even with an eighth win next Sunday due to their weak opponent win percentage (.438 entering Sunday).
3. Can we get a caused-missed-tackles stat from Dolphins running back De’Von Achane on Sunday? Every run he seemed to bust a tackle or three. It’s a steady sight that still surprises considering his 5-9, 191-pound size. Achane ran 18 times for 83 yards on Sunday to give him 1,350 for the season. He passed Jay Ajayi’s 2016 season (1,272 yards) for third on the all-time Dolphins list for a season. The first two seasons belong to Ricky Williams. There’s no catching Williams’ 1,853 yards rushing in 2002. But Achane should catch Williams’ 1,372 yards in 2003, the season that sent Williams to live in an Australian tent.
4. Play of the day: With the Bucs driving at the Dolphins’ 32-yard line, quarterback Baker Mayfield either made an awful throw or expected a different pattern, but Dolphins safety Ashtyn Davis intercepted the ball at the 5 and returned to the 26. Up 20-10 with 6:56 remaining, that gave the Dolphins some cushion. And on the next possession …
5. Bradley Chubb got his second sack of the day and recovered the fumble by Mayfield. That effectively sealed the win and gave the Dolphins’ defense a third takeaway on the day. The 3-0 takeaway margin brought the Dolphins to a minus-2 for the season (Tua Tagovailoa’s 15 interceptions are the culprit there). Chubb has 8 1/2 sacks on the year to lead the Dolphins.
6. Tampa Bay was without three starters on the offensive line — both guards and All-Pro left tackle Tristan Wirfs. So, this was a good opportunity for the young interior of the Dolphins to shine. You expect veteran Zach Sieler to be a force, and he was. The rookies did their part, too, with first-round pick Kenneth Grant in on three tackles, Jordan Phillips having two and Zeek Biggers having a tackle and a blocked field goal. The larger point than individual numbers was Tampa Bay’s run game didn’t produce much: 16 carries for 53 yards (3.3-yard average) through three quarters.
7. The larger idea is the Dolphins (or maybe some fans) wanted to see more of their youth Sunday. They accomplished that in some form. Edge rusher Derrick McClendon being inactive showed this wasn’t some youth mandate, but here’s a quick rundown of some young feats:
*Center Andrew Murphy, an undrafted rookie in 2024, was activated on Christmas Day after a season-long injury and started in place of Aaron Brewer. Here’s how you know Murphy did just fine: Bucs nose guard Vita Vea wasn’t heard from much on Sunday.
*Rookie Cornerback Jason Marshall Jr. had his first NFL interception.
*Receiver Theo Wease Jr., activated last week as Ewers’ practice partner, caught his first NFL touchdown on Sunday. He was left open in busted Tampa Bay coverage and caught a 63-yard touchdown from Ewers.
7. A quick word about the Pro Bowl. Center Aaron Brewer and linebacker Jordyn Brooks were victims of being on a losing team. Brewer missed his first start of the year Sunday, but has been a versatile — yes, versatile for as a center — piece for this team. Brooks entered Sunday leading the league in tackles. But the Pro Bowl voting has flaws that you can see without talking about them. Chargers tackle Joe Alt was named a Pro Bwler this season despite playing just six games. Seriously?
9. Quick Hits:
*Chop Robinson left with an apparent concussion and most likely will miss next Sunday’s game.
*Tampa Bay, at 7-9, can still win the NFC South by beating Carolina next Sunday. What a world.
*Biggers’ blocked field goal in the second quarter isn’t a surprise. At 6-6, he had four blocked field goals at Georgia Tech.
*The third-quarter blues didn’t happen Sunday for the Dolphins. Score in second half: 3-3.
*Jaylen Waddle was injured early Sunday and left with a rib issue and then returned.
10. Next Week: Dolphins at New England. The regular-season finale brings a surprise from both sides. The Dolphins have been out of it for a while. New England is 13-3 and could end up with the No. 1 seed in the AFC. It’s just like the days of Tom Brady and Bill Belichick for the Patriots in the first year of Drake Maye and Mike Vrabel.