Five Things I Think I Think About the Miami Dolphins - Week 5

jejune (adj) - causing weariness, restlessness, or lack of interest

Have you ever watched two paints try to out dry each other?

If you saw Sunday’s Dolphins v. Patriots game, then you sure have.

Miami’s fast start was a red herring

The Fins started the game by taking a lead for the first time all year after Jason Sanders hit a 54 yard field goal, capping off a drive that was run by what could easily be confused for an NFL offense.

Immediately thereafter, the Miami defense stifled the Patriots’ attempts, allowing -5 yards (not a typo) while forcing a three-and-out.

One could be forgiven for assuming this was a sign of things to come.

Beginning with their second offensive outing, the Dolphins of the current day arrived en masse, bringing with them practically uncountable self inflicted errors.

Let’s try to count anyway:

• Gave up a 33 yard touchdown run by Rhamondre Stevenson
• Missed a field goal
• Had a punt blocked
• Delivered a terrible snap over the quarterback’s head
• Committed a penalty on a made field goal which then became:
• A muffed snap on the next attempt, resulting in another missed field goal

Counting is dumb.

This was an ugly affair. A win is always better than a loss (unless you live and die by draft position), but this game didn’t leave many fans feeling especially optimistic about the remainder of the year.

Was there anything to inspire hope for the future?

Tyler Huntley looked more comfortable already

I think so. At least, a little bit.

While he didn’t light the world on fire statistically (18/31 for 194 yds 0 TD, 1 INT), Tyler Huntley’s second start for the Dolphins was an improvement in executing the offense. And isn’t process improvement what we all get the most jazzed about?

It didn’t hurt that Miami finally leaned on the run game, either. That could be due to a myriad of influences: Raheem Mostert returning, Mike McDaniel changing the game plan to suit the situation for once, or Alec Ingold’s back room deal with the announcers to give him as much air time as possible.

Whatever the root cause, it resulted in a team total 193 yards on the ground and the lone touchdown (a 3 yard rush by demi-god Ingold) of the day for the Fins.

That success took a lot of the pressure off of Huntley down the stretch, which is exactly what you need to do for a guy thrust into a tough situation. Throughout this game, fans saw a little more mobility out of their new QB, some aggressive throws downfield while on the run (and one aggressive throw that resulted in a pick, but it was as much a good defensive play as it was a mistake), and more command of an offense that appeared to fit him better than the previous week’s.

Of course, all of that still ended in 15 points and a squeaker win against a...