Before Sunday’s loss to the Minnesota Vikings by our Miami Dolphins, I asked the following:
What are your overall takeaways from this afternoon’s fourth game of the season between our Miami Dolphins and the Minnesota Vikings? What are the positive and negative takeaways from this afternoon’s game, as they apply to the team overall and to individual units or players?
Below are some of your thougths on Sunday’s game-
DolfaninME sees things headed in the right direction given how hard this team plays.
Sometimes when Miami loses, especially a late game, I have trouble sleeping. Yesterday it felt like a win more than a 15-10 loss. It could have been a 22-10 loss if the Vikings didn’t have a very smart TE. Given the salary cap situation I thought the team played hard, saw signs of improvement on defense and offense and can’t wait to see Caleb Douglass and Chris Bell on the field together.
All things considered Miami played their butts off and hats off to them. Their day is coming.
Phins1972 is out on Willis.
The question isn’t whether Willis is a franchise QB, the question is whether he’s even good enough to be a backup QB. Sullivan blew it when he gifted the starting job to Willis and paid him 45 million based on 6 prior starts. Let’s hope he doesn’t make matters even worse by not drafting a QB in 2027 to take over the position.
heatforlife says the coordinators matter as well.
dan campbell w/o aaron glenn ben johnson hmm coordinators very important to
Molly Polly II has some good and some bad and the ugly, special teams.
Positives: Defense continues to improve….but hold that thought. Offensively we’ve shown Ollie is a starter in this league. He should’ve had more, that horrible call with the fingertip tackle remains a debate, possibly changes the game outcome. I still like Coleman and Bell, it’s my opinion Willis simply lacks the vision n ability to get them the ball.
Negatives: Absolutely zero progress with Willis….incapable of making good things happen. His lack of ability to see the play develop, constant under throwing (no not cuz he’s rushed so don’t go there). His legs are his only assets and to make matters worse, rookies Bell, Douglas, n Coleman will continue to suffer without progressing this year due to our inept qb. 85 yards passing today….cmon man!
Special Teams…..embarrassing🙈
UpInPensacola wants an update on Stephen Ross’ status.
Of the first four games (three on road, one at home), can anyone confirm if Stephen Ross has been to any of the games?
Still waiting is going to continue to wait until the draft next year.
On the bright side, one more game closer to the #1 pick in the 2027 draft
Dolphster is going to celebrate the small victories for now.
Well, the team didn’t embarrass themselves today. So that is a positive. Defense played a good game (aided to an extent by the fact that Kyler Murray stinks). 4 sacks on the day after having 0 going into the game was nice. Rodriguez was all over the field making tackles (18) and he is going to be a very good LB. Last, but not least, in the spirit of celebrating small victories…….THEY BEAT THE SPREAD!
phinette points out that J-Rod is going to be a star at this level.
Jacob Rodriguez is a stud. I saw a lot of him when he was at Texas Tech. He looked like the real deal, and I was shocked he was still available when we picked him. In general, I thought the defense played well. The offense, on the other hand, was dreadful. The play calling was bad, the QB play was bad, and the running game wasn’t given a real chance. Let’s face it, when your first half consists of four punts and a fumble that’s not a winning formula.
Flexile points out that if you want to score and thus win, you have to be able to keep your offense on the field for more than 37 plays a game.
37 plays on offense. Lost the TOP battle 39-21. That’s not the formula for winning.
MiamiItaliano is happy with the defense and wants to know why are we not feeding the hot hand?
Defense did their part. J Rod 18 tackles, holy crap this guy is going to be a perennial all pro at this rate. Brooks going for another all pro season too. 4 sacks too and I’m shocked. Now onto the absolutely inept side of the ball…
Ollie Gordon had only 9 attempts and got 100 yards with a TD. Does Slowik know when players have a hot hand? How about FEEDING HIM THE BALL? Or is he stubborn to the point where he wants Willis to stand in the pocket and attempt to throw even though Flores was bringing the house nearly every down? I’m thinking it’s the latter. This offense is absolutely shooting itself in the foot with their playcalling. Pretty sure when the team hits 0-8, Slowik is gone.
I Hate Sports points to six issues from this last game.
- Willis Fumbled instead of forward pass
- Special Teams still stinks
- Bell stepping out of bounds by a toe
- Punter gets blasted but defender fingers the ball
- Gordon gets called down by fingering again
- Austin Jackson is TRASH
Dolfanjoe says it’s all by design.
Not bad for a team designed to lose games ! Do not fool yourself with Oh they should have kept this guy or that QB. They dismantled a team that was mediocre and costing a fortune. Extended a couple of players ( Look NFL, we are not tanking ! ) Even though they were ! So what do you notice now ? You see they drafted very well in 26. And they did it at 11 ? What can they do with # 1 ? Remember when the NFL took our # 1 at the start of the last rebuild ? Yea they ain’t getting our picks this time ! Heck we already have Willis haters. A very athletic QB who escaped so much trouble against a very good defense yesterday. He is learning and getting better each week. He was not a starting QB for years. Under contract for 2 more years after this. Oh be assured they will draft a QB in the upcoming 27 draft. Chances are it will not be with the first pick in the draft ! We are building a team and will get a whole bunch of picks for that position. Money to spend and once again a whole bunch of draft picks to work with. Are we headed in the right direction ? You dam sure know it, another great draft and wisely picking the free agents. No one will laugh at playing the Fins in 27 !
Pod of Dolphins says a back up is a back up.
Malik was a backup for a reason, the Fins need it a QB at a low price to put on the field. He is what we should have expected to be.
Jsutton15 sees steady progress with this team.
They were better today and keep progressing every week. Don’t focus on the negatives too much. Yes, they were there but they kept fighting. The only thing I would have done different is, when the last time we got the ball. I would have gotten the oline together and say it s on you. We smash it down their throat. Flores was overmatching our pass protection. Leaving the line to mash beats those zone blitzes and helps keep it simple so less chance of mistake.
Zen4Phins says defense played well and the special teams sucks.
Def played well against a struggling off. 8 qb hits, 6 tfl and 4 sacks, Chops was on a crucial 3rd down to force punt. Secondary played better. Rodriguez all over again. Malik Washington had 5 rec off of 5 targets for 67. Ollie is looking good and becoming a tough guy to tackle.
Special teams struggled on coverage again today and muffed maybe 3 balls but didnt lose any. The fumble happened when Jackson got beat quick. Paul had a bad day but doesnt have them often. Bell had tough game as well. Last throw to him was double coverage and Coleman looked open underneath but pressure was crazy. Probably the worst case scenario for our offense was to face this Vikings def.
Ice up and get a W next week before some r&r. Let’s go Phins fans breathe, heads up, and let jes and hafley cook a little bit.
The idea of no consensus among the Miami Dolphins fanbase is back. Some of you see steady improvement while others are concerned with our starting QB. If there is an agreement it seems to be that the Dolphins special teams sucks right now and needs to seriously be addressed. As always thank you to each of you who took the time to join in and answer our Phinsider Question Of The Day
