Chris Perkins
South Florida Sun Sentinel
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Pssst … I’m going to let you in on a blasphemous secret about the Miami Dolphins, and more specifically their offense, under coach Mike McDaniel — their list of accomplishments is small.
Under McDaniel, the Dolphins are 14-11 (.560), including the playoffs, with a minus-10 turnover margin.
The Dolphins have also been one of the league’s most penalized teams under McDaniel. This season they’re tied for No. 4 in the league with 45 penalties (6.4 per game), and last year they were tied for second at 6.6 penalties a game.
I usually try to stay away from numbers and stats. They can be manipulated. But I’m going numbers-heavy here to draw clear lines.
In the brief one-plus season of the McDaniel era, the Dolphins are 4-8 (.333) against teams that made the playoffs in the 2022 season, and 9-3 (.750) against teams that didn’t.
Worse, the Dolphins are 2-7 (.222) on the road against teams that made the playoffs in 2022.
And seemingly no one says anything.
Ryan Tannehill, Joe Philbin and Adam Gase wouldn’t recognize this as being the same fan base that ridiculed and belittled them for their lack of success.
Here’s what’s going on: the Dolphins have hammered the .500 and sub .500 teams, and then lose to the good teams with their trademark offense often sputtering under the bright lights of big games.
Nobody wants to hear this, and this won’t make me popular, but it needs to be emphasized.
I also need to emphasize that none of this means the Dolphins are a fraud, or that McDaniel’s offense is a fraud. I don’t believe either to be the case.
But they need to show they belong with the big boys, which means they need to defeat defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City in Germany in two weeks.
And the offense needs to show up.
The Dolphins’ celebrated offense averages 22.3 points per game against teams that made the playoffs in 2022, and 29.1 points against teams that didn’t make the playoffs in 2022.
I’m very concerned about this offense.
Yeah, I’m aware of the stats and analytics and pre-snap motion and big plays and fun touchdown celebrations.
I like all that stuff.
I also like McDaniel. Truly, I do.
I like quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, general manager Chris Grier, offensive coordinator Frank Smith, defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, this locker room, and this team.
That’s the honest truth.
Here’s more honest truth.
This team, and more specifically, this offense, hasn’t delivered victories against playoff-caliber opponents. In fact, the Dolphins haven’t done much against top-tier opponents.
I know you’re probably sick of hearing this from me, but it bears repeating.
Look at Sunday’s 31-17 loss at the Philadelphia Eagles. The Dolphins’ high-flying offense scored one touchdown. One. The defense scored as many touchdowns as the offense.
This is part of a larger, more concerning pattern.
The offense rarely does special things against quality teams.
I said this last year, and it must be said again and again. It’s a major issue.
The offense scored 20 points at Buffalo earlier this season.
The offense scored 17 points at San Francisco last year. It also scored 17 at the Los Angeles Chargers last year, but one of those two touchdowns was a 57-yard fumble return by wide receiver Tyreek Hill. In other words, it was luck, not design. You could argue the offense only scored one touchdown in that Chargers game.
Last year’s Baltimore game, when the Dolphins scored 28 fourth-quarter points, stands alone as a testament to whether this high-scoring offense can go on the road and earn a victory.
Yes, the offense scored 29 and 31 at Buffalo last year in the regular season and playoffs, respectively, but the Dolphins lost both games.
And the offense only scored two touchdowns in the 34-31 wild-card round playoff loss because you’ll recall defensive tackle Zach Sieler scored a touchdown just as linebacker Jerome Baker had a pick-6 touchdown at Philly.
I can’t understand why this isn’t a big deal. I can’t understand why fans and other media turn a blind eye to this offensive reality. They are refusing to take an objective look at this offense.
If this offense is truly special, it should outscore a quality opponent on the road and snatch a victory.
I’ve written about this a few times. Others act as though there’s nothing to see here. They’re attracted to bright, shiny objects.
The 70 points against Denver, the big plays against Carolina and the New York Giants, the gaudy offensive numbers built on the backs of teams such as Houston (2022), Chicago (2022) and Cleveland (2022).
And there’s always an excuse (from fans and media, not players or coaches) when things don’t go well — Tua was injured, lots of starters were injured, the defense didn’t give the offense a chance, the referees. It’s always something.
The key here is there are still a lot more games remaining. The Dolphins can still make a Super Bowl run, or win a playoff game, even win a road playoff game.
Also, remember help is on the way in the form of All Pro cornerback Jalen Ramsey.
Still, this offense, and this team, has a short list of accomplishments against quality opponents.
There’s a contingent of the fan base that would be happy if the Dolphins made the playoffs, lost in the first round, but the offense sets records and Tua wins MVP.
That’s unacceptable.
That’s fool’s gold.
There’s also a contingent of fans who think it’s OK to lose if Tagovailoa misses the game due to injury. That’s more pyrite.
I’ll say this again: you want to build a team that can win regardless of any single player’s absence. That’s a successfully-built team. Philly won a Super Bowl in 2017 with quarterback Nick Foles, a career backup, after starter Carson Wentz went down. Wentz, you might recall, had 33 touchdowns and seven interceptions and might have been headed for the MVP award that season.
San Francisco just went to the NFC Championship with quarterback Brock Purdy, the last pick of the 2022 draft. Heck, Purdy defeated the Dolphins in his NFL debut.
Stop with all the excuses for this team and this offense. Enough.
It’s winning time.
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