Well when you look at the final score of the first preseason game against the Chicago Bears of 27-10, one would assume that Miami did not play very well. However, when you actually break it down, it turned out to be a very good start for both the starting offense and defense. The starters that did play only played in the first quarter and just the first few minutes of the second quarter, and the score was 7-3 phins.
Tannehill and the offense played in one series, and that was all they needed to show the sportsbooks out there that they looked sharp. I would even go as far as saying that the offense looked like they were in mid-season form. Tannehill led an impressive 14 play drive for 85 yards that chewed up 8 minutes off the clock, which was culminated with a 2 yard touchdown pass to Jarvis Landry on 4th and 2. Tannehill went 6 out of 7 for 56 yards, 1 touchdown, no sacks and a QB rating of 139.6, and he had a nice heads up scramble on a 3rd and 2 that led to a first down to keep the drive alive. Also on the drive, Tannehill and the offense overcame two offensive penalty’s, which in the past would have been something that would have stopped a drive dead in its tracks. What is even more encouraging was that the offense was missing some key personal such as Albert, Parker and Stills, who can make this offense even more dangerous.
On defense the Suh effect was in full effect, with the Bears offensive line having to respect his presence by using two players to block him. Suh caused the Bears to have a false start on their first offensive play of the game, and then on the second defensive drive Wake had a 6 yard sack on Cutler. The one thing that was concerning on defense was the tackling. This has been a constant problem with this regime, which definitely has to do with the Dolphins lack of emphasize on tackling during practice. This is a Catch-22, because the Dolphins need to spend more time practicing tackling, however the more tackling done in practice the higher the chances are for more injuries.
When the second and third stringers entered the game it became a slop fest from both teams, however some notable performers were wide receivers Cobi Hamilton with 4 catches for 49 yards, LaRon Byrd with the catch of the night for 34 yards and Linebackers Zack Vigil with 1 sack, 2 tackles for a loss and a total of 5 tackles, and Mike Hull with 5 total tackles and one pass defended. These 4 players are on the roster bubble, and most would bet on the two linebackers Vigil and Hull having the best chance to make the 53 man roster, especially after both Chris McCain and Jordan Tripp had to leave the game with injuries. (McCain has already been back on the practice field, but Tripp’s injury appears to be more serious.)
Lastly the offensive line played decent only allowing 1 sack on the evening. It appears a lot of the reason why the line has looked so bad in training camp is more to do with the fact that Suh is really that good. When faced against mere mortals they performed a lot better. Hopefully the offensive line continues to improve with the help of going against Suh and the rest of the Dolphins dominate D-line each day. What did the rest of the Miami Dolphins news fans think about the Dolphins first preseason game performance? Come to our Shop and Purchase our original Phins T-shirt for only $20!
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