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Despite an exceptional performance by the defense, the Miami Dolphins were unable to knock off the Detroit Lions, falling by a score of 19-9 as they remain winless at Hard Rock Stadium.
It's no joke what Miami's defense has accomplished since their bye week. This is the first time in the past 30 games that the Lions' quarterback, Jared Goff, has been unable to record a passing touchdown.
Breaking a streak like that doesn't happen by accident. It's just a shame that not only was the offense unable to capitalize on its opportunities, but the special teams also somehow ended up just as ineffective in a game that was this close.
If there needed to be a wake-up call for changes to be made to Miami's special teams, this should be enough justification.
After playing a clean game of football against New England, Bradley Pinion made a pair of mistakes against the Lions — a kickoff that fell short of the landing zone to begin the game, and a punt that went about 25 yards. Not surprisingly, they ended up being catalysts for two field goals. But, hey, at least he can throw a decent football.
Miami didn't believe Riley Patterson was the answer at kicker, so the Dolphins turned back to Zane Gonzalez, who doinked a kick off the upright to close out the first half. It would have tied the game, but clearly asking for consistency at the position has been a bit too much.
And to top it off, allowing Detroit to capitalize on a fake punt to start the second quarter is the icing on the cake. It seems surreal that, at this point in the season, the Dolphins need to seriously consider a shake-up at both kicker and punter, and their coverage could use some much-needed work as well.
It's another week when Sullivan's picks in the 2026 NFL Draft impressed, and it's making many Miami fans feel like the 2027 draft, which could be a monumental one for the franchise, is in good hands.
Honestly, it's surprising it took Jacob Rodriguez this long to record his first sack, but he did just that in the second quarter, alongside 10 total tackles on the day. Chris Johnson, meanwhile, recorded his first interception of the season, which also happened to be the first pick thrown by Goff in 2026.
That's THREE rookies on this team with an interception (Johnson, Rodriguez, Michael Taaffe). On the other end, Caleb Douglas continues to be as reliable a wide receiver as ever for the offense. Overall, the rookie won big today, which means Sullivan is a winner by proxy.
This might have been the worst collective performance by the offensive line this season. Granted, they faced a pass rush with game-wrecker Aidan Hutchinson. Still, both Jonah Savaiinaea and Austin Jackson looked rough, but it's extra disappointing to see Brewer struggle the way he did.
He looked sharp to start the season, but has been inconsistent as of late, and now there are some fans who are second-guessing the three-year extension. He had trouble standing his ground, being pushed backwards on multiple occasions. On top of that, he was flagged twice for holding — the latter killed the momentum of an otherwise solid drive in the middle of the third quarter.
Detroit wasn't the only team with an effective pass rush. The Dolphins came at Goff with everything they had, resulting in three sacks. Uche was responsible for one of those on Detroit's first drive. The Lions were knocking on the end zone at the 4-yard line, but Uche set them back 6 yards, forcing a field goal attempt instead.
In addition, Uche was able to make contact with Goff's throwing arm, resulting in a wild throw that Johnson capitalized on for the aforementioned interception. This was a pleasant two-game stretch for Uche, with nine tackles, two sacks, and a pass deflection against the Patriots and Lions.
Did the offensive line do Willis any favors? No, not really. But his decision-making, which has been up and (mainly) down this season, was, well, down. There were quite a few general misfires, some overthrows that receivers like Caleb Douglas bailed him out on. But the interception he threw into double coverage might have been one of the worst mistakes he's made on the field so far.
The dual-threat option was nonexistent in this game for Willis, which could be almost entirely due to the nagging groin injury he's been dealing with. If it's this impactful in terms of negating what Willis can do, then maybe Jeff Hafley should consider giving him time to heal and throwing Kyle McCord into the fire in the meantime.
But hey, another nice game for Douglas! Seventy yards off six receptions is nothing to scoff at, and it's not crazy to say he was the sole bright spot of the offense. His 20-yard gain in the first quarter came off a phenomenal snag midair off a pass that was thrown a bit too high.
If it were any other receiver in that situation, it might have been picked off, but Douglas is good enough to make a play like that happen. Believe it or not, this is the first time all season that Douglas was targeted more than Malik Washington — 8 to 3. Unfortunately, it takes more than a rookie wide receiver to carry an entire offense on his back.
Gordon was in a similar situation to Willis — the offensive line didn't help him out in the way they're expected to. So it was a brutal outing for Gordon, with 55 yards on 16 carries. It's not a good thing when the biggest positive is that he kept his cool even through adversity.
What this game really shows is how much De'Von Achane meant to this offense. He could take over a game by himself, as he was physical enough to shake off would-be tacklers in the trenches, even if there weren't comfortable gaps created by the offensive line. Gordon is tough, but he can't do the same thing as consistently.
After a solid performance against Minnesota back on October 4, Biggers was pedestrian against Cincinnati, the New York Jets and New England. However, he was one of many Dolphins in the trenches who teed off on Jared Goff in what should be considered a breakout game for the 23-year-old.
He ended the day with three tackles, a sack, and two QB hits. His sack — the first full sack of his career — came on third down of Detroit's first drive of the second quarter, forcing a Lions punt. It's not a contest, technically, but the 2025 seventh-rounder looked a lot better than the 2025 first-rounder. Just saying.
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