MIAMI GARDENS — A shame. A heartbreaker. Or just what this season is about?
The Miami Dolphins fell to 1-5 when the defense couldn’t close out the final seconds of a 29-27 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday at Hard Rock Stadium.
Here are 10 thoughts on the day:
1. Play of the game: Down 27-26, Justin Herbert somehow escaped Dolphins rusher Jaelan Phillips and found an open Ladd McConkey, who juked safety Dante Trader and went 42 yards to the Dolphins 17. Cameron Dicker then made his fifth field goal from 33 yards with five seconds left. Don’t overlook the Chargers kickoff return to their 46-yard line.
2. Almost Play of the Game: Tua Tagovailoa’s touchdown pass to Darren Waller on third-and-goal from the 7-yard line with 46 seconds left. Riley Patterson made the extra point to put the Dolphins up 27-26. That capped an 18-play, 82-yard drive as the Dolphins came back from down 26-13 in the fourth quarter.
3. Unknown player of the game: Kimani Vidal. Who? Last week, the Dolphins defense helped Carolina’s RIco Dowdle to a career day, but at least he had a 1,000-yard season to his name. Vidal is the Chargers’ third-string running back who had 14 carries for 121 yards Sunday with a long of 38 yards. All were career highs. Then again, the second-year, sixth-round pick only had four carries for 18 yards this season entering Sunday. What makes it all the more disappointing for the Dolphins is …
4. The Chargers entered Sunday on their fourth and fifth tackles, their third running back and didn’t have top receiver Quentin Johnson. In other words, if the Dolphins defense couldn’t get healthy against this battered offense, there’s little hope. Well, there’s little hope. The telling drive until the wild finish was the Chargers taking the second half kickoff, down 13-9, and assembling a 13-play, 72-yard drive that ended with Herbert throwing 5 yards to McConkey for a TD. That gave the Chargers a 16-13 lead. The Chargers, who were 1 of 7 on third downs in the first half, were 3 of 3 that drive. They ate 7:34 of the third quarter — nearly half of it.
5. Herbert vs. Tua: The matchup of the Dolphins decision in the 2020 draft was won by Herbert, though, as noted, Tua could have had the big finish. Herbert completed 29 of 38 passes for 264 yards and two touchdowns. Tua completed 21 of 32 passes for 205 yards a touchdown and three interceptions (though two deserve asterisks as one went though Jaylen Waddle’s hands and the other was the final, last-gasp play).
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6. De’Von Achane put on a show again. The Dolphins ran 14 times for 19 yards last week against Carolina. Achane immediately made sure they did better Sunday. He had three carries for 67 yards in the first quarter. That included his 49-yard TD run. He added a 4-yard run around left end where he outran Derwin James to the end zone. Achane had 16 carries for 128 yards. He also had three catches for 14 yards. MVP of the team? It’s playing that way early on.
7. Oronde Gadsden Jr. came home against his father’s team and had a nice day. It didn’t start that way for the fourth-round pick. His early fumble led to a Dolphins touchdown. But he ended the day with seven catches for 68 yards and a long of 21. On a team with depleted resources, he was one the Dolphins had to watch. A couple of weeks ago it was Mason Taylor of the Jets who had a nice night against his father Jason’s team. Who’s next on the next-generation tour?
8. The easiest way to replace the loss of Tyreek Hill is with more Jaylen Waddle. He followed up his 110 yards receiving in Carolina with a day of big plays. It didn’t start the way he wanted when a pass went through his hands on the second play of the game for an interception that led to a Chargers field goal. More fitting of the big play he wanted came on the last drive of the first half when he located a Tua pass and made an over-the-head catch where the ball bobbled off his hands and he caught it on his chest while falling to the sideline. That was for 45 yards and went a long way toward the half-ending field goal for a 13-9 Dolphins lead. He had five catches for 82 yards at half — more yards than his first four games this year.
9. Quick Hits:
McDaniel went old-school and elected to receive the opening kickoff after winning the coin toss. It paid off with a 45-yard return by Malik Washington.
Cornerback Rasual Douglas had a tackle, forced fumble and registered a quarterback hit — in the first quarter.
Chargers’ defensive lineman Justin Egoigbe made two big hits on kickoffs — who said the play is safer now?
The Dolphins had two plays over 40 yards in the first five games — and two in the first half Sunday.
10. Next week: Dolphins at Cleveland. The Dolphins go to the shore of Lake Erie to play a bad Cleveland offense — and a good Cleveland defense. The combination has Cleveland also at 1-5 after losing in Pittsburgh. Rookie Dillon Gabriel has taken over at quarterback for the recently traded Joe Flacco. Cleveland does have a productive rookie class, including fifth pick and defensive tackle Mason Graham and running back Quinshon Judkins, the 33rd pick who was averaging 4.8 yards a carry entering Sunday.
