Posted by:
Anthony Sanchez
The Miami Dolphins were having a tough week leading up to the game in London,England versus the Oakland Raiders all due to mishandling of the quarterback situation by head coach Joe Philbin and riding a two game losing streak. All eyes were on how the Miami Dolphins would bounce back from a lackluster performance starting with Bill Lazor, Ryan Tannehill and the offense as a unit. The team did not disappoint they came out with fire, passion, purpose and they started fast and never looked back.
Ryan Tannehill had a solid outing going 23/31 278 yards two touchdowns & one interception, I saw consistency all game pretty accurate for the most part, he showed off his athleticism by scrambling out of the pocket when he had to, moved well within the pocket, spread the ball around to different receivers and the most important thing I noticed was he threw and played with confidence.
The running backs were effective and helped balance the offense; Lamar Miller ran for 64 yards two touchdowns, Daniel Thomas continues to play well since his return ran the ball hard helping the offense gain 157 yards total rushing as a unit and something I had made an effort to watch for was the blitz pickup which the backs did a good job in helping keep Ryan Tannehill clean.
The wide receivers & tight ends had a very good game, Brian Hartline was more involved this time around hauling in six receptions for 74 yards, Mike Wallace had three receptions for 35 yards one touchdown, Charles Clay had two receptions, Brandon Gibson with two receptions, Rishard Matthews two receptions, second year tight end Dion Sims with one touchdown and rookie receiver Jarvis Landry with four receptions for 38 yards all in all that spells consistency.
The offensive line is to be commended on an outstanding job in both the pass & run blocking, no sacks allowed, very few quarterback pressures, not many penalties, opened running lanes which helped the offense obtain a combined total of 157 yards rushing and in turn allowed the offense to be better balanced and kept the Oakland Raiders on their heels the whole game.
The defensive line unit continues to be the backbone of this team, the defense of line dominated up front causing havoc on rookie quarterback Derek Carr with constant pressure all game long and this unit helped limit the Raiders to just 53 rushing yards total. The linebacking unit which was viewed as a weakness continues to hold its own players like, Jelani Jenkins, Jason Trusnik & Phillip Wheeler all making plays. Jelani Jenkins has proved to be a welcome surprise making plays all over the field, Jason Trusnik played admirably he doesn't wow you, but is a player that knows his assignments and will be in the right spot and then you have Phillip Wheeler playing better his tackling has improved and is playing fast which is the reason he was brought here to fly around use his athleticism to make plays. The secondary as a group was flying around, forcing turnovers, playing aggressive and smothered the Oakland Raider receivers. The first interception of the season was made by pro bowler Brent Grimes followed by two more from Jimmy Wilson and rookie cb/s Walt Aikens and not to be left out making an impactful play was Cortland Finnegan with a fumble recovery that he returned for a touchdown.
The coaching staff deserves credit for this win just as we bash them for bad games we need to recognize improvement and a job well done. Head coach Joe Philbin looked a bit more animated on the sidelines, he seemed a bit more vocal and he looked like a guy that was allowing his coaches to coach. Offensive coordinator Bill Lazor had a great game plan heading in, Ryan Tannehill and the offense executed it beautifully. I noticed the offense of play calling & execution was more aggressive, assertive, confident and plenty more balanced. Defensive Coordinator Kevin Coyle called an aggressive game which did not allow the Oakland Raiders to ever get in an offensive groove. Kevin Coyle did a good job of dialing up zone blitzes and allowed our physical cornerbacks to play more press coverage an frustrate their receivers.
The Miami Dolphins now have a bye week which normally would be considered early, but for this team it is coming at the right time. The team will be welcoming back safety Reshad Jones, Mike Pouncey could be coming back from his injury and the bye also allows other players with injuries to recover. The next match up is a home game versus the Green Bay Packers October 12, 2014 at 1pm, the packers just finished dismantling the Chicago Bears 38-17 behind a very good performance by Aaron Rodgers 302 passing yards with four touchdowns zero interceptions, Jordy Nelson's ten receptions 108 yards receiving along with two touchdowns and do not sleep on the packers defense who pack a pretty good pass rush led by Clay Matthews and are a very opportunistic group that creates turnovers.
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