Dolphins 36, Chargers 34: Instant analysis

The Miami Dolphins defeated the Los Angeles Chargers by a score of 36-34 on Sunday at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. Tua Tagovailoa completed 28 of 45 passes for 466 yards with 3 touchdowns and 1 interception. Raheem Mostert led the Dolphins on the ground with 37 yards on 10 carries and a touchdown. Tyreek Hill […]

Craig Smith — College Football & NFL Trending News Writer

Sep 10, 2023 7:54 PM EDT

Here are some immediate observations and thoughts from the game…

What I liked:

– Isaiah Wynn getting the start at left guard. He absolutely deserved it, given his camp and preseason performances compared to those of Liam Eichenberg. And he acquitted himself well on the field on Sunday as well, except for a second-quarter false start.

– An early and aggressive game plan. Miami spread out and diced the Chargers secondary in the first half. Hill was open on deep crossing routes early and often, as Miami put up points in two of their first three drives.

– Christian Wilkins blew up the Chargers' Quentin Johnson on a pitch on 3rd and 2 in the second quarter. A big play to stop the bleeding after the Chargers had gained momentum in the gain.

– TE Durham Smythe has a couple of chunk plays in the second quarter, followed by a catch for a first down on 4th and 7. Nice to see him get involved in the passing game.

– The touchdown to take a 17-14 lead. The Dolphins sent two receivers to the right, while River Cracraft beat Chargers CB Michael Davis across the field. Smythe slid out late and both were wide open, with Cracraft getting the score. Great play call.

-Mike McDaniel taking a chance and bombing it deep with 0:09 left in the first half. A completion to Jaylen Waddle and a defensive pass interference call set up the Dolphins with a 41-yard field goal and a 3-point lead at the half. That's Exhibit A of why sometimes you don't just kneel it.

-Kader Kohou's sack of Justin Herbert late in the third quarter. Forced the Chargers to punt from their half yard line, resulting in the offense starting at the Chargers' 36. Big play.

– And on the next play, Tua threw deep to Hill, who was open by five yards ahead of J.C. Jackson in press coverage for an easy touchdown and a 27-24 lead.

– Braxton Berrios' insane sliding catch for 17 yards on 3rd and 15 in the fourth quarter. Amazing catch, great throw from Tua. He followed that up with another wild one between two defenders near the ground for a gain of 15, which was reviewed and upheld. With reliable hands like that, Tua has an underrated weapon in the slot when the Dolphins need to move the chains.

– The throw to Hill for 47 yards with 3:30 left. Tua dodged pressure in the pocket while keeping his eyes down the field and lobbed a perfect throw on a fade to Hill.

– A perfect fade and a great contested grab by Hill gave Miami a 36-34 lead with under 2 minutes left.

– Blitz up the middle and pressure from Justin Bethel forced an intentional grounding to put the Chargers in 2nd and 20 on their final drive. Great time to blitz, and it paid off.

– Wilkins, Zach Sieler, and Jaelan Phillips met at the quarterback on the next play, forcing a 3rd and 30. Pressure had been spotty for much of the day, but it came through when they needed it.

– Two plays later, on 4th and 13, Vic Fangio brought the blitz, and Bethel and Phillips bearhugged and brought down Herbert together to seal the win.

– Hill was absolutely uncoverable with 215 receiving yards. One of the best performances you'll see by an NFL wide receiver this season.

– Tua was excellent for much of the game, and he found a way to get it done late in the game with a gutsy drive. He clearly outdueled Herbert on Sunday.

– The pass protection was excellent today. No sacks allowed. An insanely good performance by Miami's offensive line, especially considering the caliber of pass rush they faced in Khalil Mack and Joey Bosa.

What I didn't like:

– Connor Williams early on. Two botched snaps – one inside the 10 that killed a great drive – and a holding penalty in the first quarter alone. A dreadful start for a player that's better than his performance.

– Run defense was bullied on the Dolphins' first defensive drive. Beaten soundly at the line, much like in the preseason.

– Defense on the Chargers' second touchdown drive. Linebackers were out of place on Austin Ekeler's 55-yard run, with no one behind the line except for the safeties. A total bust.

– Tua threw it into triple coverage trying to hit Smythe in the second quarter on 3rd and 2. Lucky it wasn't picked off. Can't make that throw.

– Tua had a couple of underthrows on deep balls to Hill and Jaylen Waddle in the first half. Both had to slow way down, which resulted in incompletions instead of big chunk plays.

– Run defense was gashed on the first drive of the second half time and again. Just bullied by the Chargers' front.

– Xavien Howard with two defensive pass interference penalties in three plays to ensure the Chargers finished their first drive of the second half with a touchdown, which Justin Herbert did on a sneak from the one. He also racked up a needless defensive contact penalty with 5:30 left in the game. Has to do much better than that.

– Tua's interception late in the third quarter. Jackson was all over Braxton Berrios, and the pass was underthrown for an easy pick. Should never have been thrown.

– 35-yard catch and run by Ekeler late in the third. How do you not account for the centerpiece of their offense like that? The Chargers bowled their way into end zone on the ground from there to retake a 31-27 lead.

– Jerome Baker didn't appear to get deep enough in zone coverage on 3rd and 12 with 6:30 left, allowing a deep completion to Mike Williams. The catch put the Chargers in field goal range to up their lead to 34-30.

– After taking a 36-34 lead, Jason Sanders pushed an extra point that would have made them safe from a field goal. Fortunately, Miami's defense bowed its back on the final drive and kept Sanders from being the goat.

– The defensive performance was simply poor, especially against the run. 234 yards on 40 carries (5.9 yards per carry) is abysmal. That will get you beaten 9 times out of 10 in the NFL. This just happened to be that 10th time. Has to be cleaned up in a big way if Miami is going to be a legitimate playoff threat this year.