Game 6 thoughts: Bears at Dolphins

The Dolphins beat the Bears in Miami in dramatic fashion yesterday, with rookie Jason Sanders kicking a game-winning 47-yard field goal as time expired in overtime.  With the Dolphins’ offense once again sleepwalking through the first half, the team led 7-0 at halftime in what was looking like a very boring game.  But both teams exploded in the second half and turned in one of the more exciting games in recent Dolphins’ history.

This game was about one thing for me: the Miami offensive line.  The line has sucked all season, and with the top-ranked Bears defense led by Khalil Mack coming to town, I thought it was going to be a slaughter.  As it turns out, the Dolphins’ OL was not just good – it was excellent.  The Bears recorded zero sacks, and the Phins rushed for 161 yards.  The coaching staff made stopping Mack a priority, and they did just that with frequent double teams and chips.  Overall, a pretty much perfect job by the OL – no complaints at all.

Much will be made this week about Brock Osweiler’s performance.  Osweiler started in place of the injured Ryan Tannehill, and proceeded to toss 3 TDs while throwing for 380 yards.  Now, I haven’t looked at the Finheaven message board yet, but I guarantee there are more than a few posts about how Osweiler should be the starter moving forward.  I’m not about to go there, but I will point out three things:
1. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the OL played better than it has all season.  Osweiler clearly has better pocket presence and awareness of pressure than Tannehill, and that made the OL’s job easier for sure.
2. Tannehill has not thrown for 300+ yards in his last 15 games.
3. The Dolphins have not scored 30+ points in Tannehill’s last 7 games.

Osweiler did throw two bad picks, one on a pass near the endzone, and he didn’t challenge the Bears deep at all, but overall he showed a good command of the offense and displayed some fire and leadership.  I was impressed.

The Dolphins would have lost this game if not for two players: Albert Wilson and Frank Gore:  
--Wilson caught 6 passes for 155 yards and 2 TDs.  4 of those receptions totaled just 37 yards.  The other two catches went for a 43-yard TD and a 75-yard TD, both in the 4th quarter.  As with the other 4 catches, those two TDs came on short passes.  Wilson threaded his way through the defense and showed great speed.  Excellent!
--The Bears entered the game allowing 65 rushing yards a game.  Frank Gore ran for 101 on them yesterday, averaging 6.7 yards per carry.  He was an absolute bull, displaying power and vision and breaking tackles left and right.  Simply unstoppable, and his 32-yard run in OT set the Phins up for what should have been the game-winning score – but for some unknown reason, the Dolphins decided to stop doing what was working, and they took Gore out of the game and replaced him with Kenyan Drake – who promptly fumbled at the 1 and gave the ball to the Bears.  Fortunately the Bears missed a FG on the ensuing drive.  I don’t know if Gore was banged up or the Phins were just trying to “trick” the Bears by putting Drake in the game, but either way it failed miserably.

And here’s where I kill Adam Gase and his offensive staff.  The way Gore is running this season, I just can’t understand why he doesn’t get more carries.  11 last week and 15 this week…it’s simply not enough.  He should have 20 carries a week, at minimum.  He is clearly a better runner than Drake, and it’s not close.  Enough is enough…stop treating Gore like he’s made of glass and give him the damn ball.

The other star on offense was a tight end.  No, not Mike Gesicki, who once again did almost nothing and logged just 27 snaps.  It was Nick O’Leary - who caught 4 passes for 49 yards and a TD, and was in on 52 of the Dolphins 78 offensive snaps.  WR Danny Amendola also made some key catches, though he averaged just 7.4 yards a catch.

The defense was up and down.  They gave up a bunch of big plays in the passing game, got shredded on the ground (164 yards), committed a few costly penalties, allowed the Bears to convert 8 of 12 third down attempts, and let the Bears march down the field for a game-winning FG attempt in overtime.  CB Torry McTyer was hideously bad in downfield coverage, getting destroyed by Bears’ receivers all game.  Awful.  On the positive side: the defense forced two red zone turnovers and three overall, had a key 4th down stop early in the game, got two sacks and had a few tackles for loss.  Kiki Alonso again had double-digit tackles, and Reshad Jones had an excellent game.  The defense did not have a great second half, but overall they did what they had to do.

The kicking game was excellent, with punter Matt Haack downing two punts inside the 20 and kicker Jason Sanders kicking 3 FGs (including a 50-yarder and the game-winning 47-yarder).

This game was won exactly the way Adam Gase wants to win games:  stay within close range and win at the end.  Not the way I’d prefer to win, but you take ‘em however you get ‘em.  The Dolphin offense showed a lot of resiliency in the second half, constantly coming back after the defense gave up scores.  Hopefully it is something to build on moving forward.

The Dolphins now sit at 4-2, tied with the Patriots for the best record in the division.  Next week, the pass defense will have to be a lot better against a Lions’ team loaded with talented receivers, but it is a winnable game.  After the doom and gloom of the past two weeks, it’s a minor miracle that the Phins were able to beat a tough Bears’ team and stay ahead of the Jets, who are 3-3.  Great win!


Beer of the Game: None.  I went to New York City after the game for a concert and did drink there, but nothing during the Phins’ game.

Hero of the Game: There were several candidates, including Albert Wilson, Frank Gore and Jason Sanders, but I’m giving it to the entire OL after an absolutely stellar performance.

Goat of the Game: It’s a tie: Kenyan Drake, for almost losing the game with his overtime fumble, and Torry McTyer, who got burned in coverage all game.  Drake had a nice catch on the game-winning drive, but it doesn’t make up for the fumble.

Excellent write up. Echoing your thoughts, one of the most exciting games I've seen in a while. I almost forgot about the clutch 2-point conversion throw to Stills, but that turned out to be huge in tying the game.

Osweiler did throw two bad picks, one in the red zone, and he didn’t challenge the Bears deep at all, but overall he showed a good command of the offense and displayed some fire and leadership. I was impressed.

One pick was definitely a bad throw, looked like he did not see the linebacker standing in the zone.

The other pick I blame on Parker. It was a deep ball and he was 1-1 against the CB. However, he let himself get pushed right to the sideline giving Osweiler no where to throw the ball. The INT was so deep on the field it was like a good punt anyways. I'm good with taking those shots, would like to see Parker use his size and catch radius better - and make sure he stays off the sideline to allow space for the deep ball.

Now, I haven’t looked at the Finheaven message board yet, but I guarantee there are more than a few posts about how Osweiler should be the starter moving forward. I’m not about to go there, but I will point out three things:

Add me to the chorus calling for Brock to start. Tannehill has clearly demonstrated who he is. We don't need to see any more. The fact Osweiler played so well, and against a top-ranked defense, only underscores the fact that Tannehill IS NOT the guy. Osweiler has played at a high level before, and the offense - even in the first half - looked better than it has all year. They did have a nice scoring drive early, and even though they weren't scoring they were moving the ball a bit and giving our defense some rest. Then in the 2nd half they absolutely just blew up.

Simply unstoppable, and his 32-yard run in OT set the Phins up for what should have been the game-winning score – but for some unknown reason, the Dolphins decided to stop doing what was working, and they took Gore out of the game and replaced him with Kenyan Drake – who promptly fumbled at the 1 and gave the ball to the Bears.

Totally agree. Gore is explosive, has superior vision and power, and ball control over Drake. The only drawback at his other-worldly RB age is stamina. It was clear that the game had him "gassed" and after that last run he didn't have the juice to go one more play. He was gasping for air on the sideline.

Totally Drake's fault on that fumble - on the goal line he needs to have two hands on the ball.

You forgot to mention one other reason Miami won. Cody Parkey sucks.

Bye Bye Tanny. Start Brock for the future and draft a QB.

white1 wrote:The other pick I blame on Parker.  It was a deep ball and he was 1-1 against the CB.  However, he let himself get pushed right to the sideline giving Osweiler no where to throw the ball.  The INT was so deep on the field it was like a good punt anyways.  I'm good with taking those shots, would like to see Parker use his size and catch radius better - and make sure he stays off the sideline to allow space for the deep ball.

I don't have a problem with making that throw, I just thought it was a really poorly placed ball.  Parker definitely ran the route extremely poorly, but a QB needs to be careful with the ball there - especially since we were almost in field goal range.

white1 wrote:Add me to the chorus calling for Brock to start.  Tannehill has clearly demonstrated who he is.  We don't need to see any more.  The fact Osweiler played so well, and against a top-ranked defense, only underscores the fact that Tannehill IS NOT the guy.  Osweiler has played at a high level before, and the offense - even in the first half - looked better than it has all year.  They did have a nice scoring drive early, and even though they weren't scoring they were moving the ball a bit and giving our defense some rest.  Then in the 2nd half they absolutely just blew up.

I thought the offense looked pretty bad in the first half - just not a lot going on.  The second half was clearly better, but I put that more on Gore and Wilson than I do Osweiler.  Osweiler clearly had command of the offense and as I said I liked his pocket presence, but I just don't see any upside in his game.  I'd definitely go back to Tannehill once he's healthy.

white1 wrote:Gore is explosive, has superior vision and power, and ball control over Drake.  The only drawback at his other-worldly RB age is stamina.  It was clear that the game had him "gassed" and after that last run he didn't have the juice to go one more play.  He was gasping for air on the sideline.  

My bad - I missed him looking gassed after that run...I was getting ready to leave the house at that point and probably had my eyes off the screen!  But yeah, that would explain why Drake got the ball there.

JEGnj wrote:You forgot to mention one other reason Miami won. Cody Parkey sucks.

That guy always misses FGs when he plays the Phins. He's the only reason we beat the Browns in 2016...I think he missed three that day!

BTW - quick note on DeVante Parker: he had the least amount of snaps of any Dolphin offensive player yesterday - just 4. Fading fast...

I wouldn't be surprised if Tannenbaum was the reason that Parker or Tannehill os still around

Sent from Topic'it App

the Phins got screwed last week with some bad calls. but as these things usually even out over the course of a season, they got some help on a very questionable phantom unnecessary roughness call on their first scoring drive.

Osweiler is definitely not the answer, but clearly neither is Tannehill. and as JMP noted, those long TD passes were all Wilson and the Bears defense being gassed by the Miami heat.

there should be no further question that Gore is the lead back in the stable - feed him the rock.

i guess this confirms it, Charles Harris is not needed.

Charles Harris didn’t play after hurting his calf on the last play of practice Friday. And his availability for this week’s game against the Lions is in doubt. Gase said Harris is “week-to-week,” which would further deplete a banged up defensive line.

“I don’t know how long it’s going to be,” Gase said. “We’ve just got to be smart with what we do with him. The trainers will be on it, the strength staff will be on it with him. We’ve talked to him about not putting himself in bad position by pushing trying to come back. We just need to be smart with how we get him back.”

https://www.miamiherald.com/sports/nfl/miami-dolphins/article220041545.html

just read the bolded alone and tell me what that says. i know Gase didn't mean it that way, but kind sounds like the Phins don't really need him.

and while Drake should be held completely responsible for the fumbling (ala Sammy Smith) at the goal line, can i ask why they Phins came out with four wides and single back at the 6-inch line? i get that Gore hurt his shoulder on that last run and Drake had to be inserted, but that formation was just asking for trouble.

I was wondering the same. even if you playing single back, they should have had two TE on the line and pushed through.

Sent from Topic'it App

mercury22nathan wrote:the Phins got screwed last week with some bad calls.  but as these things usually even out over the course of a season, they got some help on a very questionable phantom unnecessary roughness call on their first scoring drive.

Yep, and the Phins also got a gift on the Bears' TD that was called back (and then the Phins got an INT) - that pass interference call on Burton was completely bogus.

mercury22nathan wrote:
i guess this confirms it, Charles Harris is not needed.

Charles Harris didn’t play after hurting his calf on the last play of practice Friday. And his availability for this week’s game against the Lions is in doubt. Gase said Harris is “week-to-week,” which would further deplete a banged up defensive line.

“I don’t know how long it’s going to be,” Gase said. “We’ve just got to be smart with what we do with him. The trainers will be on it, the strength staff will be on it with him. We’ve talked to him about not putting himself in bad position by pushing trying to come back. We just need to be smart with how we get him back.”

https://www.miamiherald.com/sports/nfl/miami-dolphins/article220041545.html

just read the bolded alone and tell me what that says.  i know Gase didn't mean it that way, but kind sounds like the Phins don't really need him.

The only reason the Phins need Harris is because the entire DL has been decimated with injuries, and we need bodies. Woodard got a concussion yesterday, so we were again short-handed at DE. Fact is, Harris sucks - but at this point we need anyone we can get at DE.

Seems odd that a mysterious calf injury is all of a sudden a big issue out of nowhere, but my guess for next week is Harris plays if Woodard is out, and Harris sits if Woodard plays. I'm not convinced that the calf injury is serious at all, I just think Harris is getting benched because he's our worst DE.

mercury22nathan wrote:can i ask why they Phins came out with four wides and single back at the 6-inch line?  i get that Gore hurt his shoulder on that last run and Drake had to be inserted, but that formation was just asking for trouble.

Just another example of Gase trying to get cute and trick the opponent. You need to play smashmouth in that situation - no need to play games, just let your big boys on the OL do their job like they did all day.

Has any player ever helped the Fins, whether he's on the team or not, more than Cody Parkey? If so, I sure can't think of it. If he's not missing kicks to help them win, he's setting the single season accuracy record when on the team!

I've gotten to the point where I blame Parker for everything by default, including the #metoo movement. Seriously, that's got to be his fault somehow.

Gore himself confirmed that he was tired, which would also explain why Drake was shoved right back out there for every play of the next drive. Personally, I found his OT journey from rags to redemption uplifting and inspiring. Again, seriously.

We all know Gase will throw players under the bus in a heartbeat. Tannehill and Harris are just the latest. Every week now win or lose it's somebody new. But as long as Osweiler keeps on starting everything's going to be fine Just remember this--the only other time this team went to the playoffs in Tannehill's career is when he was initially hurt. Hmmm...

Also, the bye week factor is real. Nothing, absolutely NOTHING, ruins a team's momentum--good or bad--like a bye week. This was literally not the same Bears team after their bye as before.

Hopefully that carries over seeing as the Lions won right before their bye. If Osweiler can outduel Stafford then it's time to believe because this is going to be a passfest. Neither team likes to run (Lions are second to last in run attempts), although there's always the chance Gase does something smart for a change.

A couple thoughts:

How is that our best TE was literally on the unemployment line just 2 weeks ago? What happened to our "pass catching" rookie Gisecki? What about our "blocking" TE Smythe? Nick O'leary is head and shoulders above those two guys.

parker's "effort" on the Osweiller pic was pathetic. He made zero attempt to break up the pass or even get in the general vicinity of the DB.

First off, of the two QBs, Tannehill is clearly better. That said, Osweiler should probably start. The intangibles for Tannehill aren't good, and his pocket presence is still garbage. That's going to cause turnovers. I don't think it's possible to light a fire under Tannehill. I used to think that perhaps he was just a more quiet guy, but really he's not, he's just a "I'm just happy to be here" guy. You can't have that at QB, you need grit, drive, determination. I don't know if Osweiler has that, but I liked what he said about how the game ended.

There was a time early on where I thought Osweiler was going to be a very good QB back when he was in Denver. I would be very happy if the light came on for him in Miami, but I'm not going to kid myself too much.

Start Osweiler for one more week. I think that should give us all the information we need. Plus, if Tannehill's shoulder injury turns out to be more serious . . .

I think I'd give Osweiler the next two games. We have three days to prepare for Houston after the Detroit game. I wouldn't change starters on a short week.

I doubt highly that Osweiler is the ultimate answer, but I'd ride the hot hand.

HalCHorn wrote:I think I'd give Osweiler the next two games.  We have three days to prepare for Houston after the Detroit game.  I wouldn't change starters on a short week.  

I doubt highly that Osweiler is the ultimate answer, but I'd ride the hot hand.

I put it like this if Osweiler can come in and win out til the bye week then I say he is the man. even if he wins two out of the three out of the four before the bye week then I will say he is the man but until then no. But I will say this his presence on the field was definitely different than what Tannehill brought. He seem to mess well with some of his WR and TE but he still needs to work out looking down WR. They also seem to get open better as well with Osweiler. If he can prove that he can go out and win then let he stay a starter but until then he just got lucky.

Fins had 274 YAC in this game which is the most by any team this year, Which means Brock had only 106 yards passing thru the air on 28 completions. Wow talk about short throws.

I doubt highly that Osweiler is the ultimate answer, but I'd ride the hot hand.

Totally agree. Get what you can out of him. We know we don't have the answer as a franchise QB right now, so this really changes nothing. However, I'd dump the bloated Tannehill contract, retain Osweiler as my vet QB, and draft a QB high in April 2019. Depending on preseason either let him start game 1 or start Osweiler while we ramp him up.

Start Osweiler for one more week. I think that should give us all the information we need. Plus, if Tannehill's shoulder injury turns out to be more serious

The shoulder should not be taken lightly. Apparently it happened in the Raiders game which was weeks ago, and it got worse after practicing last week. If Osweiler had stunk up the place, then yes you need to rush Tanny back to continue making our playoff push. Given he was effective, I think you have to rest Tannehill until he is 100%.

Wow talk about short throws.

The whole league is turning into short-throw offenses. The defensive backs can't tee off on receivers anymore, so less chance of a bone-crushing hit that knocks the ball loose. A missed tackle can turn into tons of yards or even a long TD.

Brock was hitting guys in stride, which I wish Tannehill could do more often. Seems to make too many throws where the receiver has to work to catch it, come to a stop, then try and run forward.

finskev wrote:Fins had 274 YAC in this game which is the most by any team this year, Which means Brock had only 106 yards passing thru the air on 28 completions. Wow talk about short throws.

Those are crazy numbers. That's exactly what Gase wants - short passes that the smurfs can turn into big plays. Most games this season, it hasn't worked. But on Sunday, Wilson was able to take advantage of a tired and disinterested Bears defense.

This next game will be interesting. The Lions shut down the Pats' short passing offense a few weeks ago, and they'll look to do the same against us. Let's see if Gase can come up with something to counter Matt Patricia.

Goofy situation we have. Tannehill has little pocket presence, but can throw deep when kept clean. Osweiler has greater pocket presence but can't throw deep for shit. Osweiler is probably more of a Gase guy.

That said, if they OL can perform like they did on Sunday on the regular, Tannehill beats out Osweiler hands down.

Degarmo wrote:Goofy situation we have.  Tannehill has little pocket presence, but can throw deep when kept clean.  Osweiler has greater pocket presence but can't throw deep for shit.  Osweiler is probably more of a Gase guy.  

That said, if they OL can perform like they did on Sunday on the regular, Tannehill beats out Osweiler hands down.

Agree with all of this. But I do have to wonder...how much of the OL's performance Sunday was due to Osweiler being more savvy in terms of pocket awareness and ability to read pressure? It's hard for me to believe that James and Larsen became world-beaters overnight. I think Osweiler has to get a good amount of credit there.

That said, history shows us that Osweiler will be bad more often than he's good. We could easily be sitting hear a week from now discussing the 4 INTs he threw in a loss to the Lions.

It's a toss up between Osweiler and Tannehill. While I don't think Tannehill is going to be miraculously better. I don't think it's entirely his fault. The Dolphins have not surrounded him with any type of help or support or talent. The guy has virtually played for as many Coordinators as he has played in the NFL. Not something you particularly say that he has parlayed into a stellar career. I actually feel sorry for the kid. He showed some upside, he showed some decent arm strength and had the legs to be a runner. I just think too many people had a hand in his development and quite frankly failed to develop.

Osweiler IMHO could possibly be the next Matt Moore of the league. He has certainly been set up that way after one game. He showed a lot of Matt Moore tendencies. Like his Grit in the pocket. His willingness to test the deep ball. His trust in ALL the recievers. He had the intangibles. As i watched the game again. He seemed in command of the offense. He moved much quicker in and out of the huddle. He was quick in his protection packages and his audibles. He was surely more decisive in his throws and most certainly had a lot of velocity.

I don't know. It's really hard. This would be a tough call but, I think Gase saves face and politically says Tannehill isn't good to go to maybe needs another week to mend. Which in coaches speak means he's got no balls to say its time for a change at QB.

I don't think Gase will have a choice in the matter. It seems like Tannehill won't be ready this week, and then we have a short week before a Thursday nighter in Houston, which doesn't give him much time. So most likely, we won't see Tannehill till November 4 for the home game against the Jets.

Personally, I think Osweiler borderline-sucks, and I think we'll see that this weekend. I may not be the biggest Tannehill fan, but IMHO he gives us the best chance to win.

I agree with Umix that coaching has hurt Tannehill. I think he's been trained from day one to play it safe and avoid mistakes, and it's so ingrained in him that he's afraid to take chances. He plays scared - going for the easy high-percentage throw (within 5 yards of the line) instead of trying to complete a lower-percentage deep pass for fear of throwing an INT. That's what Philbin wanted, and it's what Gase wants too - don't try to win the game early - just play it safe and don't make mistakes so we can try to steal a win in the 4th quarter. Tannehill has been taught that way so long that it's part of his DNA. And that's a shame, because IMO he does have the skill to be so much more than that.

JMP wrote:Agree with all of this.  But I do have to wonder...how much of the OL's performance Sunday was due to Osweiler being more savvy in terms of pocket awareness and ability to read pressure?  It's hard for me to believe that James and Larsen became world-beaters overnight.  I think Osweiler has to get a good amount of credit there.

He singlehandedly turned the O-line into peerless paragons of pass protection and made Mack look like Charles Harris, so damn right he gets credit    

That said, history shows us that Osweiler will be bad more often than he's good.  We could easily be sitting hear a week from now discussing the 4 INTs he threw in a loss to the Lions.

I prefer to worry about that only if it happens. Right now, I'm just getting ready to enjoy the rest of Brocktober

7 years of Tannehill is 7 years to many! I’d rather go with street bum found outside the liquor store than another week of watching Tannehill handoff to the other team!