The Miami Dolphins hosted the Cleveland Browns on Sunday afternoon, as Mike McDaniel’s team earned another win. The 39-17 victory is their fourth in as many weeks.
Offensively, Miami was able to do whatever they wanted. Tua Tagovailoa completed 25 of his 32 attempts (78.1%) for 285 yards and three touchdowns with a 135 passer rating. Those three scores, helped the quarterback earn a new career-high for passing touchdowns, surpassing the 16 he threw in 2021.
While he was able to spread the ball around to a number of targets, it was the trio of Jaylen Waddle (four receptions for 66 yards), Trent Sherfield (four for 63 yards and a touchdown) and Tyreek Hill (five for 44 yards and a touchdown).
Miami’s running game really found their lane against a weak Browns’ rushing defense. Jeff Wilson Jr. and Raheem Mostert combined for 184 yards and two touchdowns on 7.4 yards per attempt. This duo may help the Dolphins balance out their offensive attack going forward.
Defensively, it looked shaky early, as Jacoby Brissett was torching them for an early score, but Miami held Cleveland to just 17 points. That should be enough, most weeks, for this offense to win.
The most impressive part of their performance was how well they played the run. The Browns boast a two-headed attack with Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt, however, the Dolphins allowed them to gain just 72 yards and one touchdown between them on 4.2 yards per carry. The numbers are actually a bit deceiving, considering Chubb had one long run for a 33-yard touchdown.
This was done with great efforts from Miami’s front seven. On top of their play in the run game, they were also able to create pressure. Brissett was sacked three times, but he was hurried much more than that.
Jason Sanders continues to be the worst part of the team, as he missed two extra points on Sunday while making both of his field goal attempts. He’s now hitting 76.5% of his field goals and just 90% of his extra points.
Punter Thomas Morstead wasn’t used at all in the punting game, and that’s the first time that Miami’s completed a game without punting in nearly 20 years.
