Tag Archive for: Patrick Mahomes

Dolphins Chiefs

5 Keys to Dolphins-Chiefs in Week 14

/0 Comments/in /by

The Miami Dolphins (8-4) enter their Week 14 matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs (11-1) coming off the soft section of their schedule. The Dolphins have won seven of their last eight games and now face their stiffest test of the season.

The Dolphins largely hold their playoff destiny in their own hands. Most assume the game against the defending Super Bowl champions is a loss, but if Miami manages a win this week, it will go a long way toward snapping their four-year playoff drought.

Here’s a look at five keys to the Dolphins-Chiefs matchup in Week 14.

Dolphins-Chiefs: Bend, Don’t Break

The Dolphins sport one of the top defensive units in the NFL. Miami allows the second-fewest points-per-game this season (17.7). They’ve allowed the second-fewest points total (212) and have surrendered just 23 points over the last three game. But this week, they matchup against a high-octane offense helmed by former NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes.

The Chiefs are second in scoring offense (30.8 PPG), first in total offense (427.6 YPG) and passing (314.4 PYPG), and 16th in rushing (113.2 RYPG) with the second-best third-down conversion rate (49.0 percent).

Kansas City will move the ball against the Dolphins. For Miami, it will be a matter of locking down in the Red Zone. The Dolphins Red Zone defense ranks ninth this season, surrendering a touchdown 58.3 percent of the time. Over the last three weeks, though, Miami’s Red Zone D is tops in the league, allowing touchdowns only 12.3 percent of the time.

The Chiefs are going to score, but if Miami can manage to hold them to field goals instead of allowing an avalanche of touchdowns, they’ll be in this game.

Keep the Offense Up-Tempo

The Chiefs strength is clearly on the offense, but that doesn’t mean their defense is bad. Kansas City ranks sixth in scoring (21.2 PPG) and 17th in total defense (358.2). They’ve won their last seven games in a row, but in three of their last four, they’ve surrendered 24 points or more.

What this means for Miami is they should have the opportunity to move the ball and put up points. And if they’re going to do that, they need to continue what started to work last week: up-tempo offense.

Miami went up-tempo in the second half versus the Bengals last week. Their first drive in the third quarter covered 70 yards in less than three minutes. Tua Tagovailoa zeroed in during that drive as well, connecting on all four pass attempts for 71 yards at the faster pace. After a touchdown to Mike Gesicki, the Dolphins came right back on their next drive moving in a similar fashion. All told, Tagovailoa completed 9-of-12 attempts for 137 and a touchdown on those two drives.

Another wrinkle could be the empty backfield looks. During Sunday’s win, 10 of Tagovailoa’s 39 passes were out of the empty package. He completed nine of those for 106 yards.

Dolphins-Chiefs: Pressure from the Front Four

The Dolphins defense has made a name for itself this season with big plays. What’s helped that effort is the pressure Miami pass rushers have put on opposing quarterbacks. The Dolphins rank in the top-10 in both total sacks (31) and quarterback hits (83). That pressure has led to strip sacks, fumbles and interceptions.

That pressure, though, largely comes thanks to a blitz-happy scheme. The Dolphins blitz on 41.1 percent of dropbacks, second-most in the league. They’ve masked their extra rushers in a variety of ways and they’ve sent the house, using a Cover Zero look, many times.

Sending extra rushers at Mahomes, though, hasn’t been a good idea this season. He’s faced a blitz on 104 dropbacks, which is the third-fewest among quarterbacks with at least 11 starts this season. What’s more, Mahomes has connected on 12 touchdowns and put up a 138.8 rating against the blitz, best in the NFL. He’s thrown zero interceptions in those situations.

This means the Dolphins should probably approach pressuring Mahomes with just their front four. Kansas City runs at least three wideouts out there more than 70 percent of the time, which will dictate Nickel or Dime packages from the Dolphins. Miami should probably flood the field with defensive backs in an effort to mitigate Mahomes’ weapons.

Generate Turnovers

This will be easier said than done. The Dolphins defense has secured a takeaway in 18 straight games, the longest current streak in the league. Miami’s 21 takeaways this season rank second in the NFL and it’s been the key element to the Dolphins’ success this season. Xavien Howard leads the league with eight interceptions, and he’s picked off a pass in four straight games.

Kansas City, though, takes care of the football. The Chiefs are tied with Tennessee for the fewest giveaways this season (8) and Mahomes has thrown just two interceptions in 463 passes this season. His 0.4 percent interception rate is lowest in the league.

Mahomes’ had some close calls, but Miami will need a takeaway or two to turn the tide in this one. Setting up Tagovailoa with a short field and swinging the momentum in Miami’s favor will go a long way to earning this win.

Dolphins-Chiefs: Don’t Abandon the Run

The Dolphins offense struggles to gain consistent traction on the ground. Miami’s 96.5 rushing yards-per-game ranks in the bottom third of the league. Their 3.7 yards-per-carry average is worst. But even though it’s been a struggle to run, the Dolphins must maintain some semblance of balance against KC.

Myles Gaskin’s return to the lineup helped last week. The second-year back gained a career-high 141 yards from scrimmage, 90 of those on the ground. A similar 4.3 yards-per-carry average would go a long way to helping Miami move the ball against the Chiefs. Last week, Miami gained 110 yards on 28 carries against the Bengals, including an 11-yard run from rookie Lynn Bowden Jr.

A creative approach to the run game, with jet sweeps featuring Bowden or Jakeem Grant, and outside zone runs, which were successful last week, will only help Tagovailoa. And Kansas City can be run on. Their rushing defense allows 132.4 yards-per-game (27th). Against the Broncos in Week 13, Kansas City allowed 179 rushing yards, including a 65-yard scamper from Melvin Gordon.

Keep the clock running and winning time-of-possession will also help Miami’s defense against Mahomes and the potent Chiefs offense. If the Dolphins can establish run and methodically move the ball, that will limit Mahomes’ opportunities to score.

Don’t Forget to Grab one of the many Dolphins Tees over at FiveReasonsSports.com! Click Here to Shop Now!

Tag Archive for: Patrick Mahomes

Tua vs Mahomes could be the beginning of something special

/0 Comments/in , /by

For the first time since 2003, the Miami Dolphins are 8-4 and currently hold the No.6  seed in the AFC.

Which is crazy, isn’t it? I mean, when you think about how far this team has come in such a short amount of time, it should give fans everywhere a reason to be excited.

After all, it seems like only yesterday when ESPN’s Mike Greenberg begged the league to punish the Dolphins for deliberately tanking. (OH THE IRONY!) But then things started to come together. And Brian Flores and his team were playing pretty damn good football towards the end of last season. This had many wondering whether or not the Dolphins had won too many games to get a franchise-altering quarterback.

Thankfully, that wasn’t the case.

The Dolphins drafted Tua Tagovailoa with the 5th-overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft. And while some fans and experts are debating whether Tua will be a superior QB to Justin Herbert or Joe Burrow, there’s a much bigger question at play.

Can Tagovailoa become a generational quarterback capable of going toe to toe with the NFL’s elite?

We’re about to find out.

The Franchise

Tua Tagovailoa vs. Patrick Mahomes

First, let me start by saying that I know quarterbacks don’t directly faceoff against one another. This isn’t an opening tip-off in basketball. Or a penalty shot in hockey. Football is a team game. We all know this. And yet somehow, we sit here and view Sunday’s matchup between arguably the greatest QB to ever play the game and Patrick Mahomes… I’m kidding. But you get the point. Tua is not going up against Mahomes; he instead has to execute vs. Kansas City’s defense.

But all we continue to see is Mahomes vs. Tagovailoa.

And that’s not uncommon.

“He’s probably a left-handed Patrick Mahomes,” said one scout. “He does the same things Mahomes does. He gets out of the pocket. He doesn’t need to set his feet. He can throw the ball the length of the field,” the NFL scout said, via The Athletic. “Take a look at the LSU game. He had never been in that situation before in his life and he brought them back. … He does have inconsistent mechanics. He needs to square up and set his feet more. But left-handers do things differently.” 

Now, I’m not going to sit here and compare anyone to Patrick Mahomes. Well, maybe Dan Marino. But I’m not ready to compare Tagovailoa to Mahomes, and that’s okay. Nevertheless, Sunday’s matchup would be a huge step in the right direction. Moreover, it’s something that this fanbase, this football team, and this city deserve.

Listen to what Mahomes had to say about Miami’s young signal-caller

Now some might take what Mahomes said and dissect it, only to find out he was being sincere. I don’t think he meant anything bad by the “game-manager” comments. Because Tua himself would tell you this defense has played a huge part in the team’s success. And he hasn’t been asked to go out there and make the same plays as a Patrick Mahomes–not yet anyway. That will all change on Sunday, and Tua and Miami’s offense will be ready.

“I think we’re going to need to execute every time we go out there offensively. I don’t think we need to do anything new. We’ve just got to go out there and have all 11 guys playing together and being on the same page, really. We’ve just got to be able to go out there and execute, do that and in the red area, I know (Offensive Coordinator) Chan (Gailey) has something really good for us. But we’ve got to execute offensively. I believe we have the plays, just not executed the way we had done it in practice. It’s all about execution and you can only take it a play at a time and just don’t worry about anything else.”

Tua went on to praise Patrick Mahomes for the type of generational talent he is.

 

But please, temper expectations!

We’re going to have to continue to remind ourselves on Sunday that this is only year two of Brian Flores’ rebuild. And let’s face it, Andy Reid is one of the top coaches in all of football. Everything he touches turns to gold, and paired alongside Mahomes; it’s going to be a tough task. But Chiefs’ defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo could ultimately be the deciding factor. Not only is he one of the top defensive minds in all of football, but he knows how to get after the QB. It will be up to Chan Gailey and Miami’s young offensive line to not only get the team in the best position to succeed but to keep their franchise signal-caller upright.

Because let’s face it, if the Dolphins want to have any chance on Sunday, they’re going to have to get a superstar performance from Tua Tagovailoa.

You can still vote for Tua Tagovailoa for Rookie of the Week!

Final Yard

 

I don’t know that we will ever see another quarterback as talented as Patrick Mahomes. I think he’s that damn good. But football is a team sport. And with an elite defense by his side and all the tools to go toe to toe with the NFL’s elite, why can’t Tagovailoa outshine Mahomes in Miami? Why can’t Brian Flores do to the Chiefs defense–exactly what he did to them back in the AFC Championship game in 2019? Quite frankly, why not Miami?

If the Dolphins and Tua Tagovailoa hope to play meaningful football games well into January (any time soon), they’re going to have to get through Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs consistently.

Sunday’s matchup is just the first of what could become the next great QB duel. And I, for one, am here for it. Now, all Chan Gailey and the Dolphins offense has to do is #LetTuaCook.

**************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

A word from a sponsor of Dolphins content on FiveReasonsSports.com….

Please take the time to read Jon’s story and remember, any donation helps!