Miami Dolphins Week 3 Recap: Chiefs 24, Dolphins 10.

The Miami Dolphins played tough, gritty, hard-nosed football yesterday but lost to the Kansas City Chiefs, 24-10. There were clear signs of growth on Miami’s part; let’s hope it’s the sort of growth that blooms into something beautiful rather than a fungus.

Despite giving up a touchdown to Kansas City on the game’s first drive and losing De’Von Achane to a knee injury early, the Dolphins matched the Chiefs throughout the game and did the “hanging around” thing that made you believe the Dolphins had a chance.

And they did have a chance most of the day, matching Kansas City in yardage, dominating time of possession, and clearly playing their hearts out. Unfortunately, the youth and inexperience of the team and staff showed up at critical moments. Penalties were committed at the worst times, lack of execution stalled the team at critical moments, and the Dolphins went 0-for-3 on fourth-down attempts.

The turning point came with six minutes left in the fourth quarter. Down 17-10, Miami failed to convert a fourth-and-5 at their own 48-yard line. The Chiefs capitalized immediately on the short field, sealing the victory with an 11-yard touchdown strike from Mahomes to Kelce. Defensive lineman George Karlaftis iced the contest shortly after by intercepting a deflected Willis pass.

The Positives:

Jacob Rodriguez: Let’s just go ahead and get a bronze statue of his mustache set up outside Hard Rock, shall we? We can fill in the rest of the statue as time goes on. Rodriguez was all over the place yesterday; his interception was a thing of beauty.

The Defense as a Whole: There are only a few quarterbacks in the league who would have the patience and efficiency to guide their team to a calm, methodical victory in the face of the Dolphins’ defensive effort yesterday. Unfortunately, Miami was playing one of those quarterbacks. Miami played smart, tough defense, and that bodes well for future games.

Bobby Slowik: Yes, there were still some questionable calls, but the offensive effort was the best it’s been all year, in spite of losing Achane. Slowik leaned into the team’s strengths and played ball-control football with a few deep shots mixed in. They’re not hitting yet, but give it time.

The Negatives:

Jeff Hafley: The decision to go for it on fourth-and-five from their own 48 with six minutes left was baffling. Miami had played sound defense all day, and pinning the Chiefs deep in their own territory seemed like a much smarter play. I didn’t like going for it on fourth down in the second quarter, either, but this one was truly a head-scratcher.

The De’Von Achane Injury: With the reported torn ACL, the Dolphins lost their best player for the season. Miami needs to address its running back room quickly.

Malik Willis: The good news is that he made decisions more quickly and convincingly this week. The bad news is that they weren’t all good decisions.

Again, there was recognizable growth from week two to week three. Let’s hope it continues.

Watch the Fins Faithful Dolphins–Chiefs postgame show:

Up next: The Miami Dolphins visit the Minnesota Vikings.