NFL News - Miami meltdown shouldn’t be a surprise

Updated: September 9, 2025 at 10:33 am GMT+1

It was a blockbuster opening weekend of NFL action with plenty of talking points.

Miami's Week 1 performance shouldn't cause panic, but it did feel like the kind of display that suggested some overdue self-reflection was needed.

See what Adam thinks below - and check back later this week for his NFL betting tips for week 2.


All off-season there has been nothing but negative press around the Miami Dolphins. Can Tua stay fit? Is McDaniels the right man at head coach? What has Tyreek tweeted out now?

By the time we got to Sunday’s week one game fans were hoping that the action would be a distraction. However, it has just compounded what many people thought. The Dolphins are in for a rough time this year.

Expectations were low going into the clash with the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium, but this might be a new low. The team in general looked underprepared and uninspired.

The Dolphins couldn’t get on the scoreboard till the fourth quarter, and the defence wasn’t much better. Giving up 33 points to the Daniel Jones led Colts, another team projected to be poor, is a major concern.

Daniel Jones became the first quarterback this century to lead his team to a score on every possession of an NFL football game. A century that has included greats like Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers and Patrick Mahomes. Daniel Jones!

Jones had a passer rating of 115.9 and rushed in two touchdowns as well. This is partly because Jones played well but also because Miami had no pass rush. This gave Jones all the time in the world to pick his passes.

However, it wasn’t just about the Colts being a decent football team that caused Miami problems. They have managed to create problems all by themselves.

The overall roster lacks depth and injuries to cornerback Storm Duck and offensive lineman James Daniels and Austin Jackson didn’t help. These are two areas that the Dolphins can’t afford to get injuries.

Then we get to the offence. An offence that could only put up eight points in the whole game. Tua Tagovailoa had a day to forget with two interceptions and a fumble that wasn’t recovered. He finished with 114 yards one touchdown and a passer rating of 51.7

To blame it all on Tua would be unfair as a mixture of offensive line injuries and poor play didn’t help him. However, Tua has a reputation for being highly accurate and that wasn’t there in week one.

On top of poor quarterback play the Dolphins had their star wide receiver, Tyreek Hill, screaming and moaning on the sidelines. The ex-Chiefs receiver was seen getting frustrated about what was happening with the team’s performance.

Hill is no longer one of the team captains in Miami now and his relationship with Tagovailoa seems to not be what it was. If things continue to go poorly for the Dolphins, then Hill would make sense as a player to trade away before the deadline.

Overall

The Dolphins have got a tough schedule coming up and are going to have to play the likes of the Ravens, Chargers, Bengals, Steelers and Bills twice this season.

Its imperative that they get a win against division rivals the Patriots in week two. If not, then things could unravel quickly, and Mike McDaniel could be on his way.


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Adam Martin

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