play0:33Tua calls out Dolphins teammates for missing meetingsDolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa addresses his concerns with certain teammates missing meetings.
play1:13Why Justin Fields and the Jets should stay on fantasy sidelinesTristan Cockcroft explains why Justin Fields remains a matchup-driven option after his lowest fantasy output of the season.
play1:33What is the biggest issue with the Eagles’ offense?Harry Douglas explains the biggest issues with the Eagles’ offense after Philadelphia lost its second straight game.
play0:16Byron Young drops Tyler Huntley for late sackBryon Young chases Tyler Huntley down and sacks him for the Rams late in the 4th.
play0:35Quentin Lake picks off Cooper RushQuentin Lake jumps in front of Cooper Rush’s throw for the Rams INT.
play0:33Devin White’s strip-sack fumble is recovered by RaidersDevin White forces Cam Ward to fumble, giving the Raiders possession at the goal line.
play1:35Is Rico Dowdle’s fantasy production sustainable?Tristan H. Cockcroft breaks down whether Rico Dowdle can maintain his current fantasy output.
Titans struggle heavily in Week 6 loss (0:44)Turron Davenport breaks down the Titans’ struggles in Week 6 loss to the Raiders. (0:44)
Tua calls out Dolphins teammates for missing meetingsDolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa addresses his concerns with certain teammates missing meetings.
Why Justin Fields and the Jets should stay on fantasy sidelinesTristan Cockcroft explains why Justin Fields remains a matchup-driven option after his lowest fantasy output of the season.
Tristan Cockcroft explains why Justin Fields remains a matchup-driven option after his lowest fantasy output of the season.
What is the biggest issue with the Eagles’ offense?Harry Douglas explains the biggest issues with the Eagles’ offense after Philadelphia lost its second straight game.
Harry Douglas explains the biggest issues with the Eagles’ offense after Philadelphia lost its second straight game.
Byron Young drops Tyler Huntley for late sackBryon Young chases Tyler Huntley down and sacks him for the Rams late in the 4th.
Quentin Lake picks off Cooper RushQuentin Lake jumps in front of Cooper Rush’s throw for the Rams INT.
Devin White’s strip-sack fumble is recovered by RaidersDevin White forces Cam Ward to fumble, giving the Raiders possession at the goal line.
Is Rico Dowdle’s fantasy production sustainable?Tristan H. Cockcroft breaks down whether Rico Dowdle can maintain his current fantasy output.
With UAB coach Trent Dilfer also getting fired on Sunday, the college football hot seat has officially been turned on. The same is true for the NFL, where the vast majority of the league’s teams are now six games into their seasons. It’s tougher for a coach, player or executive to treat a slow start or a rough patch of form like it’s a temporary concern this far into the season. Nobody wants to see players get benched or coaches get fired, but it’s a reality of this sport.
If the loss felt crushing, what happened after the game might have been even more painful. Tua Tagovailoa criticized the team’s leadership for not clearly articulating expectations and added that members of the team have been late or not shown up altogether for players-only meetings.
McDaniel noted that those meetings are outside his purview and felt like players were accountable to him, but that seems to be up for debate. ESPN’s Marcel Louis-Jacques reported, per one former Dolphins player, that players were regularly late to meetings and practices throughout McDaniel’s tenure with the team, only for those concerns to be ignored as the Dolphins won football games.
It’s difficult to separate McDaniel’s imprint on the offense from his players. The Miami offense has actually been a little better than you might think this season, with the Dolphins currently 12th in EPA per play on that side of the ball, just behind the Rams. That’s with Hill sidelined for the year and the Dolphins getting one game from right tackle Austin Jackson, who serves as the team’s blindside protector for its lefty quarterback.
Meanwhile, the Dolphins let young cornerstone players such as Robert Hunt, Christian Wilkins and Jevon Holland leave in free agency. They brought in Vic Fangio and then fired the lauded defensive coordinator after one season. While Anthony Weaver has done a solid job since joining Miami, Fangio went to the Eagles and won a Super Bowl, completely turning around Philly’s defense along the way. This version of the Dolphins doesn’t look great on paper and hasn’t played great in reality.
The same thing feels like it’s happening with McDaniel. He was always an offensive-first coach who was hired because of his ability to get Tagovailoa going after the quarterback’s slow start under former head coach Brian Flores. That worked. McDaniel is the same guy, but it feels like Dolphins fans have either realized or decided, depending on who you ask, that he’s not capable of doing anything more than getting their beloved team to the wild-card round.
Tua calls out Dolphins teammates for missing meetings
Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa addresses his concerns with certain teammates missing meetings.
Per ESPN’s Football Power Index, Miami’s playoff odds fell to 2.0% after the loss, and history would tell us that Stephen Ross wouldn’t look kindly on anything short of a stunning turnaround. Since Ross bought the team in 2008, no Dolphins head coach has made it through four full seasons in the job. Tony Sparano was fired after starting 4-9 in Year 4, while Joe Philbin went down after a 1-3 opening to his fourth season. Adam Gase and Flores were each fired after three seasons in charge.
Why Justin Fields and the Jets should stay on fantasy sidelines
It’s fair to note that this posed a particularly tough matchup for the Jets. The Broncos are one of the league’s best defenses, full stop. They have a superstar CB1 in Pat Surtain II. But teams do find plenty of success throwing against Riley Moss and Denver’s other defensive backs. Vance Joseph’s linebackers can also struggle in coverage, and the Eagles were able to exploit them last week, most notably on a 47-yard touchdown catch by Saquon Barkley.
While nine sacks sound like the work of a dominant pass rush, I would say that only one or two of those sacks really erased the play before Fields had a chance to do anything. Every one of Fields’ sacks came five seconds or more after the snap. And the two sacks on the final drive were both problematic.
Fields actually had two receivers coming open on the first-and-10 takedown in Denver territory with 1:56 to go, but he turned down an out to the sideline and then didn’t have time to get to the backside of the play. Then, facing fourth-and-8 with the game on the line, Tyler Johnson had a step on Ja’Quan McMillian and an angle to the sideline, but Fields didn’t throw the ball with anticipation. And when he held the ball, Jonathon Cooper’s rush through Mason Taylor blew up the play.
Fields was excellent in Week 1 against the Steelers, but his only effective passing work since then has come while trailing against the Cowboys. Since Week 2, if we just look at plays that took place with a win expectancy of 20% or more, Fields’ 10.7 QBR is the worst mark in the league. The average Fields dropback in those situations has generated 2.1 yards, a figure that includes both sacks and scrambles.
It’s clear that Glenn doesn’t trust his quarterback. The winless Jets head coach bungled a pair of fourth-down situations out of fear that he might have to rely on his offense, including a brutal process on a fourth-and-1 while the Jets were clinging onto a one-point lead in the fourth quarter.
The Jets would be trading a low-floor, high-ceiling quarterback for one a decade older with a moderate floor and virtually no ceiling. I wouldn’t like that swap, but the Jets also probably win this game if Taylor is at quarterback. And after starting 0-6, the idea of being in position to win anything might appeal to Glenn and the Jets.
Week 6: Went 1-for-2 on field goals (missed a 26-yarder) and hit the only extra point attempt in a 17-3 win over the Ravens
In what were admittedly rainy, windy conditions in Baltimore on Sunday, Karty appeared to wear out his welcome. After Stafford missed Davante Adams twice in a row for potential touchdowns on the opening drive of the game, Karty lined up for a chip shot from 26 yards out, only for the wind to push his kick onto the right upright. Kickers just don’t miss in that range anymore, and unlike the Eagles game, there was no pressure or penetration from the Ravens’ defense to hurry the kick.
The Rams seemed to lean away from the kicking game after that point. Karty did kick a 36-yard field goal on the next drive, but it was on a fourth-and-11 in the red zone. McVay was more aggressive than usual as the game went along. The Rams attempted a fourth-and-2 on the Baltimore 33-yard line on their opening drive of the third quarter and a fourth-and-3 from the Baltimore 6-yard line early in the fourth.
Week 6: Allowed three catches for 69 yards as the nearest defender in coverage in a 34-17 loss to the Giants, per the NFL Next Gen Stats
Howie Roseman’s draft philosophy over the past few years has been brutally effective: Find a Georgia Bulldogs defender, draft him and profit. The Eagles’ general manager has cleaned up on Georgia players, adding Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis, Nakobe Dean and Nolan Smith Jr. to one of the league’s best young defensive front sevens. He even signed Azeez Ojulari away from the Giants in free agency, adding a fifth former Bulldog to the defense.
After trading Darius Slay away during the offseason, the Eagles have flirted with different options on the outside at cornerback. Ringo was torched by Ja’Marr Chase in the preseason, which might have steered Vic Fangio to start Adoree’ Jackson in the opener. After three games, Jackson was pulled for Ringo, who started each of the next two weeks. (Jackson was brought back into the fold when Mitchell went down injured Thursday against the Giants.)