
Mike McDaniel’s first game as head coach in South Beach, the Miami Dolphins beat the New England Patriots 20-7. All eyes would be on the offense, where new receiver Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle, and quarterback Tua Tagovailoa would work together to make an offense that the Dolphins could hopefully use to get to the playoffs.
On the first return, I would say the offense looked smooth in the right places. In Week 1, they had the 13th best EPA per play in the NFL and a 48.3% success rate overall. But I think there was some meat left on the bone, so to speak, when it talks to the offense on Sunday, but that’s what the film room is for. So let’s see what went well and what went wrong with the Dolphins’ offense on Sunday.
Creative uses of movement and people to gain an advantage
Since he came from San Francisco, we know that McDaniel would bring some of Shanahan’s style to the Dolphins’ offense. But, like most things that go to South Beach, McDaniel has given the Shanahan offense more energy and flavor, adding flavors that fit the players he has in Miami.
For example, Jimmy Garoppolo spent most of his time under center in San Francisco. Last year, 380 of his dropbacks were from the gun, the 22nd most in the NFL. As a QB, it was where he felt most at home. Tua will spend a lot of time as quarterback for the Dolphins from the shotgun because that’s where he’s most comfortable. When the Dolphins were on scoring drives, they used Tua’s quick release. The point guard style to bring the ball to their playmakers, like Tyreek Hill, who was targeted 12 times on Sunday.
Hill’s use was also interesting because they moved him around to improve the passing game. Hill is the quickest player in the NFL, so McDaniel throws the ball to him out of jet motions and into stacks, like this early chunk completion:
Check out what the motion does to the Patriots’ second line of defense. It pushes them back, making it easier for the linemen to get to them. Also, giving Chase Edmonds a way to cut back. McDaniel’s offense in Miami is supercharged. And his use of motion is helping the Dolphin’s offense create good chances for their speedy skill players.
Offensive line play and offensive predictability
Tyreek and Jaylen Waddle are stacked when the ball has snapped because the Dolphins moved Tyreek. Hill sees that the DB has to run across the formation and over another DB to get to him. Because of this, Hill breaks off the route. Easy chunk play. If McDaniel can keep using personnel and motion to make the game easy for Hill and Waddle, Miami will have a lot of big plays in the passing game.
Later in the game, Miami would leave their backs and tight ends in the protection or add chip help. Which is something you can do, but you don’t want to keep living in that world. Getting all your guys into the passing idea is key to an explosive offense, and if the offensive line can’t keep up on the interior, the Dolphins won’t be as fierce.
The Miami offense would benefit significantly from running the ball out of the shotgun formation. Because Tagovailoa is a better passer out of the shotgun. The Dolphin’s offense needs to be able to see different looks and keep the defense guessing. The Dolphins pull their left guard for this run play, and Durham Smythe goes to block the LB. But there is a big problem: nobody stops Deatrich Wise Jr., so the play is over. Keep updated here at OKBet blogs for more information and best odds.
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