Today was the first day that the Miami Dolphins hosted the Atlanta Falcons for joint practices. By all accounts, there are little to no expectations that the Atlanta Falcons will make any kind of noise this season.
According to Bleacher Report last season, the Falcons ranked 23rd in points allowed and 27th in yardage ranking on defense. These numbers are underwhelming, to say the least.
In the first joint practice, the Dolphins’ offense did not seem to be dominating as it should be. Tyreek Hill, of course, is dominating; however, Tua has thrown numerous interceptions, including an ill-timed pick-six. Now I believe the offense will figure itself out; when healthy, I think Tua is a top-10 quarterback in the league.
That being said, the offensive line seemed to be having a hard time during today’s practice. The Atlanta defensive line is not full of scrubs, with some standouts being Grady Jarrett and Calais Campbell, and still concerning non the less. This is nothing new for Dolphins fans; we’ve had a bottom-10 offensive line for as long as I can remember.
The offensive performance really depends on two things this season. Offensive line play, and Tua staying upright and healthy. As long as Tua is healthy, I believe the offense will run more efficiently than even last year. It’s too early to be sounding the alarm bells on this offense right now. I won’t be concerned until the season if they haven’t shown any progress.
Time will tell what this offensive group has to offer, but you have to wonder why they are struggling against a poor defense. In today’s age, splash play is fun and exciting; however, it simply is not sustainable. The Dolphins relied so heavily on splash plays last year that it was fun to see when they had a nice sustained drive. They are going to have to rely on the run game, and McDaniel has to do a better job at establishing the run. Having Tua throw 30-40 times a gave is simply unsustainable for any quarterback. I am excited to see what Achane has to offer with this offense, and hopefully, he provide some explosiveness from the backfield. My best advice is to stay optimistic about this offense; I believe they are in store for a great year.
“Having Tua throw 30-40 times a gave is simply unsustainable for any quarterback.”
Justin Herbert as averaging just over 40 passes a game for his career, and everyone thinks he is great. Most QBs throw 30-40 times a game. The Dolphins run a complex offense for the line, and today was something like the 10th practice. And I believe their best lineman did not participate today. The sky is not falling. All signs point to the line being better than it was last season, when it was actually fairly competent when Armstead played. Not great, but not as bad as everyone seems to think. I believe Tua was sacked 21 times in his 13 games last season, and 4 of those came in a dozen plays after Armstead left the Texans game. Getting sacked less than twice a game seems ok to me.