Miami left Week 3 with a loss, but the kind that can still leave a locker room feeling like it found something.
Jacob Rodgriguez put it plainly after the Dolphins fell 24-10 to the Chiefs: "Today we got better." That line fits the mood around a game where Miami was outscored, sure, but also showed far more life than it had in the first two weeks. Against the top offense in the AFC, the Dolphins kept things tight for three quarters plus before an ill-advised fourth-and-six helped slam the door on any real comeback shot.
The biggest twist came before the game even had a chance to settle in. De'Von Achane went down four plays into the contest, forcing Miami to lean on Ollie Gordon II and Malik Washington to carry the rushing load. Even without its best offensive weapon, Miami kept moving the ball and kept fighting its way downfield.
That effort came with plenty of frustration attached. The Dolphins were 10.5-point underdogs, and while the final score says 24-10, seven of Kansas City’s points came late with the clock already winding down. For most of the afternoon, Miami’s defense made life difficult for the AFC’s best offense, holding it to 17 points for nearly four quarters.
The offense, meanwhile, had enough success to tease a much better result, only to keep tripping over its own mistakes. Malik Willis lost the ball on a second-quarter scramble after picking up three yards to the Chiefs’ 31-yard line, with the score sitting at 14-7. Early in the second half, Miami looked ready to answer with a tying touchdown, but an illegal motion flag wiped out Malik Washington’s score and left the Dolphins settling for a field goal instead.
There were also momentum swings on the other side of the ball that didn’t go Miami’s way. Chop Robinson forced Patrick Mahomes into a third-down incompletion from his own end zone, only for roughing the passer to be called because Robinson landed on Mahomes.
Instead of getting the ball near midfield, the Dolphins watched the drive continue. Then came another costly flag when a Jordyn Brooks sack was erased by illegal contact on Michael Taaffe.
Kansas City turned that into a first down and scored two plays later to build a 14-7 second-quarter lead.
Even with those blows, Miami’s protection up front was a clear step forward. The pre-snap penalties that had hurt the line early in the season were much better, and Willis was kept upright the rest of the way. The Dolphins didn’t allow a sack, and for a team looking for any sign of stability, that mattered.
Afterward, Brooks said the game was a good step in the right direction. Rodriguez went even further, calling it the starting point for what comes next: "Today became the floor," meaning this is the new low that the Dolphins have to build from.
In Other News...
Dolphins Fans Have Another Reason To Be Furious With Chiefs Officiating
A controversial no-call in the Chiefs-Dolphins game is adding more fuel to a grievance Miami fans already know well. On a recent tackle, a Kansas City defender was seen pulling on Malik Willis helmet, yet officials let the play stand without a flag, turning a routine snap into another flashpoint in a rivalry that seems to bring out every officiating complaint imaginable.
For Dolphins supporters, the frustration was immediate because the contact looked obvious enough to invite a penalty and the silence from the officials only deepened the suspicion. Plays like that tend to linger long after the game ends, especially when they feed the larger belief around the league that Kansas City gets the benefit of the doubt more often than most teams. [Read more 🡒]
Dolphins Suddenly Have A Good Problem Up Front
Through three weeks, Miami has managed to keep its run defense sturdy even without Kenneth Grant, who is on injured reserve and could be back after Week 4. The Dolphins have patched the interior with Jordan Phillips, Zeek Biggers and Keith Cooper Jr., while rookie linebacker Jacob Rodriguez and veteran Jordyn Brooks have helped keep the front seven organized and active against the run.
Grants return would give the Dolphins another option up front, but it also raises a real personnel question for a defense that has found a workable rhythm without him. His rookie season was uneven, and the bigger issue now is figuring out where he fits if the current group keeps holding its own once he is cleared to rejoin the rotation. [Read more 🡒]
Dolphins Fans Had Every Reason To Hate This Chiefs Break
When the Dolphins were trying to claw their way back into the game against Kansas City in Week 3, a roughing-the-passer call on Chop Robinson changed the feel of the moment in an instant. The hit on Patrick Mahomes extended the Chiefs drive, and Miami watched the sequence end with three points instead of a stop that could have helped shift momentum.
It was the sort of break that left Dolphins fans grinding their teeth, especially in a game Kansas City controlled from there. The Chiefs won 24-10, with Mahomes completing 20 of 24 passes for 246 yards and two touchdowns, and Miami was left to wonder how different things might have felt without one costly flag in a key spot. [Read more 🡒]