Jeff Hafley didn’t try to dress it up after Miami’s loss to the 49ers: Riley Patterson’s leash may be getting shorter by the week.
The Dolphins head coach had a softer read on Bradley Pinion’s botched punt snap, pointing to the veteran punter’s experience and brushing it off as something he should handle. Patterson, though, is in a different spot entirely. After missing a second field goal in two games, he left Hafley sounding like a coach who has already started weighing his options.
“Yeah, we gotta hit the field goals,” Hafley said. “That's two misses in two games. We are counting on him to make those kicks.”
That’s the heart of it for Miami. The Dolphins can’t afford wasted points, and they can’t afford the field position damage that comes with missed kicks either. Patterson’s inconsistency is handing opponents a break the Dolphins’ defense may not be built to absorb, especially with an offense that isn’t finishing drives with touchdowns often enough.
Hafley’s stance on Pinion was more forgiving. He said the punter has been " Punting for a very long time.
He has to catch the ball." Replay showed Pinion did get the ball in his hands before dropping it as he was preparing to kick.
Patterson won’t get that same kind of benefit of the doubt if the misses keep piling up. Kickers are easy to find, and when one isn’t producing, teams usually move on. That’s the reality hovering over Miami right now.
The strange part is that Patterson was reliable for the Dolphins last year, going 27 of 29 and drilling a career-long 54-yarder. In just two games this season, he has already equaled last year’s miss total.
Miami entered camp with two kickers, but Zayne Gonzalez got hurt and was released, leaving Patterson with the job. The free-agent market isn’t exactly overflowing with solutions, but if the Dolphins decide they need a change, Brandon McManus is one name to watch. He spent last season with the Packers.
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Dolphins Blowout Loss Put One Rookie At The Center Of A Bigger Question
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Rodriguezs steady workload also points to a larger issue for Miami as the season unfolds. The Dolphins need young contributors to grow into real pieces of the roster, especially when games start to tilt the wrong way and veterans are unable to stem the tide. His early snaps and tackling numbers do not solve anything on their own, but they do put a spotlight on how much Miami may need its rookies to speed up the development curve. [Read more 🡒]
Dolphins Could Turn Useful Depth Into Something Bigger At The Deadline
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Austin Jackson, Chop Robinson, Kenneth Grant and Jaylen Wright all fit into that broader conversation in different ways, whether because of contract status, recent production or simple market appeal. The bigger question for Miami is not just who other teams might call about, but how willing the Dolphins are to listen if a reasonable offer turns one of those pieces into more draft capital for a team that has to keep balancing the now against what comes next. [Read more 🡒]
Dolphins Have One Bigger Problem Than Their 0-2 Start
The AFC East picture through two games has already started to separate, and Miami is the one team feeling the pressure. The Dolphins sit at the bottom of the division after an 0-2 start, with the offense still searching for the kind of rhythm that would make them look like a contender instead of a team trying to steady itself in September.
At the top, Buffalo has done the opposite, opening 2-0 behind strong play from Josh Allen and a defense that has helped set the pace in the division. The Jets and Patriots are hanging in the middle at 1-1, which only sharpens the contrast for Miami, where the early struggles are about more than the record and leave a lot of questions still hanging over the season. [Read more 🡒]