Dolphins Saturday Mailbag: More Pressing Issues Ahead of the Seattle Game

What is the trust level in Skylar Thompson? Did Ryan Fitzpatrick influence Tua Tagovailoa in a dangerous way? Tackling those and other Miami Dolphins issues

Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel looks on from the field before the game against the Buffalo Bills at Hard Rock Stadium. / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Part 2 of the pre-Seattle game Miami Dolphins On SI mailbag:

From Artie (@SoFlaArthur):

Is it possible to fix this OL this year?

Hey Artie, can you define “fix”? And is it possible we’re overreacting after one bad performance? If we’re expecting this group to become a weekly difference-making unit, don’t think that’s happening. It absolutely can become a solid group, though, so yes it’s possible to “fix” what went wrong against Buffalo.

From Mark Schoninger (@SchoningerMark):

Dolfans are pessimistic about Skylar Thompson as our QB1. Do you personally believe he has the ability to pull a Scott Mitchell and invigorate the fan base?

Hey Mark, I understand why the fan base would be skeptical, but also think it’s massively unfair to make judgments about Thompson based on starts as a rookie seventh-round pick, the preseason or his appearance against Buffalo last week under ridiculous circumstances. So could he bust out and have a big performance like Scott Mitchell did immediately after replacing Dan Marino in 1993, why is it impossible?

QUESTIONING MIKE McDANIEL'S PLAY-CALLING

From Toby Marmorino (via email):

Hi Alain, Mike McDaniel has coached 38 games so far and he is yet to run a draw play! It's driving me out of my mind that the second the linebackers don't read it's a running play, they sprint back 10-15 yards to take away the middle of the field; a draw play would gain at the minimum 7 to 12 yards every single time, yet it never happens. I've mentioned this to you before, but it still boggles my mind. And, he has not run one trick play on offense either. If Tyreek Hill was to run an end-around to the left side of the field, with Tyreek being a lefty, we would be able to slip a receiver behind the defense for a long touchdown. What is your take on never running a draw play, and the lack of any trick plays? I understand his whole offense is basically a trick play, but I mean an actual trick.

Hey Toby, I’m way more with you on the lack of draw plays, but also understand the offense doesn’t include many deep drop-backs, so the defense might be hip that’s something afoot with a sudden deep drop. Also, if it were as simple as calling a trick play and the result would be a touchdown, don’t you think McDaniel would have done it by now?

SEIZING UP SKYLAR THOMPSON

From Jeff (via email):

Do you think McDaniel adjusts properly for Skylar at QB?  What I mean is the left vs. right-handed throwing. A lot of the "weirdness" during some of his starts seemed to be centered around plays not being flipped and Skylar having to twist around a lot more, which really messes with timing and trickery of McDaniel's offense. In that same vein, do you think McDaniel does a good job of adjusting his playbook to what is being shown on the field? What does the "eye test" tell you about play-calling and what you've experienced over the years with various head coaches?

Hey Jeff, “some of his starts” is a stretch considering Thompson has made exactly three starts in his career (I don’t count preseason). If Skylar is going to have issues with timing and trickery, that has more to do with the fact he doesn’t process things as quickly as Tua, which certainly is understandable given the different in game experience. As for adjusting to what the defense is doing, yes, I think McDaniel does a good job, but that doesn’t mean I always like his play-calling. But the rub there is there is no perfect play-caller and it’s very easy to question things when they don’t work. I will say I was calling out the weird play-calling at the end of the first half against Buffalo on Thursday night while it was happening and not after because the lack of urgency was baffling to me.

From Basti (via email):

Hey Alain! With all this talk about the backup QB and going for Tyler Huntley I was wondering: Why do the Dolphins even keep Skylar as the backup when they obviously don’t trust him running the offense when Tua is out a couple weeks? What’s the point of keeping either Skylar or Mike White when you don’t want them to play in a crucial situation like the one we’re in? Why not going for a “capable” backup QB in the first place? I’m well aware of Huntley being a better QB than Thompson. But the point of having a backup is that you trust him to play well or at least at an average level when called upon, right Thanks in advance and greetings from Germany!

Hey Basti, the only people suggesting the Dolphins don’t trust Thompson to run the offense are fans and a few media members. I do think the Dolphins have confidence in Thompson; if they don’t, then you asked a very good question that no one could answer satisfactorily. This whole notion of Huntley coming to save the day was very weird to me, to be honest. P.S. My question to you: My family and I have visited several countries around Europe the past two summers but not Germany; should we put that on our list, and why? Thanks.

From Lloyd Heilbrunn (@LloydHeilbrunn):

So did the NFL put their thumb on the scale to get Tua on IR? If that's the case, there needs to be an investigation. Not that I'm a conspiracy guy, but why does he get treated unlike any other player in the NFL that had 149 concussions in last regular season per their own data?

Hey Lloyd, I hate to break it to you, but you absolutely sound like a conspiracy theorist! LOL. No, I don’t believe the NFL told the Dolphins to shut down Tua for four games. And let me add this, did you really want to see Tua back in action quickly if there was even the slight chance of him coming back too soon?

From Dave (@angryvet59):

Totally respect your analysis & opinions but disagree with thought team can win with Thompson. Turnstile O-line. Bantam weight RB. McDaniel scheme figured out. What can this team do any different against a former Baltimore DC who beat up Miami last season? Still love Podcast tho.

Hey Dave, totally respect you disagreeing with me. Let me address your points, starting with the “turnstile O-line” because it didn’t look like that in the opener Jacksonville, so I’m saying you’re badly overreacting to the Buffalo game. The “bantam weight” running back set an NFL record for yards per carry last year and had more than 150 all-purpose yards against the Bills. The scheme having been figured out is debatable, and it’s not like Mike McDaniel can’t add additional wrinkles. And about the Baltimore DC who “beat up” Miami last year? You do know the Dolphins had 269 yards in the first half, right? So we’ll have to agree to disagree here.

From Wyomi_Dolphins (@GrizWald307):

What does this stretch tell us about McDaniel as the HC of this franchise? Will this stretch of games be a defining moment for him as a head coach?

Yup, I wrote about how these next four games are a referendum in how the roster was put together in the offseason and I absolutely could have added that it’s a major test as well for Mike McDaniel. This is the time for him to live up to his reputation as a great offensive mind.

From Jayco (@ljc7975):

The have averaged 14 points in their last 5 games played and have lost 10 of their last 14 road games. Has the league caught up to Mike McDaniel?

Hey Jayco, I’m not sure it’s quite that simple. There are several factors at play here, dating back to late last season, including injuries, defenses adjusting and doing a better job of containing Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle (at times) and maybe the team’s lack of physicality getting exposed at times. I’m not quite ready to call it the league having caught up to McDaniel, though.

From Andy Bunting (@AndyB250):

Without Jordan Love, Matt LaFleur came up with a plan to get the win. Does McDaniel need to follow that run-heavy approach or do you trust Skylar to find the receivers against very good cornerbacks? And is this an important stretch for McDaniel to show that he can do it in adversity?

Hey Andy, if we can’t trust Thompson to find the receivers, then why was he the backup in the first place? And if Tyreek and Waddle can’t get open against very good cornerbacks, why did get huge contracts in the offseason? And, yes, as discussed in the previous question, this absolutely is a key stretch for McDaniel.

From Richard Hulme (@RichardHulme7):

Off topic of the game, but do you think being under Ryan Fitzpatrick’s wing in Year 1 influenced Tua in him trying to run through tackles head-first?

Hey Richard, major props to you for bringing up that idea because it’s the first time I’ve heard it. And, you know what, it would add up, wouldn’t it? Tua is a competitor already, but it’s absolutely fair to wonder whether watching Fitzpatrick try to bulldoze defenders had an effect on him. I also recall Tua going straight at a Jets DB early in his career and bowling him over and the fans going nuts and thinking to myself that this was not a good idea. So, yeah, absolutely a possibility. Great call on your part.