Final NFL 2023 Week 3 Observations ... With Dolphins Angles

Checking out the biggest storylines around the league involving Dolphins opponents and former players

For the second consecutive seasons, the Miami Dolphins are among the teams with a 3-0 record through three games, and for a second consecutive season another 3-0 team is the Philadelphia Eagles, who the Dolphins will face in Week 7.

While there were only two 3-0 teams in 2022, there are three this time, with the San Francisco 49ers the other after their victories against the Steelers, Rams and Giants, all of them featuring 30-point outings.

The Eagles joined the Dolphins and 49ers with their 25-11 road victory against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday night where they showcased the formula that's been so successful for them the past two seasons — dominating on both sides of the line of scrimmage.

While it wasn't quite the absurd showing the Dolphins had in their blowout of the Denver Broncos on Sunday, the Eagles pounded Tampa Bay — traditionally a team with a very good run defense — to the tune of 201 rushing yards, while holding the Buccaneers to 41 yards and a 2.4-yard per-carry average.

Behind what is the best offensive line in football, D'Andre Swift rushed for 130 yards, doing for the Eagles what Miles Sanders did last year.

While the Dolphins have the fastest and most explosive offense in the NFL, and maybe by a pretty good margin, it's difficult to argue that the Eagles and 49ers have the best sets of O-line/D-line in the NFL.

And dealing with that, and defeating that, is going to be the challenge for the Dolphins in that Sunday night game at Lincoln Financial Field on Oct. 22.

TACKLING A PROBLEM

Something to watch in that game against the Eagles is right tackle Lane Johnson and his habit of dropping back to get into his pass-protection stance ahead of the snap.

That's not actually something new because it was highlighted last season and he was at it again in the Monday night game against the Eagles, and it's something Dolphins coaches should make officials aware of before the Oct. 22 game.

This is apparently not a false start! pic.twitter.com/Odaf7R60AX

— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) September 26, 2023

The Dolphins will face another early-jumping tackle when they play the Kansas City Chiefs in Germany, right tackle Jawaan Taylor. The former Jacksonville Jaguars starter was moving early the entire night of the first NFL game of the season against Detroit or was lining up further back than allowed, but was flagged only once.

In the past two games, Taylor was flagged for a false start twice and for an illegal formation three times. That brought head coach Andy Reid to complain his player is being singled out.

"I just think they’ve got an eye on him, and they better keep an eye on everyone else, too," Reid said Monday. "It’s to the point of being ridiculous. They got their point proved now out there to the world, so now let’s make sure that we’re staying consistent.”

A GIANTS PROBLEM

To get to 3-0, it was the New York Giants that the 49ers beat in the Thursday game that kicked off Week 3, and that game showed — if it wasn't already obvious — just how much Brian Daboll's team needs Saquon Barkley in the lineup.

Without him, the Giants rushed for 29 yards — albeit against maybe the best defense in the league — and QB Daniel Jones had only 137 passing yards despite 22 completions.

Barkley missed the game with the ankle injury he sustained in the Week 2 victory against the Arizona Cardinals, though the Giants began the week saying he had an outside shot of playing against San Francisco.

The Dolphins will face the Giants in Week 5 and there's still no guarantee Barkley will be in the lineup and it's difficult to envision Miami having very much of a tough time in this game if Barkley doesn't play.

Before then, the Giants are at home against the Seattle Seahawks next Monday night.

McDANIELS' BAD GAMBLE IN VEGAS

The Dolphins will face the Las Vegas Raiders at Hard Rock Stadium on Nov. 19, and one has to wonder whether Josh McDaniels will still be their head coach when the game is played — after the debacle of Sunday night.

It's not just that the Raiders are 7-13 under McDaniels, but the way they lost against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday night was brutal.

For those who might have missed it, McDaniels made the decision to kick a field goal on fourth-and-4 from the Steelers 8-yard line down 23-15 with 2:25 left.

Yes, the Raiders still had their three timeouts, but they would need a three-and-out on defense and still have to score a touchdown to win the game. The Steelers got one first down before punting and the Raiders got the ball back at their 12-yard line with 12 seconds left and no timeouts.

Yeah, bad decision. And unprecedented bad decision.

Since the 2-point conversion was adopted in 1994, the Raiders are the only NFL team to attempt a field goal in the last 3:00 of the 4th quarter when down by exactly 8 points with less than 5 yards to go for a first down (or TD).

— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) September 25, 2023

QUICK HITTERS

-- Yet another AFC contender has lost a prominent player, with Chargers wide receiver Mike Williams going down with a torn ACL. Then again, not sure we should call the Chargers contenders considering their defense is ranked 31st in the NFL — ahead only of the Broncos after the beatdown the Dolphins gave them.

-- Ryan Tannehill and the Tennessee offense was smothered by the Cleveland Browns in a 27-3 loss, with Derrick Henry held to 20 yards on 11 attempts and Tannehill passing for 104 yards and getting sacked five times. This, though, might be as much about the Cleveland defense, which has been awesome so far this season. 

The @Browns have allowed 491 total yards this season, the fewest allowed through three games by any NFL team this century. pic.twitter.com/QUXp345KjB

— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) September 25, 2023

-- Micah Parsons is an absolute stud and he can talk all the trash he wants toward Tyreek Hill looking ahead to their Christmas Eve matchup at Hard Rock Stadium, but maybe Parsons should worry more about the vaunted Cowboys defense, which gave up 222 rushing yards in a shocking loss at Arizona. Oh, and for those wondering whether the season-ending injury to Trevon Diggs might mean a chance on defense for former Dolphins first-round pick Noah Igbinoghene, he played only on special teams in that game Sunday.

-- Keeping tabs on Mike Gesicki with the New England Patriots, he had one catch for 18 yards in their 15-10 victory against the Jets on Sunday. He's at nine catches for 87 (9.7 average) through three games.

-- The story of that game, though, again was the Jets offense incapable of doing anything with Zach Wilson at quarterback. Of course, it doesn't help when Breece Hall is held to 18 yards rushing on 12 carries and Dalvin Cook has 18 yards on eight carries.

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