Dolphins vs. Bengals: Complete Highlights and Lowlights

Breaking down the big plays and big moments in the Miami Dolphins preseason finale against the Cincinnati Bengals

Highlights, lowlights and observations for the Miami Dolphins in their 2021 preseason finale against the Cincinnati Bengals:

DOLPHINS HIGHLIGHTS

FIRST HALF

-- Preston Williams appeared in his first game action since he sustained his foot injury at Arizona last November.

-- Solomon Kindley was the only projected starter on offense who saw playing time in the first half.

-- Kirk Merritt made a nice high catch on a third-down pass from Reid Sinnett on the second possession, then did a good job of maintaining his balance to get the first down and gain extra yardage.

-- Rookie Gerrid Doaks showed good decisiveness on a couple of runs, including his 3-yard touchdown.

-- Patrick Laird showed his dependability as a receiver when he caught two passes for 25 yards on the touchdown drive of the first quarter, including a 17-yard gain for a first-and-goal at the 8-yard line.

-- Sinnett began the Dolphins' third drive with a strike down the middle to Malcolm Perry, despite some pressure up the middle.

-- Sinnett had another nice throw between defenders when he hooked up with Kai Locksley for a 16-yard gain.

-- Jaelan Phillips did a good job of not biting on a play fake by Brandon Allen and as a result forced an incompletion when he got to the quarterback.

-- Durval Queiroz Neto had a nice seal block to spring Doaks for a 14-yard gain outside.

-- Sinnett showed great escapability in the pocket before making a 13-yard completion to Khalil McClain.

-- The Dolphins took the lead near the end of the first half after Merritt made yet another play, breaking a tackle to get to the 1-yard line.

-- Doaks continued his solid short-yardage work with his second touchdown run of the half, this one from 1 yard out.

-- Jonathan Ledbetter had pressure on Kyle Shurmur to force an incompletion on Cincinnati's final drive of the half.

SECOND HALF

-- Noah Igbinoghene came up with a nice, sure tackle to drop the Cincinnati running back for a 1-yard loss on a third-and-4 completion on a swing pass.

-- There was great blocking up the middle and Doaks showed a nice burst on a 14-yard run on his first carry of the second half.

-- Sinnett had a strike downfield to Malcolm Perry that gained 36  yards on a first down from the Dolphins 6-yard line.

-- Defensive end Jonathan Ledbetter came up with a nice tackle to keep running back Jacques Patrick to a short gain early in the fourth quarter.

-- Locksley had a unique catch when he tipped the ball to himself and secured the catch while lying on his back.

-- Khalil McClain made a really nice adjustment on a back-shoulder throw when he caught an 18-yard pass.

-- Merritt got behind the Cincinnati defense for a 43-yard touchdown that began the Dolphins' fourth-quarter comeback.

-- Kudos to the Dolphins defensive players on the field when the Bengals tried to draw them offside after making it seem as though they would go for the first down on fourth-and-1 from their 39 holding a five-point lead with 3:39 left.

-- McClain again did a nice job of adjusting to a pass thrown behind him, this time good for a 26-yard gain.

-- Great effort by Sinnett to escape the pass rush and bounce outside and great catch by Chris Myarick in the end zone as they combined for the game-winning 34-yard touchdown on fourth-and-15.

-- Nice job by Noah Igbinoghene to knock the ball away on Cincinnati's final fourth-and-10 attempt. Better yet that Igbinoghene had great coverage against Scotty Washington on the play.

-- New linebacker Josh Harvey-Clemons had a nice pass breakup on Cincinnati's final drive.

DOLPHINS LOWLIGHTS

-- Tackle Larnel Coleman had a rough first series, giving up pressure that led to a batted pass on first down and then giving up a sack on third down.

-- Merritt is going to have to learn to not try to hurdle a defensive back in the open field like he did at the end of his 15-yard catch on the Dolphins' touchdown drive in the first quarter. It's a move with a poor risk-reward ratio.

-- Coleman again allowed pressure on the second drive.

-- Doaks was able to gain only 1 yard on each of two consecutive carries in the first quarter.

-- Noah Igbinoghene got himself rubbed out by a Cincinnati on a short crossing pattern that allowed the Bengals to convert a third-and-7 situation in the first quarter.

-- The Dolphins got no pressure on backup quarterback Brandon Allen on a play that ended in a 23-yard completion to former Dolphins training camp wide receiver Trenton Irwin.

-- Linebacker Duke Riley was beaten for a 29-yard touchdown down the right sideline while trying to cover running back Chris Evans.

-- Locksley dropped a very catchable pass (though a bit high) on a third-down play and on the next play there appeared to be a mix-up between Sinnett and his intended receiver, leading to a Cincinnati interception.

-- New tackle Greg Little committed a false start on the first play of the Dolphins' fourth drive.

-- Coleman was flagged for holding on a play where the Bengals also were called for a horse-collar tackle.

-- Trill Williams was beaten for a 32-yard completion, but he had pretty good coverage and kudos have to go to Bengals third-string QB Kyle Shurmur.

SECOND HALF

-- The defense allowed the Bengals to get out of a first-and-26 hole on the opening drive of the second half, allowing completions of 8, 18 and 13 yards on consecutive plays. 

-- It's tough to be overly harsh on the 45-yard completion that led to Cincinnati's touchdown on that drive, considering it bounced off the hands of the intended receiver and went right to Trent Taylor.

-- The interior of the defensive line and the linebackers were pushed out on Cincinnati's 1-yard touchdown run. There was no resistance on the play.

-- Tight end Hunter Long had a bad drop on a pretty Sinnett throw deep down the middle of the field.

-- Nate Holley missed a tackle on a short second-and-6 completion, allowed Thaddeus Moss (son of Randy) to get to the first-down marker.

-- DB Jamal Perry dropped a very catchable interception after he went to his knees to cradle to low throw.

-- The left side of the offensive line (Greg Little and Durval Queiroz Neto) was beat by a twist up front by the Bengals and the result was a 9-yard sack.

-- Benito Jones was flagged for a roughing-the-passer penalty, though it looked like a really soft call.

-- On the play before his touchdown catch, Merritt was flagged for offensive pass interference when he started blocking downfield before the receiver caught the short pass.

-- Linebacker Shaquem Griffin bit on a fake handoff, allowing Kyle Shurmur to roll outside of him for a nice gain.

-- Merritt was slightly injured (he returned) after he failed to come down with a low, but catchable, pass from Sinnett on the game-winning touchdown drive.

-- Sinnett faced pressure on each of the final four plays of that drive, including the touchdown, and was sacked on second down to create a third-and-15 situation.

-- Linebacker Calvin Munson had a bad 15-yard penalty on the Bengals' last drive when he lowered his helmet to hit a Cincinnati receiver who already was headed to the ground.