Miami Dolphins-Tennessee Titans Week 4 Halftime Observations

What stood out in the first half of the Miami Dolphins’ Week 4 game against the Tennessee Titans?

We begin with the inactive list, highlighted once again by five injured players – tackle Terron Armstead, running back Raheem Mostert, cornerback Kendall Fuller, linebacker David Long Jr. and emergency quarterback Skylar Thompson.

Also inactive was rookie linebacker Mohamed Kamara, the fifth-round pick out of Colorado State.

Rookies Malik Washington and Andrew Meyer were active for the first time and were about to make their NFL debuts, while CB Ethan Bonner and LB Channing Tindall were active for the first time this season.

On Monday afternoon, Dee Eskridge was called up from the practice squad, joining Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle, Braxton Berrios and Washington on the wide receiver corps.

The Dolphins started on defense for the second straight game after winning the throw and deferring, and Tennessee began its first drive at its 23rd.

The Dolphins looked like they had a three-pointer right away, but Jaelan Phillips was called out for roughing the passer after he went down trying to get around right tackle Nicholas Petit-Frere, but continued to get in Levi’s legs rolled.

Linebacker Jordyn Brooks looked like he was shot out of a cannon on a pitch to Tony Pollard. He brought it down after Emmanuel Ogbah kept him inside on a corner kick, resulting in a 2-yard loss.

Jalen Ramsey traveled with Calvin Ridley on the third penalty against Phillips.

DeAndre Hopkins took advantage of a soft zone to catch a 16-yard pass from Levis as the Titans entered Dolphins territory.

On a second-and-9 from the Miami 43, Levis rushed a throw as Ramsey flashed from the slot, and Ogbah made an easy pick after falling into coverage, squeezing the ball between his legs after he hadn’t cleaned the catch.

Great start for the Dolphins offense with an easy completion over the middle by Jaylen Waddle for 14 yards and a 16-yard run by Tyreek Hill on a jet sweep.

However, a sloppy all-around play by Hill ended the drive in Titans territory after he failed to catch a sideline swing pass from Tyler Huntley. Worse, Hill never attempted to pounce on the loose ball, and Tennessee easily recovered.

After the Dolphins’ defense got a three-and-out thanks to seemingly favorable positioning on Will Levis’ third-down scramble, the Dolphins’ offense also got a three-and-out, and it wasn’t pretty.

On a third-and-6, two Tennessee rushers came from the left side and Austin Jackson took over as inside rusher, giving Harold Landry a free run to Huntley for the very easy sack.

In the ensuing Tennessee series there were two tackles for losses on running plays, one each from Ogbah (who had a great first quarter himself) and Calais Campbell.

With Mason Rudolph at quarterback after Levis injured his right shoulder fighting on the previous drive, Tennessee got into field goal range thanks to a 13-yard completion before the first quarter ended with a third-and- 6 of Miami ended 30.

Storm Duck stopped the drive with a great play as he fended off WR Treylon Burks’ block and dropped running back Tyjae Spears for a 5-yard loss before Nick Foik kicked a 53-yard field goal to put Tennesee up 3 :0 to take the lead.

The Dolphins moved into Tennessee territory on their next drive thanks to a roughing penalty on Arden Key (also for hitting the QB deep), but that came after tight end Julian Hill was overpowered by Key on the way to Huntley.

The drive ended with a fourth-and-1 from the Titans 46 when Tyreek Hill went for a jet sweep but was never able to get around the corner before safety Quandre Diggs tackled him out of bounds, giving him a 1-yard loss, which continued the Dolphins’ undernumbered problems.

Tennessee quickly moved into field goal range thanks to four consecutive runs that gained 24 yards, and it looked like things might get worse when Tyjae Spears reached the Miami 2-yard line, but did the Dolphins were saved by a questionable holding penalty. The Titans settled for a field goal and a 6-3 lead.

The Dolphins finally got something going on their next drive, starting with cornerback L’Jarius Sneed giving them a free 15 yards by knocking the ball out of Jaylen Wright’s hands after he punched it out of bounds.

Tyler Huntley’s agility came into play when he converted a third-and-11 with a 12-yard run on a quarterback draw.

The drive stalled after Huntley completed Jaylen Waddle on third-and-six, gaining only 4 yards, and then Jason Sanders made it 6-3 with a 44-yard field goal.

The Dolphins’ defense was stopped on the next drive after entering Miami territory, thanks to Jaelan Phillips, who intercepted Rudolph’s pass at the line on third-and-2.

It was another memorable drive for the Dolphins’ offense, ending with a 5-yard completion to De’Von Achane on third-and-9 after a quick throw at the line.

After the defense held, a strange play occurred where Calais Campbell appeared to have his hands on a punt. Then Duke Riley tried to take it downfield but couldn’t control it, and Tennessee recovered. The play was reviewed to determine if a Titans player touched the ball first, ending the play, and replay nullified the turnover.

And in doing so, the Dolphins avoided a potential problem.

The Dolphins were then called for an illegal formation on a play where Aaron Brewer shotgunned the ball before Huntley was ready, negating a big loss.

Boos rang out from Hard Rock Stadium as Huntley passed on third-and-8 on the Dolphins’ final offensive play of the half.

And then came a bad punt from Jake Bailey, a 26-yard completion up the middle to Tyler Boyd that allowed the Titans to score a 47-yard field goal on the final play of a truly ugly first half for Miami.