Omar Kelly: Dolphins offense finally gets out of second gear

Omar Kelly, Miami Herald on Oct 28, 2025

Published in Football

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MIAMI — It had been a minute since Jaylen Waddle had a chance to turn on his afterburners in a run after catch situation.

On Sunday, the Waddle hit the angle on his slant and caught a pass in stride at the 30-yard line, then showcased the 4.37 speed that motivated the turning the Miami Dolphins to select him sixth overall in the 2021 NFL draft, outrunning every Atlanta Falcons defender in Miami’s 34-10 win.

In this instance it was five Falcons defense the fifth-year receiver, who finished the game with five receptions for 99 yards, was putting behind him.

“Tua gave me a great ball I can run through,” said Waddle, who clocked a 21.35 miles per hour on that 43 yard touchdown reception.

It had been a while since he’d done that with a Tua Tagovailoa pass. But some of that was a byproduct of the self-inflicted wounds that has led to a 2-6 start for the Dolphins, which ending a three-game with Sunday’s win..

“I thought he was kind of swaggy,” Waddle said when talking about Tagovailoa. “He looked different ... Whatever he had going on, he came out there and performed well.”

Tagovailoa came into Sunday’s game as South Florida’s top sports villain, having thrown six interceptions in the previous two games. His struggles working behind Miami’s injury depleted offensive line had the sixth-year quarterback admitting that he was off his game, and needed to find his mojo again.

“This is sort of the swag we have to continue to flow over to next week’s game,” said Tagovailoa, who woke up with his left eye swollen that eventually opened up after he was given antibiotics by team trainers. “It always comes down to executions for us, and I think our offensive line did a phenomenal job in terms of the pockets we had, and being able to sit back there and throw the ball [with conviction] and distribute the ball to our playmakers.”

Tagovailoa is at his best when he’s operating in a play action based offense. For that to work the offense needs to produce a respectable rushing attack.

The Dolphins, which came into the game averaging 4.6 yards per carry, had been hot and cold all season, and in the three contests where Tagovailoa has committed multiple turnovers Miami was forced to abandon the run game.

That wasn’t the case against the Falcons because the Dolphins scored first, and often.

The Dolphins gained 108 of the game’s 141 rushing yards in the first three quarters. That kind of balance opened up passing lanes for Tagovailoa, who completed a pass to eight different targets, four of them resulting in a touchdown pass.

Tagovailoa completed 20 of 26 passes for 205 yards and his four touchdowns.

It was the fourth four touchdown performance of his career, and the type of effort that should quiet down the segment of the fan base that has seen enough from the 2023 Pro Bowler the Dolphins signed to a five-year extension that could be worth up to $235 million.

Some wanted to see rookie quarterback Quinn Ewers, who was designated Miami’s emergency quarterback after losing a practice battle with Zach Wilson last week, take over Mike McDaniel’s offense. But Tagovailoa’s steadying hand in his fourth game without five-time All Pro receiver Tyreek Hill proved why he and McDaniel are ride or die till the end.

And for another week that end gets pushed back.

“People are going to talk,” said Tagovailoa, who is guaranteed a full total of $54 million next season, which is the final years of the guaranteed money he’s owed in his contract. “We got to go out there and execute. Execute to the best of our ability, and how the card play out, they play out.”

Sunday’s game was the first in four years offensive coordinator Frank Smith came to the field, leaving the coaching booth to help McDaniel run the offense, and Tagovailoa claims “it was very helpful.”

Last week Tagovailoa complained about having personnel and operations issues that were caused by injuries in the game to tight end Darren Waller, and slot receiver Malik Washington.

With Miami’s two starting tight ends sidelined by injuries the Dolphins leaned on two seldom used tight ends [Tanner Conner and Greg Dulcich], fullback Alec Ingold, and offensive lineman Daniel Brunskill, as a sixth offensive linemen, to execute its base offense. At times it seemed the Dolphins were using recently re-signed receiver Cedric Wilson as an H-back against the Falcons.

This is how the Dolphins will have to play for the next few weeks, at least the next three games, till reinforcements return like offensive linemen Austin Jackson (foot), James Daniels (pectoral), Liam Eichenberg (leg) and Andrew Meyers (shoulder) and Waller (pectoral).

“There has been some changes with everyone, in the things we want to be able to knock out, and thing we want to do throughout the week. It’s detail oriented,” Tagovailoa said. “That’s how we’re going to win the game. That’s what we’re going to be able to hang our hats on, and I would say it worked.”

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