The Dolphins (0-3) travel to “The Land of 10,000 Lakes” to take on the (3-0) Minnesota Vikings. This will be only the 2nd time in NFL History that a team will have faced undefeated teams in their first 4 games of the season. The only other team to have done that was the 1986 Philadelphia Eagles. If you’re curious, the Eagles lost their first 3 games but upset the Los Angeles Rams at home 34-20 in Week 4. The Vikings defense has been an NFL best in points allowed through 3 games, allowing only 13.7 PPG. In contrast, the Dolphins have allowed 28.7 PPG and is 31st in the NFL. To make it worse, the Dolphins on offense are scoring 2nd to last at 12.0 PPG. The over/under is 38 points and unless you think the Dolphins are going to find themselves on offense, without RB De’Von Achane who is OUT for the season with a torn ACL, I’d bet the UNDER.
RB Jaylen Wright is trending towards healthy, and he will share the carries with RB Ollie Gordon. Gordon is averaging a paltry 2.4 YPC with 48 yards on 20 carries and 1 TD. Wright has yet to show the explosiveness and speed that was the allure that former GM Chris Grier couldn’t resist in the 2024 NFL Draft, Grier traded a 2025 3rd RD pick to get a 4th RD selection and take RB Jaylen Wright.Wright has not shown he was worth that trade, which is no surprise considering it was Chris Grier who traded up to get him. Grier might have the worst WIN percentage on Draft Trade Ups in the history of the league. I’m not going to bore you or anger you by citing each and every failure, you know them all too well. Wright will once again though have a chance to make Grier look better since RB De’Von Achane is OUT, and RB Ollie Gordon hasn’t done anything to solidify a starting spot. Let’s all hope Wright makes the best of the situation.
If you want to look at two units on the opposite end of the spectrum, focus on the Miami Dolphins defense and the Minnesota Vikings defense. As the broadcast team made quite clear last week against the Kansas City Chiefs, the Dolphins defense has yet to register a sack during the 2026 season. The Vikings, on the other hand, have 14 sacks already in the young season. OLB Dallas Turner leads the Vikings with 3.5 sacks, and here’s the thing that angers so many Dolphins including myself, OLB Andrew Van Ginkel is next with 3. Vikes have 8 players with at least 1/2 a sack, which is a stark contrast with a team who has no one. Hopefully that changes this weekend with a healthy Chop Robinson, yes that dirty, mean Chop Robinson who dared to touch Superstar QB Patrick Mahomes. DE Robert Beal has a hamstring injury and is likely OUT. DE Josh Uche or DE Malik Herring are going to need to give Chop some help to free him up to make a play or two. In addition to not having a sack, the Dolphins have also yet to force a fumble on defense. ILB Jacob Rodriguez would be the most likely guy to start the wave with his remarkable 7 FF’s last season at Texas Tech.
Despite the 0-3 record, we have seen some improvement. Besides the obvious lack of sacks on defense, and the generosity of the defense to opposing offenses, at times the offense has resembled a functional NFL unit. That will be tested heavily without RB De’Von Achane, but maybe RB Jaylen Wright finally comes of age. It’s a shame that WR Caleb Douglas is OUT, he brought some explosiveness to the offense, and Chris Bell, who is clearly not right yet physically has also shown promise, and I believe that if/when both of these players are healthy, our offense will be that much better. OC Aaron Brewer is dealing with a finger injury but my guess is he will suit up and play. The rest of the line is healthy, and RT Austin Jackson had a better game last week compared to his difficult showing 2 weeks ago. Rookie LG Kadyn Proctor continues to progress, and his pass blocking is a tremendous upgrade to what we had last season in LG Jonah Savaiinaea, who BTW has held his own at RG this season. LT Patrick Paul hasn’t been awesome, basically playing like an average LT, which is a bit disappointing because I think we all hoped he could be elite.
The Dolphins made some roster moves to try and improve the Special teams unit, they signed Cincinnati Bengals LB Shaka Heyward 6’3 238. Glad they recognize that the ST’s unit needs help and are addressing that. K Riley Patterson is 5-7 on FGA’s, and P Bradley Pinion has been worse. He had an awful fumble 2 weeks ago against the Niners when he dropped the ball when attempting to punt, and overall his work has been underwhelming. I’d say both the K and P are on thin ice and in danger of losing their jobs. On the bright side, Malik Washington has been very good both returning kickoffs and punts, and now that Jaylen Wright looks to be back, he will help on KR’s as well. The game of field position has been one we are losing, and when you have a young team that isn’t thriving on either side of the ball, it’s amazing how much a little boost from special teams can give the team. We have sustained some long drives on offense, but the points just aren’t there. Better field position can help there.
GO DOLPHINS!!!
Damn, I guess he did
M13,
I’m first focusing on Proctor, so I’m seeing PP. I’ll shift to watching different players along the OL throughout the game. So far, I’m seeing zero push.
10-4, pal.
I would like to know what the % of plays have had a flag.
50
Jackson out. Sieler needs to take advantage.
some one gives these refs a hug – they need attention
IDK why we’re playing zone our DBs have no clue how to play it
Exactly the sorta game we want.
we’re going to get shutout. Everytime we start to do something, someone does something stupid
I think my high school teammates’ grandkids are playing for the Dolphins, some of these guys were so stupid
one play they were trying to kick a 50+ yard FG, of our guys had no clue it was a fake
another play on punt coverage they ran OL to the sideline for a wall, of course our guys from the wall side ran to the right, except me, then on the next punt they did it again, same guys ran to the right, I sat behind the wall and made the tackle
14 total flags thus far.
Awful Austin strikes again.
another stupid play, no one on our team picks up the ball
its getting unwatchable
Looks like a fumble
100% fumble
not even the biggest Homer ref could call that a forward pass
bout time to go to the beach, can’t watch this headless play
Vikings pass rush is not secret. Why are we not using TE’s to chip block?
Or at least keeping a RB in to chip, right?
That’s a coachable moment right there. Explain to your players what they’re supposed to do on that play and make sure next time everyone on the field goes to recover that football!!!
two things
2. I’m glad that referee got body planted on the field
Credit to all concerned. We shit the bed creatively each week, shooting ourselves in any available appendage and we are so dire no one even accuses us of tanking. This year’s Oscar for misdirection goes to ………
This is one of the ugliest games I’ve seen in a while. I knew both offenses were bad, but this is even worse than I thought it’d be.
they are winning, and their fans are booing
Fuck PP
I’m struggling to think of a weaker opponent that will be there for the taking this season and we are still looking favourite to lose the ‘Punt Bowl’
That’s a hamstring pull
We can’t get a call. WTF???
That ball was not tipped!
that motherfucker has the strongest fingers I’ve ever seen in the universe
holy shit that is some bad officiating
I mean, like real Home cooking
And with the first pick of the 2027 draft, the Miami Dolphins select……..
That ball did not move like it was tipped. His fingers didn’t move either as the ball passed by his hands. They changed that call based on what it looked like. No way they can prove he tipped it. Fucking BS!
Need a takeaway
Ring Deliveroo
SIELER!!!
Brooks is not good in coverage
9-0 going into the half. It’s a manageable game for us. Our Offense needs to rise to the occasion in the second half.
76 yards in a half? How is that even possible? Lol
3 points for the replay booth
in this weeks, Miami Dolphins SOS bowl
the game between Kansas City and Las Vegas is tied up 10 to 10 going into the half.
76 yds of Offence and 50 yards of penalties. Not easy to keep numbers like that under the radar
Another throw off the back foot
Keep it close…win it in the end.
That’s twice McGraw didn’t set the edge on big runs
Get him out
That was a BS call on Brents. Should have been a no call
This is terrible to watch. 😂
Proctor got pushed into the backfield on that 3rd down run
Watching Jonah now, but Proctor got popped.
This current O-Line of ours fuckin’ SUCKS!!! How is that possible???
Holy Wow! Chop actually got a sack!
He’s currently trending to have a mere 4 sacks on the season!
🐷chop
Edges Herring and McGraw suck
OLLIE GORDON!!! GROWING BALLS!!!
There have been a few nicely blocked runs today.
We’re fighting, nice drive! Gordon looks good.
Another muffed STs return. SMH
85 total passing yards for my guy Malik Willis, deep into the 4th quarter. SMH
Bell has to come down with that
YES
Thumbstache chose the wrong hole on that run
Defense is gassed. Vikings offense has had the ball 35 minutes so far to our 20 min.
After all of these decades, we still can’t defend against TEs.
Beer to you
Thanks, my Brother!
Every fan of every team says that. 😂
How many years has it been now that we can’t cover a TE?
HAHA! BEER!
Hockenson has 11 rec on 11 targets.
I don’t get the TO.
I’m sorry, how did Hafley not have at least two defenders on Fucking Hockenson??? That’s crazy shit to me. He’s caught 12 passes and you leave him wide open??? How???
Damn, make that 13 rec on 13 targets.
Getting closer but Willis just doesn’t look like the answer. Not a huge fan of Manning tbh. Not sure who I’d like yet, but Mensah has looked pretty damn good, but I want to see how he does against Notre Dame. Chambliss is interesting if not too small. Not at impressed by Sellers anymore.
I was never impressed by Sellers
His first real year looked like he could improve into a great QB if he wanted to. That hasn’t happened.
Vikings are going to be 4-0 and have only scored 1 offensive TD this season. They might score one here though.
Oh well! I’m seeing some good signs though.
Can’t blame the defense. They were on the field for 39:11 and only gave up 15 points.
Agreed on that point, but we still don’t have anybody who can successfully cover a TE.
True.
I still 100% believe dude did not tip that punt to negate that roughing call. We didn’t see it definitively on the reply, how could the people in the booth change that call. Gave the Vikings 3 points and possibly took points away from us as we would have had first down on the 45 yard line.
at least we got some sacks
Jacob Rodriguez had 18 tackles today
M – on the last Hock catch, there was non one near him. That’s not no one CAN cover him, that’s no one TRIED to cover him
I agree with the comments ,,
defense played well except coverage on Hoch
special teams SUCK
Willis does not look like the answer so far
run game is looking okay when we stick with it ..
and: we take way too many real and phantom penalties
I saw effort…that’s all I really wanted to see. If they keep that up for 17 games….especially if we’re losing a lot, it’s a good start.
Good thing is we were right there with one of the better teams in the NFL, and if a couple if things went our way, and I mean real close things that truly could have gone either way, we could have won this one. I still think it’s too early on Willis, but agree he hasn’t looked special other than his escapability.
It is hard to gauge him with no Achane, no Caleb Douglas and not very good pass protection.
I agree, which is why it’s too early
BBM is having a moment of homerism. One Edge who is really under the radar is Indiana’s Edge Stephen Daley. He led the NCAA in tackles for loss with 19 and had 5.5 sacks last year. He is a big athletic Edge at 6’1, 273 and a superb run defender. He has only been able to play in the last 3 games when they finally got his eligibility approved. In those 3 games he has 15 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 3 sacks and 2 forced fumbles.
He would be a good day 3 edge to draft if you are doubling down there.
Our high SOS still hurts our draft status as we remain with the 5th overall pick.
On the good side, it helps with the playoff standings and we are only 6 spots (2 games) out of the last WC spot.
Updated Tankathon has us taking #5 QB Mensah, #36 WR KJ Duff, #67 Edge Umanmeilen.
I think you need to go OT at #36
100% agreed. If we go BPA in round 1, we MUST address RT at R2P36.
My bad… OT @ R2P36. Darth Paul isn’t exactly looking like a franchise LT thus far.
PP is fine, there’s just too much overall dysfunction right now
positives are we’re staying in games, some individual players are standing out
watching the entire game is too much right now, not too much matters, other than what I stated above
too many guys with their heads up their asses, we need to play clean from a mental standpoint
Marshall with his retarded attempt to run with the muffed punt in the EZ stands out as bad coaching meets a player, that doesn’t know the rules. Seriously, how can these guys make it to the NFL and not know basic rules?
its not just our players, saw a similar play in Bills Pats game on a punt touched by the kicking team. I played all the STs, day 1 they played out the basic few rules, not sure why these pro athletes don’t know them
PP is NOT “just fine” and his mistakes are HIS not caused by “overall dysfunction”. The TRUTH is HE IS ADDING to the overall dysfunction, not visa versa.
You guys truly don’t believe that Kadyn Proctor won’t be the RT next season? Am I the only person who is practically positive he will be?
Not sure but I am drafting an OT regardless. We at least need solid depth. Someone who can play inside or outside like Carter Smith or Trevor Lauck just to name 2.
If you moved Proctor to RT, Indiana LT Carter Smith would be great to move into LG. Cayden Green from Missouri and Austin Siereveld could also move inside. Those last 2 are some big beefy OT’s.
Dang, I still can’t believe we were 1″ from Bell’s toe not being out of bounds and winning that game.
I thought our TOP was lopsided. Bears had the ball for 42:45 and the Jets only 17:15.
lol
If you look at the 4th quarter our TOP was 1minute. Vikings held the ball 14 minutes.
bailbondmike
says:
October 4, 2026 at 7:35 pm
It is hard to gauge him with no Achane, no Caleb Douglas and not very good pass protection.
It is easy enough to see that he has bad habits that he does regardless of situation.
He throws off his back foot or off platform when he doesn’t need to. He need to be more disciplined and set his feet. He wings it when there is no pass rush causing him to get rid of it. His down field accuracy is among the worst in the league. (bottom 1/3rd) and it goes back to his poor mechanics.
bad habit he still has after 4+ years in the NFL
Willis is 58 of 103 for 712 yards with a 56 completion % and a 73 rating after a fourth of the season. He’s not an NFL starter.
And, I don’t think Proctor is an NFL tackle.
But but but the surrounding cast……
I agree with you.
Well, after 4 weeks our opponents are 15-1. That will not help our SOS. Those bums need to start losing! LOL
The Texans, Chargers, Bucs and Titans need to start WINNING. Damn it.
I do not want another Jake Long or Ronnie Brown pick next year.
I ridicule Brian Miller often enough, but I agree with this article.
https://phinphanatic.com/miami-dolphins-must-take-a-swing-at-qb-in-the-2027-draft-if-they-land-the-no-1-pick-01m3z6bxp721
It’s not all Willis just like it’s not all the OL. This team played hard yesterday. I was very happy to see it. I think somebody lit a fire under our pass rushing guys asses because they were playing harder than I’ve seen in a long time. I hope that continues and isn’t just a one game because we’re pissed blip.
And, I will say I watched Jonah make some nice plays. Both he and Proctor struggled at times, but Jonah looked better. We had some nice blocking on a couple A gap runs. A nice trap block here and there. Some good stuff.
Agreed
I think the Vikings bad O helped
It could NOT have helped their cause to lose their LG in the first quarter to a knee injury and then there starting LT in the 2nd quarter to a concussion / neck injury.
we play 1 step forward 2 steps back, after moving the ball we get a penalty, or a stupid WR stepping OB, then its compounded on ST with a penalty or long return given up
this team is playing in quicksand
and we can’t get a fair call from the zebras
and then there’s Jacob Rodriguez 🙇♂️ we are not worthy
Another Mock with trade down: (Trade 1st pick to Cleveland for 4th, 32nd, 36th, 68th)
4. Darian Mensah-QB Miami (FL)
D-
32. Zabien Brown-CB Alabama
B-
33. Melvin Siani-OT Texas
B+
36. Clev Lubin-EDGE Louisville
C
65. Luke Reynolds-TE Virginia Tech
C-
68. Koi Perich-S Oregon
C
100. Justice Haynes-RB Georgia Tech
C
139. Damon Wilson II-EDGE Miami (FL)
A-
153. Desmeal Leigh-OT Youngstown State
A
steve,
I think Sieler set a tone early. The OL hasn’t really been the issue with the Viking offense. They ended up playing backups on the left side for a lot of their game, but I think by then our pass rush had already shown they were bringing the pressure. It wasn’t a wow performance or anything, but it was good to see guys cared.
Again, gotta see it every week, but I can’t fault the effort in this game from the front guys. Some of the backups looked pretty bad. The starters looked better.
Yeah, like I said above they lost their LG in the 1st qtr and their LT in the 2nd. They played most of the game with their backups on the blind side.
rich,
Not a single Iowa player and zero Big Ten guys?!? I’m hurt, and I cannot endorse that draft. Lol
I really like Pieper, Lauck, and Lutmer.
Actually, Pieper went at pick #30, and Lutmer went at pick #31.
there are only 3 undefeated teams in the NFL right now
we played all 3 of them
the only team we lost to with a loss was the raiders who suffered there first loss yesterday against the undefeated chiefs
It’s probably a little piggy coping on my part – but we haven’t really played a tel with losses
the bengals have 2 straight losses
I think we can beat them
let’s go 🐬!
🐖🪓 was credited with 8 pressures yesterday
Pretty good day for him
Rich, I like it! Luke Reynolds looked good this weekend. I know nothing about the Youngstown State OT. I will have to check him out.
Not a single Iowa player and zero Big Ten guys
——-
Randy, I know it is hard to count those west coast teams as being in the Big Ten. lol
Safety Koi Perich from Oregon is Big Ten. His first 2 seasons were also at Minnesota. Also, not sure if it counts, TE Luke Reynolds was at Penn State the last 2 seasons before transferring to VT. Reynolds through 5 games at VT has exceeded his all his receiving #’s in his first 2 years at PSU.
BBM,
Dang, I did miss the Oregon guy. I definitely sometimes gloss over teams like Oregon or Washington and forget they’re in our conference.
I do the same
BBM’s Post Week 4 Mock Draft (Indiana homer draft). Still rebuilding so I traded down twice, first with the Jets (they took Jeremiah Smith).
8. Darian Mensah QB Miami (FL)
D-
12. Trevor Goosby OT Texas
A
18. Ashton Hampton CB Clemson
B
33. Nick Marsh WR Indiana B-
37. Kingston Lopa S California
C+
40. Clev Lubin EDGE Louisville
C
65. Trevor Lauck OT Iowa C-
119. DJ Vonnahme TE Iowa
B
139. Turbo Richard RB Indiana
153. Davaughn Patterson S Wake Forest B-
180. Tyrique Tucker DT Indiana A
223. Rolijah Hardy LB Indiana C
251. Stephen Daley DL/Edge Indiana
2028 NYJ 1st
2028 NYJ 5th
WTF, I posted my mock and it didn’t post.
Isn’t it funny how Joey Porter’s back injury cleared up right when he was traded? Sooooo odd. 🙄
Dolphins waive Carlos Washington.
Didn’t they just elevate him off of the practice squad last week? Did he play a snap yesterday?
oooooohhhh
They SIGNED him off the practice squad (so they could ELEVATE two other guys this week) They COULD have just elevated him, but they chose to sign him and waive him with the CHANCE he makes it through waivers to sign back on the practice squad so they could ELEVATE defensive lineman Mazi Smith and edge Rodney McGraw for the game.
Just watched the highlights, and something stuck out to me…
At one point late in the 2nd quarter, Malik Willis was 6/9 passing (67% completion), which is legit. After that, he went 3/8 (38% completion) for the rest of the game.
The game was relatively tight for all 60 minutes, so we didn’t abandon the run (good!), but it’s not like Malik started bombing deep, either… and I did only see one play where he tried to go deep to Chris Bell (incomplete) in the 2nd half.
Rockphin touched on it earlier regarding his bad mechanics. I mentioned it few weeks ago when he seemed to fade away on the completed bomb to Ryan Miller: what is that?
For as gifted as Malik is, he’s got to work on his mechanics and footwork.
I realize it’s not ALL Malik’s fault either when his receivers are blanketed in coverage and Awful Austin allows pass-rushers into his express lane, but he can certainly do better with his fundamentals.
I read somebody on X, stating that had Chris Bell not stepped out of bounds (only by an INCH!), Malik Willis would have had a passer rating over 100 (it was specific, like 103.2, but I don’t recall the exact number).
While that may be true, it doesn’t exactly exonerate Malik’s piss-poor afternoon. And I see many on X dissin’ Chris Bell for stepping out of bounds (again, by a mere INCH!)… he’s a ROOK! And it may have helped if Malik placed the ball just a bit better.
It’s not like Chris Bell prematurely ran the ball out of bounds like Brandon Marshall did when he played for us.
These are growing pains. Malik will get it down with his new receivers, and I’m sure Chris Bell was beating himself up over the step out-of-bounds yesterday.
I must say, I was MOST IMPRESSED by Ollie Gordon yesterday! Helluva game for him and hope he can build off of that. After yesterday’s game, the Vikings became the #7 run-Defense in the NFL. Don’t know what they were ranked before Gordon flashed. Probably top-5.
Former Dolphins first-round pick Kenneth Grant will return to practice on Wednesday, as he makes his way back from an undisclosed lower-body injury that has sidelined him for the first four games. Grant is eligible to come off injured reserve and play as early as next Sunday against visiting Cincinnati (1 p.m., Fox). Whether he will play will depend on how practice goes this week.
Once the second-year defensive lineman practices Wednesday, the Dolphins will have 21 days to activate him off injured reserve. “I’m excited to see where he’s at,” Hafley said.
Safety Dante Trader Jr. left in the second quarter with a knee injury, returned in the fourth but is not fully healthy. Hafley said he’s “day to day.”
Hafley was non-committal about whether receiver Caleb Douglas would return to practice this week after missing two games with an ankle injury. “We’ll see,” Hafley said. “I would not rule him out” for next Sunday.
Cornerback Reese Taylor, who left for good in the second quarter with a quadriceps injury, is likely out this week.
Will Kacmarek (24) and Greg Dulcich (20) had a combined 44 snaps yesterday. TE was targeted only twice, Kacmarek, for 1 completion of 15 yards.
That’s weird.
Especially, when they didn’t keep them in to pass pro or chip block much.
On how cornerback Chris Johnson played: “The last two weeks, he has shown me a lot. We used him inside a lot. I think he’s got a chance to be a really good nickel. And he plays outside for us too. He’s really physical with wideouts. “They tried to attack us on the perimeter quite a bit, and he made some really good tackles. He did a good job in man coverage yesterday. He has the ability to play in zones. He has the ability to do both, and I’m pleased where he’s at right now.”
▪ On Chop Robinson, who was credited by Next Gen Stats with 10 quarterback pressures (in addition to a sack): “There’s something to be said for getting into a rhythm, getting into a routine. His get-off was outstanding. He’s not just using his speed; he’s [using] speed to power. He’s starting to have more tools as a rusher. He’s physical in the run game, setting edges, getting off blocks. I was proud of him yesterday. In Green Bay [before the 2025 draft], the thing that intrigued us was his get off time was one of the best in years.”
▪ On linebacker Jacob Rodriguez and his 18-tackle game Sunday: “The game is slowing down for him. He’s got this relentless motor. Give credit to the defensive line; we played a lot of split safety defense. You’re short guys in the run game; you’re playing with a six man box. They’ve got to take on double teams. It’s impressive what they were able to do.”
On Rodney McGraw’s debut as a backup edge rusher: “McGraw almost had a sack. That’s a hard guy to sack [Kyler Murray]. He was inches away. When I thought he was going to get Kyler [Murray], that was a big play. I’m proud of the guy. We need to keep developing him.”
▪ On Zach Sieler’s value, even beyond the two sacks and good work Sunday: “To have a guy like that, around the youth of this team, he’s one of the best people ever. He does everything the right way, does everything for his teammates on and off the field.”
Hafley said “these vets” — he also mentioned center Aaron Brewer – are the “perfect examples” for the young guys about “how it should look.”