Dolphin Position Group Breakdown in Loss to 49ers

The Miami Dolphins fell to the San Francisco 49ers, 35-13, in week two. Here’s a breakdown of each position group and their performance (or lack thereof).

Position Group and Performance

Quarterback – Malik Willis led the offense, but the passing game struggled to sustain momentum against San Francisco’s defense as the team fell behind. One big late game pass padded his stats (77 yard TD reception)

Running Backs – Jaylen Wright left the game in the first half with a stinger, limiting the rushing attack’s depth as Miami struggled to stay multi-dimensional. De’Von Achane doubled his rushing from week 1.

Wide Receivers – Caleb Douglas (who matched Tyreek Hill’s debut numbers earlier) left in the second half with an ankle injury after being a primary target. Ryan Miller came off the bench and hauled in a 77-yard touchdown, his first score as a Dolphin.

Offensive Line – Faced heavy pressure and struggled to establish consistent early-down yardage, forcing the offense into predictable passing situations.

Defensive Line/ Edge – Played without Chop Robinson (inactive) and elevated Clelin Ferrell and Max Llewellyn from the practice squad, but had difficulty containing Brock Purdy and the 49ers’ ground game.

Linebackers – Played down bodies with Ronnie Harrison Jr. placed on injured reserve, leaving the middle of the field vulnerable to Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle.

Secondary – Allowed quick, efficient completions to 49ers pass-catchers and gave up too much cushion on early routes, leading to scoring drives. Brock Purdy gave Malik Willis a Master Class on how to run the West Coast offense.

Special Teams – Woe is me. Missed field goals, dropped snap on punt giving the 49ers great field position all game long.

It will be a long week of fixing more problems and tweaking the offense and hopefully Offensive Coordinator Bobby Slowik can improve Malik Willis’ game before the Kansas City Chiefs come to town on Sunday.