The Dolphins’ defense is among the NFL’s worst in two major stats, with a simple explanation but no easy fix amid a brand new secondary

"We've got to win early downs. We've got to play better, we've got to be better as a unit. We've got to stop them on 1st & 2nd downs to (get better opportunities) on third down," said defensive tackle Zach Sieler after the game.

They absolutely do. Miami ranks T-31st in the NFL in third down defense through the second Sunday of the 2025 season — they're allowing 51.9% of their third downs on defense to be converted for a fresh set of downs. That's tied with Dallas, with only Houston sporting a worse mark. Houston, by the way, plays tonight and has a chance to move ahead of the Dolphins and Cowboys in that regard. When Miami does force opponents into fourth downs, it hasn't mattered. Miami has not generated a single stop on fourth down through two games — the Patriots and Colts went four for four, plus a fresh set of downs for running into the punter in Week 1.

As a result of all of those fresh sets of downs, Miami's defense through two games is averaging more than 36 minutes of game clock on the field. 36 minutes and 14 seconds on average, which is dead last among NFL teams. Among franchises that have played two games thus far, no other team is within a minute and a half of Miami's lopsided mark.

The key here, as Sieler outlined, is to win more on early downs. The Dolphins were excruciatingly soft in coverage while flying blind into Week 1. They appeared moderately better in Week 2, but the new pieces of a completely remodeled secondary are going to continue to take time. There's no rest for the weary — as Miami hits the road for Buffalo on Thursday night. That's not the team you want to see amid these kinds of issues.

The Dolphins' defense has faced 27 third down opportunities through two games. The average yardage to gain across those 27 snaps is 6.04 yards. 15 of those opportunities have come with five or less yards to go and only six snaps have come with 10+ yards needed. Miami's four fourth down snaps have required an average of two yards needed. This is not conducive to generating stops. Consider the yardage to gain distribution through two games:

• Third/Fourth and short (1-3 yards needed): 15
• Third/Fourth and medium (4-6 yards needed): 6
• Third/Fourth and long (7-10 yards needed): 7
• Third/Fourth and extra (11+ yards needed): 3

The corresponding conversion rates tell the story you need to know. 80% of short yard conversion attempts have been successful. 67% of medium conversion attempts have been successful. 20% of the long & extra conversion attempts have been successful.

If the Dolphins defense wants less time on the field and more time on the sideline, they need to earn it on first and second downs instead. Without a change there, fans are going to continue to wonder where names like Sieler, Bradley Chubb, Chop Robinson, Jaelan Phillips, and others are at with their impact of the game — they need better communication from their friends on the back end in addition to their own better execution up front on a fresh set of downs.

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