November 3, 2020
The Dolphins defense has been downright nasty over the three-game winning streak. Allowing 11.3 points per game with eight takeaways, 10 sacks and a third-down conversion rate against of just 25 percent, the Dolphins are top five in the league in each of those categories between Weeks 5-8.
Today on The Blitz, we'll hear from safety Bobby McCain on the formula for playing winning football and why that mindset is so crucial going forward.
Here's what's happening today in Davie.
Injury Report
The first injury report for the Week 9 Dolphins-Cardinal game will be available Wednesday.
They Said It
Bobby McCain has played more games as a Miami Dolphin than anybody else on the 2020 roster. A fifth-round pick out of Memphis in 2015, McCain's work habits and daily approach for growth have helped him go from Day 3 draft choice to quarterback of the NFL's top-ranked scoring defense.
"We're excited because know the preparation we put in each and every day," McCain said. "Going out and having that performance, it shows the hard work pays off."
One area the hard work is paying off is defending the deep part of the field (more on that in the stat of the day). Monday, McCain explained the ripple effect of shutting down the deep passing game.
"Defending the deep part of the field is one of the pillars of this defense," McCain said. "If you can do that, keep the ball in front of you and make tackles, that will make you play a lot better as a defense."
Around the Beat
Peter King has the Dolphins in the top 10 in his Week 8 power rankings. He had plenty of praise to give Miami in his Football Morning In America piece.
How do you pick one Dolphin defender after seven different Dolphins took turns dominating the game and taking it over in the second quarter in south Florida Sunday? The Rams were up 7-0 late in the first quarter when Wilkins picked off a Jared Goff pass; Tua Tagovailoa's first NFL TD pass came moments later. Then Ogbah striped Goff, and Van Ginkel returned it 78 yards for a score. Then theJakeem Grantpunt return for touchdown. Then the Lawson forced fumble, and Van Noy running it back 28 yards to the Rams' 1. Yikes. What a quarter of football. The Miami defense is really good.
Dolphins On Social
On this Day in Dolphins History
November 3, 2019 – The Dolphins register the first win under Head Coach Brian Flores with a 26-18 victory over the New York Jets. Miami's defense held the Jets to 321 yards of total offense and only 5-of-14 third down conversion attempts. Since that game, the Dolphins have a winning record of 9-7.
Stat of the Day
Since Week 5, the Dolphins defense hasn't allowed a completion on a pass with 20 more intended air yards. Jimmy Garappolo, C.J. Beathard, Joe Flacco and Jared Goff combined to go 0-for-14 on deep throws against the Dolphins defense, per Pro Football Focus.
Content On Tap
The latest episode of the Fish Tank is now available. Seth and O.J. catch up with former Dolphins linebacker A.J. Duhe.
Dolphins Today is back as Johanna gets you caught up on the latest from Davie on MiamiDolphins.com and the team's YouTube channel.
Drive Time with Travis Wingfield returns today with the all-22 review from the 28-17 win over the Rams, a deep dive inside the numbers and audio from the Miami coordinators and offensive assistants.
As always, we'll recap the day on Top News.
