The Miami Dolphins are staring down the barrel of deep despair.
Tua Tagovailoa and the Dolphins‘ woeful 2025 NFL campaign has continued after they were blown out 28-6 by the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday Night Football.
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Tagovailoa and the Fins’ awful season was laid bare for all to see on prime time footballCredit: Getty
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McDaniel was left furious by his Dolphins after they suffered a 28-6 loss to the Baltimore RavensCredit: X/ @AryePulliNFL
Miami Dolphins 2025 season (2-7)
Remaining Games
Week 10 – v Buffalo Bills
Week 11 – v Washington Commanders (Madrid)
Week 12 – Bye
Week 13 – v New Orleans Saints
Week 14 – @ New York Jets
Week 15 – @ Pittsburgh Steelers
Week 16 – v Cincinnati Bengals
Week 17 – v Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Week 18 – @ New England Patriots
Miami head coach Mike McDaniel – whose job is very much under fire – was visibly animated at his team throughout the contest as Tagovailoa registered a 70.9 passer rating after throwing for 261 yards for zero touchdowns and an interception on the night.
At the moment the Dolphins look more likely to be picking in the top five of next season’s NFL Draft, than finding a return to form.
That has already promoted questions about a reset, at both coach and quarterback in the offseason, after general manager Chris Grier paid the price on Friday.
While the inquest continues and attention turns to the rest of the season, McDaniel remains steadfast in his belief that his message is getting through.
“It’s something that occurs really every year to a degree, but it’s frustrating as all get out because you’re trying to focus on it and you’re doing different things to problem-solve it,” he said.
“In my position, I’m not afforded the opportunity to have emotions all the time. It’s frustrating, but I can’t stop. I have to continue to try to focus on ways to reach people and get things done because it can’t occur.”
Thursday Night Football goes south as heads roll
It didn’t take long for heads to roll as Grier, who had been with the organization in some capacity since 2000, is out in what was described as a mutual parting of the ways.
“As I assessed the state of the team and in my discussions with Chris, it became clear to both of us that change could not wait,” Miami owner Stephen Ross said in a statement on Friday. “We must improve — in 2025, 2026 and beyond — and it needs to start right now.”
Barely anything went the Dolphins’ way on Thursday night, as McDaniel called it “self-inflicted wounds” after halftime on Amazon Prime’s broadcast. “We can’t play against two teams, we have to play against one.”
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Mike McDaniel could not hide his emotions as the Dolphins fall to 2-7 on the seasonCredit: X/ @SMHighlights1
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Jackson (4TDs) and the Ravens posted a dominant performanceCredit: Getty
At one point in the game, he was seen taking off his headset in disgust and furiously firing off an expletive down the sidelines, though he later revealed that he was “irate at nothing but ourself.“
Even when $212.4 million Tagovailoa got the ball moving down field, things turned sour pretty quickly after a 36-yard pass to Jaylen Waddle was negated after running back Ollie Gordon II was incorrectly called for tripping, leaving him irate on the sidelines.
But the story of the night – and of the season – was Tagovailoa’s inability to find his teammates in critical down situations, just providing more leverage for those who believe Miami has a huge culture problem.
On a 4th & 2 with 1:07 on the clock in the second quarter and trailing 14-6, the Dolphins offense opted to stay out instead of attempting to kick a field goal which would have cut the deficit to five points.
The 2023 Pro Bowler attempted to throw a fade route to a 5-foot-9 De’Von Achane who was closely covered by 6-foot-4 Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton, and it went about as well as you’d expect – with the ball being overthrown and landing outside of the end zone after Achane cut the route short.
This play in particular left McDaniel visibly speechless, whilst boos from the fans in Hard Rock Stadium continued to grow louder in the third quarter when Tagovailoa missed a check down on 3rd & 17 from the Dolphins’ own six-yard line.
For now, it appears that McDaniel is safe with NFL insider Adam Schefter claims that he will remain head coach “for the remainder of the season at least.”
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Dolphins fans donned brown paper bags over their faces in shameCredit: X/ @UnderdogNFLTagovailoa blames Ravens fans
As the Ravens, ignited by the return of two-time NFL MVP Lamar Jackson, who had 218 total yards and four touchdowns with a passer rating of 143.2, cruised to victory, Tagovailoa refused to take accountability for his team’s woeful performance.
Instead, the quarterback who could yet be axed blamed the Ravens fans that were inside the stadium for being too loud and interfering with his play-calling.
“The Ravens fans, it maybe got a little muffled with my cadence and the crowdnoise. So, we kinda talked about that on the sideline after and got that corrected,” Tagovailoa said.
But it wasn’t just his own fans – with many of them seen wearing brown paper bags over their heads – that Tagovailoa threw under the bus for allowing the visiting fans to take over, he also fired some blame to two of his teammates, a trend that has occurred in recent weeks.
Speaking about Malik Washington and Tahj Washington who each had a lost fumble on the night, the former Alabama quarterback said: “They know they got to hold onto the ball just like any of the guys that are ball carriers, even myself.
“I know I got to protect the ball. They know the same thing. So, it’s not about reminding them that, like, hey, you can’t do that.
“Just continuing to encourage them, keep them encouraged, keep their mindset going in the game.”
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