The Miami Dolphins have been one of the biggest disasters in the NFL this season, but they still found a way to embarrass the Atlanta Falcons in Week 8. Atlanta's 34-10 defeat saw Tua Tagovailoa turn in his best start of the season, while Mike McDaniel managed to save his job another week.
However, Week 9 told a vastly different story. On a short week, the Dolphins were demolished by the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday Night Football. After the 28-6 loss dropped Miami to 2-7, it was reported that the Dolphins were parting ways with general manager Chris Grier just days before the trade deadline.
This is the same team that made the Dirty Birds look like a pee wee squad less than a week ago. The Falcons couldn't move the ball on offense, and the offensive miscues did little to take pressure off of the defense.
That game was supposed to feel like a piece of cake, but Raheem Morris knows how to keep fans guessing with the inconsistency that's been on display this year.
Dolphins' decision to fire Chris Greer is making the Falcons look more pathetic than ever before
The most surprising part of his development is that McDaniel wasn't fired right alongside him, but knowing Stephen Ross, that'll come sooner rather than later. The part that's leaving the worst taste in fans' mouths is that this was a team the Falcons were clearly better than—even with Kirk Cousins starting.
Jeff Ulbrich's defense remains the best in the NFL, but even they couldn't stop a nosebleed against Miami. McDaniel's offense has only surpassed 27 points in one game this season, and that came in the Falcons' most pathetic loss of the season.
As bad as things looked in that 30-0 blowout back in Week 3, at least the Panthers are trotting out a respectable product on Sundays (aside from last weekend). Meanwhile, the Dolphins' only other victory this season came against the 1-7 Jets—a testament to how demoralizing last Sunday was.
Tagovailoa looked dysfunctional once again against a drastically under-performing Ravens defense, but don't let Baltimore's record fool you. They were starting Snoop Huntley and Cooper Rush while Lamar Jackson was injured, and the two-time MVP finally returned to the lineup on Thursday.
The worst part is that the Ravens ran for 150 yards against that porous run defense, while Bijan Robinson could get nothing going against that unit. Part of it was that Zac Robinson's game-plan has finally been figured out, but a generational RB should have been able to do enough to keep them in it.
It would be the most Falcons thing ever to snap the Patriots' winning streak this weekend after back-to-back games where they scored just 10 points. The offense reeks of ineptitude, and it's starting to expose just how bad things are in Atlanta—even if Dolphins fans were the ones wearing paper bags.
The bright side is maybe Terry Fontenot can try to strike a deal for Jaylen Waddle.