CarolCityHigh
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On a day that the Miami Dolphins publicly committed to Tua Tagovailoa as their quarterback in 2021, let’s be clear: He must perform at a higher level than he showed in the final two weeks of the season.
But to understand how handicapped Tagovailoa was by what surrounded him on the Dolphins offense, consider these final metrics, from my analysis of data from Pro Football Focus, Pro Football Reference, Next Gen Stats and Football Outsiders:
Dolphins players averaged just 4.4 yards after catch, which was 30th in the league. Among 197 NFL receivers, DeVante Parker’s 2.7 YAC, on average, was 173rd (and second-worst among players targeted with at least 100 passes, ahead of only Detroit’s Marvin Jones). Preston Williams was 177th in YAC at 2.5 before his season-ending foot injury. Isaiah Ford also was tied for 177th at 2.5.
Lynn Bowden was 107th at 4.2. Jakeem Grant was the only Dolphins receiver in the top-half of the league in average YAC at 5.1 per catch.
Then there’s the separation issue. So many of the passes delivered by Tagovailoa needed to be thrown into tight windows because Dolphins receivers weren’t getting open.
Parker’s 1.7 average yards of separation from the player covering him was tied with AJ Green for worst among receivers, and Mike Gesicki’s 2.0 was worst among tight ends. The numbers for the rest of his receivers and tight ends were average to below average.
The result was that Tagovailoa threw into tight coverage (where a defender was within one yard of the receiver at the time of the completion or incompletion) on 20.3 percent of his throws. Among quarterbacks who made at least eight starts, only Mitch Trubisky and Joe Burrow threw into tight windows more often. Ryan Fitzpatrick was a 21.7 percent.
And there’s this: Dolphins receivers dropped 18 of Tagovailoa’s passes. No quarterback who threw such few passes (290) had as many dropped. Conversely, Dolphins players dropped 14 passes thrown by Fitzpatrick. Miami had the sixth most drops in the league, per stats.com.
OT: Phins need to... (247sports.com)
But to understand how handicapped Tagovailoa was by what surrounded him on the Dolphins offense, consider these final metrics, from my analysis of data from Pro Football Focus, Pro Football Reference, Next Gen Stats and Football Outsiders:
WIDE RECEIVERS
Dolphins receivers achieved an ignominious double/double of ranking among the worst in the league in both yards after catch and separation gained from opposing defensive backs when they ran routes.Dolphins players averaged just 4.4 yards after catch, which was 30th in the league. Among 197 NFL receivers, DeVante Parker’s 2.7 YAC, on average, was 173rd (and second-worst among players targeted with at least 100 passes, ahead of only Detroit’s Marvin Jones). Preston Williams was 177th in YAC at 2.5 before his season-ending foot injury. Isaiah Ford also was tied for 177th at 2.5.
Lynn Bowden was 107th at 4.2. Jakeem Grant was the only Dolphins receiver in the top-half of the league in average YAC at 5.1 per catch.
Then there’s the separation issue. So many of the passes delivered by Tagovailoa needed to be thrown into tight windows because Dolphins receivers weren’t getting open.
Parker’s 1.7 average yards of separation from the player covering him was tied with AJ Green for worst among receivers, and Mike Gesicki’s 2.0 was worst among tight ends. The numbers for the rest of his receivers and tight ends were average to below average.
The result was that Tagovailoa threw into tight coverage (where a defender was within one yard of the receiver at the time of the completion or incompletion) on 20.3 percent of his throws. Among quarterbacks who made at least eight starts, only Mitch Trubisky and Joe Burrow threw into tight windows more often. Ryan Fitzpatrick was a 21.7 percent.
And there’s this: Dolphins receivers dropped 18 of Tagovailoa’s passes. No quarterback who threw such few passes (290) had as many dropped. Conversely, Dolphins players dropped 14 passes thrown by Fitzpatrick. Miami had the sixth most drops in the league, per stats.com.
OT: Phins need to... (247sports.com)
