Lack of execution? Caught looking ahead? Reaction after the Dolphins’ late-game collapse

The Titans had just unraveled.

The Dolphins had just unveiled their latest celebration dance moments earlier, doing a group “wheelbarrow” in the end zone.

Monday night’s game and another key win in Miami’s chase for the AFC East crown and the top spot in the conference appeared to be in the bag.

Until it wasn’t.

It took just four minutes and 34 seconds — the time remaining after Raheem Mostert scored the second of two consecutive rushing touchdowns — for the Dolphins to collapse even worse than the Titans had moments earlier and suffer one of their most disappointing losses in years.

According to ESPN Stats and Info, the Dolphins were the first team in 767 NFL games to lose after leading by 14 points with less than three minutes remaining in regulation.

Why did the Dolphins fall apart?

“They made a couple of plays and on a couple of plays we weren’t as crisp on our execution,” Dolphins cornerback Jalen Ramsey said. “Football, man. It’s going to happen sometimes. We try to limit it as much as we can. We played well for the majority of the game, but we have to play better in those final three minutes to close things out.”

Ramsey attributed lack of execution down the stretch.

Linebacker Bradley Chubb didn’t disagree. But perhaps there was a bit of looking ahead by a team that would have been sitting at the top of the AFC with a victory that Chubb thinks the Dolphins might have already taken a bit for granted once ahead 27-13.

“When you see a goal ahead of you, cruise control is a natural instinct,” Chubb said. “We just have to find ways to not be in that mode at all and attack every game and every play like we want to be champions.

“We probably let our foot off the gas a little bit. No team is going to do that and we have to be all on one and not let our foot off the gas until the clock hits zero.”

Playing short-handed on both sides of the ball didn’t help.

The Dolphins, who were already playing without left tackle Terron Armstead, lost center Connor Williams in the first half to a knee injury. Miami struggled with pass protection throughout the game as evident on the game-sealing sack of Tua Tagovailoa, one of five it allowed.

On defense, the Dolphins were already without safety Jevon Holland and lost safety DeShon Elliott, who left the game in the second quarter with a rib injury, returned and then left again just after Chubb recovered a fumble with 5:28 left in the fourth that led to Mostert’s second touchdown.

Miami Dolphins defensive tackle Christian Wilkins (94) leaves the field after losing his NFL game against the Tennessee Titans at Hard Rock Stadium on Monday, Dec. 11, 2023, in Miami Gardens, Fla.

“I felt like in the secondary we were still locked in. It’s just some execution things is what it was,” Ramsey said. “I just have to continue doing what I do, maybe squeeze in tighter…It’s just fixing the little things and going back to execution. Maybe that’s being more detailed in our work and our communication. We were down a couple of guys but I don’t like making excuses.”

The Titans marched 75 yards on nine plays and gave themselves a chance by scoring before the two-minute warning on Will Levis’ 3-yard touchdown pass to Deandre Hopkins with 2:40 left. Twice on the drive, the Dolphins allowed big chunk plays in the secondary as Tyjae Spears picked up 21 yards on a second-and-15 and later Nick Westbrook-Ikhine caught a 23-yarder down the sideline from Levis setting up the Hopkins touchdown on the next play. The Dolphins couldn’t stop the Titans from picking up a two-point conversion as Westbrook-Ikhine was left wide open.

“They just executed and came out slinging the ball and made some plays,” Andrew Van Ginkel said. “We couldn’t make enough plays to get them off the field.”

Unable to pick up a first down, the Dolphins were forced to punt, giving the ball back to Tennessee still before the two-minute warning with 2:15 left.

It only took four plays this time as Hopkins slipped behind the defense and gained 36 yards to the Miami 28. Levis followed with a 16-yard pass over the middle to tight end Chig Okonkwo.

Two plays later, Derrick Henry scored to give the Titans the lead for good with 1:49 left.

“I think we’re gonna learn from this and come together and ultimately it will bring us closer as a team and we can use it as momentum going forward,” Van Ginkel said. “Football is a humbling sport and you can never get too high or too low.”

The Dolphins still control their own destiny as far as securing the top spot in the AFC if they win their remaining four games, which includes a Dec. 31 game at frontrunning Baltimore, the team that now leads Miami by one game.

But the Dolphins made the degree of difficulty of accomplishing that goal much tougher after Monday’s game slipped away.

“We can learn a lot. The NFL season is week by week,” Chubb said. “We have to wipe it off and come back against a division opponent that wants to ruin our playoff chances. All these guys have the same mind-set so it won’t be hard to lock in.”