Miami Dolphins’ skinny secondary uncovered in loss to Colts

INDIANAPOLIS — On the final play of the first quarter during Sunday’s game between the Miami Dolphins and Indianapolis Colts, Dolphins linebacker Jaelan Phillips sprinted past Colts right tackle Braden Smith and forced quarterback Daniel Jones to shuffle around him — and right into the path of linebacker Bradley Chubb.

Chubb brought Jones down for Miami’s first sack of the season, breathing life into a Dolphins defense that was hemorrhaging yards to that point.

On the next play, Phillips was just 1.6 yards from Jones when he released a pass, according to NFL Next Gen Stats; it didn’t stop Jones from hitting a wide-open Michael Pittman Jr. in stride for a 27-yard touchdown.

The two-play stretch was a microcosm of one of the most glaring concerns about the Dolphins’ defense in 2025: How will their completely rebuilt secondary hold up if their pass rush doesn’t get home?

Early returns from Week 1 weren’t good. The Colts beat the Dolphins 33-8, with Jones passing for 272 yards and the one TD.

“I think there was a lot of preparation for Week 1, and I don’t think it looked like it,” Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said. “What does that mean? That means that guys let Week 1 and the bells and whistles of the season starting get the best of them. My job is to prevent that. I did my best — not good enough.”

The Dolphins pressured Jones on eight of his 33 dropbacks but failed to disrupt the quarterback beyond Chubb’s sack. Jones completed 5-of-6 passes when pressured for 72 yards and a touchdown; according to NFL Next Gen Stats, he finished with a completion percentage over expectation of +16%.

He was also surgical when Miami failed to pressure him, completing 17-of-23 passes for 198 yards. Overall, Jones finished 22 of 29 and had a QBR of 87.6.

Chubb said the Colts didn’t necessarily take them by surprise, even in Jones’ team debut, but attributed Miami’s loss to its defense not playing as a cohesive unit.

“They did a lot of the same things we thought was going to happen,” Chubb said. “Us making up our own stuff, not communicating as well as we could have (is why we lost). So at the end of the day, it’s just about learning from it and build it from it and on to next week.”

The Dolphins’ cornerbacks room sustained myriad injuries this summer and entered the season thin after Ethan Bonner suffered a hamstring injury late in the preseason. They signed veteran Rasul Douglas on Aug. 27, but Bonner and fellow former UDFA Storm Duck are the only active returning cornerbacks from a season ago.

Duck had a strong training camp and earned the start Sunday but allowed three catches for 51 yards and a touchdown on four targets — good for a perfect 156.2 passer rating. He injured his ankle in the third quarter and didn’t return, forcing Douglas into action.

Cornerback Jack Jones, who signed with the team in early August, started opposite Duck and allowed three receptions for 48 yards on five targets. He said games like Sunday’s loss happen and wasn’t concerned about Miami’s ability to bounce back as its secondary continues to jell.

“We’ve got the players, and we got the mindset,” Jones said. “We’ve been doing this all training camp, so I mean it ain’t nothing new. It’s part of the game, you know what I’m saying? We’re going against good teams every week, so we’ve got to learn how to watch the film, get better, move forward and make our plays that come to us.”