The Good

Outside of a 72-yard TD catch by Tyler Boyd, the Dolphins defense was monstrous. The Bengals had 196 total yards and only ran for 40 yards. Cincinnati had -4 yards in the 3rd quarter and almost no yards in the entire second half. The Dolphins had 6 sacks and 2 interceptions. Kyle Van Noy (3 sacks) and Shaq Lawson (2 sacks) in particular were on fire. Xavien Howard brought in his league leading 8th interception. But I was most impressed by the Dolphins having 11 tackles for loss and completely shutting down the Bengals running game.

2nd Half Tua, please let's see more of this. In the second half, Tua looked decisive and was able to move the chains consistently. It only translated to 13 points in the 2nd half, but the difference in play was remarkable.

The running game was productive enough. I can live with 110 yards on 28 carries. Myles Gaskin looked decisive in and out of the hole, but did have one fumble.

The Bad

1st Half Tua, please go away. No more. Thank you.

The Ugly

We almost had an all-out brawl on the field and Brian Flores may have been leading the way on that while standing up for Jakeem Grant, who was illegally hit by Mike Thomas while trying to field a punt. It was nice to see a head coach with balls for once, but we also need one that maintains his cool.

Overall

The Dolphins are well-positioned to make the playoffs, sitting at 8-4 (their best record since 2003) and deep in the thick of the wildcard race.... except for the fact that they play the defending Superbowl champs, the surging Patriots, the competitive Raiders and the tough rival Bills over the next four weeks. The Dolphins will need to buck up significantly, in stopping the run, in moving the ball and in a lot of other areas to make the playoffs. 2nd half Tua will need to stay permanently. There are no gimmes.

I personally think the Dolphins will fall short. Despite their record, the talent flaws on this team are apparent and good teams will exploit them. Here is to hoping I am wrong.