Dolphins vs. Rams final score and immediate reactions

The Miami Dolphins and Los Angeles Rams met in the Week 10 Monday Night Football finale. The game was not always crisp and clean from an offensive point of view, but the defenses had a field day of turnovers and pressure.

Miami’s offense was able to put together shining moments, more of them than the Rams could, and pulled away for the win. The victory keeps Miami’s slim playoff hopes alive, improving them to 3-6 on the season and out of the AFC East division basement.

The Rams fell to 4-5 on the year as their three-game winning streak was snapped.

You can find out immediate reactions from through the game below.

Final Score

Dolphins 23 – 15 Rams

Immediate Reactions

First Quarter

Miami opened the game on offense, needing to make an immediate statement with a fast start. A pass from quarterback Tua Tagovailoa to wide receiver Jaylen Waddle for 19 yards on the first play. Three plays later, on 3rd-and-13, Tagovailoa scrambled away from pressure and connected with Waddle again, this time for 36 yards. Wide receiver Malik Washington took a toss on an end-around for the 18-yard touchdown. Dolphins 7-0.

Defensive tackle Zach Sieler set the defensive tone on the first Rams play; quarterback Matthew Stafford looked to running back Kyren Williams on a pass in the flat, but Sieler read it perfectly and immediately hit the running back for a 10-yard loss. Two plays later and the Rams were forced to punt on a three-and-out.

The Dolphins would match the three-and-out on three-straight incomplete passes. The offense looked completely out of synch on the possession, with Tagovailoa targeting Waddle and tight end Jonnu Smith on the first two throws, but neither target looking for the ball before the pass hit the ground.

Miami’s defense would prove to be too much for the Rams on their second possession, giving up a yard to Williams on a run before defensive tackle Calais Campbell tipped the ball at the line of scrimmage – with the Rams lucky wide receiver Puka Nacua was able to do enough to stop linebacker Jordyn Brooks from picking off the deflected ball. On 3rd-and-9, rookie linebacker Chop Robinson sacked Stafford to force the punt. The Dolphins defense is clearly looking to make a statement in the game.

After a Miami punt, the Rams found their first offensive success, picking up 16 yards on five plays before Campbell tipped his second pass of the game, with linebacker Anthony Walker, Jr., diving to make the interception. The Dolphins defense really has come out to play. As the first quarter ends, Miami’s offense has 103 total yards, while the Lions have 19.

Second Quarter

Miami appeared set to add another touchdown to the scoreboard with the starting position near midfield, but a 3rd-and-3 pass to Waddle down the sideline went straight through the receiver’s hands and Miami had to settle for a 50-yard field goal. Dolphins 10-0.

The game got sloppy after the field goal. The Rams would pick up a first down on their possession, but a sack on 3rd-and-7, with Campbell getting to Stafford, forced a punt.

Two plays later, Tagovailoa threw an interception on a throw off his back foot, only to have the Rams’ Williams fumble the ball on the next play and Miami recovering.

Four plays later, Tagovailoa was sacked, with the Rams’ rookie edge rusher Jared Verse getting to Miami’s quarterback, stripping the ball, and recovering the fumble.

Three straight possessions that ended with a turnover. A bad stretch of offensive football – or maybe a really good stretch from the defenses of both teams.

The Rams ended the turnover streak with a 20-yard drive over six plays ending with a field goal. Dolphins 10-3.

Miami began their drive at the 30 yard line, with Hill catching a crossing pass for six yards, followed by an Achane run up the middle for six yards. After Hill took an end-around for five yards, Tagovailoa held the ball far too long as he tried to avoid pressure and took a 15-yard sack. A screen pass to Achane picked up eight yards on 3rd-and-20, leading to a Miami punt. That sack was unacceptable; Tagovailoa had plenty of time to get rid of the ball, but he kept trying to spin away from pressure, which only made it worse.

The Rams had just three first downs entering the possession, but they were able to pick up four of them on the two-minute drive, keeping the Dolphins defense on the field in a hurry-up mode. At the Miami 44-yard line, however, linebacker Quinton Bell was able to get to Stafford on a blindside blitz. Three plays later, the Rams settled for a field goal as the clock reached halftime. Dolphins 10-6.

Halftime Thoughts

The Dolphins’ defense is crushing the Rams in this game. Calais Campbell is dominating right now, and the rest of the defense is following behind him. They are just not giving the Rams much of anything. Before the 54-yard drive to end the half, the Rams had 52 total yards. If the defense can come back out and keep up the pressure on Stafford and bottle up Williams, the Rams will not be able to stay in this game.

Of course, Los Angeles has had success in bottling up the Dolphins offense as well. After a first-drive touchdown, the Dolphins have made bad mistakes and let the Rams hang around. Miami’s offense needs to get back into rhythm and add points quickly. Los Angeles has done a great job of stuffing the Miami run for the most part, but the Dolphins still have 51 yards on the ground with an average of 4.3 yards per carry. The Dolphins can find success, they just have to keep it going.

Get back to running the ball, and stay away from the screen passes that are not working.

Third Quarter

Starting with the ball in the second half, Los Angeles found success they did not have in the first half. Williams picked up nine yards followed by three yards on the first two plays before Stafford threw to Nacua for 17 yards. Another run from Williams gained eight yards, keeping the pressure on the Dolphins’ defense. Two plays later, however, a bad snap led to a loss of 13 yards and a 3rd-and-21. After a pass to Nacua for five yards, the Rams appeared to settle for a 52-yard field goal, but a false start on the kick backed up the try to a 57-yarder and the ball flew wide right. Miami got lucky with the self-inflicted erros by the Rams – they cannot count on that for the rest of the game. Now the offense needs to put some points on the board and get their rhythm back.

The Dolphins’ offense did exactly that. A run from Achane for two yards, followed by a pass to tight end Jonnu Smith for 10 yards moved Miami across midfield and into Rams territory. Three plays later, Tagovailoa threw a short pass to Smith, who bounced off a couple of tackle attempts and wove down to the one-yard line. After a timeout, Tagovailoa faked the handoff, which freed Hill in the front of the endzone by himself, leading to a completed pass and a touchdown. That looked much better from the Miami offense – but now they need it to be more than just the first drive of the half like what happened in the first half. Dolphins 17-6.

The Rams started the drive with an incompletion before two passes to wide receiver Cooper Kupp, gaining 23 yards on the plays and converting their first third down of the game. After a couple of deeper passes kept the ball moving, Williams was stopped on 2nd-and-5 for a two-yard loss. On the 3rd-and-7 play, Miami safety Jevón Holland blitzed and got to Stafford for the sack. Just after the quarter ended, Los Angeles kicked another field goal. Dolphins 17-9.

Fourth Quarter

Miami started their possession and their own 30 yard line, but received a free 15 yards on an unnecessary roughness penalty after an incomplete pass when Rams defensive lineman Bobby Brown headbutted Dolphins guard Liam Eichenberg. Miami moved the ball into Rams territory two plays later on a five-yard run from Achane. A 10-yard pass from Tagovailoa to Achane followed, before an incomplete pass set up a 2nd-and-10 at the Los Angeles 38-yard line. Tagovailoa held the ball too long, again, taking another sack, this time for a nine-yard loss that appeared to knock the team out of field goal range. On 3rd-and-19, the pressure immediately reached Tagovailoa, but he side stepped it, rolled out and found running back Raheem Mostert as he ran up the sideline, picking up 25 yards and the first down. They would only gain three yards on the next three plays, leading to a 37-yard field goal from kicker Jason Sanders. Dolphins 20-9.

Los Angeles is clearly in chunk-play mode at this point, needing to score quickly so they can try to make a comeback. They opened the drive with a 19-yard pass to Kupp, followed by a short pass for five yards to tight end Davis Allen. Cornerback Kader Kohou was injured on the Allen reception, giving Stafford the opportunity to immediately target his replacement, Siran Neal, for a 21-yard pass to Nacua. After a 15-yard gain, the Rams stalled out, moving the ball down to the Dolphins’ four-yard line but settling for a field goal. The Miami defense needs to tighten up; they did not break, but they sure bent all the way to the limit. This is now a one-score game and the defense cannot be playing like this again. Dolphins 20-12.

The Miami offense came out looking to burn clock, running the ball on the first two plays for a combined four yards before facing a 3rd-and-6; wide receiver Odell Beckham, Jr., made an 11-yard catch to give the Dolphins a fresh set of downs. Tagovailoa then threw 17 yards to Washington before Miami returned to the running game. Achane picked up four yards, bringing up a 3rd-and-6 as the Rams began using their timeouts to try to save time for their offense. Hill caught the pass behind the line of scrimmage and appeared to have a lane for the first down, but Los Angeles safety Kamren Curl made a great open-field tackle to stop the receiver after three yards. The Dolphins connected on the 50-yard field goal from Sanders. Dolphins 23-12.

The Rams, once again, came out looking for the chunk yards. They were able to move down the field well against Miami’s defense, highlighted by a 13-yard pass on 3rd-and-10 to Allen, then a 23-yard pass on a cross to Demarcus Robinson three plays later. The drive would stall out after 12 plays and 58 yards, with the Rams electing to kick a field goal on third down to pull the game back to within eight. Dolphins 23-15.

Miami linebacker Duke Riley fell on the ball during the onside kick attempt, with Tagovailoa then kneeling to kill the clock and give Miami the win.