Dolphins are finding ways to win games despite Tua Tagovailoa’s struggles

MIAMI GARDENS Fla AP A few of the first words out of Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa s mouth after Sunday s win over the New Orleans Saints were praise for running back De Von Achane and Miami s defense If not for the two the Dolphins may not have been celebrating a conquest at all Achane s yards rushing and the defense s three takeaways and pivotal stops down the stretch helped the Dolphins edge the Saints - after a lackluster showing from Tagovailoa and Miami s passing match Outside of the opening possession that Achane capped with a -yard rushing touchdown the Dolphins struggled to finish drives and settled for four field goals the rest of the way Tagovailoa appeared unsettled and hesitant completing just of his passes with several bad misses including an interception that he floated into double coverage and was sacked four times He finished with just yards passing and threw his NFL-leading th interception which matches his career high from Improvement definitely starts with me Tagovailoa explained starts with my performance with how I distribute the ball how I operate the guys Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel praised his company for winning its third straight battle after a - start however it may have looked but he also explained Miami s success ultimately depends on how well Tagovailoa is playing As the quarterback of the association his job is to lead us to achievement McDaniel mentioned Monday And there s a lot of things that go into that It wasn t his best competition So you re trying to find why and improve it so that he can have his best championship when his best challenge is required Despite recording only yards passing and going for on third down the Dolphins rushed for yards as a squad Miami s offensive identity has shifted from a high-flying passing attack to a run-first approach but McDaniel acknowledged that formula may not work every week At certain point we re going to have to execute in the near future McDaniel declared because in the NFL if you have success in a phase or success in running the ball people will overcommit And you ll eventually need to pass to win I think that will be a big thing that we ll be working on this coming week What s working The running competition and defense have powered Miami s winning streak Miami s defense has allowed just points over the past three games and has forced seven turnovers since Week The Dolphins have averaged yards rushing during their three-game streak the best mark in the NFL since Week along with yards per carry What necessities help The passing competition The Saints limited WR Jaylen Waddle and TE Darren Waller but the biggest concern in the passing battle is Tagovailoa whose lack of mobility and inability to evade pressure is proving to be a hindrance Stock up LB Chop Robinson and S Minkah Fitzpatrick Robinson had his best match of the year on Sunday only the second start of his career with sacks three quarterback hits and a tackle for loss Robinson was also involved on the Dolphins crucial th-and- stop of Saints quarterback Tyler Shough that ended the event Particular may have questioned the Dolphins decision to commerce All-Pro CB Jalen Ramsey and TE Jonnu Smith to the Steelers in exchange for Fitzpatrick last offseason but that is proving to be one of the Dolphins largest part fruitful moves of Fitzpatrick is having a stellar season highlighted by his dominant performance Sunday He had a strip sack of Shough that led to a fumble recovery in the first half then intercepted Shough in the fourth quarter on a -point try and returned it to the opposite end zone for a defensive -point conversion Stock down Tagovailoa He has struggled all season even with his accuracy which has been a strength his entire career One year after completing a career-high of his passes Tagovailoa has a completion rate this season Injuries FB Alec Ingold is day to day after suffering a stinger in Sunday s match Key number The number of games this season in which Tagovailoa has failed to reach yards passing He hadn t had more than three such games in a season since his first year as a starter Next attempts Miami travels to face the New York Jets on Sunday The Dolphins picked up their first win of the season when they beat the Jets in Week which was also the championship where WR Tyreek Hill suffered a season-ending knee injury