Houtz’s House of Highlights | A look at the Miami Dolphins 35-32 win over the Chicago Bears

The Miami Dolphins improved to 6-3 on Sunday, defeating the Chicago Bears 35-32 in a gritty offensive slugfest. Josh Boyer’s team had no answer for Bears quarterback Justin Fields. And Chicago’s defense had no answer for one of the best quarterbacks in all of football, Tua Tagovailoa. Nevertheless, it was another win for Mike McDaniel’s Dolphins as it pushes toward their first playoff appearance since 2016.

But before we close the book on the Chicago Bears and turn our focus to the Cleveland Browns — led by former Dolphins quarterback Jacoby Brissett — let’s take a look at some of the Miami Dolphins’ biggest plays from Sunday’s win along with some nExT-lEveL analysis from yours truly.

Enjoy!

(Note: I used to do this after every game but stopped. So, I will try to do this every Monday/Tuesday for the remainder of the season. #FinsUp)

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Darth Kader with a nice tackle through traffic, stopping Chase Claypool for a short gain.

Channing Tindall sighting! He is fast! Hopefully, we get to see more out of Miami’s 2022 third-round pick over the last half of the season. We know the defense could use a player of his caliber.

Tua to Waddle for 17 yards.

Tua is heating up.

Tyreek is down there somewhere. Pass interference was called on the Bears. I like that Tua isn’t scared to take a shoot deep.

Raheem Mostert Touchdown. Robert Jones pulling. Poetry in motion.

Justin Fields is crazy on 3rd and 8.

Bradley Chubb and Kader Kohou do a nice job of reading the option.

Nice stop by the defense on 2nd and 9.

We interrupt this House of Highlights article to give you this update on where Waddle and Hill rank among the NFL’s all-time great wide receiver duos.

Tyreek is unguardable.

Tua slinging the rock to Waddle.

Cedrick Wilson does play for the Dolphins. I saw it with my own two eyes.

Tua to Hill for the touchdown. Perfect back flip.

Some Tua Tagovailoa highlights.

Zach Sieler with a perfect breath stroke to get into the backfield and make the stop.

Jaelan Phillips with a much-needed blocked punt. Andrew Van Ginkel gets the touchdown. Mike McDaniel said the Dolphins were going to ‘shoot their shot’ on this play and it worked out perfectly.

Chubb getting pressure on the Mooney touchdown.

Tua to Hill on 3rd and 6 for a big play. Spoiler alert: Tagovailoa is money on third down.

Jason Sanders SHANK. This was the shortest miss of his NFL career per CBS.

HALFTIME

Tua to Hill for a nice gain on first down. Awesome job by Jeff Wilson to come over and pick up the blitzing cornerback.

Jeff Wilson Jr. running hard. Shades of Jay Ajayi, IMO

Tua to Waddle for the touchdown.

And another look...

Wow, Justin Fields is special — and the Dolphins' defense can’t tackle.

Tagovailoa to Hill for 20 yards.

And on 3rd and 7 with ice in his veins.

Jeff Wilson dove toward the pylon like Reggie Bush for the touchdown.

Bradley Chubb pressure on third and long.

4th and 5, incomplete to Gesicki

Jaelan Phillips showing off his speed to chase down Claypool from behind.

Big stop by the defense on 3rd and 2. Chicago would convert on 4th down.

Tua deep to Waddle. Pass interference.

Melvin Ingram sack

Tua missed Smythe on 4th and 1, but QB1’s explanation after the game said it all.

Well, I saw him, and I was getting ready to throw to him, and I think he took a look up. So it kind of threw off the way I was going to throw it to him, because I didn’t know if he was going to turn up or not. He looked up, and I was getting ready to throw, then the ball came out and he looked back. That’s something that I’ll need to work on to get better with.”

Tua misses Waddle deep on 3rd and 11.

The dolphins escape with a victory, 35-32. Improve to 6-3 on the season.

TLDR: Besides his two errant throws late in the game, Tua Tagovailoa followed up his impressive performance against the Detroit Lions in Week 8 with one equally as impressive in Week 9 vs. the Chicago Bears. Tua completed 21/30 passes for 302 yards and three touchdowns in Miami’s 35-32 win. He was on fire, delivering one clutch throw after another. Jeff Wilson Jr. was impressive in his NFL debut, and wide receivers Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill continue to play as well as any wide receiver duo in the history of football. It’s still not perfect, but Miami’s offense has been impressive through nine weeks of the season.

On defense, Josh Boyer’s unit struggled to contain Justin Fields, who completed 17/28 passes for 123 yards and three touchdowns. More impressive, however, was his 15 carries for 178 yards and one touchdown. Bradley Chubb pressured Fields a little on Sunday, but for the most part, Miami’s defense had no answer for what the Bears’ were doing offensively. Something that needs to change if the Dolphins hope to make a legit playoff push and to prove to the world they’re one of the most complete teams in football.

What are your thoughts on the Miami Dolphins' 35-32 win over the Chicago Bears? What did you like? What did you dislike? Let us know in the comments section below!