Breaking News;Five takeaways from Washington’s loss to Miami…..

The Miami Dolphins defeated the Washington Commanders 45–15, their fourth consecutive loss. These are the Maryland Lottery-presented five key lessons from Week 13.

1. Tyreek Hill was unanswerable for the defense.

Restricting Tyreek Hill would have been at the top of the list of things Washington had to do in order to defeat Miami. Regretfully, the Commanders became one of the numerous NFL teams that were humiliated by the seasoned wide receiver, who ended with five receptions for 157 yards.

**Head coach Ron Rivera stated, **We tried to make sure we had people over the top more so than anything else.”** “All we need to do is make sure we’re in the right place.”

That might have been the intent for the Commanders, but the results on the field tell a different story. On Hill’s first touchdown of the day — a 78-yard house call on the Dolphins’ third offensive play — Hill breezed past Quan Martin, who was lined up man coverage.

The issue was that safety Kam Curl, who was the next closest defender to Hill, was on the other side of the field and was unable to close the distance. Hill’s second touchdown, a 60-yarder this time, was essentially identical. While Hill did make a great mid-route adjustment to make the catch, he had already overcome Percy Butler and Kendall Fuller to get behind the Commanders’ defense.

The Commanders already faced a formidable opponent in one of the NFL’s most skilled offenses. When the best player on that offense has such an easy route to making highlight plays, it becomes even more difficult.

The Dolphins led 17-0 after Andrew Van Ginkel took Sam Howell‘s pass back 33 yards for a touchdown. This was Washington’s third consecutive game giving up a pick six. The first came from Howell’s ill-advised attempt to throw the ball away in the second game against the New York Giants, while the other two were the result of defenders jumping a route and sprinting nearly unopposed to the end zone.

When Van Ginkel intercepted a screen pass meant for **Jahan Dotson** in Week 13, he never faltered.

Howell remarked following the game, “It’s kind of hard to see him when I’m just catching and throwing so quick.” “The defensive end is typically not in a position to play with the ball in that way. However, it’s unfortunate.”

Even worse, over the past two weeks, the opponents’ defenses have scored touchdowns just as frequently as the Commanders’ own. The offense has a bigger issue than just this; despite their sporadic outbursts of production (they have only scored 30 points twice, both against the same team), the Commanders have been held to 20 points or fewer in eight games.

It’s challenging to compete when the Commanders lead the league in points allowed.

3. Too many high-octane plays remain.

For the past three seasons as well as this year, it has been the Commanders’ defense narrative. The unit just gives up too many big plays, and this is a problem that keeps the team struggling every week.

Though Hill was the main offender—his career-long 78-yard touchdown reception—he wasn’t the only Dolphins player who terrorized the Commanders’ secondary.

The Commanders allowed eight plays of at least 15 yards and four of at least 20 yards, including Hill’s two touchdowns. With the exception of one, all of them were accomplished through the air, consistent with Washington’s current season-long play. As of right now, the Commanders allow the most explosive plays through the air in the league.

The giving up of the plays was even more annoying. The Dolphins had six explosive plays during third down. The Commanders, who had six tackles for loss, occasionally did a decent job of protecting Miami. Miami gained all of that back and then some, which was the issue.

4. Terry has no goals.

For as long as he plays football in Washington, **Terry McLaurin** is the Commanders’ most potent offensive weapon.

However, McLaurin was ineffective against the Dolphins on Sunday for a variety of reasons, gaining zero yards on three targets. It was only the second time he had been held without a catch in his career.

When times are hard, “it comes with it,” McLaurin remarked. Yes, it’s annoying, but I’m still going to practice and play hard every day. As long as I switch on the movie and add extra blocks to the field in an effort to make room for the guys. I intend to persist in running my routes with great intensity.

McLaurin had to drive three times before he received a pass intended for him. From the Commanders’ 32-yard line, it was a third-and-three, but the pass was incomplete.

Howell accepted part of the responsibility for McLaurin’s passivity.

“We need to figure out how to get the ball to him; I need to figure out how to get it to him. He is the best player on our offense. Although he clearly had a few targets, your best player needs more than three targets.”

Washington still has daunting teams left on the schedule after the bye week. Getting McLaurin more involved would give them a better chance at winning some of them.

5. Time to take stock and refuel for the home stretch.

The Commanders have a lot to think about as they get ready for the season’s final four games during their bye week.

The Commanders, who have one of the worst records in football, are hoping for a strong finish after such a strong start. Although the team is, understandably, more concerned with improvement than postseason contention, the playoffs are still theoretically possible.

An exciting season descended into a season marred by disappointment on both sides of the ball. Although the offense may have improved statistically from a year ago, the defense is still at or near the bottom of most categories, and the slight gains made by the offense are insufficient to offset the defense’s unanticipated decline.

This is the schedule for the Commanders’ remaining games: road contests against the New York Jets and Los Angeles Rams, then back-to-back home games against the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys. Not one of those four teams is favored to win; they are all in the running for the playoffs.

Thus, Washington will probably benefit from a week off.

“We have four games left to play, quarter of the season,” Rivera stated. “As I said earlier, it’s about the professionals that these young men are that they’ve got to rely on that, fall back on that and show up and do their jobs.”