At first glance, I feel the team overall looks better than the past two iterations (2020, 2021). They look a bit bigger, stronger, faster at defensive front-7. The offense seems a bit more opened up, they have some legitimate talent there. The OL, arguably the biggest question-mark, performed relatively well with the exception of Trent Brown taking a vacation for a few snaps. LG-C-RG is rock solid. Even though they lost that game, I didn't get this sense of inevitability watching the game that they were less talented and doomed to slowly but surely lose, as was the case over the past couple seasons.
That's not to say they're perfect. While I like Mac, he needs to focus on staying calm and focused on his mechanics throughout the entire game (a legitimate QB coach would be nice). A bonafide, longer-term solution at LT needs to be sorted out by 2023. I like the RBs and receiving talent a lot.
Defensively, I liked what I saw from the DL but need to see it against a better OL. LBs were better, not perfect. No idea why Tavai is ever on the field for anything other than ST snaps. DBs were OK. Jon Jones is good. Jack Jones looked like he belonged. Dugger flashes, as he usually does (I want to see him playing harder more often, though - he seems to go from 70-95 a lot ... needs to be running at 85-90 more often). McCourty still seems to have it. Hope Phillips' injury is shorter term.
Mills to me was the biggest headache on the defense. Gesticulating before the snap, jumping around, rarely seemed set and squared up prior to the snap. Yes, they were playing a lot of zone but he just seems to always be a step behind any play in his direction. Maybe he could be a competent slot/robber, but he doesn't seem to have the aptitude for playing boundary CB. Let Jack Jones get those snaps instead - if there are some growing pains, so be it.
Putting aside observations about the team, the game itself was decided by a couple plays, namely the strip-sack and the before-half TD. Those two plays won Miami the game; take either or both away, and this one is close to the end. Obviously those plays count, but IMO it wasn't like Miami was consistently the better team on a snap-to-snap basis ... they did however make several critical plays at critical moments in the game that resulted in points. Tua also did his usual routine of making a few ridiculously accurate throws that he only seems to make against the Pats.
I'm pretty optimistic. I think the team is tracking in the right direction relative to past seasons. There were a lot of kinks, some early-season rust, and there are some personnel weaknesses, but to my eye they just looked better and more talented than in recent seasons, in a way that's hard to tangibly describe but you know it when you see it. Given the circumstances I'm not devastated about this outcome. Pittsburgh should be a better matchup for a lot of reasons, from scheme to climate. If the team doesn't build on the potential they showed today, and turns-in a few more clunkers through the first month, then I'll be legitimately frustrated and concerned. For now, I think there were actually a lot of positives from that game and plenty of season ahead to look forward to.
