INGLEWOOD, Calif. --Two weeks ago, the Miami Dolphins were riding high on a five-game winning streak and in first place in the AFC East.
They lost all of that momentum during their two-week stay in California.
A week after the Dolphins sputtered against one of the NFL’s best defenses in San Francisco, they barely had any rhythm against one of the league’s worst in a 23-17 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday night at SoFi Stadium.
Outside of one explosive play, and another incredibly wild play - both involving Tyreek Hill - the Dolphins and quarterback Tua Tagovailoa were barely able to move the football until the team’s final drive against a Chargers’ defense which entered the game ranked third-to-last in points allowed per game (25.8) and second-to-last in the league in yards allowed per play (6.1).
Tagovailoa had been changing the tone of the comparisons between him and Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert during what had been a breakout season.
On Sunday, the Chargers selected in the 2020 NFL Draft one slot after Miami picked Tagovailoa, thoroughly outperforming the Dolphins’ starter.
Herbert completed 39 of 51 passes for 367 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions for a 102.3 passer rating.
Tagovailoa completed 10 for 28 for 145 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions and a 65.3 passer rating.
Prior to a field goal drive that cut the deficit to six points with 1:10 left, Tagovailoa had completed only 6 of 22 for 112 yards. And 60 of those yards came on a touchdown pass to Hill with 6:23 left in the third quarter on which he broke away from cornerback Michael Davis after he fell down just as the ball was released.
After that score, the Dolphins attempted an onside kicker, but the Chargers recovered and Herbert knelt on the ensuing play to run out the clock.
Tagovailoa completed 3 of his first 18 pass attempts for 25 yards to that point.
Herbert directed a 17-play, 79-yard field goal drive on the Chargers’ prior possession to help put the game out of reach.
The Dolphins scored their only other touchdown on one of the craziest plays in recent memory. After Jeff Wilson Jr. fumbled several players dove for the ball before it was batted backward out of the pile by an offensive player. Hill then scooped it up in space, turned the corner and took off for a 56-yard touchdown.
Wilson Jr. left the game late in the first half with a hip injury. Wilson Jr., who ran for 20 yards on the last of his four carries, was carted off to the locker room.
