Lambeau Field in late November is no place for [Miami] Dolphins.
Coach Mike McDaniel’s group put up a sorry performance on both sides of the ball while battling mid-20 degree temperatures on Thanksgiving night in Green Bay, Wis., in a 30-17 loss to the Packers.
“I feel like we let the elements control the way we played,” Dolphins linebacker Jordyn Brooks told reporters after the game.
Brooks was then made aware by reporters that the Dolphins missed 20 tackles during the game, which didn’t surprise their star linebacker.
“I thought we were soft,” Brooks added. “I don’t know if guys were too cold. I don’t know what it was. I felt like the elements played a part in how we played as a group and so those were the results we got.”
Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has had a career of struggles in cold weather, entering Thursday 0-7 in games played in temperatures less than 45 degrees in his NFL career.
The Hawaii-born quarterback has poor stats in those games as well, throwing eight touchdowns to 10 interceptions with a 71.13 passer rating.
In his other 54 games played, Tagovailoa has sparkling numbers, throwing 87 touchdowns to 32 interceptions and a much stronger 101.35 passer rating.
Tagovailoa played well on Thanksgiving statistically, accruing 365 passing yards and two touchdowns with zero interceptions (114.2 passer rating).
Miami went down big in the first half, trailing 24-3 at halftime, and the Dolphins eventually fell behind by 24 points before playing a bit better in the second half.
The loss snapped a three-game winning streak and severely damaged Miami’s playoff chances.
Miami is chasing the Broncos (7-5) for the final AFC Wild Card spot.
