The Miami Dolphins have invested a lot of money and resources on their defensive line.
Ndamukong Suh is the highest paid defensive player on the team. Cameron Wake is a star and he’s highly paid. The team signed Earl Mitchell as a free agent three years ago and drafted Jordan Phillips in the second round in 2015. Lots of money. Lots of resources.
And on Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals the Dolphins got fine return on their investment because the entire defensive line played well.
That’s what the folks at ProFootballFocus.com are saying based on their study and grading of the tape this week. The Dolphins top graded defensive players?
Wake by a mile.
Then Suh.
Followed by Mitchell, Andre Branch and Jason Jones.
Wake actually had his best game of the season, per PFF, grading out at 90.1. He recorded two QB hurries, two QB hits and a sack. Did I mention he also had a forced fumble? He was the top graded overall 4-3 defensive end for the week and for the season ranks third overall and first in pass rushing grade.
Suh, meanwhile, had a season-high six QB hurries against the Cardinals. His grade of 85.8 was good for second best at the NT/DT position in Week 14 and he ranks as the second best at his position for the season, trailing only the Aaron Donald of the Los Angeles Rams.
Branch and Jones each added a pair of pressures, with Branch racking up a sack as well. Branch has 5.5 sacks for the season and two in the last three games. Branch also had a forced fumble.
The rest of the defense? Hit and miss as they did, after all, give up 23 points.
The linebacker corps -- all backups or players not expected to be starters when the season opened -- had one significant good moment when middle linebacker Mike Hull intercepted a tipped ball off a Carson Palmer throw.
Hull, making his first career start, otherwise struggled filling in for the injured Kiko Alonso, particularly in pass coverage where he allowed four of five passes thrown his way to be caught for 39 yards. Hull did play 70 snaps and that was huge for a team missing starter Alonso.
Both Hull and Spencer Paysinger led the team with eight tackles each. Donald Butler, meanwhile, was something of a ghost, collecting only one assisted tackle.
Safety Bacarri Rambo had his best game of the season, per PFF, allowing only one catch for nine yards and intercepting the only other target thrown his way on the afternoon. His run defense continues to be the biggest weakness in his game, and as has struggled with missed tackles each of the last two games.
