Can Tyler Huntley Follow the Malik Willis Blueprint Against the Colts?
Credit: Paul Rutherford-Imagn Images
After managing to go 2-1 with the always elite Joe Flacco filling in at quarterback, the Indianapolis Colts are getting Anthony Richardson back this week against a Miami Dolphins team that is slowly getting healthier coming off the bye week. Still, the Phins will be without Tua Tagovailoa for at least one more week before he’s eligible to be taken off injured reserve.
On paper, the Dolphins are at a disadvantage because they’ll be dealing with the most athletic quarterback the league has ever seen in Richardson. The talent gap between Tyler Huntley and Richardson is significant, and the Colts have an underrated group of playmakers on offense. Jonathan Taylor and Michael Pittman Jr. are long-time staples in this offense, but Alec Pierce, Josh Downs, and first-round rookie Adonai Mitchell have also been sneaky good for Indianapolis.
The Colts are better than their 3-3 record suggests, and it’ll be an uphill battle for the Dolphins this week yet again. However, this isn’t the first time a run-first backup quarterback has faced Anthony Richardson and the Colts. The Green Bay Packers started Malik Willis against Indy and ended up winning that game. Is it possible for Tyler Huntley to replicate Willis’ success against the Colts, or will the talent gap between Richardson and Huntley be too much to overcome?
Green Bay did three things very well in their Week 2 matchup against Indianapolis. First, they ran the football a crap ton. 53 times for 261 yards, to be exact. This, in turn, helped the Packers win the time-of-possession battle with a 20-minute advantage over the Colts. The second thing that Green Bay did was emphasize Willis getting the ball out of his hands quickly, which allowed the Packers’ skill players to generate yards after the catch. Lastly, Willis showed off his capabilities as a rusher, gaining 41 yards on the ground on 6 carries.
Perhaps Mike McDaniel can steal a page out of Matt LaFleur’s playbook — another former Kyle Shanahan assistant — for the match against the Colts? Odds are, McDaniel will try to do so, but the game plan might not be the issue. The overall execution of the game plan is the bigger concern.
This will be Huntley’s third game as the Dolphins starting quarterback. Although the team is fresh off a bye week and Huntley has shown signs of improvement operating within structure in this offense, he’s still relatively new. It would be foolish to not to expect some miscues or a lack of chemistry with his receivers. If the Dolphins’ passing game can’t get in a rhythm, it makes it significantly harder to be efficient in the run game.
Keep in mind, Willis only had 14 passing attempts against the Colts, but he completed 12 of those passes and finished the game with an 85.7% completion and a 126.8 passer rating. The name of the game is efficiency, and Huntley needs to manage the game effectively so the Dolphins can sustain drives. The Dolphins rushing attack has been underwhelming the past few weeks, and outside of Raheem Mostert, the team doesn’t really have a guy who can get those tough yards in between the tackles. Getting a play-action passing game going early will go a long way in helping the Dolphins’ running backs.
Richardson already has 6 interceptions on the season, which is tied for second-most in the NFL. Back to his days with the Florida Gators, he’s prone to making some pretty boneheaded decisions and his accuracy isn’t the greatest. Richardson is like a bowl of clay, and Shane Steichen has done a great job of making life easier for his young quarterback. Still, there will be opportunities for the Dolphins defense to force some turnovers.
If Huntley looks like a deer in headlights, then the offense will become one-dimensional and the Colts defense will smell blood in the water. However, if Huntley can play within structure, gets the ball to his playmakers quickly, and occasionally makes plays with his legs, then this game could be a lot closer than people realize.
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