Dolphins-Texans notebook: Miami is in the front row



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The Dolphins played 11-18 for most of the first half of Thursday night.

The officials proved to be harder to beat than even the Texans.

Two particularly indignant Dolphins fans, watching at home – will certainly do the same for the Miami coaches when they watch the movie.

The first mistake was a draw of a Texan player who brought Jakeem Grant to the ground on his return.

The other essentially touched a touchdown in Houston.

Dolphins quarterback Brock Osweiler sent an email to Danny Amendola in deep Miami and Justin Reid clinched the pass.

But there is a reason why the pass was so inaccurate: Amendola was fired and held by Texas keeper Mike Tyson, an offense that was not called.

Two games later, the Texans were in the end zone and had their first header of the day.

No knees

Injuries did something Thursday as President Donald Trump was not able to:

They assured that no dolphin would kneel during the game of the national anthem.

With Albert Wilson out for the season and Kenny Stills inactive due to a groin injury, every player, coach and member of the Dolphins team went on show during the national anthem.

This ended a series of 22 regular-season games in which at least one Dolphin player knelt to protest racial injustice and police brutality.

Stills started kneeling in 2016, not in the first game of the Dolphins in 2017, but resumed the following week after Trump called those who did.

Wilson signed with the Dolphins this season and joined Stills to get on their knees in every game. But Wilson will not play again in 2018 after suffering a sore hip Sunday.

A Dolphins player demonstrated during the anthem: Robert Quinn raised his fist every week and did it again on Thursday.

High power

Perhaps the best way for a good tackle to neutralize the Texans in demolition, J.J. Watt is to execute the bad game.

That's how Ja'Wuan James helped Kenyan Drake win the first quarter touchdown in Miami.

James, who was beaten for a sack during the first possession of the match, was head-to-head with Watt as the Dolphins faced Houston's 10-10. The Dolphins called Drake to play hard. James hangs like he's in the process of protecting himself.

Nevertheless, Drake bypassed Watt – and the rest of the Texans' defense – for his second touchdown in fewer weeks.

Bouts

The Dolphins simultaneously found a replacement for Wilson in the Wildcat and a way to get a third field goal.

Kalen Ballage, a rookie from the Arizona State, sits lined up in the shotgun behind center in the first quarter on Thursday. He made his first run with a 5-yard run on an order that ended with a touchdown of the Dolphins.

Ballage, who has run the Wildcat 70 times in his last two seasons with the Sun Devils, has been active in four of the last five games and both since Kenyan Drake hit the goal line against the Bears.

The following Dolphins were inactive for Thursday's game: Stills, quarterback Ryan Tannehill, cornerback Torry McTyer, defensive wing Cameron Malveaux, tackle Sam Young, narrow needle A.J. Derby and defensive end Charles Harris.

Derby missed another match due to a foot injury that has seduced him for some time. Stills, Tannehill and Harris were all expected scratches. A little surprise: the cornerback Cordrea Tankersley played and not McTyer. Grant started for Stills and Mike Gesicki, who had a shoulder problem, started for Derby.

Adam Gase does not have much confidence in his short distance running game. Facing a quarter inch in Texan territory, he called a play pass to Frank Gore instead of letting Osweiler or Gore fall for the first try. The pass remained incomplete, prompting Tony Dungy to try his luck on Twitter's Gase conference call.

The Hall of Fame coach wrote: "Dolphins. Really. Can not you give the ball to Frank Gore and make 6 inches ?????! "

Defensive tackle Vincent Taylor suffered a foot injury in the first period.

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