3 Takeaways from Dolphins' Week 9 Win vs. Bears

The Miami Dolphins opened the 2022 season with a three-game winning streak, which was then followed by a three-game losing skid. Now, they're on an upward trajectory again after holding on for another victory in Week 9.

On Sunday, the Dolphins notched a third consecutive win with a 35-32 road victory over the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. Tua Tagovailoa passed for 302 yards and three touchdowns in helping Miami improve to 6-3.

Tagovailoa's 3-yard TD pass to Tyreek Hill gave the Dolphins a 10-7 lead with 10 minutes and 39 seconds to go in the second quarter, and they were ahead the rest of the way. Chicago trailed by only three points for much of the fourth, but Miami's defense held the Bears scoreless over their final two possessions.

Here are three takeaways from the Dolphins' Week 9 win.

As expected, Tagovailoa has taken a big step forward in the 2022 season, his third in the NFL. It helps that the 24-year-old now gets to throw the ball to Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, two of the top wide receivers in the league. And Tagovailoa is making sure to connect with them on a consistent basis.

For the second consecutive week, Tagovailoa had three touchdown passes and more than 300 yards through the air. His most frequent targets were again Hill, who had seven receptions for 143 yards and a TD, and Waddle, who had five catches for 85 yards and a score.

Even with top playmakers on an offense, it's up to the quarterback to put the receivers in a position to succeed. And that's exactly what Tagovailoa has been doing this year.

"In seven months time, the growth has been unbelievable," Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel said, per Tom D'Angelo of the Palm Beach Post. "How he's playing the position, learning the whole system, and then how he is handling the ebbs and flows of natural in-game momentum."

With more time, Tagovailoa may show even more improvement. So it will be exciting to see how the former Alabama QB continues to grow throughout his NFL career and if he can reach an elite level.

McDaniel has partially recreated the San Francisco 49ers' rushing attack from recent years in Miami. After Raheem Mostert signed with the Dolphins in March, the team went out and acquired Jeff Wilson Jr. in a deal with the 49ers last week ahead of the trade deadline.

On Sunday, Wilson made his Miami debut, and the 25-year-old immediately contributed to the offense. He had nine carries for a team-high 51 yards and three catches for 21 yards. One of those receptions was a 10-yard touchdown grab that pushed the Dolphins' lead to 35-25 with 6:02 remaining in the third quarter.

“Coach [McDaniel] keep telling me just be ready at all times and make sure you’re studying the playbook, in and out," Wilson said, per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. "All I did all week was stay up extra hours in the playbook and just prepare as if I was playing the whole game or a couple plays. I mean, I was just ready for whatever."

Mostert wasn't quite as productive as he had been in recent weeks, rushing for 26 yards on nine carries. But the 30-year-old had a 1-yard touchdown run in the first quarter. And the Dolphins were getting only their first taste of having both Wilson and Mostert at their disposal.

In the long run, the addition of Wilson should make Miami's offense even better. It already took a step toward that during Sunday's win in Chicago.

Since 2001, the Dolphins have won only one AFC East title, and that came in 2008. They've made the playoffs just three times during that stretch (most recently in 2016) and haven't won a postseason game in any of those years.

But Miami is right in the thick of the AFC East race halfway through the 18-week regular season. The Dolphins are tied with the New York Jets at 6-3, both sitting a half-game behind the Buffalo Bills (6-2).

Any of these three teams could end up as the division champion. And even the New England Patriots remain in the mix at 5-4. So it should be entertaining to watch how the AFC East battle plays out over the second half of the season.

Not only are the Dolphins in a great position to get back to the playoffs, but they should continue to build momentum in the upcoming weeks. Their next two games are against the Cleveland Browns (3-5) and Houston Texans (1-6-1), sandwiched around a Week 11 bye.

Miami is a strong team, and it has a 2-1 record in division play. But it will play each of its three AFC East rivals over the final four weeks of the regular season, which could be a crucial stretch in determining the division champion.