Instant takeaways as the Dolphins cruise past the Browns 39-17, enter bye week 7-3

MIAMI GARDENS — There have been weeks when the Dolphins won with defense. And, of course, plenty of weeks they won with that passing attack.

Sunday, they put it all together with one of their most dominant, well-rounded performances of the season, beating the Cleveland Browns 39-17.

The Dolphins now enter their bye week at 7-3 and in first place in the AFC East race.

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Tua Tagovailoa put on what has become a typical performance, throwing for 285 yards, three touchdowns, no interceptions and a 135.0 passer rating. Receivers Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill had relatively tame days (for them, although Hill did score once). That's because Miami’s offense controlled the game by rushing for a season-high 195 yards, led by Jeff Wilson (17 carries, 119 yards, one touchdown).

Miami’s defense, meanwhile, kept the Browns in check nearly all afternoon.

Here are our takeaways:

Jeff Wilson trade looking smarter and smarter …

Five weeks ago, Wilson was rushing for 120 yards for the 49ers against the Panthers.

A year ago, Mike McDaniel had a front-row seat to what Wilson could do when they both were in San Francisco.

When the Dolphins traded for Wilson last week, it was overshadowed, understandably, by the trade that same day for outside linebacker Bradley Chubb. But overlook this deal at your own risk.

Wilson is listed at 6-feet, 213 pounds but plays bigger than that. Sunday he was running through arm tackles in ways Chase Edmonds never did in his brief time here.

It’s no secret that even as good as Miami’s passing game is, the Dolphins need to keep defenses honest with a ground game.

It appears they have that now.

… And what happened to the Browns’ ground game?

The Browns have Nick Chubb, one of the toughest running backs in the NFL.

They have Kareem Hunt, as good an understudy as you’ll find.

And they came into this game averaging 164.6 rushing yards per game, No. 3 in the league.

Miami’s run defense, ranked in the middle of the pack this season, rose to the occasion with Elandon Roberts and Jerome Baker among those leading the charge. Cleveland finished with 112 rushing yards.

Chubb, known for being sure-handed, even coughed up a fumble against Zach Sieler. Xavien Howard recovered, leading to a field goal.

Special teams must perform way better

It seems as if just about every week Miami’s specials teams have at least one play in which it lets the team down.

It’s long kickoff returns given up. The butt punt. Fake punts given up.

Last week in Chicago, it was a missed 29-yard field-goal try by Jason Sanders. Wind or no wind, you’re an NFL kicker, you cannot miss from 29.

This week, the Browns opened the game with a 48-yard kickoff return. Inspired by the start, the Browns were up 7-0 with not even three minutes expired.

Later, Sanders missed not one but two extra points.

Coordinator Danny Crossman’s unit must do better.

Offensive line is on a roll

The offensive line went into the season with questions, which has become an annual occurrence in these parts. Questions about protection continued amid injuries to all three quarterbacks early this season.

Now look.

Tagovailoa has been sacked twice, total, in the past month. There’s a reason he’s able to survey the field while Hill and Waddle go deep.

And the running backs enjoyed ample running lanes, thanks to the work of tackles Terron Armstead and Brandon Shell and guards Rob Hunt and Robert Jones and center Connor Williams.

Take a week off. You’ve earned it.

As the Dolphins have done for the past couple of seasons, the Dolphins go into the bye week feeling good about their performance.

The Dolphins aren’t in action again until Nov. 27, when the Houston Texans visit. That will be the final tuneup before the tough three-game stretch of road games against the 49ers, Chargers and Bills. At this point, it will be a shock if the game at Buffalo isn’t flexed into the prime-time slot, since it could decide the AFC East.

As for the bye, the Dolphins can use it. Defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah exited early with a left elbow injury. Defensive back Keion Crossen left with a shoulder problem.

Hal Habib covers the Dolphins for The Post. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Miami Dolphins win vs. Cleveland Browns: Instant takeaways