Straight A's for Dolphins after defeat of Panthers

Remember when the Dolphins were 1-7 and you were afraid to look at their weekly grades?

Remember when those grades were D's and F's and there was not an A to be found?

On Sunday, Miami stunned the Carolina Panthers 33-10 at Hard Rock Stadium in a game that saw the Dolphins excel on offense, defense and even special teams.

It was Carolina quarterback Cam Newton who was earned the F's in that one.

Here are this week's grades:

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Offense A

Maybe it’s the holidays. Maybe it’s the season-high 33 points. Whatever, we’re feeling generous enough to overlook the 2.8 rushing average and instead focus on Tua Tagovailoa going 27 of 31 and Jaylen Waddle catching nine of 10 balls thrown his way for 137 yards and a touchdown. Half of the Dolphins’ meaningful possessions (we’re excluding the kneel-down) ended in scores. That’s extremely acceptable.

Defense A-plus

Cam Newton had a 5.8 passer rating. You would top that by tossing a tissue at a wastebasket — and missing. Christian McCaffrey was held to 35 yards and left the game with an ankle injury (he's now out for the season). Add 11 quarterback hits, 10 passes defensed, seven tackles for loss, five sacks, three takeaways, two turtle doves and you get the idea. Only one possible grade here, folks.

Special teams A

Again, we’re selectively ignoring the conversion via 14-yard run out of punt formation on fourth-and-2 in the third quarter. After all, the Dolphins immediately buckled down for a three-and-out right after that play. Besides, the special teams play of the day came on Carolina’s first possession when Duke Riley came flying in to block a punt that Justin Coleman recovered and returned 2 yards for a touchdown to trigger the blowout.

Coaching A

You seeing a trend here? Outstanding job by coordinator/RB coach Eric Studesville for getting Phillip Lindsay prepped to handle a dozen carries roughly 10 minutes after landing in South Florida. Kudos also are in order to coordinator Josh Boyer for a sizzling defense this past month.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Miami Dolphins grades report card after win over Carolina Panthers