Top comments, moments from ‘ManningCast’ broadcast of Miami Dolphins-Tennessee Titans game

Just one week ago, Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was a star on ESPN’s ManningCast broadcast of Monday Night Football. He joined former quarterbacks Peyton and Eli Manning as a guest for the Week 13 matchup between the Bengals and Jaguars, with Tagovailoa showing off his guitar skills during the appearance.

This week, Tagovailoa and the Dolphins were on the field for Monday Night Football and the spotlight didn’t go as well as when he was strumming his guitar a week earlier. The Dolphins gave up a two-touchdown lead over the final 2:46 to lose 28-27 to the Tennessee Titans at Hard Rock Stadium.

The Dolphins and Titans had to share the ManningCast spotlight, however, as the NFL had two Monday Night Football games this week. The New York Giants and Green Bay Packers played simultaneous to the Dolphins and Titans, so the Mannings flipped back and forth between the two games to provide insight when it appeared a game had a big moment brewing.

That resulted in a few key plays from the Dolphins game either being overlooked or glossed over — like both Titans fourth-quarter turnovers (a muffed punt and a fumble on offense) that led to Miami touchdowns — but the brothers and their guests still covered most of the pertinent topics.

Here are some of the highlights.

The final drive

After the Titans took the one-point lead, the Dolphins got the ball back at their 26-yard line with 1:45 left on the clock and no timeouts. All they needed was to get in field-goal range.

The drive stalled out after six plays.

With the Dolphins facing third and 3, Tagovailoa flipped a pass to running back Devon Achane, who weaved and bobbed before trying to run out of bounds short of the line to gain.

Peyton Manning thought that was the wrong decision.

“I feel like the running back could have gotten the first down,” he said. “He was thinking they needed to get out of bounds. Get the first down and spike it if he just stays north and converts.”

Instead, Miami faced fourth and 2. Tagovailoa was sacked. Game over.

The pick-six

The Dolphins opened scoring on defensive lineman Zach Seiler’s 5-yard interception return for a touchdown in the first quarter. It marked the third consecutive game in which Miami scored a defensive touchdown, a franchise record.

The Mannings, however, weren’t exactly praising the Dolphins for how the play unfolded, considering Seiler was nowhere near the pass rush and, in their mind, in the right place to intercept a badly thrown pass from Titans rookie quarterback Will Levis.

“As a quarterback, that one hurts me,” Peyton Manning said. “He fell right into that. ... He’s not even close to the quarterback. At least [Bradley] Chubb’s around the quarterback. You get rewarded for a pick six but you get a minus for a bad pass rush.”

Added Eli: “Terrible pass rush. No technique.”

Peyton then followed: “Just the way [Dolphins defensive coordinator] Vic Fangio drew it up.”

For what it’s worth, Seiler with solid pressure on an eventual Christian Wilkins third-down sack on the drive after the pick-six. He finished the game with four tackles and a quarterback hurry in addition to the interception.

Tyreek Hill’s injury and return

Dolphins star wide receiver Tyreek Hill, who is attempting to become the first wide receiver in NFL history to have a 2,000-yard season, was a regular topic of discussion throughout the game because of both his skill and his first-quarter ankle injury that forced him to miss extended time in the game.

Hill finished the game with 61 yards on four catches.

Some snippets of Hill talk...

▪ Peyton Manning on how Hill regularly crouches down near the offensive line: “You can’t hide. Every single play, the Titans know where he is.“ - Peyton

▪ Eli Manning after Hill stayed down for a bit following the injury before popping up and getting the crowd going: “Look at him. He’s fired up. You can’t slow this guy down. ... We’ve got an angry Tyreek. Fired up. He’s ready to go.”

▪ Peyton Manning on how to defend Hill: “Calling plays for him is a whole different deal. .. If you don’t game a jam on him, look out. If you miss him, he’s gone.” Manning compared Hill to Marvin Harrison in regards to how to best cover him.

The mistake-filled first half

In addition to Hill missing time, the Dolphins also lost center Connor Williams to injury early in the game Monday.

That resulted in the offense being out of rhythm in the first half.

“They’re off,” Eli Manning said succinctly.

The Dolphins had a slew of mistakes that ultimately left them trailing 10-7 at halftime.

Among them: Losing a fumble in the red zone, having a field goal blocked and having an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty called when Chubb threw his helmet after missing a sack.

“You probably can’t make more mistakes than the Dolphins did in the first half,” Peyton Manning said.

Mike McDaniel stories

Of course, there were stories about Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel.

During the second half, Peyton Manning showed a text exchange he had with the coach leading up to the game.

Manning’s message: “Any chance I can talk to you for 10 minutes on sat or Sunday about game mon nite. Eli and I have your game. Short and sweet. hang up after 10 mins!”

McDaniel’s reply: “um [expletive] yes you’re [expletive] Payton Manning bro.”

“He loves his players,” Peyton Manning said. “He talks about how hard they’ve been working at practice no matter who they’re playing. He thinks this test against the Titans was going to be a great physical test to get them ready for playoff games. But he just feels their offense can do things speed-wise that other teams just can’t replicate. Obviously we haven’t seen that tonight due to the injuries. ... You can tell he’s fun to play for. And what he’s done for Tua has been awesome.”

Other quick hits

▪ Taylor Lewan, a former offensive lineman for the Titans who was one of four guests on the ManningCast broadcast, shotgunned a Twisted Tea after a Titans touchdown ... that was overturned.

“That’s a worse letdown than Kansas City,” Lewan said, referring to the Kansas City Chief’s game-winning touchdown play on Sunday that was overturned.

Lewan, ultimately, was fine with the touchdown being overturned. The moment, he said, “will still live forever.”

Plus, the Titans won in the end.

▪ The Manning brothers spent multiple minutes trying to break down the complexity that is a playcall for the Dolphins offense.

The play they were given: Tower 0 Nasty Numbers Minus H Orbit Pass Toss 38 Popcorn Z Opp F Go Balloon

Each brother did his best to interpret what the play could mean, but admitted they were most likely incorrect.