Miami Dolphins-Indianapolis Colts Week 7 Halftime Observations

What stood out in the first half of the Miami Dolphins' Week 7 game against the Indianapolis Colts?

We start with the list of inactives, highlighted by some defensive starters due to injury:

CB Ethan Bonner, OL Andrew Meyer, LB Channing Tindall and running back Jeff Wilson Jr. were also inactive.

Quarterback Skylar Thompson was named the third emergency quarterback.

Rookie fifth-round pick Mohamed Kamara played for the first time in his NFL career.

The Dolphins started on defense after winning the toss and retreated.

Starting at defensive end, Calais Campbell quickly sneaked past right guard Dalton Tucker on the first play of the game to drop Trey Sermon and cause a 2-yard loss. The number of plays per snap this guy consistently makes is truly astounding. If we were to name a team MVP by this point, he would be in the conversation.

The defense realized what Anthony Richardson was all about after his athleticism allowed him to gain 6 yards on his second throw, but he completely missed on his third and sixth throws.

So much for the Dolphins quickly establishing the running game. After a 2-yard run by De'Von Achane on their first offensive play, the Dolphins went for the pass, and that drive ended with a quick three-and-out.

It should be noted that Achane wore the Guardian cap to provide additional protection following his concussion.

Did you notice who committed an offsides penalty on the Dolphins' first touchdown drive? Yes, that was former Dolphins defensive tackle Raekwon Davis, whose third-and-3 penalty wiped out an incompletion at midfield.

The Dolphins held onto the ball more on this drive, which paid off.

Credit to Terron Armstead and Aaron Brewer for their downfield blocks on Tyler Huntley's 10-yard TD pass to tight end Jonnu Smith, who had an 18-yard catch earlier on the drive.

Man, let's talk about the full Richardson effect. It was all there on the Colts' next drive, as the talented but unpredictable quarterback turned a would-be sack by Kader Kohou on a blitz into a 3-yard scramble and then a sack by Zach Sieler into a 21-yard scramble to the Miami 7 converted -yard line before dropping a snap and then failing to fall on it before Sieler got his big play with the fumble recovery.

The quarter ended with a low block penalty on fullback Alec Ingold, who we suspect will be fined by the NFL.

Ingold came back with a great lead block that set Achane on a 15-yard run.

It's great to see Jonnu Smith continue to be involved in the offense, this time with a 15-yard reception.

That push stalled after Julian Hill failed to locate a pass thrown behind him, but he was caught very well on a play in which Austin Jackson was flagged for an illegal formation. The Dolphins' penalty problems continue.

It was a great pass breakup on third down by Kendall Fuller, who has proven to be a good replacement for long-time starting cornerback Xavien Howard.

Penalties continued to be a problem for the Dolphins, as Durham Smythe's defense negated a 32-yard run by Raheem Mostert – although we have to say that decision seemed pretty weak. However, there is no excuse for Jonnu Smith being offside later on.

Guard Liam Eichenberg's facemask penalty put the Dolphins in a first-and-24 hole and killed a drive.

Odell Beckham Jr. hit a rare target, but he appeared to move before catching the ball to avoid a big hit and eventually dropped it. The only consolation is that it came on third-and-18 and wouldn't have produced a first down anyway.

Ingold also contributed in the first half when he stormed out of the backfield unguarded and caught a 25-yard pass from Huntley to start the two-minute drive.

This came after the Colts made the odd decision to punt from midfield on fourth-and-3 while trailing 7-0.

In any case, this was a pretty good two-minute drive from Huntley, including a clever 13-yard completion to Jonnu Smith after he scrambled left.

The drive ended with a Jason Sanders field goal that made it 10-0, but the Dolphins then allowed a long completion in the final seconds – just like they did against Tennessee.

That gave the Colts the opportunity to kick a 52-yard field goal at the buzzer to make it 10-3.

It was disappointing to end an overall solid first half, despite the penalties and zero goals for Tyreek Hill or Jaylen Waddle.