The Dolphins start strong, but fall short in a 16-10 loss to the Colts

Despite a strong first-half performance, the Miami Dolphins fell 16-10 to the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday afternoon at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Trailing by six with less than two minutes to play, Miami mounted a promising final drive as passes to tight end Jonnu Smith and wide receivers Tyreek Hill and Malik Washington crossed the Dolphins into Indianapolis territory. A four-yard third-down scramble by quarterback Tim Boyle got Miami to the Indianapolis 41-yard line, but the Dolphins were unable to move the sticks further.

Boyle came into the game in the third quarter in place of starting quarterback Tyler Huntley, who was sidelined with a right shoulder injury. Huntley completed 7 of 13 passes for 87 yards and a touchdown and recorded five runs for 20 yards (4.0 average), while Boyle completed 8 of 13 passes for 74 yards.

The Dolphins' defense was able to contain quarterback Anthony Richardson, who completed just 10 of 24 passes for 129 yards and added 14 runs for 56 yards.

Miami's offense was effective in both the running and passing games, as tight end Jonnu Smith caught seven passes for a game-high 96 yards (13.7 average) and a touchdown, while running back De'Von Achane recorded 15 carries for a game. high 77 yards (5.1 average). Running back Raheem Mostert added 11 carries for 50 yards (4.5 average), while rookie running back Jaylen Wright totaled five carries for 33 yards (6.6 average).

Miami used the ground game to prepare its aerial attack on the first possession of the game. Six straight runs led to an 18-yard reception by Smith that put Miami in the red zone. Huntley and Smith scored again for a nine-yard touchdown, capping the 11-play, 58-yard scoring drive with 5:56 remaining in the first quarter.

The Colts made a valiant attempt to respond on their next offensive possession. Because of his running game, Richardson led Indianapolis 72 yards downfield before a mishandled snap was recovered by defensive tackle Zach Sieler.

Both Miami and Indianapolis put the ball away twice before the Dolphins had the final offensive possession of the half, resulting in a 33-yard field goal from kicker Jason Sanders.

Indianapolis responded with a score of its own when kicker Matt Gay hit a 52-yard field goal as time expired and Miami took a 10-3 halftime lead.

Indianapolis got on the field first in the second half after linebacker Segun Olubi recovered a Mostert fumble, which led to a seven-yard touchdown run by running back Tyler Goodson to tie the game at 10 apiece with 9:08 to play equalize before the end of the third quarter.

Miami had a promising drive late in the third quarter, but a fumble by fullback Alec Ingold gave Indianapolis possession at its own 14-yard line. Miami and Indianapolis both exchanged punts to end the third quarter.

The Colts orchestrated a 12-play, 69-yard scoring drive that lasted more than six minutes early in the fourth quarter. Miami's defense prevented Indianapolis from crossing the pylon, but the Colts still took the lead for the first time on Gay's 22-yard field goal.

The Dolphins had a chance to tie the game on their next drive, but Sanders' 54-yard field goal attempt bounced off the left upright with 5:19 to play. Indianapolis added a 38-yard field goal on the ensuing drive to extend its lead to 16-10.

Miami returns to Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday, October 27 to play the Arizona Cardinals (2-4). Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET on FOX.