Miami Dolphins Had One Of The Worst Special Teams Halves You'll Ever See

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There's a reason that NFL coaches frequently talk about being effective in "all three phases" of a football game. 

Sure, offense and defense get all the headlines. But special teams play a very important role in games. 

That was very evident during the first half between the Miami Dolphins and the New England Patriots. To be fair, neither team was very effective in the "third phase" of the game in the first half, but the Dolphins were particularly impotent. 

The Miami Dolphins had a brutal first half against the New England Patriots, particularly on special teams.

The Miami Dolphins had a brutal first half against the New England Patriots, particularly on special teams.

(Adam Hunger/Getty Images)

Let's recap the first half of a game that's going to make every special teams coordinator in the NFL shake his head. 

Things actually started out pretty well for Miami. They converted a 54-yard field goal, giving them their first lead of the season during a game (they had a game-winning field goal in Week 1 that came after the clock hit 0:00). 

That would pretty much be the end of the good news. On the Dolphins' third possession, they had an opportunity to add another field goal. 

But Jason Sanders doinked it off the left upright from 41 yards away. No good. 

However, the Dolphins forced a quick three-and-out to get the ball back. Unfortunately, they couldn't do anything with it and had to punt. Well, they tried to punt, at least. 

The Patriots, in an effort to match the Dolphins' ineffectiveness, couldn't do anything with the punt block and had to settle for a field goal attempt. Key word: attempt. 

Joey Slye missed from just 33 yards.

Jason Sanders had an attempt to redeem himself near the end of the first half, and it appeared that he had done exactly that, making a 45-yard kick. 

BUT WAIT! Special teams false start on Miami, re-kick from 50 yards. This time, Sanders didn't even get a chance to miss, since the snap didn't even make it to the Dolphins' holder. 

Well, technically it did, but not until it had already bounced TWICE. 

Oh, and this had nothing to do with special teams, but is still worth sharing to show just how pathetic the Miami Dolphins look right now: 

The Patriots took a 7-3 lead into halftime and NFL fans are probably hoping that the Dolphins will just forfeit or something. 

No one wants to watch 30 more minutes of one of the worst football games of the year. 

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Dan began his sports media career at ESPN, where he survived for nearly a decade. Once the Stockholm Syndrome cleared, he made his way to OutKick. He is secure enough in his masculinity to admit he is a cat-enthusiast with three cats, one of which is named "Brady" because his wife wishes she were married to Tom instead of him.