A huge blown call by the officials cost Tennessee in the first quarter tonight in Miami.
Dolphins quarterback Tyler Huntley tossed a backward pass behind the line of scrimmage to Tyreek Hill, who failed to catch it and also failed to realize it was a backward pass. Thinking it was an incomplete forward pass, Hill left it on the ground, where Tennessee’s Arden Key picked it up with a clear path to the end zone.
But Key couldn’t return it for a touchdown because the officials on the field blew the play dead, wrongly thinking it was an incomplete pass. An assist from the replay official changed that call and rightly ruled it a Dolphins fumble and Titans recovery, but the Titans were denied a likely touchdown.
On the ensuing Titans possession, their offense went three-and-out. It’s still 0-0 in a game that would likely be 7-0 Titans if not for the officials’ mistake.
The Dolphins officially will not have running back Raheem Mostert, who injured his chest in the season opener. It will be his third missed game after playing only 31 snaps against the Jaguars in Week 1.
Mostert was questionable to return after limited practices all week.
The Dolphins also won’t have linebacker David Long (hamstring). He, too, is inactive after being given a doubtful designation. Long did not practice all week.
They join quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (concussion), left tackle Terron Armstead (concussion) and cornerback Kendall Fuller (concussion) on the sideline. Tagovailoa is on injured reserve.
The Dolphins’ inactives besides Armstead, Long, Mostert and Fuller are linebacker Mohamed Kmara and quarterback Skylar Thompson. Thompson is the emergency third quarterback.
The Titans won’t have defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons, who was doubtful with an elbow injury after not practicing all week. Cornerback L’Jarius Sneed, who was questionable, will play.
The Titans’ other inactives besides Simmons are defensive back Julius Wood, linebacker James Williams, offensive tackle Jaelyn Duncan, tight end David Martin-Robinson, tight end Thomas Odukoya and outside linebacker Ali Gaye.
The Dolphins have announced one practice squad elevation for Monday night’s game against the Titans.
Miami has elevated receiver Dee Eskridge to the active roster.
Eskridge was active for last week’s loss to Seattle. He recorded one catch for 30 yards and one 28-yard kick return while playing eight offensive snaps and two special teams snaps.
Eskridge has 18 career receptions for 152 yards in 25 games since 2021.
Kickoff for Monday’s matchup between the Dolphins and Titans is set for 7:30 p.m. ET.
The Titans elevated defensive lineman Abdullah Anderson and cornerback Tre Avery from the practice squad for Monday Night Football. The team plays the Dolphins in the early game tonight.
Anderson originally signed with the Titans on Aug. 16. He was released 11 days later but then re-signed to the practice squad after clearing waivers.
He has not played a game in 2024.
Anderson played seven games for the Commanders last season and also has played for the Bears, Vikings, Packers and Falcons. He has appeared in 33 games with eight starts and has totaled 54 tackles and 2.5 sacks.
Avery is in his third season with the Titans but has not appeared in a game this season. He played 14 games with three starts in 2022 and 15 games with two starts in 2023.
He has totaled 62 tackles in his career.
With receiver Rashee Rice likely out for a while, if not the entire season, the Chiefs will need help at receiver. To get it, they can go next man up — or next man in.
The internal options are limited. They obviously need more out of tight end Travis Kelce, and they got some of it on Sunday against the Chargers. Rookie receiver Xavier Worthy needs to accelerate his acclimation to the offense.
Others already in the lineup need to contribute, from Justin Watson to JuJu Smith-Schuster to Mecole Hardman to Skyy Moore to Noah Gray.
Available free agents include Michael Thomas, Hunter Renfrow, Corey Davis, Julio Jones, and Chase Claypool. Those options frankly aren’t great.
Also, trades can happen for the next five weeks and a day.
The Chiefs should be looking perhaps for someone they can add now and/or someone they can add closer to the deadline, when more teams are willing and able to acknowledge that they aren’t contenders. Also, other receivers not happy with their current situations might decide to agitate for a trade to Arrowhead.
Possibilities include Browns receivers Amari Cooper (who reportedly was almost traded to the 49ers) and Elijah Moore, Jaguars receiver Christian Kirk, Dolphins receiver Odell Beckham Jr., Panthers receiver Diontae Johnson, Giants receivers Darius Slayton and Jalin Hyatt, Titans receivers DeAndre Hopkins and Tyler Boyd.
Then there’s Raiders receiver Davante Adams. He might want to play for the Chiefs. The Raiders might never allow their division rivals to get him.
Maybe the Chiefs simply rely on the guys they have. They should at least consider all options, if (as expected) Rice will miss extensive playing time.
