Game recap
Dolphins @ Falcons
2025 Wk 8 · ATL 10, MIA 34
When two bottom-half offenses meet, the team that avoids its own worst tendencies usually wins — here Atlanta didn't just lose, it played a full third of a point per play below its own season floor, which is the mechanism behind a 24-point margin between two similarly-ranked offenses.
Atlanta's offense fell 0.335 EPA/play below its own season average; Miami's rose 0.172 above its own
ComparisonIn-game EPA/play vs each team's 2025 season average (this game excluded)
| Team | This game EPA/play | This game success% | Season avg EPA/play | Season NFL rank | Delta vs own average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ATL | -0.341 | 39.6% | -0.006 | 24th | -0.335 |
| MIA | 0.143 | 47.7% | -0.029 | 22nd | +0.172 |
Neither team was an efficient offense on the year (Atlanta 24th, Miami 22nd in EPA/play), but on this Sunday Atlanta was dramatically worse than even its own modest normal, while Miami played its best football relative to its own baseline.
Why it matters. When two bottom-half offenses meet, the team that avoids its own worst tendencies usually wins — here Atlanta didn't just lose, it played a full third of a point per play below its own season floor, which is the mechanism behind a 24-point margin between two similarly-ranked offenses.
Miami led the whole way; Atlanta never found any rhythm in either half
SplitScore at end of each quarter (ATL home, MIA away)
| Qtr | ATL | MIA |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 7 |
| 2 | 3 | 17 |
| 3 | 3 | 24 |
| 4 | 10 | 34 |
First half vs second half efficiency
| Team | Half | Plays | EPA/play | Success% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ATL | H1 | 17 | -0.364 | 35.3% |
| ATL | H2 | 31 | -0.328 | 41.9% |
| MIA | H1 | 34 | 0.184 | 52.9% |
| MIA | H2 | 31 | 0.097 | 41.9% |
Atlanta was equally poor in both halves (-0.364 and -0.328 EPA/play) — this wasn't a case of a good team relaxing with a lead or a bad first quarter fixed at halftime. Miami's lead was built early (17-3 by halftime) and simply defended for 30 more minutes.
Why it matters. A team that is bad in both halves, not just one, points to a genuine talent/execution gap for that day rather than a single adjustment failure — there was no halftime fix available because nothing in the first half pointed to a correctable single issue.
Miami's 24-point win is the largest margin in the MIA-ATL series on record in this database
MilestoneMIA-ATL meetings on file
| Season | Away | Home | Away Score | Home Score | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | ATL | MIA | 17 | 10 | ATL +7 |
| 2009 | MIA | ATL | 7 | 19 | ATL +12 |
| 2013 | ATL | MIA | 23 | 27 | MIA +4 |
| 2017 | MIA | ATL | 20 | 17 | MIA +3 |
| 2021 | ATL | MIA | 30 | 28 | ATL +2 |
| 2025 | MIA | ATL | 34 | 10 | MIA +24 |
Every previous meeting between these franchises in this database was decided by 12 points or fewer. This one wasn't close by comparison — Miami's 24-point margin more than doubles the previous largest gap (Atlanta's 12-point win in 2009).
Why it matters. These teams don't play often (roughly once every few years, given they're in different conferences), so each meeting carries little recent-form signal — but the fact that this is the most lopsided result on record does mark a real outlier within their limited shared history.
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