Ewers flashed NFL talent early, leading Miami, but a second-half collapse revealed familiar college weaknesses, highlighting his steep learning curve.
Quinn Ewers finally got his first NFL start, and it looked like a Texas Saturday for about a half, before the whole thing went sideways in a 45-21 Miami loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Miami Dolphins' season is already circling the drain, so the bigger storyline wasn't the scoreboard; it was the decision to bench Tua Tagovailoa and hand the keys to the former Longhorn.
And for a stretch early, Ewers didn't look overwhelmed.
The Dolphins scored touchdowns on two of their first four possessions, both with rushing scores, and Ewers helped guide Miami to a 14-10 lead late in the second quarter.
That's the "why Texas fans believed" version of Ewers ... quick-trigger, anticipation throws, and enough touch to make route concepts look clean.
In the first half, he leaned on tight end Darren Waller and found Jaylen Waddle on multiple chunk gains to keep the offense on schedule.
The ball came out with confidence, and for a rookie making his first start, he looked like he belonged. Then the reality check hit hard.
From the middle of the second quarter through most of the fourth, Cincinnati turned the game into a demolition. The Bengals ripped off a 35-0 run spanning late second quarter into the fourth, and Miami's offense crumbled into the exact kind of rookie QB spiral coaches fear.
Over the Dolphins' first five second-half possessions, they totaled just 39 yards and coughed up four turnovers, including two Ewers interceptions.
Ewers- final line, 20-of-30 for 260 yards with two picks, reads fine, until you remember how those giveaways detonated any chance of hanging around.
Cincinnati repeatedly cashed short fields into touchdowns, and the game got out of hand fast.
There was one late gloss of respectability with a 97-yard touchdown drive in garbage time that ended with Ewers hitting Greg Dulcich for a 29-yard score.
And yes, he wasn't sacked, credit to Miami's protection and Ewers' ability to avoid the worst-case disaster snaps.
But if you're doing the Longhorns-to-NFL translation, this debut underlined the same debate Ewers carried in college: he can be sharp when the picture is clean, but the margin shrinks when windows tighten and the game speeds up.
Miami didn’t just lose, they hit the wall where confident becomes reckless, and the Bengals made Ewers pay for it.
The good news for Texas fans watching? Ewers got the start, flashed real NFL throws early, and didn’t look scared.
The bad news is that the league doesn't grade on vibes, and the second half was a brutal reminder that developmental quarterbacks don't get patience ... only lessons.