With the offense humming and the defense coming around, the Dolphins might be a force to be reckoned with.
The Miami Dolphins are a different team with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa in the lineup. Obvious? Yes, but we didn’t see this version of the Dolphins offense coming.
When Tagovailoa went down with a third (more like fourth) documented concussion in week two against the Buffalo Bills, the doubt of Tagovailoa ever leading the Dolphins started to creep into my mind. There’s a side of the fanbase that’s always felt this way, and I usually stay clear of that thought, but boy, was I on the ropes.
The image of Tagovailoa in the defensive posture again led me to believe that his career was ending sooner rather than later.
Flash forward through his stint on IR, avoiding a review of the god-awful football played on offense, we land on the Arizona Cardinals and Bills games.
Though both are losses with Tagovailoa as the starting quarterback, the offense was absolutely humming in both games, showcasing a balanced attack that could sustain itself in the late, snowy season up into a playoff run.
The offensive efficiency isn’t the same as the quick strike to home runs that we saw for the last two years, but this game plan stresses all parts of the field on every play. Checkdowns are being thrown with more intent, and third down has been the money down for the Dolphins.
Over the last two games against the Los Angeles Rams on Monday Night Football (Primetime), just saying, and the Las Vegas Raiders, the Dolphins have played more complimentary with mostly mistake-free football from Tagovailoa. He’s spreading the ball around and giving guys room to operate.
Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle are having career-low years, but it’s not at the expense of the offense not playing well. It sucks for their numbers, but players like De’Von Achane and Jonnu Smith are eating.
Teams play cover two against the Dolphins almost sixty percent of the time, more than any other team in the league. Teams will not let Hill and Waddle get behind them. It’s an emphasis and it’s turned the Dolphins from a fireworks show into a methodical, grind-you-out type of offense. Not gonna lie, I think I prefer the latter.
4-6 To Where?
The Dolphins are now at 4-6 with seven games left and have the “third-easiest remaining schedule” in the NFL. I don’t necessarily agree with it due to the teams they have in their way, such as the San Francisco 49ers, Green Bay Packers, Houston Texans, and the New York Jets twice.
All are teams that could get hot and beat anyone. They’re all preseason playoff projected teams considered healthy, including their quarterbacks.
With all the information at hand, tied with the remaining “easy” schedule, where can the Dolphins finish? I could see them going 6-1 through the last seven-game stretch, but I could also see them going 4-3.
One aspect that is finally going in the Dolphins’ direction is that the team is starting to get healthy for the final stretch run rather than breaking down like in previous years.
Though it seems the Dolphins will be without Jaelan Phillips and Bradley Chubb, Chop Robinson and Emmanuel Ogbah have been fantastic filling in for them on the edges. The defense is also starting to turn back to its dominant early season ways with Jevon Holland and Zach Sieler back in the lineup, not to mention the 38-year-young Calais Campbell turning in an All-Pro season to date. Isiah Wynn has also been cleared to start practicing, giving the interior much-needed help on the offensive side.
It feels as if all the stars are starting to align for a Miami Dolphins late-season run. The only questions are how many wins they can rattle off, and if they can take the last playoff spot, how far can they go from there?
