The Miami Dolphins failed to build confidence due to a streaky season.
The Miami Dolphins crawled to the finish line with an 8-9 record after failing to secure wins against quality opponents in 2024. Whether it was a loss against the Buffalo Bills, Green Bay Packers, or Houston Texans, the Dolphins struggled to deliver a statement performance.
Being Super Bowl week, all of the NFL’s top names voyaged to New Orleans for Sunday’s game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles, which included the NFL’s all-time passing leader and former Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino. While speaking with Pro Football Talk, Marino was asked about how Miami can improve after missing the postseason.
“Because of our injuries and things that happened, we never got to that point where you could get that edge and you feel like you’re confident enough to win playoff games,” Marino said. “Tua [Tagovailoa] got hurt and to be honest, if he’s not playing, our chances of winning go way down. We have to find a way to keep people healthy and to continue to grow as a team. We all need an edge — especially in a football game.”
Miami’s Week 16 29-17 win over the San Francisco 49ers was the year’s closest thing to a statement win, and the team reached .500 the following week after playing catchup since a three-game losing streak in September. Still, it was too late to carve a path to the playoffs.
“When I first got into the league we would get home-field advantage,” Marino said. “It makes it so much easier when people have to come to the heat and you don’t have to go to Buffalo. We won some games up there, but we never won a playoff game in Buffalo.”
The rest of Marino’s interview on the PFT is available here.
