Battered Phins MUST Beat the Jets!!!
Week 15 has the Phins at a critical crossroads!!!
The Miami Dolphins had a disastrous collapse against the Tennesse Titans leading by 13 points with under 5 minutes left only to lose by 1 point 28-27. While I was shocked as badly as every Dolphins fan was over the brutal upset and didn’t have a good night’s sleep, it was the loss of center Connor Williams that was the most devastating. It’s the loss of Williams that is the one part of the defeat that the Phins can’t overcome.
The good news is Miami is a strong 9-4 on the season with 4 games left and the New York Jets coming to town, so the season can still end on a high note. Still, it feels like a dark cloud is hanging over the team with all these injuries and the ugly weather expected for this game.
No matter what, no excuses matter! The Dolphins must beat the darn Jets because the 2023 Season may hang on a win or loss!
The Dolphins are very injured, BUT!…
The Dolphins are full of injuries & on a short week, but they are home desperate to right the season and have their starting quarterback and a better team. How much better depends on the injury list that is long and ugly.
The good news: Terron Armstead is expected back. Miami needs all the help they can get on the offensive line with Hunt out and Connor done for the season. On the downside, Liam Eichenberg has been mostly poor at his job, but the Dolphins signed to center who hasn’t played in a while and will get one day of snapping with Tua. Neither sounds better than Eichenberg, which is cringe-worthy. To make it worse, Eichenberg has a bad calf and he’ll either not play or be less than 100%. So none of the options sounds like a good one at the center position. The last bit of injury news is Austin Jackson who is dealing with an oblique injury. Thankfully he’s expected to play.
You can bet with the best pay-per-head that the biggest concern is Tyreek Hill who has been battling a few nagging problems. Hill was hurt against the Titans and is dealing with a severely swollen ankle that kept him from practicing this week and is questionable for the game. With the Jets having two excellent cornerbacks in Reed and Gardener, his presence or lack of it will be a big swing for the Dolphins’ offense. I expect him to dress and play sparingly. Will it be enough?
Xavien Howard and Jevon Holland are also questionable. Miami will be without Deshon Elliot due to a concussion, so this could be a very thin secondary as well depending on the availability of Howard and Holland. Add in Andrew Van Ginkel who is dealing with an oblique issue and there are a bunch of question marks on the defense. Thankfully, the Dolphins signed edge player Mark Ingram, who was a very impactful player last season, so there’s some insurance on the defensive edge at least.
What a terrible time to get ALL these injuries!!!
No excuse! Dolphins wounded or not must deliver a win!
Bottom line: this is a struggling Jets team with a very good defense, but poor offense, who we beat soundly on the road a few weeks ago. There is no excuse, the Phins MUST deliver the “W”! The defense needs to lead the way and the offense must play smart with a few big plays and some good special teams play.
Tua needs a run game to attack the Jets’ weakness at stopping the run to keep the heat off him. McDaniel must also stick with the run game. Last week Tua was pressured way too much against a defense that didn’t blitz. If Mike McDaniel isn’t smart and works hard to offset the pressure it could be worse this week. Turnovers will likely be a major key and the ugly weather of wind and gusts and maybe rain could make this a very ugly low-scoring game.
How did we get here with a critical game against the lowly Jets?
Honestly, it doesn’t matter.
All that matters is the Dolphins notch the wind!
