Dolphins are in the same ‘ole spot, but will they do something new this offseason?
The Miami Dolphins and Tua flopped in a must win game, and now they have just three games left before some major changes take place–hopefully. As crazy as it seems, the Dolphins still have a mathematical chance to make the playoffs with a 7% chance. The only way that even becomes remotely possible is if they win out and then still need a ton of help. Frankly, the Dolphins don’t deserve to be in the playoffs, but as a long time Dolphins fan, I can’t not root for them to at least make it exciting down the stretch.
McDaniel is facing his old boss
This is an interesting matchup coming up, for multiple reasons. The first reason is that Mike McDaniel was with Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers from 2017 to 2021 right before he became the head coach of the Dolphins. Shanahan and the 49ers have already beaten McDaniel and the Dolphins the other time they faced off, but that was in San Francisco. The Dolphins have clearly played better at home, so that’s one thing in their favor.
The other main thing about this matchup is both of these teams have completely underperformed expectations this season. Miami and San Francisco went from playoff teams to now the loser of the game being eliminated from the playoffs entirely. So, it’s a battle to save face between the two franchises.
The 49ers are a much more physical team then the Dolphins, and that’s something the Dolphins have historically had problems against. As inconsistent as the 49ers have been this year, you can bet they will be hungry to push the Dolphins around on Sunday. Will the Dolphins be as hungry to win? The best sportsbook providers opened the line this week at -1.5 for the home Dolphins, however this quickly has been pushed down to a pick ’em spread.
Will the Phins show character when they are all but out of playoff contention?
Miami has had a list of problems, but probably their biggest one is they can’t get consistent play on both sides of the football in the same game. When the offense is humming then the defense can’t stop anyone, and then when the defense starts playing well and making stops, Tua and the offense can’t stop turning the ball over. Last week was a perfect example of the Defense played well enough to win the game, but the offense laid an egg. Then throw in terrible special teams along the way, and it’s clear this team is rotted at the core.
This game has to be a game about pride, playoffs or not. The Phins need to show some pride and finish the season on as high a note as they can– even if it’s just to give the fans something good to see on gameday.
The path ahead is clear!
Where the Dolphins go after this season completes is anyone’s guess, but it would be nice to see some changes at the top such as finally getting rid of our GM Chris Grier? The Dolphins haven’t won a playoff game since 2000, which coincidently is the year Grier started as a scout with the Dolphins.
The Dolphins have been stuck in a rut this entire century and churned through different players, different coaches, and even a different owner–Ross became the owner in 2009. The only constant through all this failure has been Grier moving his way up the organization food chain.
Moving off Grier is a 1 + 1, ‘no-brainer’ decision… but will Steven Ross actually answer correctly and cut ties and go find a new General Manager?
What are the rest of the Miami Dolphins news fans thoughts about this latest disappointing season?