Phins MUST Win… Whoever Starts At QB
Miami must notch a win this week, whoever is behind center
The Miami Dolphins are banged up on both sides of the ball like a MASH unit… and, of course, given our awesome luck, at the all-important QB position with both Tua and Teddy in concussion protocol. The latest report this morning is that Tua will begin to throw passes at practice as part of his progression through the concussion protocol. Tua won’t be ready to start this week, and with Teddy Bridgewater unable to practice until Thursday, McDaniel appointed Skylar Thompson as the starter against the Vikings.
Skylar needs to be good enough
After not showing concussion symptoms from the hit that knocked him out in the Jets game, Teddy will be Skylar’s backup against the team that originally drafted him. I’m sure he’d prefer to start against his former team rather than be the backup, but, nonetheless, Skylar is starting.
Even though Skylar had a few costly mistakes in his first game, he didn’t look too out of place. His up and down performance is typical for a Rookie, especially one who just got thrown into the game. With a full week to prepare and get extra reps, he’ll have a much better shot to perform better than his last performance.
But for Miami, it’s not just the QB that’s the problem. The defense is quickly becoming the biggest issue. Sure the injury bug is a sizable cause of this with both Howard out last game and Jones not playing a down this season. The lack of quality man cornerbacks makes it harder for the Dolphins to blitz and be as aggressive on defense. The one good news is that it appears that Howard has been progressing with his rehab and there is a good chance he will be able to play.
Phins will be against a ugly wall at 3-3 after a 3-0 start
Howard’s return would be a huge boost to the defense, especially since the Vikings have Justin Jefferson who is leading the league in receiving yards with 547. The Vikings also have other weapons on offense with Adam Thielen, Dalvin Cook, and competent QB Kirk Cousins. If Miami wants any chance to contain the Vikings offense, the Dolphin defense must play like they did at the end of last season, when they went on their winning streak. Miami starting to create turnovers will be critical against the Vikings and going forward. The Phins are at the bottom of the league at 3rd in least takeaways with only 4 this whole season, 3 fumble recoveries and 1 lone interception!
This is a back breaker for a team that lived on turnovers from their defense.
Most pay per head sites had the line as -1 for the Vikings before the Dolphins played the Jets. But, once their QB situation was complicated with the Bridgewater injury the line opened on Monday as -3 for the Vikings and is now up to -3.5. Clearly a lot of that has to do with injuries, but either way the Dolphins will be a home town dog and need to play their best if they want a chance to beat the 4-1 Vikings.
This is a critical game for the 2022 Season that Miami must find a way to win!
Gut check time early it seems.
What are the rest of the Miami Dolphins News fans thoughts about this upcoming game against the Vikings?
