Skylar or bust vs the Bills in their Wild Card game
There’s a bit of mixed feelings about the Miami Dolphins finally making the playoffs with them limping into the postseason after getting an ugly win over the Jets after a four-game losing streak. Added to double-mind is the Dolphins will be without Tua and plenty of their offensive line are questionable due to injury. Thankfully, Terron Armstead was limited for Friday’s practice and there’s a chance he might play. Still, beggars can’t be choosers, making the postseason is a plus, and there’s at least an opportunity to make a miracle happen.
Where there’s a chance there’s hope
The best sportsbook providers on Sunday night actually had 3 different lines for the upcoming wild card playoff game against Buffalo with -7 being if Tua played, -10 if Bridgewater played, and -14 if Thompson played at QB. We are currently at -13.5 now that Sklyar is starting. At least they bumped it up .5 from the originally expected -14!
Keep hope alive! I bet Terron playing lowers that line quite a bit though.
The reality is Miami had their best chance to pull off the upset if Tua had played. But even if he had, it would have been two weeks since his last action and when he came back from a concussion against the Steelers, he looked rusty. A rusty Tua wouldn’t beat the Bills.
On the positive side, Skylar is tuned up, mostly healthy, and has good movement skills. This might spark something. Anyway, I prefer him way more than Teddy Bridgewater.
Skylar or bust with Teddy still dinged
The Phins only chance is if they get some stellar play from their defense, win the turnover battle, severely limit penalties, and generate a rushing attack that can sustain long drives to chew up clock to keep Josh Allen off the field.
I know that’s quite a mouthful of hopefuls because the Dolphins have been terrible in the turnover differential this season at -7, which was tied for fourth worst in the league with the Jets. Miami was even worse in takeaways, tied for 2nd worst in the league with 14.
Anything can happen in the playoffs, so maybe Miami magically starts creating turnovers on Sunday!
5 pts separate the Phins two games against the Bills
Miami played in Buffalo a few weeks ago and one thing that actually stood out was they were able to run very successfully against the Bills. They probably should have run even more in the second half, but hindsight is 20/20. They must establish the run again, early and often. If they can be successful on the ground that will help Skylar Sunday… and keep Allen off the field.
In terms of penalties, the Dolphins have been undisciplined and constantly get called for offside on both sides of the ball, Illegl procedure, pass interference, and everything else. No way Miami wins unless find a way to limit these stupid mistakes. Unfortunately, this has been a consistent problem all year, which seems to be the downside of head coach McDaniel’s leadership, who is more laid back than the disciplinarian Flores.
Maybe we can flip the script when it matters most!
The odds are stacked against Miami. Anything less than a perfect game will make this a one and done trip to the playoffs this year. Let’s see how it plays out!
What are the rest of the Miami Dolphins news fans thoughts on the Dolphins chances this weekend?