Football has arrived. It’s finally here and you know what that means…..
NFL TEAM PREVIEWS BABY!!!!!!!!!
There’s no reason for a long introduction or anything. You likely clicked on this because you wanted to see my prediction for the Dolphins, not to remind you that football season has arrived.
So without further ado……
Miami Dolphins
The Stats:
Record Last Ten Seasons: 6-10 (2015), 8-8 (2014), 8-8 (2013), 7-9 (2012), 6-10 (2011), 7-9 (2010), 7-9 (2009), 11-5 (2008), 1-15 (2007), 6-10 (2006)
Last Playoff Appearance: 2008 Wildcard vs. Baltimore Ravens
Last Playoff Win: 2000 Wildcard vs. Indianapolis Colts
Super Bowl Titles Won: 2 (Super Bowl VII, Super Bowl VIII)
Passing Leader for 2015: Ryan Tannehill (4,208 yards, 24 touchdowns, 12 interceptions)
Rushing Leader for 2015: Lamar Miller (872 yards, 8 touchdowns)
Receiving Leader for 2015: Jarvis Landry (1,157 yards, 4 touchdowns)
The Head Coach:
Adam Gase
Overall Record (as a head coach): 0-0
Record With Team: 0-0
Previous NFL Jobs: Detroit Lions Offensive Assistant (2005-07), Detroit Lions QB Coach (2007), San Francisco 49ers Offensive Assistant (2008), Denver Broncos Wide Receivers Coach (2009-2010), Denver Broncos QB Coach (2011-12), Denver Broncos Offensive Coordinator (2013-14), Chicago Bears Offensive Coordinator (2015)
My Grade: C
The Team:
(Depth Charts will change as training camps progress obviously….)
Player Grade Guide:
Blue = Elite Player
Green = Really Good Player
Orange = Average Player
Pink = Meh
Red = NO THANKS
Gray = Rookie
Offense:
QB: Ryan Tannehill
RB: Jay Ajayi
WR: Jarvis Landry
WR: DeVante Parker
WR: Kenny Stills
TE: Jordan Cameron
OC: Mike Pouncey
OG: Laremy Tunsil
OG: Billy Turner
OT: Branden Albert
OT: Ja’Wuan James
Defense:
DE: Mario Williams
DT: Ndamukong Suh
DT: Earl Mitchell
DE: Cameron Wake
LB: Koa Misi
LB: Jelani Jenkins
LB: Kiko Alonso
CB: Byron Maxwell
CB: Tony Lippett
SS: Reshad Jones
FS: Isa Abdul-Qudus
The Schedule:
vs. @ Seattle Seahawks (September 11)
vs. @ New England Patriots (September 18)
vs. Cleveland Browns (September 25)
vs. @Cincinnati Bengals (September 29)
vs. Tennessee Titans
vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
vs. Buffalo Bills
BYE WEEK
vs. New York Jets
vs. @ San Diego Chargers
vs. @ Los Angeles Rams
vs. San Francisco 49ers
vs. @ Baltimore Ravens
vs. Arizona Cardinals
vs. @ New York Jets
vs. @Buffalo Bills
vs. New England Patriots
The Prediction:
5-11
Brief Synopsis:
The Miami Dolphins haven’t been good in eight years. Think about that for a second. It’s almost been an entire decade since the Dolphins had a season that ended better than 8-8. That’s just plain ridiculous. Yes, I know the New England Patriots have been a dominant force in the AFC East for the last fifteen years, but the Dolphins need to be better. With new head coach Adam Gase in town, there is some hope in Miami that the Dolphins will once again be Super Bowl contenders soon. It’s not coming this season though.
On offense, the Dolphins are very average. Ryan Tannehill is a decent quarterback, but Miami needs him to be better than decent if they are going to unseat Tom Brady and the Patriots from the top of the division. Adam Gase is considered an offensive genius by many and if he can’t get Tannehill to take that next step, I don’t know if it’s going to happen. He’s got some good weapons to work with in Jarvis Landry, Kenny Stills, and DeVante Parker, so there’s no excuse that Tannehill can’t improve his game even more this season. The run game is a little weaker now that Lamar Miller is gone, but if Jay Ajayi and new addition Arian Foster can become a nice one-two punch, they may not miss Miller that much.
Defensively, I’m not a fan of what Miami is bringing to the table. There are maybe five or six starters that I would want on my team. The Dolphins traded with the Philadelphia Eagles this off-season to try and improve, but ended up getting Kiko Alonso and Byron Maxwell back. I got news for you guys. Maxwell still sucks and Alonso sucked so bad last year that I don’t know if he can return to playing the way he did in Buffalo before he was injured. Those improvements likely won’t pay off this year. The Dolphins do have good safeties and NDAMUKONG SUH and his fat contract, so they do have some pieces to work with. It’s just not nearly enough.
So, will this be the year the Dolphins return to prominence and make a playoff appearance for the first time in forever? No. They still aren’t very good and there’s no way they are taking out the Patriots, Jets, or the Bills this year. There is some good news for Dolphins fans to look forward to this season though. Like I said earlier, you REALLY want to see some improvement out of Ryan Tannehill under the guidance of Adam Gase. If that doesn’t happen, things could get extremely interesting this next off-season. The Dolphins could potentially be looking for a new franchise quarterback in Gase’s second year as head coach. You know what? I’m going to go ahead and bet on that happening……
