Chance to show what team is made of
Miami’s final stretch will show what team can really deliver
When the Miami Dolphins pulled off a stunning upset of the Baltimore Ravens on Nov. 11, reaching this point appeared realistic.
With a defense that began showing its true potential and quarterback Tua Tagovailoa returning to health, the path back to .500 at 7-7 was there given the schedule: A home-and-home against the New York Jets and home games against the Carolina Panthers and New York Giants.
The Dolphins won all those games for a total of six straight to reach that 7-7 mark. Now, the true test begins to determine if Miami can prove itself a team worthy of vying for a playoff spot or if it’s merely a unit that battled back to .500 for a hot second against an easy part of the schedule and that’s that.
The Dolphins now have a golden opportunity ahead of them as Sunday’s results around the AFC allow them to control their own playoff fate the rest of the way. Three wins, and they’re in.
It begins with the Dolphins taking their winning streak into the Superdome for Monday Night Football and an 8:15 p.m. kickoff in New Orleans against the Saints. A win puts Miami in as one of the AFC wild-card teams through Week 16 with games at the Tennessee Titans and home against the New England Patriots to finish the regular season.
The week ahead of the game began with it seeming like a difficult task against the Saints. On Sunday Night Football last week, New Orleans shut out the defending Super Bowl-champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
“They’re a tough, physical team. They’re talented. They’re wellcoached,” Dolphins coach Brian Flores said last Monday. “It will certainly be a challenge, really, on all three sides of the ball. They’ve done a nice job. Obviously, they got a big win last week holding a very good team to no points.”
Then, the Saints were decimated by COVID-19 throughout the week. Twenty players are on the team’s reserve/COVID-19 list, including quarterbacks Taysom Hill and Trevor Siemian, All-Pro right tackle Ryan Ramczyk, linebacker and leading tackler Demario Davis, standout safety Malcolm Jenkins and Pro Bowl special teamer J.T. Gray.
With New Orleans down its top two quarterbacks since season
starter Jameis Winston was ruled out for the year with a knee injury, rookie Ian Book gets set to make his NFL regular-season debut as the team’s fourth starting quarterback.
Book was a fourth-round pick of the Saints out of Notre Dame, and the only pro film on him is limited preseason footage. Flores, though, did get to see him at the past Senior Bowl.
“He obviously showed good command of the offense in the Senior Bowl, and I’m sure that will be the case on Sunday,” Flores said. “He’s smart, tough. I’m sure they’ll put him in very good positions, and he can make some throws. He’s also a good runner with the football.”
The Saints also figure to feature five-time Pro Bowl running back Alvin Kamara both in the running and passing game to facilitate things for Book. Kamara will be the most dynamic offensive playmaker on the field Monday night, so he will have to be accounted for, along with veteran Mark Ingram when he spells him.
While Book makes his NFL debut, Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa plays on Monday Night Football for the first time in his career.
“It’s pretty cool,” Tagovailoa said. “I grew up watching primetime football, whether it was Sunday night, Monday night, Thursday night. So being able to be a part of that and being able to play on Monday night, I think that’s super cool.”
Tagovailoa had a run of impressive performances — four straight appearances with a quarterback rating above 100 — hit a snag with his two-interception game against the Jets. He’ll have rookie wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, his top pass catcher this season, back on Monday night after Waddle missed a week in COVID protocols.
While Tagovailoa struggled last time out, the Dolphins found their run game, even as they dealt with adversity in the running back room with three players plus a practice squad option spending time on the COVID list. It all led veteran and former Miami Hurricanes great Duke Johnson to move to the top of the depth chart, running for more than 100 yards and two touchdowns as the Dolphins set a new season high in rushing against the Jets.
Myles Gaskin spelled him after going through just a practice and walkthrough ahead of the game after getting cleared. Now, Phillip Lindsay is back too as Miami suddenly has depth at running back with Johnson, who proved he needs to be on the field, getting signed to the active roster for good after coming up from the practice squad.
Between Waddle, Lindsay and safety Jevon Holland, the Dolphins have gotten key contributors back from COVID while the Saints are going in the wrong direction in that department.
Book, already without his standout right tackle Ramczyk, could also be without left tackle Terron Armstead, who didn’t practice this past week while dealing with a knee injury. That could pose issues for him against Miami’s exotic blitz packages.
The Dolphins defense looks to continue an impressive run during the win streak where it is first in sacks, second in total defense and red-zone defense, third in scoring defense and fourth in third-down defense in that span.