Miami Dolphins Therapy

A weekly column dedicated to helping Miami Dolphins fans cope with the 2019 football season.

Positives from the New York Jets game:

The Miami Dolphins “earned” their first victory of the season against the struggling New York Jets. The script being that the winless Dolphins beat the Adam Gase coached Jets excited many Dolphins fans. But, as there were many Dolphins fans that were happy that the Fins picked up their first win, there were an equal number of fans hesitant to be happy about the outcome due to where the Dolphins ended up in the upcoming draft order.

However, with the win came many positives:

  • This win against the New York Jets says a lot about the coaching by the Miami Dolphins. Although many of the players currently on the Dolphins roster are new to the team, every week you see them being put in a better position to be successful. Skill definitely has a lot to do with it, but the coaches are the ones tasked with improving these player skills, and it has been evident for the past few weeks that this has been the case.
  • The Miami Dolphins have the least penalized team in the NFL with only 45 penalties on the season. Some would argue that since the team has added so many new pieces to the team that penalties would be a problem. But that has clearly not been the case. This is, again, a sign of good coaching. On the flip side, the Gase led Jets are the 4th most penalized team in the league. (Something Dolphins fans have been all too familiar with)
  • The Dolphins offensive line continued to show improvement against the New York Jets. Although the running lanes continues to be a struggle, the passing game flourished against the Jets. Ryan Fitzpatrick threw for 288 yards and 3 touchdowns during the game, while the line gave up 4 sacks.
  • The Dolphins defensive continued to play strong. For much of the day, they were pushing the line, and forcing Sam Darnold to make bad decisions. Especially when he got close to the end zone. Plus, the team held Le’Veon to only 66 yards on the ground, which is an accomplishment all by itself. And, to not have Xavien Howard and Reshad Jones on the field says volumes about what type of assets this team currently possesses.
  • The win will go a long way for the Miami Dolphins players. No matter how much Dolphins fans wanted the team to tank, the players have always been putting their best efforts into winning. Had the team gone 0-16, it would have been hard, mentally, to overcome that type of disappointment. Don’t be surprised if the Dolphins win more games. Sometimes, winning can be contagious.

 

He’s A Keeper…

This week’s keeper is Wide Receiver Preston Williams.

It seemed like a long time ago when Preston Williams had his breakout performance during the Miami Dolphins preseason game against the Atlanta Falcons, when he made 4 impressive, circus like, catches for 97 yards. Through most of the season, he was a solid receiver, with his best performance coming against the Buffalo Bills during week 7. However, his Achilles heel was that he dropped many important passes, including a few in the end zone.

Preston saved his best performance of the season for the New York Jets game, where he caught 2 touchdowns along with 72 yards on 5 receptions. He showed that using his speed, and especially his height, he was able to outrun and outjump his defenders for the ball.

Unfortunately, due to a knee injury that Preston experienced on a punt return, he will be out for the remainder of the season. However, when he gets back, which is expected to be by the 2020 training camp, he should have a job waiting for him, and he should continue to flourish in the NFL.

It Could Be Worse…

You could be rooting for the 2-6 Cleveland Browns

Imagine for a second that your team thinks it has a franchise quarterback, and then they go on a spending spree to surround that team with trades and high-priced free agent players on offense. No, its not the 2010-2018 Miami Dolphins we’re talking about. It’s the 2019 Cleveland Browns.

Take a brief trip down memory lane during the offseason, when the Cleveland Browns went on a spending spree during the offseason. They picked up Sheldon Richardson, Olivier Vernon, and Odell Beckam Jr, which were well know, and high priced, players. But, they have not performed to the level of their price tags. Richardson has no sacks this season, Vernon has 3 sacks with a forced fumble, and Odell only has 1 touchdown catch on the season.

Plus, it’s looking more and more each day that Baker Mayfield is not the savior of the Brown franchise like many Browns fans had hoped for. With his 27-14 touchdown to interception ratio that Baker put together last season, he has followed it with a 7-12 touchdown to interception ratio this season. The season is slipping away from the Browns, and it appears that they are falling back into the Browns pattern that Adam Gase use to tease Jarvis Landry about.

 

Will the Dolphins win this weekend?

The Miami Dolphins actually have momentum heading into this week’s game against the Indianapolis Colts. It may be hard to imagine, but as mentioned above, sometimes winning becomes contagious. And, each week, all signs have pointed to improvements for each of the units on the field.

However, the Dolphins received two gut punches this week with the loss of Preston Williams and the suspension of Mark Walton, which can have a negative impact on the outcome of the game. With that said, remember that the 2018 Dolphins showed a great deal of success when Albert Wilson and Jakeem Grant were on the field at the same time. And, do not underestimate the skills of the two running backs that the Dolphins will be calling up to fill the void left behind by Walton and the recently traded Kenyan Drake. Patrick Laird and Myles Gaskin both made some very positive impressions during preseason, and don’t be surprised if one, or not both of them, leapfrog Kalen Ballage over the next few weeks to take the main running back duties.

With all that said, this game is going to depend on if the Indianapolis Colts have their starting quarterback returning from injury. Jacoby Brissett sprained his knee during the Pittsburgh Steelers game last weekend, and he never returned to the game after the injury. As of today, Brissett appears to be very questionable. Since he is now the franchise quarterback, the coaching staff may play it safe to ensure a re-injury does not occur. With Brissett in the game, the chances of the Dolphins starting a winning streak goes down. However, if Brissett’s backup, Brian Hoyer, ends up making the start, the Dolphins have a chance of winning their second game in a row.

 

The Dolphins upcoming Draft Picks

The Miami Dolphins will have the following draft picks in the upcoming 2020 draft:

Round 1, picks:

4

17 (from Pittsburgh Steelers)

25 (from Houston Texans)

 

Round 2, picks:

35

62 (from New Orleans Saints)

 

Round 3, picks:

69

 

Round 4, picks:

Compensatory pick – Ja’Wuan James

 

Round 5, picks:

145 (from Pittsburgh Steelers)

Compensatory pick – Cameron Wake

 

Round 6, picks:

165

182 (From Dallas Cowboys)

 

Round 7, picks:

196

216 (From Kansas City Chiefs)

 

College Quarterback Updates…

As it appears that the Miami Dolphins are destined to draft a quarterback in the 2020 NFL Draft, we will keep an eye on the top quarterbacks who should be available in the upcoming draft.

  • Tua Tagovailoa and Joe Burrows both had this past weekend off as they prepare for a head to head matchup this coming weekend. If you are a Miami Dolphins fan, then set your DVR for the colossal game between the Alabama Crimson Tide and the LSU Tigers at 3:30 on Saturday, November 9th. It will be a showcase of first round quarterbacks, with the potential of a future Miami Dolphins quarterback. The game will allow doubters and believers of both quarterbacks to strengthen their cases as to why the player should be the next Dolphins signal caller.
  • Justin Herbert – The #7 Oregon Ducks put a beating on the unranked USC Trojans. In the 56-24 victory, Herbert threw for 225 yards with 3 touchdowns and 1 interception. He had an efficient day, and the victory was a full team effort. The next game for the Ducks will be next Saturday, November 16th , against Arizona.

 

Mailbag. . your turn.

If you have any questions that you would like to see here next week or in future weeks, tweet at me or send a DM via Twitter to @ian693.

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