Nervous But Excited About This Young Dolphins Team
Opening day is less than one week away and just like every year, I’m excited to get the season started with a clean slate, but I’m also nervous as well. Because you don’t know what to expect in the NFL from year to year. This year that is, even more, the case with there being no true offseason for teams with the COVID pandemic. The Miami Dolphins just like all of the other teams didn’t have any mini camps, regular offseason workouts, or preseason games. Instead, they had just three weeks of training camp to get ready for the season.
For the Dolphins, this is a big deal because they have such a young football team. They have only one player on their roster over the age of 30 years old and that’s quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. The Dolphins could have as many as three rookie offensive linemen starting on Sunday against the New England Patriots to go along with a couple of free agents they signed this past March. Miami should be vastly improved on the offensive line, but with the lack of a true offseason, they are going to need some time to come together as a unit which means there will be growing pains. As nervous as I am about that, I’m excited about the potential with the offensive line. They will get better with each snap and each game. The Dolphins have needed to make these changes on the offensive line for years and they finally have put the effort into rebuilding this group.
— DolphinsTalk.com (@DolphinsTalk) September 6, 2020
The defense has a lot more talent thanks to the team signing Byron Jones, Kyle Van Noy, Shaq Lawson, and Emmanuel Ogbah. They also invested high picks in cornerback Noah Igbinoghene and defensive tackle Raekwon Davis. The Dolphins were one of the worst defenses in the league last year and I know they will be better, but the question is how long will it take for these players to come together? Just like the offensive line, the defense is going to have their growing pains due to so many new players playing together for the first time. I feel the Dolphins can match up well against any offense on their schedule if they are playing well at their best.
The biggest excitement for 2020 is our future franchise quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. I’m as excited about him as any quarterback prospect in a long time. I know the injury history so having him sit behind Fitzpatrick is a good thing The problem is Fitzpatrick has never put together back to back good seasons so is he going to reverse his fortunes or with head coach Brian Flores have to make the tough call and go with the rookie when the offense is stale? If so will Tua be ready for the moment? I think Tua will be ready when his time comes, but I think he should start out on the bench, and if we need a spark and have to make the change then go for it.
The AFC East is more open this year than in years past because the Patriots are being quarterbacked by someone not named Tom Brady. The Buffalo Bills are the favorites and for good reason, they did make the playoffs last year. The Dolphins should be able to compete in this division and could contend if things fall right.
A lot of people feel with all of the young players the Dolphins have, they could be a year away from contending. I feel why can’t the Dolphins contend now? I know the Dolphins will have their ups and downs with their young team, but I really believe this team can win some games and possibly make the division race interesting especially in they beat the Patriots and Bills to start the season. If they could do that the sky could be the limit potentially. Every year there is always a surprise team that comes out of nowhere so why can’t that be the Dolphins?
I love the direction this team is going with their rebuild it’s the best I’ve felt about the Dolphins in a long time. They have a lot of young talent now it’s just a question of how quickly they will develop. That is the unknown question that makes me nervous. I know there will be adversity this season, but this team will get better with each snap and game as the season progresses.
