If you told me before the season started, the Miami Dolphins would be 10-5 with a chance to make the playoffs going into the last week of the season; I’m not sure I would have believed you. However, here we are, the Dolphins have the 2nd youngest roster in the NFL and are deficient in certain areas of this team with some key injuries, but they continue to find ways to win games.

It all starts with our head coach Brian Flores. He and his coaching staff have done a great job of coaching these young players and putting them in positions to win games. The team is so well prepared week in and week out. He gets the most out of his players and his players love playing for him. You can tell by the way they play. Flores is a tough hard nose coach and is well disciplined. This team is one of the least penalized teams in the league, and they don’t beat themselves, something we couldn’t say about the previous coaches the last decade. He’s also not afraid to make difficult decisions, such as making the difficult decision at midseason to go with rookie Tua Tagovailoa at quarterback over incumbent Ryan Fitzpatrick. It’s a move that can divide a team, but Flores has the pulse of his team, and whatever decision he makes, there is a reason for it. He also keeps his team humble and focused on the task at hand, not looking ahead.

With this team, it all starts with their defense, which has gone from giving up the most points in the league a year ago to giving up the fewest in the league. It has been a night and day turn around. The Dolphins signed some free agents like Kyle Van Noy, Shaq Lawson, Emmanuel Ogbah, Byron Jones, and Elandon Roberts to go along with players they drafted in the last couple of years in Christian Wilkins, Andrew Van Ginkel, and Raekwon Davis to improve the defense. I wasn’t sure how well they would play as a unit with no offseason due to the covid pandemic, but after a slow start, the team has become one of the better units in the league. This defense has gone 20 straight games with forcing turnovers and come up with game-changing plays at certain points in a game.

The offense has been starting 3 rookies on the offensive line in Austin Jackson, Robert Hunt, and Solomon Kindley, who have all been playing well and not showing the game is too big for them, which is encouraging for this team considering they have been searching for a young offensive line for years. The Dolphins have been battling injuries and the covid list like all teams, but it’s been affecting the skills position in particular. The Dolphins don’t have a ton of talent outside of Mike Gesicki and DeVante Parker, but they have many hard-working players who play hard and contribute. Guys like second years running back Myles Gaskin have really developed from a year ago to starting running back and makes plays as he did against the Oakland Raiders the other night. He’s not the biggest or fastest player at the position, but he’s a player that has contributed to the team’s success and could be a player they can move forward with for years to come. The Dolphins have also been getting contributions from back up tight ends and receivers Anthony Steen and  Mack Hollins, guys, mostly know for their special teams. Hollins made the huge catch to put the position for the winning field goal against the Raiders. The Dolphins need to add more game-breakers at running back and receiver in the off-season, but this group goes to work and contributes.

The Dolphins have been getting contributions from both quarterbacks in Fitzpatrick and Tagovailoa. Fitzpatrick was the group leader last year and started the year, but the Dolphins drafted Tagovailoa to be the quarterback of the future. When Flores made the switch, people questioned the move because the team was 3-3 and played well with Fitzpatrick, but he felt the team needed to give Tagovailoa a chance to learn and gain valuable experience to help him moving forward. Fitzpatrick could have rocked the boat, but he knows his role with the team to mentor Tagovailoa, and he has helped him in his development. When Tagovailoa struggles like against the Raiders, Flores won’t hesitate to go to Fitzpatrick to provide a spark to help the team win. To both player’s credit, they both are good with everything and have a healthy respect for each other, which is something you don’t see, and as a fan, I enjoy seeing. Tagovailoa is the future of this team, but it’s great watching Fitzpatrick playing and having fun and embracing his role on the team.

No matter what happens in the season finale against the Buffalo Bills, the future is bright for this team. It’s the most excited I’ve been about this team in a long time. The team seems to have found the right head coach to lead the team moving forward and have many young players developing. I hope they can continue to develop and keep the success moving forward and not be a flash in the pan like the team has been the last 2 decades.