We are now one week away from the start of the 2021 season for the Miami Dolphins. All of the moves they made this off-season to improve the team will be on full display next Sunday against the New England Patriots. The Dolphins finished 10-6 a year ago and were one win away from making the playoffs but fell short in an embarrassing 56-26 loss against the hated rival Buffalo Bills. Despite an extra team being added to the playoffs, 10 wins were still not good enough to get the Dolphins into the playoffs, and it shows how deep the AFC conference is and how little margin for error there is in the regular season. There are now 17 games in the regular season instead of 16, so the Dolphins will probably have to win more than 10 games to make the playoffs this year, and that should be the goal for this football team.

The biggest area the Dolphins had to address this off-season was their play makers on offense to help quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and his development. Last year the Dolphins had no speed on offense or any players that created big plays consistently. Frankly, it hurt them in many games, especially against the Bills, Kansas City Chiefs, and Seattle Seahawks. All of those teams have big-play offenses, and the Dolphins didn’t have the ability to score points against those teams and their high-powered offenses. The Dolphins added Will Fuller, a big-play receiver who can take the top of the defense off. He averages almost 20 yards a catch, and the Dolphins needed a player like that. He has durability concerns, but it’s a chance the Dolphins had to take and only give him a 1-year contract. The Dolphins drafted the best playmaker in the draft with the 6th pick overall in Jaylen Waddle, who has the speed and home run ability to make a play for a touchdown anytime he touches the ball, and he can do it in multiple ways. He can return kicks, line up in the slot, and also on the outside. The Dolphins haven’t drafted a player with this type of ability in a long time. The Dolphins also get Albert Wilson back, who opted out last year due to concerns with covid, and he was the MVP of training camp the first week. Suppose Wilson can get back to the form before his hip injury in 2018; watch out. These guys will help compliment DeVante Parker, Preston Williams, Mike Gesicki, and Jakeem Grant to help make the Dolphins better on offense. The biggest concern with this group is durability, so there is a risk factor, but the rewards are very high if all are healthy, and that’s a big if.

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The Dolphins also had some big additions on their defense. They needed to add another edge rusher in the draft, and they got arguably the best one available in the draft in Jaelan Phillips. Phillips has the speed and athleticism to get around the edge and rush the quarterback. The Dolphins needed to add another edge rusher, so they don’t have to rely on their exotic blitzes to rush the passer. Phillips may need some time to get used to the NFL level, but if he is coached upright, the sky is the limit. The Dolphins parted ways with free safety Bobby McCain because they drafted safety Jevon Holland, who some considered the best safety in the draft. Holland is a ball-hawking-free safety and should help create more turnovers on this good defense and make it better. He also can play in the box in run support and cover in the slot when needed. The biggest concern is communicating calls in the secondary, which was McCain’s strength. Holland might be brought along slowly, but he will get the opportunities.

Of course, everything will come down to the development of Tagovailoa. This offseason, Tagovailoa worked his butt off to get himself in better shape and worked on many of his mechanics. Last year, it was clear he wasn’t 100% less than a year from his hip injury, but he should be better with a full off-season to work on his game and add strength. He has already established himself as the leader of this offense and working with his receivers in the off-season, and the work has shown good results in training camp and the preseason. In the preseason games, he has looked like a completely different quarterback. However, that is the preseason, and it’s different from the regular season because the game’s speed is different, and teams are game-planning in the regular season. Many people this offseason felt the Dolphins made a mistake drafting him in 2020 after an uneven rookie season, and there was a lot of rumor they should trade for Deshaun Watson. Still, the Dolphins and coach Brian Flores are sticking with him and showing faith in his development, so it’s up to him. If he has another up and down season this year, the team could reconsider the position next year. I think he will be better this year and will see better results.

Like every season in every sport, all experts give their opinions and projections for the season. This year most people feel they are a better team but feel they are the 3rd best team in the AFC East. People feel the Bills are the team to beat, and they are the defending champions, so they should be considered the favorites. I have always believed the team that won the division the year before is the team to beat until someone knocks them off. Then most feel the Patriots are better than the Dolphins, and I don’t get where people are coming from. The Patriots last year, in their first year without Tom Brady, finished 7-9, and Brady went on to Tampa Bay and won a Super Bowl. The Patriots did make a lot of moves to improve their football team. They added tight ends Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith and receivers Nelson Agulor, but where are the game-breakers on offense. The defense added Matt Judon and Kyle Van Noy to help improve that side of the ball. The thing is, they are starting a rookie quarterback in Matt Jones, and most people think that could help the Patriots become a playoff team. I’m afraid I have to disagree with that totally. Jones will be a good quarterback, but they have to go through a learning curve like all rookie quarterbacks. The regular season is different from the preseason, like I said earlier, with the speed of the game and game planning. He may be good, and he might struggle. The reality is you don’t know what you are going to get from a rookie quarterback. Plus, I feel like their head coach Bill Belichick is getting too much credit for the Patriots’ success and general. He has only had 2 winning seasons in 25 years as a head coach with a quarterback not named Tom Brady, so excuse me if I’m not convinced the Patriots are the second-best team in the AFC East. Yes, Belichick has won 6 Super Bowls, and he is a great defensive-minded coach, but if he doesn’t start winning this year or next, I think he should be looked at differently as a great head coach. Don Shula won with different quarterbacks Johnny Unitas, Earl Moral, Bob Griese, and Dan Marino. Yes, he won only 2 Super Bowls, but he was a consistent winner no matter who was his quarterback. Heck, he almost won a 3rd Super Bowl playing two quarterbacks in a season in David Woodley and Don Strock, so I need to see it to believe that Belichick can win without Brady.

I really feel like the Dolphins are a playoff team and are ready to turn the corner. Last year they started the season against ironically the Patriots and the Bills. With the covid pandemic and no pre-season games, I didn’t feel the team would start well because they were so young. This year I feel differently because many of our rookies and young players got a year of experience under their belts last year, and they had a full off-season and preseason games this year. I feel it will be different this time around, and it starts Sunday against the Patriots. I’m not saying I think the Dolphins will win the division, but I think people need to stop underrating and sleeping on the Dolphins because I believe they are a better team with Coach Flores. Talk is cheap, and we will find out soon enough if the experts are right or wrong about this team because it’s time to put up or shut up.