Winning really does fix everything, doesn’t it? 

Barely a month ago, Dolphins fans everywhere were lamenting the season’s 1-7 start, shaken by anxiety stemming from the approaching 2021 trade deadline. Tua had been hurt most of the season, the defense had regressed in every way possible, and the offense had completely stagnated as the seven losses piled up one after the other.

Now?

Brain Flores and the Fins are riding a four-game winning streak where opponents are averaging 11.4 points per game, and the offense seems to have finally found some footing. Deshaun Watson hasn’t been mentioned in weeks. And best of all, the Dolphins have at least an outside shot of being relevant to the postseason picture as December football kicks off.

So what’s the key? What’s finally gotten the Miami Dolphins back into the winner’s circle lately? 

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Young Dolphins on defense showing growth: While the defense floundered for the first two months of the season, it generally wasn’t because of the veterans on that side of the ball. 

Xavien Howard and Byron Jones have played well for the majority of the season. Emmanuel Ogbah and Christian Wilkins have been stalwarts and, lately, playmakers upfront. Jerome Baker had his struggles but was also hurt for a spell.

Instead, a steep learning curve for several rookies and a second-year player is what slowed the defense.

Jaelan Phillips looked overwhelmed in the early goings, and his snap counts fluctuated wildly from game to game. Then, coinciding roughly with the start of the winning streak, the team pared down his role and he’s been awesome since. Working primarily as a rush end, he’s now recorded at least half a sack in each of the past four games including three against the Panthers. 

Andrew Van Ginkel was either a non-factor or had his name called out for all the wrong reasons during the first half of the season. He wasn’t getting to the quarterback and was atrocious in pass coverage. Now? Gink has three sacks in the past four games to go with seven QB hits and 19 pressures, all solid marks (from @GeorgeForder3 on Twitter). Pass coverage will probably never be a great skill of his, but he’s been utilized much more as a Blitzer lately. And it’s working.

Most crucially, however, there’s the play of rookie safety Jevon Holland. The Oregon product had his official coming-out party on primetime against the Ravens in week ten, when he played 100% of the defensive snaps and recorded a tackle for loss, a QB hit, four solo tackles and two passes defended. He was flying all over the place. 

Prior to Holland’s emergence, the defense had clearly missed the veteran presence of ex-Dolphins Bobby McCain on the back end to communicate calls and get people lined up. It took a decent chunk of the season, but Holland is now a fixture on defense. He’s more comfortable with the playbook, is communicating calls and adjustments better, and is flying around making plays. He should be a legitimate candidate for Rookie of the Year if he keeps up this level of play.

Between veteran players and young guns like Holland, Van Ginkel, and Phillips, this Fins defense continues to trend in the right direction. 

Tua’s trademark efficiency: Make no mistake — this Dolphins offense is far from perfect. The defense is still what drives this team.

Luckily, the offense is showing signs that it can at least pull its weight in the final five weeks of the season. Much of that is due to the play of second-year quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.

Tua was the most efficient passer in college football history at Alabama, and we’re finally starting to see that player in the NFL. He’s recorded a passer rating over 100 in each of the past three games, has completed over 80% of his passes the last two weeks, and has hit a great balance between spreading the ball around and showing off his rapport with rookie dynamo Jaylen Waddle. 

To Waddle’s credit, his breakout game was just last week against the Panthers. He recorded nine catches for 137 yards and a touchdown. He’s also up to fifth in the NFL in receptions on the year and is in the process of breaking several franchise rookie records. 

Tua’s play is elevating the rest of the offense around him, and he’s doing it with an ineffectual running game and an offensive line that has continued to struggle. He’s been one of the best in the league at avoiding sacks and is getting the ball out of his hands third fastest in the league. And he’s done all this without Will Fuller and DeVante Parker the past three weeks. 

As hope continues to build in South Florida, Tua gives fans another reason to smile.

Coaching? Yes, coaching: I’d be lying to you if I said that I haven’t been confused and irritated by some of Brian Flores’ coaching this year.

Questionable utilization of Jaylen Waddle and Mike Gesicki as well as Jaylen Phillips and Elandon Roberts on the defensive side of the ball, were lowlights during Miami’s losing streak. Things have really turned around since then, however.

We’re not seeing Roberts in pass coverage much anymore. Waddle is getting more looks and hopefully will get a few deep shots in before the season’s end. Phillips’ role has been refined, and he’s thrived. Gesicki’s snaps counts have climbed even though Durham Smythe’s have stayed constant, but Smythe has played well to his credit. So that one’s understandable. 

When the team hit the dreaded 1-7 mark, and the noise surrounding the trade deadline and Deshaun Watson were at an all-time high, people everywhere were unhappy with Flores. Rightfully so in many respects — and that’s without going into detail on how the handling of the Watson rumors must have affected Tagovailoa. But give Flo credit for staying the course even when people were dumbfounded that Miami stood pat at the trade deadline beyond just the quarterback position. 

During the losing streak Flores took all the blame, and during the new winning streak he’s directed all the praise to his staff. That’s just good leadership, something you love to see, especially when circumstances in 2021 have been far from ideal. Credit Flo for how he’s handled adversity, and also for having confidence in this team to right the ship. Playcalling on offense and defense has been much improved in recent weeks, and the team is playing with a new intensity.

Miami is far from being out of the woods after having such high expectations for the season — games against the Giants and Jets will be crucial to climbing back to .500 — but the team’s turnaround and subsequent winning streak is no mistake. 

And since winning does seem to fix just about everything (looking at you, offensive line), let’s keep that going, shall we?