Ever hear of the phrase dead cat bounce? Well, Miami’s 34-10 throttling of the Atlanta Falcons could be characterized as a dead dolphin bounce.
Sure, the Dolphins looked stellar as they took it to the Falcons on the road, but don’t be tricked into thinking this is an organization that has turned the tide. Fight the urge to look at Tua Tagovailoa’s pristine stat line, where the veteran quarterback completed 20 of his 24 throws for 205 yards and four touchdowns in the win, and use that as your beacon of hope that something has clicked for Miami.
The destination that will find Miami out of the playoff picture by season’s end, which will then trigger systematic changes, including at head coach and potentially quarterback, remains on track.
The victory, however impressive even if the Falcons were without starting quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and No. 1 wideout Drake London, has brought the Dolphins to just 2-6 on the season, still well out of range of being in the playoff conversation. They are four games behind both the New England Patriots (6-2) and Buffalo Bills (5-2) in the loss column in the division, and the road ahead isn’t as rosy as their remaining strength of schedule may suggest. Currently, Miami possesses the eighth-easiest remaining strength of schedule in the NFL with its opponents’ combined win percentage sitting at a measly .463.
However, there’s nuance to that figure which makes it much tougher than it meets the eye, which is highlighted in their upcoming trio of games. In Week 9, they’ll face the Baltimore Ravens, who, yes, are 2-5 on the year, but also could very well get Lamar Jackson back for the contest. The early 7.5-point spread in favor of Baltimore on the road suggests that Jackson will be under center, so that’s not a true under-.500 ball club they’ll face.
The same instance occurs two weeks later in Week 11 when they head to Madrid, Spain. There,…
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