By Greg Fuchs
The Miami Dolphins 30-15 victory on Sunday over the Houston Texans was a story of 2 halves. The Dolphins dominated the first 30 minutes building up a 30-0 lead. Miami put up 282 total yards vs. only 32 yards for the Texans in the 1 st half.
The Dolphins were dominant on both sides of the ball. The defense scored 1 touchdown in the 2 nd quarter on a 16-yard fumble return by cornerback Xavien Howard after an earlier interception in the quarter by linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel gave Miami the ball on the Texans 3- yard line which resulted in a short TD run by running back Jeff Wilson.
The offense did more than their fair share in the 1 st half, though, mostly through the air. QB Tua Tagovailoa went 20-34 for 267 yards including a 4-yard touchdown pass to tight end Durham Smythe. Tua completed passes to 9 different receivers including 9 passes for 149 yards to the
dynamic due of Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle.
Kicker Jason Sanders contributed 3 field goals of 45, 23 and 35 yards. The Dolphins basically slept walked through the 2 nd half with Houston outscoring the Fins 15-0. In the 2 nd half Miami only had 6 first downs and 57 total yards. That was partially because head coach Mike McDaniels removed Tua from the game towards the end of the 3 rd quarter.
Miami has now won 5 games in a row to move to 8-3, but all the wins came versus the lesser lights of the NFL. The wins over Pittsburgh, Detroit, Chicago, Cleveland, and Houston came against teams with a
combined record of 15-39-1. There is no reason for Miami to apologize for any of those wins, as upsets are a regular weekly feature in the NFL so props to the Dolphins for taking care of business.
But now the real season starts for the Dolphins. 5 of their final 6 games come against teams that are battling for the playoffs. Their next 3 games will be the toughest part of their schedule as all 3 games are on the road starting with the 49ers this week followed by games against the Chargers and Bills.
That stretch of games will be a true test for Miami. A challenge that became much more challenging on Sunday with All-Pro left tackle Terron Armstead injuring his pec muscle in the 1 st half. He is expected
to miss multiple games with no definitive timeline in place. Fortunately, the pec injury was a strain and not a tear.
While Tua, Hill & Waddle have received well deserved praise this season for everything they have accomplished to date, Armstead is just as valuable as any player on the team. He has been a brick wall all season stopping all the pass rushers thrown at him in addition opening holes for the run game.
Miami’s other starting offensive tackle, Austin Jackson, was also injured during the game with a sprained ankle, but it’s not known yet if he will miss any games. Having both tackles injured is not exactly an ideal scenario when going up the 49ers this week, who have one of the best defenses in the league.
After the next 3 games the schedule gets a little easier, but not by much. Week 16 brings the Packers to Miami on Christmas day. For week 17 the Fins travel to the cold of New England to play the Patriots and the regular season concludes when the 7-4 New York Jets invade Hard Rock Stadium. If Miami goes 3-3 over their final 6 games an 11-6 record should get them into the playoffs. Things will get a little dicey if Miami ends up 10-7.
But this season is more than about just making the playoffs. It’s about the Dolphins establishing themselves as one of the elite teams in the NFL. Elite teams need to beat the better teams in the league hence I feel they need to win at least 4 of their final 6 games.
The real season starts on December 4 th in San Francisco. The Dolphins have 5 tough games coming up and 2 will likely be played in cold weather. At this time of year, physicality and more emphasis on the run game usually take on more importance.
Time to put on your big boy pants Miami!
