With Season Teetering, Time is Up For Miami Dolphins

If you really want to know who these Miami Dolphins are, look no further than their red zone production.

The Dolphins lead the entire league in total red zone trips. A staggering 43 times this team has marched down the field and inside the opponents 20 yard line.

However, they rank 30th when it comes to converting those trips into touchdowns. 30th. Three-oh.

Third worst in the NFL.

That, right there, is as simple as it gets when it comes to explaining these Miami Dolphins. They can be really, really good. They can drive all the way down the field, Ryan Tannehill can make all the throws a franchise QB needs to make, but when it comes down to crunch time, when it's time to put the big boy pants on, this team fails almost every time.

Red zone production. It's a microcosm of who and what this team is.

With week 11 set to kickoff in less than 24 hours, it's time for the Miami Dolphins to make a choice.

It's time for them to either figure it out and make the leap into contender status, or fall away like so many teams before them.

At 8:25 tomorrow night, the clock will inch closer to midnight, and where the Dolphins stand when all zero's flash in the fourth quarter is where they will most likely be standing for the remainder of this season.

A 6-4 playoff hopeful..

Or a 5-5 postseason dreamer.

Like the red zone production, it's time for this team to either punch it in, or punch out. One or the other. With the season over halfway through, there is no more time for the in between.

The stage is set up perfectly for them, too.

Prime time. National TV. Home game. Sold out stadium. Division rival. What more do you need?

There are no excuses for losing this one. It doesn't matter who's playing, who's hurt, or what the match ups say should happen. For the Miami Dolphins, the goal should be simple, and it should be clear:

Win. And win at all costs.

It's time for this team to play desperate. It's time for this quarterback to make a decision, one way or the other, about who he's really going to be. It's time for this defense to make a stand, and it's time for this offense to put a game away.

With everything, and I mean everything, on the line, there is no excuse for this Dolphins team to lose tomorrow night.

They can't afford to.

Too much time has been invested into this team. Too much talent is being wasted. Too many jobs are on the line.

A loss sends this season into a downward spiral. A loss means you have to go on the road and beat Peyton Manning and Tom Brady.

This team is good. But they're not that good. Not many are.

You see, there really is no other option tomorrow night. For the Miami Dolphins, it's simple:

Either you want it, or you're out. Either you're a playoff team or not.

The days of in between are over. This season is teetering right now. It's teetering for Joe Philbin, for Ryan Tannehill, for everyone within the organization.

Time's up for the Miami Dolphins.

Tomorrow night, a choice will be made. And it could impact this organization far beyond 2014.

To chronicle my inner Chad Johnson... Getcha popcorn ready.