Dolphins catch huge break; other notes

Baltimore poses a huge matchup problem for the Miami Dolphins this weekend, in a few different areas..

Offensively, they can run the ball to the tune of 131 yards per game, which is good for fifth in the NFL. The Dolphins run defense has been, um, terrible over the past two weeks. How bad? Well, going into week 12 they ranked 8th against the run. Now, 14 days later, they rank 21st. Why? Well, giving up OVER 400 yards over the past two games probably hasn't helped.

That's the first matchup problem for the Dolphins. The second?

Baltimore's defensive line. They're fierce, attacking, physical, and rank fourth against the run, giving up a measly 86 yards per game. They're going against a Miami offensive line lacking Branden Albert, which has forced Ja'Wuan James over to left tackle, and Dallas Thomas to right tackle. Yes, that Dallas Thomas.

So yes, this another huge problem for the Dolphins this weekend.

However, it just got a tad easier. Earlier today, Ravens DT Haloti Ngata was suspended four games for using adderall, effective immediately. Ngata is a pro bowler. He's a run stuffer. He's, as Daryn Colledge put it, "a car." This was going to be a massive (literally) problem for the Miami offensive line. It was last year, and it has been every single times these two have played.

This Ravens front will still be a problem on Sunday. They will still garner a lot of attention.

But luckily, it just got a bit easier to deal with.

And with everything on the line, Miami needs all the help they can get.


INJURY REPORT

The second to final injury report of the week came out today. It's as follows:

Jonathan Freeny and Jamar Taylor have been ruled out for Sunday's game.

Cortland Finnegan, Charles Clay, Brian Hartline, Samson Satele, and Mike Wallace are all questiionable. Among those, Finnegan and Clay are the only one's who may or may not play on Sunday.

I expect Finnegan to play, barring a setback, as reports, for now, are saying he will. Clay is more of a wildcard right now, and his status looks like it'll be more of a game time decision.

Brian Hartline, who suffered an injury in Monday's win, will play.


Three days.

With Season Teetering, Miami Dolphins Finally Conquer Demons

In a way, last night's win may have been this teams finest hour.

No, it wasn't a double digit victory over the New England Patriots. It wasn't a 37 point shutout of the San Diego Chargers, either. In fact, it was probably the least impressive win this team has had all season long.

But it was the exact kind of win they needed.

Good teams win ugly in December.

The Miami Dolphins haven't been able to do this in years. The most recent example? Last season against these same New York Jets, when they had a chance to tie the must win season finale midway through the fourth quarter, despite playing awful for the first three quarters.

Ryan Tannehill and the offense failed on that December day, with the then second year QB throwing a critical late game interception with the Dolphins trailing by only a touchdown. On that day the Miami Dolphins played a terrible football game.

They couldn't pass, they couldn't run, they couldn't play defense. They stunk.

But midway through the fourth quarter, they had a chance. With the season on the line, they were at midfield needing only a touchdown to tie the game.

Good teams win ugly in December.

That 21-7 loss proved that those Miami Dolphins, with as much promise as they showed earlier that month, simply weren't good enough.

With as ugly, frustrating, and painful as last night was, I believe it too showed us something..

It showed us that these Dolphins are different. It showed us that they've matured. It showed us how far Ryan Tannehill has come, and how mentally tough and resilient this team is.

With as unimpressive as this 16-13 win was, one might argue that, on a different level, it was the most impressive win of the season for this team.

Think about it.. how many times has Miami won a game like this? A game where they played so poorly for three quarters, only to find a way to get it done when it counts?

They didn't do it in last year's Monday night game against Tampa Bay.

They didn't do it against the Bills or Jets either.

In fact, the roles are usually reversed, aren't they? It's usually the Dolphins who dominate for the entire game, only to lose in the final quarter. Remember last week? Remember that 22-0 fourth quarter run by the Broncos?

Remember Green Bay? Remember Detroit?

Painful, heartbreaking memories.

But not last night. Not again. The Miami Dolphins won a game they had no business winning. None at all. Zero. Ziltch. Nada. They trailed for 58 minutes. 

Fifty-eight minutes.. to the New York Jets! The 2-10 New York Jets!

They were outplayed for 75% of the game. They let up over 100 rushing yards in the first quarter, and over 200 rushing yards in the first half for pete's sake.

But when it mattered most Ryan Tannehill made the throws, Dion Sims made the catches, Caleb Sturgis spilt the uprights, and Reshad Jones sealed the game.

On an otherwise forgettable night, with the season hanging in the balance, the Miami Dolphins conquered an ever so important demon.

Good teams win ugly in December.

For the first time in a long time, it appears that label fits the sixth seeded Dolphins.

Jets lead Dolphins 13-6 after third quarter

An interesting third quarter for Miami.

A good opening drive ended when Mike Wallace dropped a potential touchdown pass from Ryan Tannehill. The ball was slightly overthrown, but Wallace should have made the catch. The drive ended in a field goal.

A few drives later, the Dolphins blocked a Jets punt, setting them up inside the New York 45.. However, the ensuing Tannehill pass was tipped and intercepted. The following Jets drive ended when Cam Wake sacked Geno Smith and forced a punt.

Miami currently has the ball, trailing by a touchdown, and facing a third down.

Jets lead Dolphins 10-3 at halftime

Just an abysmal first half for the Miami Dolphins. Really, it was one of the worst halves of football I've seen this team play in a long, long time. 2007 season bad. Cam Cameron bad. Jacksonville Jaguars bad.

Defensively, it's been hard to watch. The New York Jets have, wait for it, 210 rushing yards on 29 attempts. Yes, you read that right.

Two-hundred-and-ten. Twenty-nine-attempts.

Miami hasn't tackled. They haven't shed blocks. They haven't contained.

They've stunk.

Offensively, Ryan Tannehill hasn't had a second to throw, and when he has, the coverage has held up. The Dolphins orchestrated two drives inside the Jets 25 in the first half—the first ended in a missed 43 yard field goal, the second ended in a 43 yard field goal that Strugis connected on.

Miami hasn't run the ball at all. Why? They haven't had the chance to. Heck, they've barely had the ball. The Jets have possessed the ball for 17 minutes. Miami has only had it for 12.

Somehow, the Dolphins are only down by a touchdown after that first half. That's the ONLY good news from this game. Miami will get the ball to begin the second half, and they've been the best third quarter team this season. To keep their playoff hopes alive, they'll need another one here.

If they somehow, someway stop the run, I believe the Dolphins will win this game. However, that is a HUGE if right now.

To the third.

Jets lead Fins 7-0 after first quarter

Horrible opening quarter for the Miami Dolphins. They need to wake up, and they need to do it quickly.

The Jets rushing game has absolutely gashed the Miami defense. They have over 100 yards of rushing after the first quarter, including a 47 yard scamper from Chris Johnson, and a 20 yard TD on an end around to Greg Salas.

Offensively, Miami drove the ball on their second drive of the game, only to have Caleb Sturgis miss a 42 yard FG. It was Sturgis' 6th miss of the season.

The Jets have the ball inside Miami territory to begin the second.

Finnegan, Clay OUT as Fins, Jets Near Showdown; other inactives

It's a damp, rainy, cold night from Metlife Stadium, as the Dolphins and Jets are just over an hour away from kickoff.

As suspected, CB Cortland Finnegan will miss his third straight game. He will be replaced by CB R.J. Stanford, who was signed earlier this week and was with Miami last season. Stanford gets the nod over rookie Walt Aikens.

Also inactive for Miami for the second straight game is TE Charles Clay. As was the case in Denver, Dion Sims will start in his place.

As for the other Miami inactives:

CB Jamar Taylor, RB LaMichael James, LB Jonathan Freeny, OL Nate Garner, and OL Billy Turner.

As you can see, LT Ja'Waun James is active and will start tonight. He left last weeks game with a stinger.


As for the Jets inactives:

Matt Simms, Walt Powell, Josh Thomas, Dakota Dozier, Wesley Johnson, Jace Amaro, and Muhammad Wilkerson.


The Dolphins are in all white. The Jets are in the green tops and white pants.

Kickoff is at 8:30.

The live blog begins shortly thereafter.

See you there.

Gameday: Five Keys to a Dolphins Win PLUS Prediction

First thing's first..

Yesterday was a banner day for the Miami Dolphins, as I suspected it would be when I broke down the schedules for you last week.

Cleveland lost. Pittsburgh lost. Kansas City lost. Baltimore lost. Even the Patriots lost.

Where does this leave the Dolphins? Well, right now they sit in the 11th seed at 6-5.. However, a win tonight, by virtue of about a billion different tiebreakers which I won't get into right now, puts Miami in sole possession of the sixth and final playoff spot with four games to play.

Again, this is predicated on a Dolphins win tonight. Something they absolutely should do with great ease.  However, lets not forget that this is rivalry game, against a team that loves to play spoiler, on Monday night football, on the road.

Before looking ahead to next week's monumental showdown with Baltimore, Miami MUST put the Jets away tonight.

How? So glad you asked!


1. Keep dealing the hot hand: The hot hand, of course, being Ryan Tannehill. The kid has been money over the past seven weeks, and nothing should change tonight. The Jets pose the league's 13th ranked pass defense, and are razor thin in the secondary. If I'm Bill Lazor, I come out of the gate like the Buffalo game and let Ryan Tannehill get off to a fast start with high percentage passes on the first drive. After that, let him loose, and let him win this game for you.

2. Don't let GENO SMITH do it AGAIN: Remember last December? Remember week 17? Remember when all the Miami Dolphins had to do was beat GENO SMITH and they were in the playoffs? Well, he's back tonight, and the situation is eerily similar. The Dolphins have a glorious chance tonight to retake that final wildcard spot, and all that stands in their way is GENO SMITH. This is a pissed off, embarrassed defense after last week's debacle. Get after the QB tonight. Do it early, do it often, and do it all night long.

3. Be cautious on special teams: I've seen Rex Ryan with his back against the wall one too many times before, and it's a scary combination. Miami's special teams unit is about as Jekyll and Hyde as Andy Dalton, and I'd be careful with this tonight. Watch the fake punts, watch the trick plays, just look out for all of it. Because if I know one thing, it's this: Rex Ryan will pull out all stops tonight to beat this team.

4. Keep up the fast starts: They did it against San Diego.. They did it last week in Denver.. Tonight, they must continue it. If this team can get off to a fast start tonight, this game will be over by halftime. Why? The Jets just aren't a mentally tough team. Furthermore, they don't have the resources necessary to play from behind. If you build a lead on this team, and keep pouring it on, you'll see the meltdown happen right before your eyes. Get a quick three and out on defense, march down the field on offense, rinse, wash, repeat. It'll be over by halftime if you do.

5. Don't forget Lamar: This is something that I've noticed over the past few weeks.. For some reason, Bill Lazor seems to forget Lamar Miller as the game wears on. Last week Miller dominated the Broncos defense in the first half (heck, he had close to 50 yards on the first drive). But he barely saw any action in the second half. Why? I understand he's been nursing injuries, and I understand he has the "fragile" label attached to him. But why not give him 20 carries tonight if he's running well? Don't be afraid to use him, and don't forget about him in the second half. You don't want to become one dimensional.


PREDICTION

I've got sources on the ground that tell me that this defense has been beyond pissed off all week long. Who are the sources? It doesn't matter, because I don't need a source to tell me that. This unit was dominated last week. Flat out dominated for four straight quarters. They've been waiting for this game for eight days now. They've been waiting for Geno Smith for the past 48 weeks.  See where I'm going here?

I expect pure and utter domination tonight from the Miami Dolphins. They're playing too well, and they're too close, with too much on the line, to let lighting strike them twice in the form of the New York Jets.

Rivalry game or not, I expect this team to win tonight. And I expect them to do it easily.

Final: Dolphins 30 Jets 10


Come back later for any pre game news, including the full list of inactives. Again, don't expect Charles Clay or Cortland Finnegan to play tonight.

And, as always, follow the live blog throughout the game.

7 hours.