The Miami Dolphins go into tomorrow nights matchup against the division rival New England Patriots facing a must win victory.
So far against their division rivals, the Fins are 1-1, with a tough loss coming to the Jets last week. For the Dolphins to have any hope at controlling their own destiny to get into the playoffs at the end of the season, they must win this Monday Night matchup against the Pats to finish 2-1 in the division after the first go-round.
This will be the second straight primetime game for the Dolphins, but hopefully there will be a different end result with the help of these factors.
3. One-Sided Offense:
For the past two weeks now the Dolphins have gone with a lop-sided approach on the offensive side of the ball.
In Week 2 against the Minnesota Vikings, the Fins did not pass the ball enough, but still came away with the victory. This past week against the Jets was not the same outcome, but Miami was again one-dimensional, with the team throwing over 30 times.
The one-sidedness of the Fins offense proved to be the killer for the team, as if they would have run the ball more in the red-zone, who knows what would have happened.
Let me put it this way, the Dolphins possess both the best short yardage converter in the league, and one of the top three receivers in the league. There should be a balance between utilizing the two in red-zone situations like that, especially since the Jets were double-teaming Brandon Marshall. Give the ball to either Ronnie Brown or Ricky Williams, or better yet, Lousaka Polite.
The Dolphins need to find that balance this week, which means for offensive coordinator Dan Henning to realize when they need to get the ball to the "South Beach Beast" (Marshall), or when to run the ball up the gut. A fine balance should get the Fish the win this week against an inferior Pats defense.
2. Shut Down Moss' Confidence:
Starting corner Jason Allen will be matched up against star Pats receiver Randy Moss, and the only way a team can shut him down is to limit his touches early on in the game.
Allen must jam him off the line, and not give him a 10 yard cushion, like he was giving Braylon Edwards most of the time last week. Being physical with Moss is always a good thing, and will most of the time result in Moss shutting things down early, thus taking away a big red-zone target for the Pats.
Matching up Vontae Davis, the Fins best corner, against Moss, the Pats best receiver would make more sense in this case, because Davis is the most physical defender we have, but Allen will have to bounce back from a rough outing last week to prove all of his remaining doubters that he has the goods to start for this team. Allen also plays like a Pro-Bowler when his confidence is high, and if he can make some plays against Moss early, it will not only frustrate Moss, but excite Allen into having a better performance all game long.
1. Get To Tom Brady!
Last week against Mark Sanchez and the Jets the Dolphins could not manage to get to the quarterback, thus allowing Sanchez to stand in the pocket all night long and throw for the game of his life.
Allowing Sanchez to get too comfortable last week was one of the big reasons why the Dolphins gave up so many points, because they could not generate a pass rush that could get Sanchez on the ground.
This week if they want to have any chance at beating the best quarterback in the business they will have to put Brady on the ground multiple times, and force him out of the pocket.
Brady has enough weapons on his offensive unit to be able to wreak havoc all game long if he is not stopped through a pass rush. Our secondary is good, but not good enough to defend the pass all day long. Cameron Wake and Randy Starks need to show us all why they were chosen to be the second coming of Jason Taylor and Joey Porter.
Final Prediction:
In what should be yet another close game on Monday Night Football for the Dolphins, I see Miami moving to 3-1 before they head into their BYE week, in a game that features Chad Henne throwing for over 250 yards for the second straight week, and Ronnie Brown rushing for a touchdown that puts the game in Miami's favor. My final score prediction is the Dolphins pulling out the big divisional victory, 27-23.
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