The Miami Dolphins enter Week 16 of the NFL season thankful to be playing anywhere other than MetLife Stadium. The Dolphins are 0-2 in their last two games, both played in northern New Jersey in showdowns against the Jets and Giants. A little home cooking against the Cincinnati Bengals is now on the table and Miami will look to bounce back with a win before hitting the road to finish their season in Brian Flores’ old stomping grounds.
What is in store for this week? Here are three bold predictions for Miami’s final home game of the 2019 season.
Bengals RB Joe Mixon explodes for a big day
No Raekwon McMillan in the middle makes for bad news for the Dolphins defense. Joe Mixon is one of the more talented backs in football and he’s come alive over the last few months. Without McMillan to meet him in the gaps, Cincinnati is going to have every opportunity to get Mixon going, especially after seeing how the Giants were able to run at the Dolphins with Saquon Barkley last week. Expect a third consecutive 120+ yard rushing performance.
Ryan Fitzpatrick goes off for a season high in passing yards
This is no small number — Fitzpatrick tossed for 365 against the Philadelphia Eagles earlier this December. But here’s why we think he’s got a chance against the Bengals: Cincinnati isn’t a very good defensive team in their own right and those 50/50 balls thrown up for DeVante Parker are going to be difficult to stop. Miami should be able to create some chunk plays through the air, we’re going to bet there’s enough of them to boost Fitzpatrick’s passing day to surpass 365 yards.
The “Over” cashes out
The over/under on this game right now sits somewhere right around 46.5 points, depending on where you look. Have the odds makers seen these defenses? Neither team is overly effective rushing the passer, both teams are wearing thin in secondary talent and both teams have veteran quarterbacks at the helm. Look for the combined points in this game to exceed 46.5 — this may turn into a game of whoever has the ball last wins.
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