The Miami Dolphins have one game left to play this season. And with the New England Patriots hosting Miami in Week 17 with playoff seeding on the line, it doesn’t seem likely that the Dolphins are going to get anything other than the Patriots’ absolute best shot. Given how New England’s offense has struggled as of late, it’s likely we won’t see a repeat of the Week 2 rout from when these two teams first clashed this season. But the Patriots will be focused — and that’s not great news for the Dolphins.
One thing Miami can root for with enthusiasm? The Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens can eliminate the Pittsburgh Steelers from the playoff field with a win over the Steelers in Week 17, a decision that would lock the Dolphins in with a second top-20 selection in the 2020 NFL Draft.
How high could the Dolphins see that selection land? There are a slew of 7-8 and 8-7 teams in the heart of the NFL Draft order as things currently stand, how well could things materialize for the Dolphins?
There’s good news and bad news. There’s still upward mobility for this pick based off where it is currently projected, which is 19th overall. The bad news? The mobility is limited. Even if the NFL saw every other 8-7 team win in Week 17 and each of the league’s 7-8 teams win as well, the Steelers’ gaudy strength of schedule is going to protect them from dropping too far in the order.
Pittsburgh, according to Tankathon.com, currently boasts a 0.502 strength of schedule. That would be good enough to leap in front of Chicago with a Bears win and a Steelers loss, but not much else appears to be in play. There are so many interdivisional contests in Week 17, it is difficult to create the drastic swings in strength of schedule needed to see other teams with the threat of finishing at 8-8 jump the Steelers.
Barring any crazy scenarios, Dolphins fans can expect, to see this pick potentially as high as 18th in the NFL Draft order and no higher.
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