The Miami Dolphins entered Week 17 on Sunday with the odds in their favor. They left the 1PM slate with their hopes of seeing another game this season on life support. And now the Miami Dolphins’ season is over.
The Dolphins, after an embarrassing loss to the Buffalo Bills in Week 17 that proved just how far the Dolphins are from being able to really compete for a championship, were officially eliminated from postseason contention after the Indianapolis Colts disposed of the Jacksonville Jaguars by a final score of 28-14 in the 4PM slate of games.
Miami’s 2020 season was never the less one to remember — but the sting of a 30-point loss to a division rival, after they sat key starters for the second half, no less; certainly diminishes the optimism for the Miami Dolphins entering their third season under the direction of Brian Flores and Chris Grier. The Jaguars appeared to give the Dolphins a glimmer of hope, rebounding from a 20-point deficit to cut the Colts’ lead to 20-14 in the second half. That, paired with Jacksonville’s possession of the ball on the Colts side of the field midway through the 4th-quarter, set up plenty of drama for the Dolphins and their fanbase as the 2020 regular season faded into the night.
But it wasn’t meant to be. Miami’s forecast in the long-term still looks good. They’ll own a top-10 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft courtesy of the Houston Texans and the 18th overall pick thanks to their own finish as the first team on the outside of the expanded playoffs looking in.
The Dolphins saw plenty of favorable bounces of the football throughout the course of the 2020 season; but just about nothing went their way in Week 17. And the Dolphins, thanks to their early season struggles and slow start, had no room for such errors in crunch time.