Category: Miami Dolphins

Dolphins K Jason Sanders named AFC special teams player of the week

Miami Dolphins K Jason Sanders has been named the AFC Special Teams Player of the Week after his kicks propelled Miami to a win in Indy.

The margin for error in football games is quite small — the difference between a win and a loss might be something as little as a single penalty, catch or, as was the case for the Dolphins this past weekend, a kick. The Dolphins’ offense fell stagnant in the second half of their 16-12 win over the Indianapolis Colts, it was kicker Jason Sanders who elevated the offense with two 48-yard kicks in the 4th quarter to bail out the Dolphins and keep the score at a place where the Colts needed to go for a touchdown in the final possession.

Conversely, Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri provided the Colts with a costly miss of an extra point — which ended up being the difference in Indianapolis going for it on 4th and 10 with just second left deep in Dolphins territory versus being able to kick a field goal for a tie game.

Sanders has been rewarded for his big kicking performance and his role in Miami’s win — he’s been named the AFC Special Teams Player of the Week for Week 10!

The pair of 48-yard kicks were notable for Sanders, mainly because he’s struggled greatly from outside of 40-yards thus far this season. Sanders entered the 4th quarter just 2 of 6 from 40+ yards on the year — before a pair of kicks that split the uprights down the middle to help Miami lock in the win. Sanders, who was a 2018 draft selection for the Dolphins, will look to build on the momentum of making two big kicks late in the game against Indy and start hitting his long shots with more consistency.

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Latest 2020 mock draft goes offense-heavy for Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins are loaded with picks for the 2020 NFL Draft — and the latest simulation has them going heavy on the offense.

The NFL mock drafts are starting to heat up, which is good news for Dolphins fans as their assets for the 2020 offseason continue to shift on a weekly basis. It has long been considered an assumption that the Dolphins would finish with the first overall pick in the NFL Draft and get their pick of the litter, but that no longer appears to be a likely outcome for the Dolphins. Not after the team’s latest victory, a 16-12 road upset of the Indianapolis Colts.

So what do the Dolphins do from here? Draft Wire has released its latest mock draft — a three-round simulation of next April’s festivities. Here’s what Luke Easterling came up with.

4th overall – QB Tua Tagovailoa, Alabama

The scenario of Miami not picking first and landing Tagovailoa seemed unrealistic just a few months ago, but with the other teams in contention for the top pick all having drafted young QBs as of late and the emergence of LSU’s Joe Burrow, this is the best of both worlds for Miami.

22nd overall – WR Laviska Shenault Jr., Colorado

Shenault gives Miami a boatload of speed to go along with some size at the wide receiver position. Each of the Dolphins’ receivers now are mostly one or the other — but not Shenault’s blend of both.

26th overall – OT Jedrick Wills, Alabama

Wills is Tagovailoa’s blindside blocker with the Crimson Tide. Getting an offensive lineman with chemistry with Tagovailoa would be a huge bonus as the Dolphins look to overhaul their offensive line.

2nd round – OG Shane Lemieux, Oregon + DE Jabari Zuniga, Florida

You know the Dolphins are going to look to add a little bit of defense along the way — remember, they coveted Houston’s Jadeveon Clowney before the season started! Zuniga isn’t anywhere near that caliber of an athlete, but he’s quick-twitched, nonetheless, and a disruptive presence when healthy. Lemieux is a powerful interior blocker who can help set the tone in the run game, much like Michael Deiter.

3rd round – RB Najee Harris, Alabama

Few backs in college football have done more to improve their positioning this season than Harris. He’s playing well in all phases — rushing, receiving and blocking. If some Tide players are good, more is better.

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Dolphins sign LB Jake Carlock to 2019 practice squad

The Miami Dolphins have added rookie LB Jake Carlock to their practice squad.

The Miami Dolphins have filled the vacancy on their practice squad as of yesterday. Miami filled the open spot by signing free agent rookie linebacker Jake Carlock. Carlock, a product of Long Island University, spent the first half of the 2019 season on the New York Giants’ practice squad before being cut. Carlock has not logged any regular season action to this point in his career, although he did announce himself on an NFL field during the preseason this past August against the New York Jets.

Carlock tipped a pass on the edge of the pocket, leapt up to intercept the football and ran it back for a defensive score — an impressive display of athleticism.

Carlock joins fellow rookie linebacker Terrill Hanks on Miami’s practice squad as undrafted rookie linebackers on the unit.

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Latest FPI projections from ESPN have Dolphins picking 4th in 2020

ESPN’s latest projection of the final standings courtesy of their Football Power Index forecasts Miami to hold the 4th pick in 2020 Draft.

The Miami Dolphins pulled off a stunner this past weekend in Indianapolis — aided by the Colts’ absence of starting quarterback Jacoby Brissett to an ACL injury. The win brought the Dolphins to 2-7 on the season and effectively ended the team’s hopes and dreams of landing the 1st-overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. The Dolphins now trail the Cincinnati Bengals by two games in the race for the top spot and each team is trending in opposite directions — Miami is surging with confident play, while the Bengals just got stomped by the Ravens in an embarrassing defeat.

ESPN’s Football Power Index agrees: Miami’s odds of walking away with the top pick in the 2020 NFL Draft are now pretty slim. Two weeks ago, the Dolphins were given 66% odds to land the first pick. Now? That number sits at 12%. The latest projection forecasts Miami to pick 4th: behind the winless Bengals, the Washington Redskins and the New York Giants.

No problem. Miami will have ample opportunity to do business with either Washington or New York to ensure they get a top quarterback prospect, should they feel it necessary to land “their guy”. And the deeper into the process things get, the more it seems LSU’s Joe Burrow is the emerging favorite to be the player who demands selection with the top pick this offseason.

Miami will have opportunities to win a few more games along the way: ESPN’s projection has the Dolphins finishing the season at 4-12 and even if the Dolphins went 5-11, Miami would fall no lower than 6th in the ESPN projections — losing ground to two more teams who already have young quarterbacks in the New York Jets (Sam Darnold) and Arizona Cardinals (Kyler Murray).

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The Dolphins are touchdown underdogs in Week 11 versus Bills

The last time the Miami Dolphins played the Buffalo Bills, a close game ensued. The sports books are expecting another close game this time.

If you have been willing to go against the grain with the Miami Dolphins and the sports books in recent weeks, odds are you’ve made yourself a nice bit of coin! The Dolphins have won two consecutive games as betting underdogs and have now covered the spread in five consecutive contests. Miami has generally been considered double digit underdogs unless facing the absolute worst of the worst this season — and Miami has delivered surprises ever since the bye week.

The bad news is the party may be over — as the sports books seem to be catching on. The Dolphins currently sit at  6.5 point underdogs for Week 11 according to BetMGM. The last time the Dolphins played the Bills, the spread was larger than two touchdowns before Miami blew a second half lead and fell 31-21. With the Dolphins at home this week, the South Florida climate could potentially bog down the Bills’ team — giving Miami a chance to play spoiler again.

The Dolphins are definitely going to be looking forward to their second crack at the Bills, as the Dolphins missed the opportunity to pin Buffalo down late in the 3rd quarter and things went off the rails courtesy of a Ryan Fitzpatrick interception in the red zone. Miami pulling off a third straight win outright would be a surprise — and now, thanks to Miami’s recent tear against the spread, getting a cover is no sure thing, either.

[Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.]

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Dolphins’ rise through NFL power rankings continues

The Miami Dolphins are on a two game win streak and as a result, the team continues to rise through the NFL’s power rankings.

The NFL’s power rankings all had a universal approach to the Miami Dolphins this spring and summer — toss them in the bottom and forget they even exist. The Dolphins stay in the cellar of the power rankings lasted throughout the first month of the season before a competent Dolphins team arrived on the scene and started taking teams like Washington and Buffalo down to the wire.

Fast forward another few weeks and the Dolphins are clear of the bottom four — as the latest NFL.com power rankings are out and Miami ranks 28th on the list courtesy of two consecutive wins against the New York Jets and Indianapolis Colts.

Here’s what NFL.com writer Dan Hanzus had to say about the Dolphins:

“That’s two consecutive wins for the Dolphins, who followed last week’s convincing victory over the Jets with a road win over a banged-up Colts team. Ryan Fitzpatrick continues a recent trend of playing within himself (not historically his bailiwick), and the Miami defense continues to improve. The Dolphins have forced five takeaways in their last three games after managing just two heading into Week 8. It’s all a very good look for first-year coach Brian Flores, who weathered the storm of his team’s historically inept first six games and now has Miami playing the role of frisky spoiler in the AFC.” – Dan Hanzus, NFL.com

Miami now ranks ahead of the Cincinnati Bengals, the Washington Redskins, the New York Jets and the New York Giants in the power rankings — an interesting development for what lies ahead this season for the Dolphins. Miami plays the Buffalo Bills this weekend before going on to play each of the Bengals, Jets and Giants before the season comes to a close.

Could a few more wins be on the way? How high could Miami finish the season’s power rankings? That will depend on a lot of variables — but we’re reaching the point where it is safe to assume Miami won’t finish the year where they started: in the cellar.

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Should the Dolphins claim CB Vernon Hargreaves?

The Dolphins would be wise to place a waiver claim on the recently cut Vernon Hargreaves, a former 1st-round cornerback out of Tampa Bay.

The Miami Dolphins’ season has been filled with waiver claims, trades and acquisitions of former highly coveted players who haven’t been able to live up to the hype. The Dolphins’ additions of DE Taco Charlton, DL Robert Nkemdiche, QB Josh Rosen and DB Eric Rowe are just a few of the examples of high prized additions that came to Miami this season after failing to take the next step as players.

Should the Dolphins be investigating making another addition to the growing list of former high-prized draft picks?

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers unexpectedly cut cornerback Vernon Hargreaves today — a former top-15 pick by the Bucs out of the University of Florida back in 2016. Tampa’s new coaching staff, led by Bruce Arians, hadn’t taken particularly well to Hargreaves — although Hargreaves himself has been a massive disappointment after being largely relegated to living in the slot as a nickel cornerback. His final transgression in Tampa? He was reportedly benched for a lack of hustle in the third quarter of Tampa’s win over Arizona this past weekend.

Should Miami kick the tires and make a waiver claim on Hargreaves? Absolutely. Hargreaves is still just 24 years old and clearly has talent. The Dolphins have ample cap space at their disposal and use defensive backs with such great frequency that Hargreaves would have every opportunity to get his act together and stick in the NFL with Miami.

The odds of Miami making a claim? It is hard to say. The Dolphins have a coach in Brian Flores who looks to create personal connections with his players, but so did Tampa with Arians and that didn’t seem to help matters. Yet sometimes a player just needs a change of scenery. Miami can provide that, without asking Hargreaves to go too far from home.

We’ll know by tomorrow afternoon whether or not the Dolphins made a claim; the waiver order mirrors the current NFL draft order, so if they want to get in on the action, the odds of them landing Hargreaves on waivers is pretty strong.

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1972 Dolphins will remain as only undefeated Super Bowl champions

The 1972 Miami Dolphins’ record will remain intact for another year, as the San Francisco 49ers fell last night to earn their first loss.

Here’s to perfection! The 1972 Miami Dolphins will see their status as the NFL’s only undefeated Super Bowl Champions live on for yet another season. Miami’s long standing record has been tested to varying degrees over the years, but thankfully 2019 will be a fairly uneventful season as far as undefeated threats go. The NFL’s final undefeated team, the San Francisco 49ers, fell last night in overtime on Monday Night Football to fall to 8-1 on the season, marking the end of an impressive run to start the season after finished the last two seasons under coach Kyle Shanahan a combined 10-22.

San Francisco’s comeback attempt at home against Seattle fell short, as kicker Chase McLaughlin’s 47-yard attempt in overtime sailed wide and the Seahawks went on to kick a game winner of their own from 42-yards at the end of the overtime period.

For the ’72 Dolphins, life is good. They’ve seen the New England Patriots finish the season 16-0 before losing in miraculous fashion in the Super Bowl to the New York Giants to preserve the record. And the 1985 Bears were turned away from perfection thanks to a late season loss to Dan Marino and the Dolphins in primetime as well.

Without a serious contender to threaten the undefeated record, long-time Miami Dolphins fans (and player/coaching alumni) can kick their feet up and enjoy what remains of the 2019 season — perhaps even with a few more Dolphins victories along the way.

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Watch Dolphins’ Brian Flores break down Ryan Fitzpatrick TD vs. Colts

Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores broke down some of the dynamics of Ryan Fitzpatrick’s rushing TD against the Indianapolis Colts.

Sunday afternoon wasn’t exactly the best showing thus far in 2019 by the Miami Dolphins — but it was enough to get the job done en route to a 16-12 victory over the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. The key play for Miami? Ryan Fitzpatrick’s scrambling score in the 1st half to put the Dolphins up 10-0, a clutch play against a fast, physical Colts defense who didn’t yield much to Miami all game long — even before the Dolphins were blanked in the 3rd quarter.

Head coach Brian Flores met with Kim Bokamper in the aftermath of Miami’s victory over Indianapolis to break down the play that ultimately ended up being the difference maker for the Dolphins. The first note from Flores? This is an extremely difficult red zone defense to navigate, which made Fitzpatrick’s leg work a must in order to crack the end zone.

Perhaps the most interesting note from Flores’ time with Bokamper is the continued messaging that Ryan Fitzpatrick is a special personality, one that draws excitement and inspiration out of his teammates. No, Fitzpatrick isn’t the most physically gifted quarterback. Heck, Josh Rosen has more physical gifts as a player. But Fitzpatrick is the one who transcends talent and brings the “energy and enthusiasm” that Flores wants to see out of his Dolphins’ team.

So as the Dolphins move forward and look for their answer at quarterback, that connection figures to be an intangibles component Miami refuses to budge on. Nor should they. If Fitzpatrick can have this kind of success over the past month for Miami, imagine what a young, charismatic quarterback can do for Miami when the Dolphins decide it is time to add talent.

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Dolphins’ Brian Flores focused on improving today, not the future

Head coach Brian Flores isn’t worried about how winning in 2019 will impact the search for a new starting quarterback.

If you’ve been following the Dolphins closely this fall, you’ve probably heard someone mutter it over the course of the last two weeks.

“They can’t even tank right!”

As has been well established over the course of the Dolphins’ 2019 calendar year, the Dolphins are, in fact, not tanking. There’s been a managerial focus on collecting assets and creating salary cap space with the understanding that such an approach is probably going to hinder the Dolphins’ on-field product. Such an approach requires everyone to be on the same page — the Dolphins have done a very good job of ensuring that thus far in to their rebuild. But Miami wasn’t dedicated to slapping their players and fans in the face by giving up on 16 games, they’ve been playing to win.

And through a hard-nosed, disciplined approach, the Dolphins have started to do exactly that. Miami now sits at 2-7 and with the 4th overall pick in the current 2020 NFL Draft order. Is that going to cost Miami the chance to draft a quarterback? Potentially — but don’t tell that to Brian Flores, because he doesn’t care.

“My job is to put this team in the best position to try to go out there and be productive and try to win football games,” said Flores yesterday during his press availability.

“I think every head coach, every general manager, every organization is thinking about things long-term, as well as short-term. We’re no different, but right now my goal is to get each one of those guys in that locker better (and) as good as they can be. That’s the goal for me and our coaching staff.”

For most rebuilding teams, the worry would be concerns. But most rebuilding teams don’t have a war chest of 1st-round draft picks. And with 7 losses already this season, Miami will have the mobility they need to attack the draft. That luxury allows Flores the opportunity to make sure he’s developing his football players and — as he said himself — get his guys as good as they can be.

With more time, some of this year’s contributors will become fixtures for the next several years of the Flores era — and hopefully a dynamic turnaround into a winning program. That has value, too.

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