The next time we see the Las Vegas Raiders, they’ll be the Miami Dolphins’ problem. But for now, as the Dolphins brace to play their fourteenth game of the 2020 season, Miami will be content to see the Raiders from afar — mostly because of the outcome of last night’s AFC West showdown with the Los Angeles Chargers. Miami, which is currently mired in a playoff race, has been looking over their shoulder at the Las Vegas Raiders over the course of the last few weeks — but the distance between the two teams is growing after the Raiders suffered a 30-27 loss in overtime to the Los Angeles Chargers.
That loss effectively eliminates the Raiders from the playoff race and leaves four teams best positioned to claim three playoff spots in the AFC East. The good news? The Dolphins are among them.
The Week 16 contest between the Raiders and Dolphins has been flexed into a primetime slot on Saturday night next weekend — meaning the Dolphins will be on display for all of the country to see as they look to put the final nail into the coffin of the Raiders’ season. That will make two straight weeks in which the Dolphins can serve as the grim reaper of AFC playoff hopefuls; the Dolphins are positioned to eliminate the New England Patriots this weekend as well if Miami can secure a win.
But that’s still a few days on the horizon. For now, it is nice to see the ball bounce Miami’s way in the league landscape after a horrible, no good Week 14 that saw the Dolphins lose to Kansas City and just about every other AFC playoff hopeful bring home a win. This already won’t be the case in Week 15, but Miami can help themselves significantly by just taking care of their own business and securing the win on Sunday at Hard Rock Stadium.
This game will be Miami’s eighth and final home game of the season — the Dolphins are surely hoping to secure a win and finish their 2020 season with a winning record at Hard Rock. They’re currently 4-3 at home this season.