Miami Dolphins Will Face Geno Smith On Monday

This week the Dolphins will face Geno Smith when they take on the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium Monday night. The news comes from New York today when they named Smith the starter over Michael Vick. It hasn’t mattered much who has been the starter for the Jets this season as both quarterback have played very poorly.

The Jets are coming off a 38-3 shelling from the Buffalo Bills in Detroit and it appears that the Jets have reached full implosion. That being said nothing is normal about Dolphins/Jets week. Last season the Jets were clinging to the spoiler role heading into week 17 and knocked the Dolphins out of the playoffs and a win this week could do the same again.

The Miami Dolphins window of opportunity is so slim that one loss could knock them out of the playoff chase. The margin is so thin in fact that winning out will no automatically move them to post-season play. While the Dolphins have been playing good football lately they have yet to close a big game this season. They have lost Detroit and Green Bay in the final two minutes and lost to Denver in the 4th quarter after holding Peyton Manning at bay for the first three.

The Jets are not offensively powerful and while their defense is strong they have given up big plays and are not strong in the secondary, a place the Dolphins should be able to exploit easily.

This is a team defining game for the Dolphins and their head coach. The Dolphins can’t afford a let down a week ahead of their match-up with Baltimore that could decide a spot in the post-season but to get there they have to beat the Jets. Geno Smith has been more than erratic and in fact has made most of the Dolphins starting QB’s since Dan Marino left look decent. The Jets made a bold move taking Smith in the 2nd round after her pouted and whined about not being drafted in round one and leaving Radio City Music Hall in New York after not being drafted.

Smith has a lot of maturity issues both on and off the field but it’s not all on his shoulders. Coaching has been an issue and so has the relationship between John Idzik and Rex Ryan which rivals the relationship between Tony Sparano and Jeff Ireland. Rex Ryan is no longer on the hot seat but instead is idly awaiting his walking papers. He could finish the season or he could be gone next week. It would be fitting for the Dolphins to finish his head coaching career in New York. Earlier this year the Dolphins ended then Raiders head coach Dennis Allen. Could they make it two on the season?

The priority is winning the game and if the Dolphins can do that they will stay alive in the post-season chase. Geno Smith is not a threat but the Jets are the Jets and they always play their best against the Dolphins.