Dolphins over/under set at 7 wins
An early release of projected wins for each team in the NFL for 2016 has been released in Las Vegas. The Dolphins are projected to win seven games this upcoming season. Do you agree?
The Miami Dolphins have been stuck in mediocrity ever since their last AFC East title in 2008. Miami went 11-5 that season to capture the division crown but have only managed 6-8 wins each year since. With the conclusion of the NFL Draft now behind us, a top sportsbook in Las Vegas released their projected win totals for every team in 2016. The odds set for Miami were largely familiar, as the Dolphins are projected to win just seven games this season. That projection puts Miami in last place of the division as the Bills, Jets, and Patriots, are all projected to win no less than eight games this year.
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The projections can and likely will change, particularly with such an early release but oddsmakers don’t believe the Dolphins will end their playoff drought in 2016. It may come as a disappointment to some even though the vast majority could probably care less what Vegas predicts. Even more so when you factor in that no team is projected higher than 10.5 wins. As competitive as the NFL is, you have to believe there’s at least one team that will win 12 or 13 games.
Still, based on the Dolphins strength of schedule coming up and their previous records, it’s hard to argue with Vegas at the moment. In terms of strength of schedule, Miami is ranked just 11th worst according to NFL.com but it could be argued Miami should be higher on that list. The Dolphins start off the year with visits to Seattle and New England, both teams projected at the 10.5 peak and will certainly be Super Bowl contenders. Seattle is one of the toughest places to play in the league and Gillette Stadium will be extremely tough for Miami to win at, with or without Brady.
The Dolphins have the luxury of playing the lowly Browns in week 3 but it will be a short week as they travel to play the Bengals the following Thursday. After that, Miami will be home for well over a month with a four-game home stand that includes their bye week. However, the home stand will include games against division foes Buffalo and New York, along with a visit from the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers are another team projected with 10.5 wins and the favorites to win the AFC North. To be frank, the Bills and Jets have had the Dolphins number recently. In fact, the Dolphins have had more success against the Patriots the past few seasons than either the Bills or Jets. If the Dolphins are going to turn things around in South Florida it starts with winning in their division.
The Dolphins will spend the next couple weeks all the way in California with games against the Chargers and Rams in back-to-back weeks. The final games of the season are sure to determine whether Miami reaches the playoffs or not and if the oddsmakers had the Dolphins pegged correctly. The Dolphins visit the Ravens in Baltimore the first week of December followed by a visit from the Cardinals to Sun Life Stadium. The final three games of the season are all against division rivals.
It’s unknowing yet what kind of impact new head coach Adam Gase will bring to Miami and how quickly we can expect to see improvements in the winning department. Dolphins fans would like to be optimistic but based on seasons past and the Gase regime still inevitable, Miami’s projection of seven wins is a fair assessment. When the schedule was first released, I too had the Dolphins with seven wins this season.
Determining how well a team will do is always tough to project. Every year there’s at least one team that surprises us and skyrockets themselves to contender status. Maybe the Dolphins can be one of those teams this year. With a new coach that’s getting players to believe in the system and expected to bring an uptempo offense, Miami could certainly qualify to become one.
The Dolphins have done a lot of good this off-season with the moves they’ve made. They got the coach they wanted and smartly played it relatively cool in free agency. The Dolphins didn’t make the big splash we’re used to seeing but they still managed to make some key acquisitions. They also made some excellent draft selections and will have some promising young players to develop.
I’m just not so sure the changes and young players will make an impact in wins this coming season. Seven wins would technically be an improvement from last year’s 6-10 record, although that’s not what Dolphin nation is looking for. So what are your thoughts? Is Vegas right on their projections? Does Miami stay in mediocrity like we’re used to seeing for at least one more year or do they contend for a playoff spot? Or should we expect the Dolphins to take a step back in 2016?