Predicting The Dolphins 2014 Season
By Brian Miller
The 2014 season is set to kick-off in less than a week from now. The Dolphins will kick-off their season a week from Sunday against the New England Patriots. It’s the first game in a long grueling season that will see the team play seven games against playoff teams including two against New England. Can this team win enough games to make their first playoff appearance since 2008? It’s possible. Here is a quick look and post-pre-season prediction.
Week 1: New England
The Dolphins are in a good position to win their first game of the season. It’s in Miami, it’s hot, and the Patriots have question marks on offense and defense. The Dolphins defense is set up well to play against the Patriots and the Dolphins offense should be able to mix enough up to keep the Patriots on their heals. Tom Brady is still a threat but he is lacking the same threats at wide-receiver and tight-end is a huge question mark. It’s likely the Patriots will turn to the run in week one and if the Dolphins can get the kind of run support they should have the Dolphins can win this game.
Prediction – Dolphins win.
Week 2: @ Buffalo Bills
The Bills are a mess right now on both sides of the ball but like the Dolphins really haven’t showcased their starters. They are relying on youth offensively and have questions at QB. The Dolphins should have swept the Bills last season, I think they do this one.
Prediction: Dolphins win.
Week 3: Kansas City
This will be a tough game for the Dolphins who will face one of the toughest rushing offenses in the league and a very stout defense. It will also mark the return of cornerback Sean Smith. This is going to be a close game and it will come down to how well the Dolphins can defend the run.
Prediction – Kansas City wins.
Week 4: @ Oakland Raiders in London
The Dolphins travel across the pond to meet a dysfunctional Raider team who have questions at almost every offensive position. The Dolphins should win this game and it’s one of those games that the team could look back on at years end and ask themselves how they lost it. These are the types of games that good teams win because they are the ones that they should win.
Prediction: Dolphins win.
Bye Week
Week 6: Green Bay
The Miami Dolphins will play a very tough game at home coming off their bye week. The good news is they will have time to prepare for this game the bad news is that Green Bay looks to be a very good football team again this year and are led by one of the top offenses in the league.
Prediction: Green Bay wins
Week 7: @ Chicago Bears
Fans will start to wonder if the wheels are falling off. Chicago is a team that Miami can beat but I’m not convinced they will. Traveling to Chicago is never fun (for a visiting sports team) and the Bears are good on both sides of the ball coming up just short of the playoffs last season.
Prediction: Chicago wins
Week 8: @ Jacksonville
If the Dolphins don’t win this game, the wheels very well may be falling off.
Prediction: Dolphins win
Week 9: San Diego
The Chargers squeaked into the playoffs last season thank to the fact that Miami lost their final two games. The Dolphins will likely be looking at San Diego as a head to head tie breaking team at seasons end. It makes the game not so much a must win as much as a need to win.
Prediction: Dolphins win.
Week 10: @ Detroit
The Detroit Lions are the Jekyll and Hyde team of the NFL. Not because they play up and down but because their offense is good and their defense can be very bad or very good. It’s a push with this one but I think the Dolphins find it difficult to win in Detroit.
Prediction: Detroit wins
Week 11: Buffalo Bills
The Dolphins shouldn’t lose to the Bills this year and heading into the second half of the season Miami should have more riding on the outcome of these games.
Prediction: Miami wins
Week 12: @ Denver Broncos
If the Dolphins come out of Mile High with a victory then fans should start looking at the post-season, provided the results above come to fruition.
Prediction: Denver wins
Week 13: @ NY Jets
The Dolphins very well could be 7-4 at this point of the season and if they are the Jets will be looking to make sure Miami goes to 7-5. There is no question that this game will be a grind out battle but Miami has played very well lately in New York.
Prediction: Dolphins win.
Week 14: Baltimore Ravens
A lot of this game will depend on how well the Ravens are playing late in the season. The Dolphins and Ravens match up well on paper and this game should be close.
Prediction: Dolphins win.
Week 15: @ New England
The Dolphins took one earlier this season but New England late in the season is almost impossible to beat at home.
Prediction: Patriots win.
Week 16: @ Minnesota Vikings
If the Dolphins run defense is holding up then they can hold off Adrian Peterson. The Vikings lack a passing attack and their defense has enough holes for the Dolphins to pick apart.
Prediction: Miami wins
Week 17: NY Jets
I don’t know if the playoffs will be on the line or not but the Dolphins will be faced with a tough opponent who plays them well and rarely get’s swept. It’s a year end grudge match that could decide the future of two head coaches.
Prediction: ??? This one could go either way.
I think the Dolphins will finish with 9 or 10 wins depending on how well they play in that final weekend. Is 9-7 enough to get the team into the playoffs? Is 10 wins enough for the post-season? Can the Dolphins get in as a wildcard team or will they need to win the division?
I expect the New England Patriots to win no less than nine games and more likely finish with a 10-6 record which will put the Dolphins and Patriots into a split tie-breaker of division and conference games. The two teams play four similar games within the conference so the AFC West could decide who wins the AFC East.
Final prediction: I believe the Dolphins should win the games I posted they would but we all know that they will lose at least one of those they should win so I will say the team will win 9 games but will challenge for a wildcard spot late in the season.