Top NFL games to watch during the Miami Dolphins’ bye week

The National Football League is entering Week 5, which means the Miami Dolphins will be on bye.  So, which games should Dolphins fans be watching?

While watching for the Miami Dolphins to “tank” and the race for the number one pick in full swing, watching what happens with other winless teams and those teams that have draft picks owned by Miami will make the NFL week five games interesting.

Sunday – 1:00 pm  Tampa Bay Buccaneers at New Orleans Saints

The Dolphins hold the Saints second round pick in the 2020 draft.  While this is a moving target the pick currently falls at #58 overall.  Tampa Bay is coming off a huge offensive performance against the Los Angeles Rams where they scored 55 points.  They Bucs offense has improved weekly with point totals on a steady increase from 17, 20, 31, and 55 respectively.  I don’t expect the Bucs to have the same success against the Saints. The question is though, can they take advantage of the absence of Drew Brees?

The Saints sit atop the NFC South with a 3-1 record. This is an important division game for both. If the 2-2 Bucs hope to keep pace they need to find a way to win in New Orleans.  Unfortunately for Dolphins fans, I don’t think that’s the case. The Teddy Bridgewater led Saints prevail 34 – 24.

Sunday – 1:00 pm Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers

The Pittsburgh Steelers sent their 2020 first round pick to the Dolphins to acquire safety Minkah Fitzpatrick.  While the fanbase hated to lose a young talent like Fitzpatrick, the Dolphins were able to maximize the value. The Steelers pick currently resides at number seven overall.  The thought of two top five picks in next year’s draft that could bring two blue chip franchise type players has fans salivating. So, it’s obvious Phin fans are big Ravens fans this week.  Like the previous spotlighted game, this is an important interdivision matchup.

The Ravens are currently tied atop the division with the Browns while the banged up Steelers are only a game back.  The Ravens have a chance to land a big blow to the Steelers season with a win in Pittsburgh. As is always the case when these teams meet, I expect the game to be extremely physical. Pittsburgh has a good defense but it won’t be enough to overcome the absence of Ben Roethlisberger.  Mason Rudolph will struggle in this one.

Look for the Ravens defense to take advantage of the young quarterback and give Lamar Jackson enough short fields to get it done. The Ravens get a big interdivision road win and keep the Dolphins draft capital strong. Ravens 24 Steelers 13.

Sunday – 1:00 pm Atlanta Falcons at Houston Texans

Dolphin fans will have their eye on Texans’ games for the next two years.  When the Dolphins shipped Laremy Tunsil and Kenny Stills to the Texans the Phins received a treasure trove of picks in return, a first round pick in both 2020 and 2021 as well as a second round pick in 2021.  The 2020 first round pick currently sits at #25 overall. This has the potential to be a very good game although the Atlanta Falcons tend to struggle outside of Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The Falcons currently sit at 1-3, two games behind the 3-1 Saints.

This is a must win game for the Falcons. The Texans are tied for first in their division at 2-2 but are the definition of a mediocre team right now. They’ve won two and lost two. They’ve given up 78 points and scored 78 points. They are 1-1 on the road and 1-1 at home.  The Texans are a talented team led by Deshaun Watson and DeAndre Hopkins. Once again I think Dolphin fans will be disappointed in the outcome of this game. The Falcons road struggles will continue as Deshaun Watson has a big day in front of the home crowd. Houston Texans 27 – Atlanta Falcons 17.

So, enjoy the bye week Dolphin fans and go Ravens!