Miami Dolphins will likely rely heavily on the Wild Cat today

The Wild Cat should be alive and well for the Miami Dolphins today when they play the Carolina Panthers because they are not very creative.

It pains me to say it but every time I close my eyes I see Tua Tagovailoa running towards the sideline and Myles Gaskin left alone under center. I see the snap, the half-hearted attempt to make it look like he might pass the ball, the pause before he runs to the right or left, and the gain of half a yard.

Then a player later, they run the same thing again.

So why do I see this as something we will see more of today against the Panthers? As we pointed out earlier, the Panthers have one of the top rated pass defense in the NFL and the Dolphins have one of the worst rushing attacks. The Panthers are going to try to make Miami run on them and if they can’t, the OCs will run the WC.

The Panthers have allowed only 1,916 yards through the air and have 8 interceptions on the season. Carolina isn’t as productive defensively at stopping the run but if they can take away the Dolphins passing game, they will force Miami to push the ball on the ground instead.

The Dolphins can’t let go of the Wild Cat formation despite the limited success it yields. It doesn’t keep the defense honest or from stacking the line. It doesn’t work consistently enough to use it but it has been seen a few times over the last few weeks and it hasn’t worked well.

So will it work today? Probably not. Hopefully the OCs have spent the week figuring out how to design a game plan that doesn’t need the formation but I cringe at the thought that we may see more of it, rather than none at all.