Predicting the Dolphins' next 4 games after stunning upset vs. Bills

The Miami Dolphins blew the mighty Buffalo Bills off the field by a score of 30-13 this past Sunday at Hard Rock Stadium, and all of a sudden, there's some spunk back in this 3-7 team.

An eighth consecutive loss to the defending AFC East champs would've spelled certain doom for Miami's 2025 season. Instead, the Dolphins rallied around head coach Mike McDaniel and played inspired, complementary football as well as they have all year.

Something of a pseudo-cream-puff schedule is on the horizon. Not that Miami has any margin for error or room to get complacent, but there's legitimate hope that these Fins can forge their way close to the .500 mark down the stretch.

Let's make some predictions as to how the next month or so will go following such a momentous triumph over the Bills.

Miami Dolphins week-by-week predictions after season-saving victory over Bills

Week 11: vs. Washington Commanders (in Madrid)

That Week 12 bye will be a welcome reprieve for the Dolphins after they travel to Spain to take on the Commanders.

It's a lot to ask of this Miami bunch to come off the high of trouncing the Bills, fly a very long way, and somehow avoid a letdown against a reeling Washington football team (lol, had to).

No, but for real, the Commanders are a mess. They won't have star quarterback Jayden Daniels in the lineup. Their defense is a disaster in Year 2 under defensive-minded head coach Dan Quinn. WR1 Terry McLaurin can't stay healthy. What a nightmare season for a core group that just ran to the NFC Championship Game.

Between the bad vibes out of Washington and the Fins' renewed hope, this should be an ugly contest that Miami somehow grinds out thanks to the Commanders yielding an NFL-worst 112.5 passer rating. It should be a big day for Tua Tagovailoa and this Dolphins passing attack.

Prediction: Dolphins 27, Commanders 23 (4-7)

Week 13: vs. New Orleans Saints

Extra time to prepare for a home matchup versus rookie QB Tyler Shough and the NFC's second-worst team? Couldn't have drawn it up much better for the Dolphins here.

Although New Orleans' defense is indeed frisky, I'm not convinced Shough is Dat Dude for the Saints. They were fortunate to run into an overrated Panthers team who overlooked them in Week 10. Carolina is on the verge of collapse. That win in Shough's starting debut won't look like much in due time.

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If Miami defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver can come up with a game plan that baffles the likes of Bills superstar Josh Allen, imagine what he could throw at Shough to confuse him.

Not that I'm writing Shough's NFL obituary, but he's learning on the job for a rebuilding team. The Dolphins should smell blood in the figurative water and stymie the Saints' offense in a relatively easy win to improve to 5-7.

Prediction: Dolphins 23, Saints 13 (5-7)

Week 14: @ New York Jets

What a freaking run of opposing quarterbacks for Miami to face. When Washington's Marcus Mariota is far and away the best one, you know you've hit a soft spot on the schedule.

Sorry to all the Justin Fields truthers out there. He ain't it. The man cannot win from the pocket at the NFL level, plain and simple. Unless he's facing an awful defense or incompetent coordinator, Fields is doomed.

The Jets needed kickoff and punt return touchdowns in Week 10 just to beat the lowly Browns by seven points. Wanna see Fields' passing chart, if you can call it that?

Miami's defense has improved a lot since its 27-21 Week 4 dub over Gang Green, wherein Fields and Breece Hall ran for 81 yards apiece. Weaver just needs to control Fields' rush lanes and force him into true dropback reps. That's what flummoxed Allen, and it'd do a number on Fields to put it lightly.

You have to admire that New York still seems to be playing hard for first-year head coach Aaron Glenn. Just feels like Jaylen Waddle is going to work that Sauce Gardner-less Jets secondary. Plus, the absence of Quinnen Williams in the Jets' trenches won't expose Miami's suspect guard play as much.

Prediction: Dolphins 34, Jets 17 (6-7)

Week 15: @ Pittsburgh Steelers (Monday Night Football)

How about this? A prime-time showdown, in the likely-cold weather of Pittsburgh, where Tua and the Dolphins can put to bed the notion that they're not cut out for the December elements up north.

You know who's going to struggle in the frigid temperatures, in all likelihood? Tua's counterpart, a freshly 42-year-old Aaron Rodgers.

The Steelers' vaunted defenses of yesteryear appear to be no more. They're 5-4 entering Week 11 after starting the season 4-1. Wheels are falling off. It's a wonder they have a winning record.

This is where Mike Tomlin tends to work his magic, however.

As long as Pittsburgh goes at least 1-3 in its next four games, Tomlin's crew will be no worse than 6-7 coming into Week 15. The AFC North crown should still be within reach.

I could easily see Miami taking a step back and losing critical ground to the Steelers here. Sorry to say, but until the Tua-McDaniel Dolphins beat a semi-quality opponent in December, I'll need to see it to believe it.

Prediction: Steelers 24, Dolphins 20 (6-8)

But hey, going from 2-7 to 6-8 ain't bad! Sure feels like enough to save McDaniel's job — and perhaps it'd buy Tua one more year, too.