The Dolphins crashed and burned last season costing two coaches their job. Entering 2015 with high hopes, Miami stumbled to three losses after an opening day win. It’s not that the Fins lost, rather who they lost to that upset many. Losing at Jacksonville and an embarrassing home opening defeat to Buffalo set the stage for Joe Philbin’s exit after the team lost to the Jets the following week.
There was a spark under interim coach Dan Campbell, but the club opted to go another direction and start the rebuild after a 6-10 campaign. Former Bears and Broncos offensive coordinator Adam Gase, the NFL’s youngest coach this season at 38, is now tasked with turning the club around.
Miami Dolphins Regular Season Win Total Odds at BookMaker.eu
Dolphins Over 7 Wins -115
Dolphins Under 7 Wins -104
In what was supposed to be a breakout season – with better weapons around Ryan Tannehill – the offense regressed in 2015, as the Dolphins dropped from 14th to 26th in yards and 11th to 27th in points. With all the offensive firepower they had, the Dolphins averaged just 19.4 points per game, which is severely disappointing. To make matters worse, they lost Lamar Miller.
The Dolphins are largely counting on Gase to serve as the source of improvement. He’s known for working well with quarterbacks; Chicago’s Jay Cutler praised Gase all last season and then praised the Dolphins for the hire. Gase will call the plays and is expected to put fewer restrictions on Tannehill, who was limited in his ability to audible under previous coaches.
The defense was supposed to carry this team last year following the acquisition of Ndamakung Suh, but instead the front seven was average at best. Suh’s hefty contract has management in a vice and restricts any potential signings, so improving the club is hard to do. Unless Tannehill is more than an average quarterback, the Dolphins are a longshot to get seven wins.
2016 Miami Dolphins Schedule
Week 1: at Seattle Seahawks ( -7 )
Week 2: at New England Patriots ( -9.5 )
Week 3: vs. Cleveland Browns ( +7 )
Week 4: at Cincinnati Bengals ( -6.5 )
Week 5: vs. Tennessee Titans ( +5.5 )
Week 6: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers ( -3.5 )
Week 7: vs. Buffalo Bills ( +1 )
Week 8: BYE
Week 9: vs. New York Jets
Week 10: at San Diego Chargers ( -1 )
Week 11: at Los Angeles Rams ( -2 )
Week 12: vs. San Francisco 49ers ( +5 )
Week 13: at Baltimore Ravens ( -3 )
Week 14: vs. Arizona Cardinals ( -3 )
Week 15: at New York Jets ( -5 )
Week 16: at Buffalo Bills ( -3.5 )
Week 17: vs. New England Patriots
Gase probably did some rethinking over his decision to take the Dolphins job when he saw the schedule. Talk about a brutal opening, the Fins open on the road against Seattle and New England, two favorites to reach the Super Bowl this season. The two actually played one of the more memorable Super Bowl games a few seasons back. Miami also gets Cincinnati on the road and Pittsburgh at home in their first six. Miami avoided getting swept by their division foes with a victory over New England in the season finale. The Dolphins host the Patriots again to finish the season, having won three straight home games over New England.
QUICK PICK
When is Tannehill going to lead his team to more than eight wins? Is Gase really the right fit for this team? Gase had a simple gig in Denver coaching Peyton Manning. All he had to do was sit down with a clipboard and pretend he knew what he was doing.
The Bears were nothing special offensively last year with Gase as their offensive coordinator, but somehow he turned that into a head job in South Beach. Good for Mr. Gase, but welcome to the dysfunction.
The defense had just 31 sacks, and nearly half of those came from Olivier Vernon and Cameron Wake. Vernon fled for big bucks with the Giants, while Wake is returning at age 34 from an Achilles tear. Miami inked several veteran defenders to plug the holes, but they could be worse than they were last year.
Gase, who signed a five-year contract, will be given some room to grow, and this roster will require it. Playing in a division with possibly the best team in football and a brutal stretch at the beginning of the year, Miami will be in for a tough season, and we don’t see any way that they’ll reach their projected win total.
NFL Odds: Miami Dolphins Under 7 Wins
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