It may not matter for the Pats which would benefit the PhinsPath is definitely there for the Dolphins to win 10 games. Will be interesting to see if Week 17 matters.
It may not matter for the Pats which would benefit the PhinsPath is definitely there for the Dolphins to win 10 games. Will be interesting to see if Week 17 matters.
Right now Oakland is 1/2 game behind from the 1 seed and they play Houston tonight.It may not matter for the Pats which would benefit the Phins
Oakland still has road games at Denver, SD, and KC, plus home games vs. Carolina, Buffalo, Indy, and tonight's game. I will be surprised if they do any better than 5-2, which would give them 4 losses.Right now Oakland is 1/2 game behind from the 1 seed and they play Houston tonight.
I wouldn't anticipate a huge dropoff from any of the AFC West teams or New England running away with the 1 seed. I'm guessing New England runs their starters out there in Week 17.
Denver plays KC next week, which is a net win for Miami regardless of the outcome.
Handle SF and Miami is in a tie for a wild card spot next week.
Thanks. I still think Miami needs to do whatever it has to do to get everyone as healthy as possible for Baltimore. Having head to head victories against both Baltimore and Pittsburgh would be huge.I'm actually rooting for you guys, I like Gase, I would like to see another AFC East team make the playoffs. It's going to take at least 10 wins, maybe 11, but you can get there.
I assume you mean from a conference perspective because if Miami finishes tied with the loser of the Baltimore/Pittsburgh race, they're not going to the playoffs.Thanks. I still think Miami needs to do whatever it has to do to get everyone as healthy as possible for Baltimore. Having head to head victories against both Baltimore and Pittsburgh would be huge.
Agreed. At this point, any game against an AFC opponent is big for Miami. Having head to head victories against the other teams that are in the hunt is gravy and sort of locks them into that next-in-line playoff position.I assume you mean from a conference perspective because if Miami finishes tied with the loser of the Baltimore/Pittsburgh race, they're not going to the playoffs.
Baltimore also held Zeke Elliott and the Cowboys stud-filled offensive line to under 100 yards. They might not be great, but they're pretty damn good at stopping the run and Miami is playing them on the road. If Miami is still missing Albert and/or Tunsil and/or Pouncey, be prepared for another ugly slogfest like we just witnessed. I think this game, @Buffalo, and NE in Week 17 are the three remaining games that worry me the most.*The Baltimore game is clearly a must-win in this scenario.
The game @ BUF is the toughest remaining on the schedule for sure. House of horrors, in the dead of winter. I'd be shocked if they win that game.Baltimore also held Zeke Elliott and the Cowboys stud-filled offensive line to under 100 yards. They might not be great, but they're pretty damn good at stopping the run and Miami is playing them on the road. If Miami is still missing Albert and/or Tunsil and/or Pouncey, be prepared for another ugly slogfest like we just witnessed. I think this game, @Buffalo, and NE in Week 17 are the three remaining games that worry me the most.
Go Texans.
I'm hoping they will be able to rest Pouncey, Albert and Tunsil for the 49ers game and head to Baltimore with a healthy O line.I'm anxious to hear an update on Tunsil. I hope the shoulder injury was minor.
Branden Albert, whose left wrist wasn’t where it was supposed to be, needed basically the entire medical staff’s help to pop it back into place.
For “like 40 minutes” they tried, with little success. Finally, they found the winning formula:
“It was like five, six people on me,” said Albert, the Dolphins’ 6-5, 314-pound left tackle. “One was [on] my arm, the other one was holding my fingers, the other one was trying to mess with the wrist, trying to pop it back in. It was really like five people trying to do it.”
Albert was able to return to the game, but an MRI revealed ligament damage. He had surgery two days later.
My thoughts are more in line with dwaimw. Considering the injuries, I don't consider any game a "gimme". Thankfully, it looks as though Tunsil's going to play tomorrow.I get a little uneasy with folks talking about hoping the majority of the offensive line sits out until after the San Fran game. I get it, but lest we forget how this team played vs. the Tennessees, Cincinnatis, and Clevelands of the world prior to that unit's return to full strength (and we should probably include St. Louis for 56 minutes). There is little margin for error for Miami in the remainder of their schedule, especially if they hope to avoid a must-sweep scenario versus Buffalo and NE the last two weeks of the season.
IMO, definitely root for Denver. KC has a brutal stretch coming up. I think they're most likely to drop a game or two in the next three.Still trying to shake the sense of dread that descended over me for the last 10 minutes of that game, so I'll just avoid commenting about anything other than 7 - 4. Which leads to.....
.....now I can allow myself to think about tonight's game. Who to root for? KC is already at 5 wins in the conference, so we don't want them getting to 6. Plus, when they play again Week 17, it'll be the Chiefs with home field. By my math, that = Go Denver!
7. Ryan Tannehill, Miami Dolphins
Miami’s rejuvenation during its six-game win streak has been largely on the shoulders of running back Jay Ajayi, but in the past three weeks Tannehill has produced two of the best games of his career and thrown some spectacular passes. This week he posted a passer rating of 130.6, completing 66.7 percent of his passes and throwing three scores without being intercepted. When kept clean in the pocket, his passer rating was 150.3, and the 49ers were only able to generate pressure on eight of his 34 dropbacks.
Early media speculation is that both Tunsil and Albert will play Sunday, with Pouncey being the least likely. I think Parker will be a full go. Haven't seen any mention of Howard yet.Everyone keep your fingers crossed for a return of at least Tunsil and hopefully Parker. If Pouncey comes back, awesome. I think Albert is doubtful for this week. All hands on deck for this one.
Over the Cap still has him under his rookie deal with no extension for 2017. It's not the be-all, end-all, but they are pretty good.Early media speculation is that both Tunsil and Albert will play Sunday, with Pouncey being the least likely. I think Parker will be a full go. Haven't seen any mention of Howard yet.
On a separate note, I have a question: Was Kiki Alonso's contract situation ever confirmed? I remembered reading about a contract extension in several places; one can be found here:
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/miami-dolphins/sfl-dolphins-restructure-byron-maxwell-and-kiko-alonsos-contract-after-trade-20160310-story.html
"Alonso, who was set to earn just under a million dollars for this season, agreed to a one-year extension that actually gives him a raise. The often-injured linebacker, who has missed the bulk of the last two seasons because of knee injuries, signed a two-year deal that is worth $2.8 million."
That, of course, would make him a FA after next season, not this season. I hope that's the case.
I could see the Fins' FO wanting to keep him in Miami longer than that. He's turned into a really nice addition on defense.
Well as I am sure you are aware it was the Ravens bitching about the Pats formations in the playoffs two years agoThe Ravens are pretty damn high on the unlikeable franchise list. The way they closed out last week's game is just another prime example. Is it illegal? Not technically. Is it kind of cheesey, bordering on cheap? Probably.
Franchises that look to exploit every loophole and technicality rub me the wrong way. Just win by winning and being the better team. Don't use a technicality that basically eliminates the other team from the final play of the game.
Exactly. They want to cry foul when something doesn't go their way, but then they pull that play out of the book, something that the players said they practice every week. They also attempted to do the exact same thing to close out the Super Bowl, but the punter was pushed out of bounds with a few seconds left on the clock. This one was "better executed" if you can call it that, leaving the Bengals with no time left and ending the game.Which is why the Ravens are even more annoying.
They complain the loudest about the stuff they pull themselves.
http://www.footballoutsiders.com/dvoa-ratings/2016/week-12-dvoa-ratingsBaltimore leads the league in defensive DVOA even though the Ravens are just eighth against the pass. That's because they have a mind-blowing -42.5% DVOA against the run this year. How good is that? It puts the Ravens on pace to have the greatest run defense in DVOA history, surpassing their Super Bowl-winning 2000 team.
It's actually every year. http://www.baltimoreravens.com/news/article-1/Intentional-Safety-Was-Even-Better-Than-Super-Bowl-Trick--In-Execution/5a46ceb1-1839-48cb-b809-08368f66b5f1.Exactly. They want to cry foul when something doesn't go their way, but then they pull that play out of the book, something that the players said they practice every week.
I think Parker is a major key, maybe more than Pouncey or Albert. The offense looks so different when he's out there at 100%. He's been flashing his speed and deep ball ability the last few weeks and Tannehill has a lot of faith in him. I would hate to see him out there at 80% again and basically a decoy.We will probably find out today which of the unicorns is playing this week. Probably not Pouncey. Hopefully Parker plays and is healthy.
The D has to hold them to 20 points or less me thinks.
Hey, it's fun having meaningful football to talk about in DECEMBER!
Gase also said there's definitely the possibility of Xavien Howard coming back this week. I think Lippett still gets the start over Howard, but it's good to have depth back there. I guess the downside of having guys that are big press corners is you can't easily slide on of them into the slot to get your best 3 corners on the field at the same time. Bobby McCain is pretty much their slot guy.The Ravens are getting healthy at the right time; Jimmy Smith was back at practice today. This game's setting up to be a real good one. For the first time in ... ever? ... I believe this Miami team is as tough, if not tougher than this Ravens team. (The '08 team was close.)
At this point, I'd be mildly surprised if Tunsil and Albert don't play. I'm also with you, Sod'. If Parker can't go, that's a huge blow. The Fins' offense doesn't appear to be nearly the same without him.
Wow, I was holding out hope, but I wasn't expecting him to play at all. Of course, that's huge. It'll be interesting to see how effective he'll be.Schefter just tweeted that Parker is likely out today. Huge bummer
Edit: Alive! Parker will be active today. When was last time Schefter was wrong? and why would he tweet that at 4:20am and not wait until the players arrived at the stadium?
Schefter said he was likely out. Rappaport said he was going to try and run this morning to make a case for playing. He's apparently a go. Big for Miami.Wow, I was holding out hope, but I wasn't expecting him to play at all. Of course, that's huge. It'll be interesting to see how effective he'll be.
On paper, this should end up being a really good game today.