The Miami Dolphins are on a roll, and with their heads held high going into Empower Field in Denver, they will look to extend their winning streak no one saw coming before the season. But don’t expect the Broncos to make things easy for Miami, as they can still pull the rug underneath Tua Tagovailoa and company. Check out our preview of this game below.
Forget about the past version of the Dolphins. This current one is better and more cohesive, and it shows in their current five-game winning streak. That stretch includes their 29-21 win over the LA Chargers last Sunday. Tua Tagovailoa outshone fellow rookie quarterback Justin Herbert in that game, as he passed for 169 passing yards and a couple of touchdowns with zero interceptions on 15-of-25 completions. But the real heroes for Miami is its defense that can’t stop making huge plays. The Dolphins, who recorded a defensive interception in the Chargers game, are third in the league so far this season with 1.7 takeaways per contest. Miami’s stop unit must be licking its chops at the prospect of wreaking havoc this coming Sunday against Denver’s error-prone offense. Just last Sunday, Denver quarterback Drew Lock got intercepted four times. On the season, Denver is turning the ball over on miscues 2.3 times per game – the worst in the NFL.
The Dolphins are 5-0 against the spread in their last five games overall.
The Broncos have to cut down on their turnovers. It’s cliched, but that’s what’s going to improve their chances of winning games. As mentioned earlier, Lock was a walking turnover machine in last week’s 37-12 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders on the road. Wide receiver DaeSean Hamilton also had a lost fumble to make it a five-turnover day for the Broncos, who are averaging 20.7 points per game. Up against the opportunistic defense of Miami, it might be better for Denver to run the ball more than let Lock take the team on a roller-coaster ride that with loose screws holding it together. That means more work for Melvin Gordon, Royce Freeman, and Philip Lindsay. Gordon had 46 rushing yards on 11 carries in the loss to the Raiders. Miami’s defense is also more vulnerable on the ground, where they are allowing 128.1 rushing yards per game, which is only 22nd overall in the league. Moreover, Miami’s run defense is only 29th in terms of DVOA (Defense-adjusted Value Over Average).
The Broncos are 6-4 against the spread in their last 10 games at home.
