The Miami Dolphins are still in the hunt for a playoff spot, but that’s more wishful thinking and less of a possibility with the way they’re playing right now. That said, Miami will barge into MetLife Stadium this coming Sunday looking to even its regular season series with the New York Jets. The Jets are now on the outside looking in in the AFC playoff picture after losing their last two games. Another loss would be a punch to the gut of New York’s chances to reach the postseason.
For more Week 12 game previews, you can also read our breakdown of Rams vs. Bengals.
[sc:NFL240banner ]Dan Campbell is unlikely to be the Dolphins’ head coach next season if Miami continues to sputter under his watch. Campbell guided the Fins to back-to-back wins in his first two games as the team’s interim coach, but has gone 1-3 in Miami’s last four games. That includes an ugly 24-14 loss to Dallas on Sunday.
Against the Cowboys, Miami’s offense, which averaged just 14.2 points in the last five games, was obviously out of sync again. Ryan Tannehill passed for 188 yards and two touchdowns along with an interception on 13 of 24 completions, but got sacked three times.
The backfield offered little help, as Lamar Miller and company managed to rush for only 70 yards. The Jets possess one of the stingiest defenses in the NFL, so the outlook for the Dolphins’ offense this coming Sunday isn’t too optimistic. If anything, Miami can draw confidence from the fact that it is 6-1 SU and 5-2 ATS in its last seven visits to MetLife Stadium.
Defensively, the Dolphins will have to prepare for New York’s run game. While the Jets rushed for only 70 yards against Houston in Week 11, Chris Ivory and Bilal Powell must be licking their chops at the prospect of taking on Miami’s stop unit that let Darren McFadden run for 129 yards on 4.4 yards per carry. Ivory was an unstoppable force in the first meeting with Miami, as the running back rushed for 166 yards on 29 carries in the Jets’ 27-14 win in Week 4.
Overall, Miami is second worst in the league with 138.6 rushing yards allowed per game.
Is the Jets’ defense slipping? For all the talk about the team’s sound defense this season, it can’t be denied that New York’s stop unit has been a letdown the last two games, particularly on the ground. After allowing 148 rushing yards to Buffalo in Week 10, the Jets surrendered 123 more to Texans in a 24-17 loss on Sunday.
Even though Miami’s offense hasn’t been right of late, the Dolphins do have capable talents in the backfield with the versatile tandem of Lamar Miller and Jarvis Landry and an up-and-coming Jay Ajayi to keep New York’s front seven busy. So far this season, New York is third in the NFL with 91.6 rushing yards allowed per game.
Containing Ryan Tannehill and the Dolphins’ passing attack, meanwhile, should be a tougher challenge if cornerback Darrelle Revis is eventually deemed inactive. Revis left the Houston game with an apparent injury and if he can’t go on Sunday, the Jets will be left with the likes of Antonio Cromartie, Buster Skrine and Marcus Gilchrist anchoring the secondary. The Jets’ passing defense is 11th in the NFL with 231.4 yards allowed per contest, while their scoring defense is surrendering just 20.8 points per contest.
Ryan Fitzpatrick, on the other hand, will have to play better, too, after an awful performance in the Houston game, wherein he passed for 216 yards and a touchdown with two interceptions on 19 of 39 attempts. Miami’s defense against the pass has been dicey, so perhaps Fitzpatrick may have a clearer view of the like of Eric Decker and Brandon Marshall in Week 12. For one, the Dolphins’ defense is ranked 32nd and 18th in DVOA against the opponents’ No. 1 and 2 receivers, respectively, as of Week 10.
The over is 5-1 in the Jets’ last six games overall.
