Sunday Will Send Dolphins Down One Of Two Paths
Credit: Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images
The Miami Dolphins head into a pivotal Week 7 game that will almost certainly dictate the rest of the season. At 2-3, the Dolphins will face the 3-3 Indianapolis Colts, and once again, they will be without quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. With Tagovailoa eligible to come off injured reserve on October 23, Miami has an opportunity to come out of that injury with a .500 record. If Tagovailoa can return for their Week 8 home date with the Arizona Cardinals in that good of a position, that’s about as ideal a spot as they could’ve hoped for once they lost Tua.
Approaching the mid-point of the 2024 season, this game could lead to two very different paths for this year’s Dolphins. Behind one door is a 3-3 record after stacking another road win, keeping pace within the AFC East. The division has seen two teams acquire wide receivers after the New York Jets traded for Davante Adams and Buffalo Bills responded by snagging Amari Cooper. Behind another door is a nightmare, with Tua coming back to take over a 2-4 with few playoff hopes.
At that point, is it even worth it for Tagovailoa to take command of that 2-4 record? It’s a question you have to consider. NFL.com gives Miami a 22% chance of making the playoffs, should they win on Sunday. A one-in-four chance of making the postseason? You can feel good about rolling the dice on that. But if they lose, that’s down to 9% — or about one-in-11. His return date uncertain to begin with, but the record could play a part in that decision.
It may also impact how active Miami is at the November 5 trade deadline, which comes two days after their Week 9 match-up at Buffalo. Journeying further down this hypothetical road, should Miami get to 4-3 heading into Week 9, they might decide it’s worth it to make a move to load up for a run at the Bills.
And they will need every bit of help to catch Buffalo. The Bills have a Week 7 home game against the Tennessee Titans, then hit the road to Seattle against the Seahawks Week 8. It’s very possible they could be 6-2 before Miami comes to Western New York in November. If a 4-3 Dolphins team is on the way to wrench the tiebreaker from Buffalo, Miami could become buyers in a market that should have a position or two of interest in the coming weeks.
That’s if they win. If the Dolphins can’t pull off a win in Indy, that could bust open a completely different Pandora’s Box. Should Tagovailoa not be ready to return after dropping a game to Indy, that puts a catastrophic loss against the Cardinals on the table. If bringing Tua back to a 2-4 team is a question, so will bringing him back to a 2-5 team heading into a hostile environment in Buffalo.
Creeping down this darker path could even mean Miami may ponder being sellers, in hopes to recoup draft capital for yet another rebuild. Emmanuel Ogbah, Jeff Wilson Jr., Odell Beckham Jr., Jordan Poyer, Calais Campbell and Jevon Holland (should he continue to play through his injury) could be gone. The next few weeks could be frightening as Halloween approaches.
That all depends on how things shake out on Sunday. It’s a portal that could lead Miami through either door, keeping the season alive, or abruptly slamming their window shut. This is a must-win for Mike McDaniel as his squad seeks to deliver on the team’s preseason promise.
Up Next