The Importance Of Miami’s Current Window
Syndication: The Record
The 1992 Miami Dolphins were the last squad to wear the aqua and orange that had a legitimate chance at making and winning the Super Bowl. That season ended on January 17th, 1993 with a 29-10 loss to the Buffalo Bills. The next year, Dan Marino tore his achilles tendon and was never the same upon his return. He didn’t have darkness retreats, psychedelic mushrooms or the ability to lie about the severity of injuries like modern day quarterbacks, so an achilles injury to him effectively closed the window for the Dan Marino led Dolphins.
Dolphins fans are well aware of the revolving door of quarterbacks and coaches post Marino, and honest fans know that a championship window never really opened. They had some success with a great defense but they were trotting out Jay Fiedler as their signal caller. The offense hasn’t been dynamic post Marino, outside of the season they unleashed the wildcat and Chad Pennington protected the ball like it was the nuclear football.
But this year is starting to feel different.
We all have seen how great the offense can be when it is clicking on all cylinders. Tyreek Hill currently has more receiving yards on his own than the entire WR corps for the Jets, Falcons and Patriots. If there are no more major injuries and Achane is healthy by the playoffs there is no scarier offense in the NFL.
But now, with the return of Jalen Ramsey on defense raising the level of play of everyone on that side of the ball, this team finally has a chance to put it all together. Before Jalen Ramsey the Dolphins were giving up 26 points a game and since his return they have been giving up 16. That is what happens when someone can take away half of the field and shut down the other team’s best receiver.
With an offense and a defense capable of truly complementing one another for the first time this season and a parity ridden AFC, the championship window has opened wide for Miami. But as is so often the case in the NFL, this window could close soon.
Both Tryeek and Jalen will be 30 next year and we know that players that rely on speed and athleticism have productivity that tapers off when you get to the wrong side of that age.
They also have a quarterback under a rookie contract and soon he is going to have to be paid. When big money goes to your quarterback, that money isn’t available for great complimentary pieces. And I don’t think we have seen enough from Tua to believe that he can be great without those high level complimentary pieces.
Free agency also plays a major role in this quickly closing window. Key contributors like Jerome Baker and Christian Wilkins will both be free agents next year and Wilkins will be in line for a significant pay raise that just may not be possible with the amount they will need to pay Tua to keep him around. Those things coupled with the negative 37 million in projected cap space the Dolphins have for next year could close this window as fast as it opened.
In order to take advantage of the opportunity, the path is quite simple. The defense is finally playing at a high level and the special teams are starting to come around. This means, fortunately for Miami, success lies in the hands of their revered head coach.
Mike McDaniel thoroughly scouting and attacking his own tendencies is the key. To succeed where they have failed (beating good teams) McDaniel must show a commitment to the running game, especially when things don’t go to plan. He must shorten routes and allow for underneath check downs against physical defenses. He has to help
Tua effectively make good decisions while progressing through his second and third read. These are all extremely reasonable possibilities.
Beyond that there is no deep analytical conclusion in this article. No hot takes. Just a simple and honest assessment of where the team truly exists in this moment. A recognition of a moment Miami hasn’t felt in a long time.
It’s been 30 years since a window like this has opened for the Dolphins. Yes there’s reasons to believe that there is a path to a successful long term future. But enjoy this Dolphans. This is rare. We know better than anyone that windows like this don’t come around often.
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