It was as ugly a game as you’ll ever see. Still, Skylar Thompson and the Miami Dolphins defense took down the Joe Flacco lead Jets to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2016. Now we face the Bills for the 3rd time this season, but with Skylar Thompson at the helm yet again, do we even stand a chance?

Game Recap: Miami Dolphins 11, New York Jets 6

Gotta Love It

• Jeff Wilson Jr. (16/72) and Raheem Mostert (11/71) were dominant.
• The defense didn’t let Joe Flacco tear them up.
• The kicking of Jason Sanders and Thomas Morstead was on point.

Hate to See It

• Offense. What offense?
• Zero sacks or interceptions on defense.
• Injuries keep piling up, with Raheem Mostert & Tyreek Hill both suffering injuries.

Final Thoughts

• The final two weeks of our regular season could not have been any uglier. There’s been no offense, the defense can’t get out of its own way, and we’ve suffered more injuries than anyone can count. 
• Despite how awful the last two weeks were, I’m still excited to be in the playoffs. No matter what happens in our third matchup against Buffalo, we are a playoff team for the 2022/2023 season and that’s something to be excited about!

Game Preview: 9-8 Miami Dolphins vs. 13-3 Buffalo Bills

• Regular Season Matchups
  • Miami wins in week 3, 21-19
  • Buffalo wins in week 15, 32-29
• Game Details
  • This game will kick off on Sunday, January 15th at 1:00 pm EST on CBS.
  • The weather will be partly cloudy, with a high of 30 degrees.
  • The betting line has the Bills as 13.5-point favorites.
  • The ESPN matchup predictor gives the Bills a 95.7% chance to win.
• Injury Report
  • MIA 
    • Out: Tua Tagovailoa, Raheem Mostert
    • Doubtful: Liam Eichenberg
    • Questionable: Terron Armstead, Bradley Chubb, Kendall Lamm, Brandon Shell, Teddy Bridgewater, Alec Ingold, Cedrick Wilson
  • BUF
    • Questionable: Isaiah McKenzie, Jordan Phillips
• Team Trends
  • The Miami Dolphins will be sporting their 3rd string QB for a second week in a row. Coming off an all-time horrific meltdown of 1-6 in their last 7 games, they have no momentum going into this game as they look to pull off the biggest upset maybe ever against the rival Bills.
  • The Buffalo Bills have been a glass case of emotion following the cancellation of the Bills/Bengals Monday night game due to one of their own (Damar Hamlin) collapsing on the field and being rushed to the hospital. On the football field, they’ve won their last 7 games and look to keep the streak alive as they push towards their first Super Bowl appearance since losing 4-straight back in the early 90s.
• Keys to the Game
  • Nobody is expecting us to win this game, not myself, not you, not the media, and probably not even many of the people around the Dolphins building. We have the ultimate underdog advantage, so it’s the perfect time to “get cute” and hit ‘em with an unexpected rope-a-dope.
• Madden Prediction: Dolphins 7, Bills 42
• Fins Family Podcast Final Prediction: Dolphins 13, Bills 32

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What was once looking to be a promising season, has turned into a monstrous disappointment yet again. Instead of controlling our own playoff destiny, we’re now dependent on various outcomes for a shot at the final tourney after losing 5 straight. Skylar Thompson gets the nod this week against the Jets, can he lead Miami to a playoff appearance?!

Game Recap: Miami Dolphins 21, New England Patriots 23

Gotta Love It

• The game plan was great, leaning on Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson Jr. worked wonderfully for most of the game. 
• The defense overall was better, but only because of who the opponent was. While the scoreboard says 23, the defense only allowed 17 of the points.
• Elandon Roberts had a day, consistently showing up on defense and special teams.

Hate to See It

• We could put a wooden toy player out there and they’d play better than Eric Rowe.
• Teddy Bridgewater makes me long for the return of Jacoby Brissett. 
• The injuries keep on piling up… the offensive line, defensive backfield, and QB room are decimated.

Final Thoughts

• We’ve lost 5-straight with no real answer in sight. This was an extremely winnable game, marred by penalties and undisciplined play, but even that was overshadowed by the embarrassing performances of the Quarterbacks.

Game Preview: 8-8 Miami Dolphins vs. 7-9 New York Jets

• Playoff Update
  • Miami needs to win and the New England Patriots need to lose to the Buffalo Bills for the Dolphins to clinch the final AFC Playoff spot. 
• Game Details
  • This game will kick off on Sunday, January 8th at 1:00 pm EST on FOX.
  • The weather will be slightly warm, but still nice football weather, clocking in at 78 degrees and partly cloudy, with just a 10% chance of precipitation.
  • The betting line has the Dolphins as 2.5-point favorites. 
• Injury Report
  • MIA 
    • IR: Eric Fisher
    • Out: Tua Tagovailoa
      • Finishes the regular season with 3,548 passing yards, 25 passing touchdowns, 8 interceptions, and 70 rushing yards. 
      • He played in 12 games this season and sits 1st in yards/attempt, 1st in yards/completion, 5th in yards/game, 4th in QBR, and 1st in QB Rating.
    • Doubtful: Terron Armstead, Kendall Lamm, Cedrick Wilson
    • Questionable: Bradley Chubb, Xavien Howard, Teddy Bridgewater, Alec Ingold, Eric Rowe
  • NYJ
    • Out: Duane Brown, Brandin Echols, George Fant, Lamarcus Joyner, Nate Herbig
    • Questionable: Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, Jordan Whitehead, Mike White, Ashtyn Davis, C.J. Uzomah
• Team Trends
  • Both teams are looking to break a 5-game losing streak with backup quarterbacks.
  • The Jets have scored just 4 offensive touchdowns in their last 5 games, with 0 in their last 2.
• Keys to the Game
  • Rely heavily on Mostert and Wilson.
  • Thompson’s accuracy is shaky at best, but he’s got wheels. Get him rolling out.
  • The Jets are going to start Joe Flacco, with our depleted secondary, we should go to Boyer’s specialty: BLITZ, BLITZ, BLITZ.
• Madden Prediction: Dolphins 3, Jets 17
• Fins Family Podcast Final Prediction: Dolphins 17, Jets 16

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The Grinch visited our Miami Dolphins on Christmas Day, sending us from a fan base full of hope to rumblings of the “same old Dolphins”. Tua is set to miss more time with another concussion, leaving our playoff fate in the hands of Teddy Bridgewater as we get set for a division clash with the New England Patriots.

Game Recap: Miami Dolphins 20, Green Bay Packers 26

Gotta Love It

• The defense showed a lot of strong play and overall they setup the offense in good position pretty consistently.
• Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill are absolute cheat codes, both pulling down the deep ball with ease in the first half. 
• Running on 4th and 1.

Hate to See It

• I can’t say enough how curious I am to see if Mike McDaniel pulls the plug on Josh Boyer. 
• Tua continues to show signs of regression, throwing 3 interceptions in the 4th quarter and ultimately losing us a very winnable game.
• Tua being in the concussion protocol for the second time this season is going to leave a lot of unanswered questions.
• The special teams unit is so bad that they just gave up at one point, kicking a squib that set the Packers up near the 50-yard line.

Final Thoughts

• Tua’s mistakes are snowballing and he doesn’t seem to know how to get out of it. 
• This defense is so promising, with a better coaching staff on that side of the ball we could see a huge turnaround from them next season.

Game Preview: 8-7 Miami Dolphins vs. 7-8 New England Patriots

• Playoff Update
  • The Dolphins would make the playoffs if:
    • They win their final two games
    • They win against the Patriots and the Jets lose week 17
    • They win against the Jets and the Patriots lose week 18
  • The Dolphins would miss the playoffs if:
    • They lose their final two games
    • They go 1-1 and are forced into a tiebreaker with another AFC East team
  • The 5th seed would be up for grabs if the Ravens and Chargers both lost their final two games or if there is a three-way tie at 10-7.
• Injury Report
  • MIA 
    • Questionable: Terron Armstead, Bradley Chubb, River Cracraft, Alec Ingold, Xavien Howard, Greg Little
    • Doubtful: Eric Fisher
    • Out: Tua Tagovailoa
  • NE
    • Questionable: Jalen Mills, Hunter Henry, Jonathan Jones, Rhamondre Stevenson, Tyquan Thornton
    • Out: Jack Jones, Marcus Jones, DeVante Parker, Jonnu Smith
• Team Trends
  • Both teams are 1-4 in their last 5 regular season games.
  • Miami is 4-1 in their last 5 head-to-head matchups with New England.
• Keys to the Game
  • Keep it simple for Teddy, but don’t be so predictable that it leads to turnovers.
  • Tyreek and Waddle should destroy this beat-up secondary, get them the ball.
  • Cover-0 has worked really well against Mac Jones in the past and the Patriots' offense has been in a state of turmoil as of late. Frustrating them early could cause an implosion.
• Madden Prediction: Dolphins 21, Patriots 38
• Fins Family Podcast Final Prediction: Dolphins 24, Patriots 21

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Our third straight loss was a tough pill to swallow, but our boys came to play, giving the Buffalo Bills quite the challenge before falling within the game's final minutes. On this episode, we’ll take one last look at the defeat to the Bills, then dive into our Christmas Day matchup against the Aaron Rodgers’ lead Green Bay Packers.

Game Recap: Miami Dolphins 29, Buffalo Bills 32

• Gotta Love It
  • Raheem Mostert got the ground game going, rushing 17 times for 136 yards, including a 67-yard scamper. Backup Salvon Ahmed tacked on another 43 yards on 6 carries.
  • The defense was up and down, but made enough plays to win, recovering a fumble, recording 2 sacks, 4 tackles for a loss, and forcing the Bills to punt the ball away 5x.
  • The offense continued to push the ball downfield, this time connecting on deep completions of 32 and 67 to Jaylen Waddle, the latter connecting for a Touchdown.
• Hate to See It
  • Throwing a highly predictable out route on 3rd and 1 in a game where the run was dominating, then doubling down during the press conferences afterward, saying it was the right call based on what they were seeing from the defense.
  • There’s still no answer to the throw to the flat, Buffalo hit it early and often, with no adjustments from our defense in sight.
  • The defense was again dominated by the QB run. Toward the end of the game when the weather started to get bad again, Allen was able to move the ball with ease on designed QB runs. 
• Final Thoughts
  • I don’t love the fact that Coach McDaniel and Frank Smith both doubled down on the 3rd and 1 pass fiasco that we’ve seen time and time again. 
  • Coach McDaniel also addressed the glaring concerns on defense and says he expects that unit to turn things around quickly.

Game Preview: 6-8 Green Bay Packers @ 8-6 Miami Dolphins

• Playoff Update
  • Miami is now 3 games back of the division leader Buffalo Bills, and will likely need to get into the playoffs via a wild card spot. 
  • Miami currently holds the final playoff spot in the AFC as the 7 seed. 
  • If Miami wins this week and next week, they’ll lock themselves into the playoffs.
  • The Packers can lock in a playoff spot if they win out. 
• Game Details
  • This game is the first game of the NFL's Christmas triple-header, kicking off at 1:00 pm on Christmas Day.
• Injury Report
  • MIA 
    • Questionable: Terron Armstead, Jaelan Phillips, Eric Rowe, Jeff Wilson Jr. 
    • Doubtful: River Cracraft, Eric Fisher
  • GB
    • Doubtful: OT David Bakhtiari
• Team Trends
  • Miami comes into this one losing to 3-straight playoff-caliber teams, going 1-3 in their last four games, with their lone win against the Houston Texans.
  • Green Bay is 2-2 in their last 4, defeating the Bears and Rams and falling to the Titans and Eagles.
• Keys to the Game
  • Get the running game going again.
  • The defense needs to force some turnovers and cause confusion.
  • Force the Packers to be pass heavy.
• Madden Prediction: Dolphins 41, Packers 3
• Fins Family Podcast Prediction: Dolphins 32, Packers 17

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Back-to-back losses for the first time since our week 4 to 6 skid without Tua has the fan base reeling already. In today’s episode, we’ll talk about what went wrong, and what went right against the LA Chargers. Then we’ll dive into our biggest matchup of the year, taking on our rival Bills in snowy Buffalo. Time to get back on track!

Game Recap: Miami Dolphins 17, Los Angeles Chargers 23

• Gotta Love It
  • Christian Wilkins and Jaelan Phillips are turning into the lifelong stars that we all hoped they would.
  • Tyreek Hill finds the endzone twice with a scoop & score and another deep bomb down the sideline.
  • Kohou’s tackle on the 4th & goal quick-pass in the flat to prevent the Touchdown in the first quarter.
  • The defensive sequence after the Tyreek Hill scoop-and-score was the most competent that unit has looked since the Browns game. 
  • The defense came out in the second half and held the Chargers to a 3 and out to keep us in the game a bit longer.
• Hate to See It
  • The offensive adjustments have been nonexistent.
  • The “slip a guy wide open into the flat” game was strong against the defense again.
  • Tua goes 10/28 for 145 yards.
  • The defensive scheme to have everyone stand in the endzone on 3rd and goal from like the 15. 
  • The offense floundered a great defensive hold on the first drive of the second half and our best field position of the night with a 3 & out of their own.
• Final Thoughts
  • I think I’m finally on board with the thought process that it’s time for Josh Boyer to go. 
  • The offensive woes over these last two games are a concern. 

Game Preview: 8-5 Miami Dolphins @ 10-3 Buffalo Bills

• Playoff Update
  • Miami is 2 games back of the Bills in the division
  • Miami is 1 game ahead of the Jets and Patriots in the division
  • Buffalo holds the #1 seed in the AFC
  • Miami holds the #6 seed in the AFC
  • If Miami wins, they pull within 1 game of the division lead and hold the tiebreaker with the Bills.
  • If Buffalo wins, they’d be 3 games ahead and practically lock up another division title.
• Game Details
  • This is Miami’s second straight prime-time game.
  • Heavy snow and high winds are expected throughout the game.
• Injury Report
  • MIA: Terron Armstead, Teddy Bridgewater, and Jeff Wilson Questionable; River Cracraft Doubtful; Elijah Campbell and Eric Rowe Out.
  • BUF: Ryan Bates and Jordan Phillips are Out.
• Team Trends
  • Miami has scored just 17 points in each of their last two games after averaging nearly 34 points per game in the four games prior.
  • Miami’s defense has given up 28 points per game over the last two weeks.
  • Buffalo has won 4-straight after losing 2-straight in early November, including wins over the Patriots and Jets.
• Keys to the Game
  • Get the ball to the Cheetah and the Penguin in open space. 
  • Don’t be so predictable on defense. 
  • Be on the right side of the turnover trend and take all the points you can get. 
• Madden Prediction: Dolphins 41, Bills 3
• Fins Family Podcast Prediction: Dolphins 16, Bills 24

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Well, that didn’t go as expected. Tua was off and the defense was embarrassed by Mr. Irrelevant instead of taking advantage of the situation. What did we learn from the 49ers game and how do we bounce back against the Chargers?

Miami Dolphins vs. San Francisco 49ers Recap

• Gotta Love It
• Hate to See It
• Final Thoughts

Miami Dolphins vs. Los Angeles Chargers Preview

• The Week 14 Injury Report
• Miami Dolphins & Los Angeles Chargers by the Numbers
• Miami Dolphins Keys to the Game
• Miami Dolphins vs. Los Angeles Chargers Madden 23 Prediction

Fins Family Podcast Final Score Prediction

• Miami Dolphins 27
• Los Angeles Chargers 24

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Now that we’re done beating up on teams like the Bears, Lions, Browns, and Texans, it’s time for some real competition as our Miami Dolphins travel to San Francisco to take on the 49ers. In our first real test in quite some time, can we do enough to keep the winning streak alive? 

• Opening Thoughts and Agenda
  • Review the last 4 games of each team.
• Miami Dolphins Week 13 Injury Report
• San Francisco 49ers Week 13 Injury Report
• Miami and San Francisco by the Numbers
• Miami Dolphins keys to the game
  • Continue to get rid of the ball quickly, their pass rush is not going to give us any time to think.
  • Screens, screens, screens. Take advantage of their aggressiveness.
  • We must make Jimmy G uncomfortable, if we let him sit back there and scan the field it’s game over.
  • Don’t give up the big play on defense; CMC, Deebo, Kittle, and Aiyuk are all very capable playmakers, keep them contained with solid tackling.
• Miami Dolphins vs. San Francisco 49ers Madden 23 Prediction

Fins Family Podcast Final Prediction:
Miami Dolphins 27, San Francisco 49ers 20

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There’s not much to say about this one, our Miami Dolphins welcomed the Texans into town and took care of business, no trap game to speak of. We did suffer two concerning injuries on the offensive line, will they be ready for our clash with the 49ers?

Miami Dolphins Gotta Love It

• Tua and the entire passing game continued to be dominant. 
  • Tua: 22/36, 299 yards, 1 Touchdown, 0 Interceptions
  • Tyreek Hill: 6 catches, 9 targets, 85 yards
  • Jaylen Waddle: 5 catches, 10 targets, 85 yards
  • River Cracraft: 4 catches, 4 targets, 55 yards
• The defense had a day, recording 5 sacks, 7 tackles for loss, 2 interceptions, 3 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, 6 passes defensed, 7 QB hits, and a touchdown.
  • Sacks for Elandon Roberts, Jaelan Phillips, Jerome Baker, Duke Riley, and Bradley Chubb. 
  • Interceptions for Andrew Van Ginkle and Verone McKinley III
  • Forced fumble by Bradley Chubb
  • Fumble Recovery for a Touchdown by Xavien Howard
• Special Teams had a nice bounce-back day
  • Jason Sanders: 3/3 on field goals and extra points
  • Thomas Morstead: 6 punts, 296 yards, 49.3 average, 55 long

Miami Dolphins Hate to See It

• Terron Armstead and Austin Jackson both left the game with injuries.
• The running game was surprisingly non-existent against the NFL’s worst run defense.
• The Texans made significant halftime adjustments and had both our starting and backup offense nailed down.
• Tua was sacked 3x in the second half before being pulled.
• The second-half defense had no answers for most of the second half, giving up big plays left and right and allowing 15 points in the half.

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