The Dolphins were the very definition of mediocre this past season. They were 8-9 and gave up 19 more pts than they scored. Even with their losing record, they were still mathematically in the playoff race until wk.18. For all the talk of their vaunted offense and speed everywhere, they barely managed 20 pts per game. No team’s success is more tied to their QB. And, as a corollary to that, no team has to worry about their QB’s health as much as the Dolphins and their fans have to with Tua Tagovailoa. As he goes, so go the Dolphins.
QB
Tagovailoa only managed to play 11 games this past year, missing six. In those six missed games, the Dolphins only managed a 2-4 record. That said, they only managed to go 6-5 in the 11 he played. Five of those losses were by one score. His TD-INT ratio was solid, throwing 19 TDs while giving up seven interceptions, and he completed an impressive 72.9% of his passes. The key and dilemma for the Dolphins is whether or not they can keep him upright.
RB
The Dolphins entered the season with a two-headed, tandem backfield with Raheem Mostert and DeVon Achane. Mostert had a huge regression, rushing for only 278 yards and 3.3 yd per rush. He only scored two TDs. He rushed for 18 TDs in 2023. There was no doubt that after his stellar rookie season, Achane was going to have a bigger role with the team…he did, but the results didn’t follow. From starting four games in 2023, he started 16 this past year. And his attempts nearly doubled, from 103 to 203. But he only gained an additional 107 yds. His TDs actually dropped from eight to six.
WR
Let’s face it: the Dolphins bread and butter has been their passing game with their two monsters, Tyreek Hill and Jalen Waddle. This was a down year for both men. Some of that can be attributed to Tagovailoa missing six games, but not all of it. Hill went from three seasons of over 110 catches down to only 81 receptions this year. And for Waddle, this is the continuation of a four year slide. He caught 104 passes in his rookie campaign, dropped to 75 in yr two, and 72 last year. This season he only caught 58 balls with two TDs. And most glaring is that Hill and Waddle only combined for 1703 receiving yards. In 2023, Hill had 1799 receiving yds himself.
Defense
They weren’t eye-popping, but overall, their defense outperformed their offense this year. On offense, they ranked 13th in passing, 16th in passing TDs, 21st in rushing, and 23rd in rushing TDs. Overall, they were 25th in total TDs. Their defense ranked inside the top 10 in just about every defensive metric. Their defense was ninth in rushing and passing yds given up.
Head Coach
Mike McDaniel is under contract through the 2028 season. For all the hoopla and hype when he initially took over, McDaniel has hit a few speed bumps. After making the playoffs in 2023, the Dolphins again missed the playoffs this season and have now not won a playoff game for a quarter-century. His contract mirrors his QB, who also signed a long-term extension, and their fates seem to depend on each other. McDaniel is very protective of his QB, and his care for his health is sincere. Regardless of sentiment, though, Tagovailoa will need to produce and stay healthy to remain the team’s QB. If he doesn’t, he won’t be able to protect his job, nor his head coaches.
