Jets vs. Dolphins: Full Miami Game Preview

The Miami Dolphins are reeling on their way to London, where they will take on the New York Jets. 

The Dolphins are coming off a 27-point loss to the Buffalo Bills, one that exposed multiple holes on both sides of the ball and makes it seem like there is little to no hope in sight for 2015 to be a successful season. 

Last year the Dolphins were in the exact same predicament, coming into London after losing two consecutive games in embarrassing fashion. They were able to get it right against an Oakland Raiders team that would turn out to be one of the worst teams in the league. 

Can they do the same thing this year against the Jets? We'll see come Sunday, but for now here's a preview of Miami's pseudo-home game. 

Location: Wembley Stadium, London

Time: 9:30 a.m. ET

TV: CBS

Week 3 Results and Recap

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There are no pretty words that can provide flowery terms for the Buffalo Bills' eradication of the Miami Dolphins in Week 3. From start to finish, the Bills were the better team and looked like they were in a completely different class than the Dolphins. 

The Bills rolled thanks to their domination in the trenches. Their defensive line pancaked a short-handed Miami offensive line, leading to two sacks, four tackles for loss, a forced fumble and 10 quarterback hits. 

All of this pressure meant turnovers, and Ryan Tannehill would deliver, throwing three interceptions with one returned for a touchdown. Had Ja'Wuan James not jumped on a loose ball, Tannehill would have also lost a fumble. 

On the other side, Buffalo's offensive line mauled Miami's defensive line. While Ndamukong Suh did his job by taking double and triple-teams throughout the game (and grading out at 5.0 with four tackles and grades of 2.7 and 3.1 against the run and pass, respectively, per Pro Football Focus), the rest of the defensive line was non-existent, as they missed tackles, rushed into the wrong gaps and repeatedly looked listless and lost. 

The secondary was even worse; the Bills torched the unit, except for Reshad Jones (who has been Miami's best defensive player in the first three games).

It was a good, old-fashioned beatdown, the type you'd hope the Dolphins would dole out, not be on the receiving end of. 

News and Notes

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Philbin Stands By His Coaches

Go on Twitter, or any social media site or comments section pertaining to the Dolphins, and you'll find that not only is head coach Joe Philbin the subject of some rather harsh criticism but his coordinators get it worse. 

This has been an ongoing trend. Defensive coordinator Kevin Coyle has been outwardly mocked and criticized for his defensive philosophies since he joined Miami's staff in 2012 with Philbin. Bill Lazor, looked at as a savior after Ryan Tannehill posted his best season in 2014, is now bearing criticism of his own for an offensive philosophy that eschews the run game while employing passing routes that only go about five to seven yards past the line of scrimmage. 

Despite the complaints, Philbin has stood by his assistants and continues to defend them. 

Per Andrew Abramson of the Palm Beach Post, Philbin addressed the criticism, saying to the press: 

"

I believe in the coaching staff that I have in place right now. I think they’re the men that can come up with the solutions to the problems.

“We’re not playing well. You’ve got to stick with the process of development. I just told the players today in the meeting, we’re going to make some corrections from the game.

"

Philbin has to stick by his assistants, whom he himself chose to round out his staff. Unfortunately, none of them has done much to earn his trust. 

Coyle simplified the defense prior to this season, as one of the common complaints in the past was how complicated it was. The defense has continued to struggle, though, which has caused the Sun-Sentinel's Omar Kelly to wonder if it got too simple.

ESPN's Louis Riddick tweeted that it was "so simplistic and predictable. Presents no mental challenge for the QB to decipher what they are doing pre-snap."

As for Lazor, it's baffling how quick he is to stop running the ball despite the fact that Tannehill is at his most effective while using play action. There's no way you can use play action if the run game is non-existent. 

Yes, Miami's players have not executed. The team needs to overhaul the secondary and linebackers in the offseason (an ongoing theme the last two years), and the offensive line talent has been atrocious (another ongoing theme, one lasting since the start of the decade). That doesn't excuse the coaches though, as they don't coach to the talent on hand and have become predictable on both sides of the ball. 

An Explanation for the Absence of Jordan Phillips

You might have wondered why Jordan Phillips, Miami's second-round pick in the 2015 draft, was inactive prior to Sunday's game against Buffalo. 

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald has that explanation, which came from Phillips himself. 

“I’ve got to be better," said Phillips, who added, “I didn’t do what I needed to do in practice.”

He would add that he was surprised because, “I’m supposed to have a big role on this team.”

Phillips' absence, despite the fact that he has recorded Miami's only sack this season, isn't too much of a surprise. While he has been very good in pass-rushing situations (grading out at 1.6, per Pro Football Focus), he has struggled against the run, with a grade of minus-3.1 with no tackles for a loss. 

DeVante Parker About To Get More Playing Time

One of the few positives of the Week 3 massacre was the play of DeVante Parker. 

Week 3 was his first game playing more than 40 snaps, and in those snaps he was targeted seven times, catching three passes for 46 yards. 

The increase in snaps should continue against the Jets in Week 4, as Omar Kelly of the Sun-Sentinel reports that Parker has practiced well, and along with the struggles of Greg Jennings, this should equate to more playing time. 

Parker can be a tremendous presence in Miami's offense as a playmaking wide receiver. He could complement Jarvis Landry as well as Odell Beckham Jr. did at LSU, and with his size (6'3", 218 lbs) he can be the type of target that Tannehill can throw it up to with a great chance of the ball being caught. 

Injury Report

Evan Vucci/Associated Press

Player	Position	Injury	Wed.	Thurs.	Fri.
Branden Albert	LT	Hamstring	Limited	Limited	Doubtful
Jordan Cameron	TE	Groin	Limited	Limited	Questionable
Jonas Gray	RB	Hamstring	Limited	Did Not Practice	Questionable
Earl Mitchell	DT	Back	Limited	Limited	Probable
Dion Sims	TE	Concussion	Limited	Did Not Practice	Out

According to Andrew Abramson of the Palm Beach Post, Branden Albert considers himself to be "day to day." While that status and the fact that he had limited participation are great signs going forward, it does not guarantee that he will play Sunday. 

Compared to last week, this is a light injury report. Jordan Cameron played through the groin injury against Buffalo, so barring any setbacks he should be a go against the Jets. The same goes for Earl Mitchell. 

We'll be updating the statuses as more news comes in. 

Injury reports provided by MiamiDolphins.com. 

Key Matchups

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Jets DB Darrelle Revis vs. Dolphins WR Rishard Matthews

According to Omar Kelly of the Sun-Sentinel, Darrelle Revis will likely cover Rishard Matthews on Sunday. 

I'm not 100 percent sure about this being the case, but if it is, here's what it should mean. 

More throws to DeVante Parker. 

Matthews leads the team in receiving yards and yards per catch, so having Revis cover him would make sense on the Jets' side. Revis has been the Revis of old this season, allowing a quarterback rating of 44.2 on passes thrown his way with one interception, per Pro Football Focus. 

Miami can neutralize this by playing Parker more (with more targets). Revis is a cornerback to be avoided, especially when he's covering the third-most talented receiver on the Dolphins. 

Jets RT D'Brickashaw Ferguson vs. Dolphins DE Olivier Vernon

Olivier Vernon is in a contract year, but his lack of production and discipline doesn't seem to show it. 

This week, he'll match up against D'Brickashaw Ferguson, a struggling veteran who so far has allowed two sacks and seven hurries, per Pro Football Focus. 

No excuses—Vernon should win this matchup. Ferguson is showing his age (31), and Ryan Fitzpatrick is a statue in the pocket. 

If Vernon only "breaks even" in the matchup, consider it a failure. 

Jets RB Chris Ivory vs. Miami's Linebackers

According to Darryl Slater of NJ.com, Jets' running back Chris Ivory was limited in practice on Wednesday after not playing in Week 3 against Philadelphia. 

If he does play, Miami's linebackers will have to step it up. Along with the defensive line, the linebackers have been severely weak against the run. They allowed a significantly explosive effort from Karlos Williams, who had 110 yards on only 12 attempts with a 41-yard touchdown run. 

If healthy, Ivory can repeat that performance unless the Dolphins can fortify their run defense and make some tackles. 

Matchup X-Factors

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Miami Dolphins X-Factor: WR DeVante Parker

We've mentioned DeVante Parker a lot in this piece, and there's a good reason for that. 

Going forward, he will be more important to the Dolphins offense. His speed and size combination hasn't been seen in a Dolphins uniform since Brandon Marshall, and the rookie continues to get healthier. 

Parker will likely avoid Revis Island, while Jarvis Landry will draw Buster Skrine through working in the slot. 

This leaves Parker covered by Antonio Cromartie, who isn't quite the cornerback he used to be and can be beaten by Parker based on speed. 

The rookie should get at least 11 targets Sunday morning. 

New York Jets X-Factor: NT Damon Harrison

The much-maligned Dolphins offensive line will have to contend with a bear of a Jets defensive line. 

In the middle is nose tackle Damon Harrison, who so far has nine tackles. His main job is to occupy blockers in order to allow the Jets linebackers as well as Muhammad Wilkerson and rookie Leonard Williams to bust through. 

Can Miami's interior linemen prevent this by containing Harrison while single-teamed? If they can't, it's going to be another long day for Tannehill. 

Prediction: Jets 13, Dolphins 3

Ronald C. Modra/Sports Imagery/Getty Images

I cannot trust this team to pick it to win. 

The pattern of coming out unprepared continues to rear its ugly head, as the Dolphins always seem to be behind by 10 points or more at halftime. 

There are same maddening mistakes, the same lapses in coverage week after week and the same odd play-calling. 

Until the Dolphins prove me wrong, I cannot in good conscience pick them to win a game, regardless of the opponent, venue or anything else. 

The Jets will win ugly, holding Miami without a touchdown while grinding out a win on the ground despite the fact that neither team's offense will score a touchdown. 

The Jets will return a turnover for a touchdown. The only question is whether it's a fumble or interception. 

Can the Dolphins prove me wrong? Hopefully, but I have my doubts. 

Final Prediction: Jets 13, Dolphins 3

Statistics provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com. Advanced stats provided by Pro Football Focus. 

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