Dolphins vs. Raiders: Breaking Down Miami's Game Plan
Entering Week 4 at 1-2, the Miami Dolphins are traveling to London to face the Oakland Raiders for a game that could be a major turning point for the season.
Coming off two poor performances in a row, the Dolphins must respond to the adversity at hand by claiming victory. Since both teams are traveling this week, Miami catches a small scheduling break since Oakland is considered the home team. That means Miami still has a total of eight true home games but will only face a hostile away crowd seven times.
The Raiders enter this game winless but played their best game of the season against the New England Patriots in Week 3. Their roster features a mix of veterans looking to revive their careers and young players looking to establish themselves. That combination has led to streaks of solid football but also mistakes that cause devastating losses.
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After looking at how Oakland has ran its offense and defense this season, we’ve built a game plan to defeat this week’s nemesis. Execution by the Dolphins has been a major issue in all three games, so that will be a prerequisite this week.
Let’s take a look at how Miami can win its Week 4 matchup, starting with the offense.
Attack the Linebackers
"Look who #Raiders are starting at LB this week: http://t.co/JA1F6hCZCN. If #Dolphins dont have 35+ rush attempts in London, time for change.
— Evan Silva (@evansilva) September 24, 2014"
Already one of the least talented positional units across the NFL, the Raiders will be even more tested in Week 4 at linebacker because of injuries to starters Miles Burris, Sio Moore and Nick Roach, according to ESPN.com’s Bill Williamson.
Moore is a solid player for the Raiders, starting at both inside linebacker positions within the Raiders’ 3-4 defensive front. He has the speed to make an impact in coverage and as a pass-rusher, and he can play the run from the weak side effectively.
If those three cannot play or are have limited snaps, that means journeyman Kaluka Maiava and undrafted rookie Bojay Filimoeatu will start alongside star rookie Khalil Mack and veteran Lamarr Woodley.
Mack has been fantastic on film, and although he hasn’t registered an official sack yet, Pro Football Focus (subscription required) has given Mack credit on four quarterback hurries and two hits. He’ll match up against fellow rookie Ja’Wuan James often as a pass-rusher, and his athleticism and violent hands are tough for any tackle to deal with.
That being said, the rest of the linebacker group is terrible. The others do not fill running lanes quickly, and as Arian Foster showed, there are opportunities to break big runs if the running back has patience.
Luckily for the Dolphins, running back Lamar Miller has stepped up in a big way since Knowshon Moreno was injured. Miller is averaging 5.8 yards per carry this season and has shown that he’s a great fit in Miami’s zone-blocking scheme. The Dolphins must commit to the run and punish the Raiders’ front as the Patriots did last week.
There were numerous opportunities for the Patriots running backs to cut back and get significant yards, and when Miami has these chances, it has to capitalize.
As we looked at yesterday, quarterback Ryan Tannehill will benefit from a strong running game as well. When the Raiders linebackers get sucked into play-action fakes, Tannehill must be decisive and deliver his throws accurately on passes over the middle. By hitting his receivers in stride, which he improved on in Week 3, more yards after the catch will possible.
Get Tannehill into Rhythm
The Dolphins offense has started slowly in each of the first three games, and that has to change this week. Miami must prioritize getting its high-priced receivers in space and let them take some of the burden off Tannehill in the passing game.
Of course, the team leads the league in drops, and the unit has to be more sure-handed to allow the offense to move the ball. Far too many costly drops have occurred so far, totaling 12 so far, according to STATS.com. The offense has stagnated too often because of the drops, and big plays haven’t been executed.
As far as offensive play-calling, offensive coordinator Bill Lazor needs to get Tannehill moving on rollouts and play-action fakes, with receivers running across various levels of the defense.
When featuring quick, underneath throws, Tannehill seems to be the most effective. He isn’t great on post-snap reads, so playing to his strengths is paramount. There is a reason he is so good in two-minute drills, and that’s because he doesn’t have to think as much. Read the defense, take the snap and get rid of the ball.
Paired with an effective running game, the Dolphins offense should play closer to the level we saw in Week 1, which totaled 33 points. Against a team with as many defensive holes as the Raiders, that should be expected. The cornerbacks are suspect, as they have struggled staying close to receivers on comeback and crossing routes.
Now, let’s move to the defensive side of the ball.
Pressure Carr
When facing a young quarterback, the defensive strategy should almost always feature a ton of applied pressure. The transition from college to NFL defenses is extraordinarily difficult, even for the best of prospects.
As Miami prepares to face rookie Derek Carr, it needs the front four linemen to penetrate the porous Raiders offensive line and sack him. Although Carr has only taken two sacks in three games, he has played poorly when pressured. According to PFF, Carr is completing only 51.3 percent of his passes and has thrown two interceptions.
Dealing with pressure is vital for success at quarterback, and Miami needs to test Carr in this area throughout the game. With a live arm that can make any throw, Carr can carve up the Dolphins defense if he’s given time. Miami must disrupt the short routes that Oakland often features and make Carr drop his eyes due to the pass rush.
As shown in the screenshot below, the Raiders receivers can make great plays to help Carr. Carr is willing to throw into single coverage, and with 6’4” receiver Andre Holmes, sometimes great coverage just isn’t enough to stop a great pass and catch.
Keep Gap Integrity
Despite having well-known running backs Darren McFadden and Maurice Jones-Drew, the Raiders’ rushing attack has yet to be effective, averaging just 3.7 yards per carry. A major factor in this has been bad offensive line play. Far too often the film shows opposing defensive lines breaking through the line's blockers with ease as the ball is snapped.
The left side of the line, anchored by Donald Penn and Gabe Jackson, has been good as run-blockers. According to PFF, the Raiders are averaging 4.33 yards a carry to the left side, but the rest of the line has been embarrassingly unproductive. The Dolphins must dominate the gaps and allow the linebackers to finish tackles.
With Koa Misi returning to practice this week, according to James Walker of ESPN.com, Misi can be the spark the Dolphins defense desperately needs. Miami can’t let fullback Marcel Reece or Darren McFadden to break free and get chunk plays, which is a real possibility because each looks to be healthy and as explosive as ever.
If the Raiders' line can seal blocks on Sunday, Miami could be in for another long day on the defensive side of the ball.
Finally, the Dolphins have to protect the weak side of run plays so that Derek Carr doesn’t run for a 41-yard gain like he did against the Houston Texans. On the read-option, Carr has shown he’s a tremendous athlete who can gain yards in a hurry. His speed is well above-average for the position, and he’s a thick enough guy to take a solid hit and break the tackle.
The Miami Dolphins are in a position to enter their Week 5 bye week sitting at 2-2, and they desperately need to win to get some positive momentum going. With the headlines this week focusing in on head coach Joe Philbin’s handling of the quarterback position, Miami has to win to keep the players from turning against their head coach.
Fortunately, the Raiders are one of the worst teams in the NFL, and Miami gets to play them in what can be considered a neutral-field game. There could be major repercussions if the Dolphins lose this game because of their perceived advantage going in, but if they follow this game plan, victory will be attained.
All stats used are from Pro Football Focus' Premium Stats (subscription required) or Sports-Reference.com. All contract information is courtesy of Spotrac.com.
Ian Wharton is a Miami Dolphins Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report, contributor for Optimum Scouting and analyst for FinDepth.
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