Miami Dolphins vs. Jacksonville Jaguars: Breaking Down Jacksonville's Game Plan

For the first time all season, the Jacksonville Jaguars are fresh off of a win after beating the Cleveland Browns 24-6.

In their Week 8 matchup, the Jaguars will look for the same result against a quietly stout Miami Dolphins team.

The Dolphins feature an offense that ranks 11th in scoring and a defense that is ranked 15th in points allowed. If Jaguars head coach Gus Bradley wants to come out of Sunday with a win, it’ll be up to him to deploy a game plan that exploits the Dolphins' biggest weakness.

Let’s take a look at how Bradley should attack the Dolphins this week.

Offense

Let’s just be straightforward, the Dolphins don’t have many weaknesses on defense. Currently they’re ranked fourth in total yards allowed (313.7), fourth in passing yards allowed (213.3) and 10th in rushing yards allowed (100.3).

If anything, the Jaguars' best chance has to be their running game.

In Week 7, running back Denard Robinson was given the opportunity to start and put together a 100-yard performance. Robinson, widely known for his breakaway speed, showed a surprising combination of elusiveness and power that gave him the look of a legitimate NFL running back.

Let’s take a look at the film:

Courtesy NFL Game Rewind (Subscription Required)

In this play Robinson is lined up as the lone back in the formation. Here you’ll see the Brown’s defensive linemen in a wide alignment with just two linebackers in the running lanes.

Courtesy NFL Game Rewind (Subscription Required)

After the ball is snapped, Robinson runs through the gap created by the right guard. After recognizing the excellent blocking, Robinson explodes through the running lane, eluding potential tacklers.

Courtesy NFL Game Rewind

Here is possibly the most impressive part of the run. In this frame, Robinson is seen finishing the 14-yard gain by powering through tackles. In “real time,” Robinson actually bounces off of two would-be tacklers and smashes through this group of defenders for an extra yard.

After being exploited by C.J. Spiller (12 carries, 69 yards) and Knile Davis (32 carries, 132 yards), it’s clear the Dolphins can be exploited by dynamic running backs. If Robinson can bring the same energy that he had in Week 7, he could have some real success again on Sunday.

Defense

Week 7 was without question the most complete performance by the Jaguars defense of the season.

Led by rookie linebacker Telvin Smith (four tackles, one interception, one forced fumble), the Jaguars defense was dominant, as they allowed only six points and amassed three sacks.

In this matchup, the area where the Jaguars will have the best opportunity to exploit the Dolphins just happens to be their biggest strength—getting pressure on the quarterback.

Dolphins’ quarterback Ryan Tannehill has been sacked 14 times and has struggled when hurried this season.

	Completion %	Yards	Yds/Att	TD/INT
No Pressure	69.8	1182	7.3	7/4
Under Pressure	44.6	244	4.4	3/1

The above graph illustrates Tannehill’s struggle against defensive pressure as recorded by Pro Football Focus (subscription required). Its clear that when pressured, Tannehill becomes substantially less of an offensive threat.

If the Jaguars continue to have success getting to the quarterback, they should be able to rattle Tannehill enough to make some mistakes.

Conclusion

While the Dolphins are a tough team that features an efficient offense and a strong defense, the Jaguars will have their opportunity to make some plays.

If head coach Gus Bradley can implement and execute the proposed strategy, it isn’t outside of the realm of possibility that the Jaguars could come out of Week 8 with their second win.

However, if the Jaguars revert back to their dink-and-dunk, pass-first offense that they’ve utilized through Weeks 1 through 6, the only thing they’ll get from Week 8 is the bitter taste of defeat.

*All stats courtesy NFL.com, unless otherwise noted. 

*Game film provided by NFL Game Rewind (subscription required)