Dissecting Most Crucial Matchups in Miami Dolphins Week 13 Contest with New York

At this point in the season there's little doubt that the Miami Dolphins are a good football team.

Playing on the road against the Denver Broncos last week, the Dolphins once again showed that they were good enough to hang with the NFL's elite.

However, the Dolphins also once again showed that they aren't quite on that level just yet, as they failed to close out yet another victory in which they held a lead late in the game.

The loss also put the team in a precarious position in the playoff race, as they are now one of seven teams fighting for two wild-card spots—five of which sit one game better than the Dolphins with seven wins—in what has been an incredibly competitive AFC.

But there is good news for Miami, as the lowly New York Jets are the next team on their schedule. And no matter how you want to look at it, the Jets are simply a terrible football team.

The Jets have lost nine of their last 10 games and are coming off a 38-3 beatdown at the hands of the Buffalo Bills in Week 12. To put it simply, if the Dolphins can't beat the Jets, they don't deserve to be in the playoffs.

So, with that said, let's take a look at some of the most critical matchups that the Dolphins will need to win if they are going to avoid the upset this week.

Joe Mahoney/Associated Press

Ryan Tannehill vs. Jets Secondary

Throughout the first two years of his career, there was a large contingency of Dolphins fans that questioned whether or not Ryan Tannehill was good enough to be the franchise quarterback.

While there is no way to definitively answer that question just yet, there's no doubt that Tannehill has continued to build his case with each passing week. Game after game, the third-year quarterback has continued to show improvement, going toe-to-toe with some of the league's elite quarterbacks, and on many occasions coming out on top.

Over the last six weeks, Tannehill has thrown for 1,436 yards (239.3 yards per game), 12 touchdowns and just three interceptions, averaging a 104.2 quarterback rating in that span.

Meanwhile, the Jets pass defense has been dreadful, allowing quarterbacks to complete 65 percent of their passes for 239 yards per game while giving up 27 touchdowns, three interceptions and a league-worst 109.4 quarterback rating.

The Jets are very good against the run, ranking second-best in the league in yards allowed per attempt (3.4), so it will be up to Tannehill to exploit their secondary and continue to carry the offense.

Wilfredo Lee/Associated Press

Dolphins Front Seven vs. Jets Running Backs

It's no secret that the New York offense has had its troubles this season.

The passing attack has been one of the worst in the league, with Geno Smith and Michael Vick both taking turns being terrible in different weeks.

However, the saving grace of the Jets offense has been its rushing attack.

Led by the duo of Chris Ivory and Chris Johnson, New York ranks fifth in the league in rushing yards per game (136.5) and third in the league in yards per attempt (4.7).

For the Dolphins, the defensive game plan is simple: Sell out to stop the run and make the quarterback beat you with his arm.

The Jets passing offense is simply not good enough to carry the team if the running game can't get going.

Jeff Haynes/Associated Press

Ja'Wuan James/Dallas Thomas vs. Sheldon Richardson/Muhammad Wilkerson

There's no quicker way to slow down a hot quarterback and pull off an upset than by putting pressure on him and constantly getting in his face.

The Jets don't have many strengths, but getting to the quarterback is certainly one of them. 

Led by Sheldon Richardson and Muhammad Wilkerson, the Jets rank ninth in the league in sacks, meaning the Dolphins' patchwork offensive line will certainly have its hands full on Monday night.

With Branden Albert out for the season, the task falls on Ja'Wuan James and Dallas Thomas to protect Tannehill from this fierce pass-rushing duo.

If Richardson and Wilkerson can find a way to consistently get to Tannehill, get him out of his comfort zone and force him into some mistakes, the Jets could pull off an upset that would virtually end the Dolphins' playoff chances.

Doug Pensinger/Getty Images

Prediction

On the surface, this seems like an easy game to predict.

The Dolphins are a good team on the rise, while the Jets are a team that appears to be imploding.

However, the fact that it's a rivalry game on Monday Night Football means that anything can happen and all logic goes out the window.

With that said though, the Dolphins are without question the much better team and are in a must-win situation if they want to ultimately make the playoffs.

Expect the game to be relatively close throughout before the Dolphins eventually pull away to earn the victory, led by another dominant performance from Tannehill.

Dolphins 31, Jets 17

Andrew Tornetta is the Miami Dolphins Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. Check out his B/R archive and stay updated on his latest articles by becoming a fan.

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