Baltimore Ravens vs. Miami Dolphins: Complete Week 14 Preview for Miami
The NFL calender still says it's the regular season, with it reading "Week 14" at the top.
Despite that, this matchup between the 7-5 Miami Dolphins and the 7-5 Baltimore Ravens has the feel of a playoff game (1 p.m. ET, CBS).
It technically is one. With their matching records, both teams control their own destiny into the playoffs. If the season ended today, Miami would hold the sixth seed in the AFC, but with a loss to the Ravens, it would cede the tiebreaker to Baltimore and make its journey into January a lot rockier.
For the Dolphins to defeat the Ravens, they will have to turn in a much better performance than the one they turned in last Monday night against the Jets.
In that game, the Dolphins allowed 277 yards rushing on defense, while the offense struggled the whole night to gain cohesion and open up.
Within the organization, the Dolphins know they have to get better for the stretch run, and wide receiver Mike Wallace, who has been part of playoff runs in Pittsburgh, knows exactly what the Dolphins have to do down the stretch, per Omar Kelly of the Sun Sentinel:
"We need to win this football game. We don't even want to think about losing.
We know the challenges we have, but we're not the same team as last year. We're a team that can rise to this occasion and win this football game and get over this hump.
It is our time, now or never. If we don't win now when are we going to win in December?
"
The Dolphins already have one win in their five-game December slate, and now it's time for the next one. If they can't win this December, then next December you'll see a different team.
Here's a preview of the next conquest in their December road to the playoffs, this time against the Baltimore Ravens.
Miami Dolphins' Week 13 Recap
1 of 5No Dolphins loss in the last five years looked as good as the loss to the Denver Broncos in Week 12.
On the flip side, no Dolphins win in the last five years looked as bad as Miami's 16-13 Week 13 victory over the Jets.
The Dolphins allowed 277 rushing yards, a number that is still difficult to comprehend when you consider how good Miami has been against the run all season, with the exception of the game against the Broncos.
What makes it even worse against the Jets, though, is the fact that there was no Peyton Manning to offset the run to make you think that the Jets might pass it.
Instead you had Geno Smith, the anti-Peyton who only completed seven passes throughout the game, which is about how many passes you might see Ryan Tannehill complete over the course of a drive.
On offense, the numbers say the Dolphins were efficient. For the fifth game in a row, Tannehill had a completion percentage above 70 percent, but as a whole, the offense only gained 291 total yards and scored 16 points.
Those are numbers that would be unacceptable against the other three teams remaining on their schedule (Miami still has another game against the Jets in Week 17).
News and Notes
2 of 5
Ravens Defensive Tackle Ngata to Miss Dolphins Game Due to Four-Game Suspension
More than 72 hours before kickoff, the Dolphins received a huge break, as it was announced that Ravens defensive tackle Haloti Ngata will be suspended for the final four games of the season, per Omar Kelly of the Sun Sentinel, for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy.
The start of the suspension will be Sunday's game, which opens up a huge hole in Baltimore's defensive line, one that Miami would be key to exploit.
This season, Pro Football Focus (subscription required) has Ngata graded out at 18.4 for the season, including a grade of 8.9 against the run and 9.3 against the pass. He's ranked eighth among 3-4 defensive ends, and he has two sacks to go along with 14 quarterback hurries this season.
Ngata (along with Terrell Suggs) has been the Ravens' defensive MVP this season. While the Ravens will surely miss him, Miami is just glad that Baltimore will miss him.
In his place will likely be Timmy Jernigan, a rookie out of Florida State drafted by Baltimore in the second round.
Cortland Finnegan a Possibility vs. Baltimore
Miami was in a precarious position on Monday night, as R.J. Sanford was tasked with covering Eric Decker throughout the game despite the fact that less than a week earlier, Sanford was at home simply waiting for another shot at the NFL.
Miami dodged a bullet there as Geno Smith was the quarterback, but it would only get tougher as the second cornerback in the game against Baltimore would have to be assigned to either Steve Smith or Torrey Smith, neither of which would be considered favorable matchups.
Miami might get a bit of luck this week, as Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald is reporting that Cortland Finnegan is likely to play against Baltimore, barring any "setbacks."
If Finnegan had his choice, he'd like to cover Steve Smith on Sunday, as Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald reports that the two have a "testy history," with Finnegan telling a story about their first meeting on the field.
"He comes over to me, and tells me ‘None of that crazy stuff, Finnegan. I’d never played him before, so I was like, ‘Yes sir. Absolutely. Nothing crazy.’ Back then, they called me crazy.
Midway through the game, [the Panthers] ran a toss-sweep, and I had him pinned. I was going to push the running back out of bounds. Next thing I know, he picks me up and he throws me into the water cooler. The very next play, he runs a slant, they run a boot, and I run as fast as I could and went helmet-to-helmet with him. I remember his helmet bouncing on the ground and he bounced up so fast, telling me he was going to kill me. I’ve enjoyed Steve Smith.
"
Moments like that are why I love this game so much, and anything that allows us as fans to see something similar is always a good thing.
Dolphins Best in NFL vs. Tight Ends
For a long time, Miami's had an issue containing tight ends.
The issue has been that it can't contain them, period.
That has changed this year, as Andrew Abramson of the Palm Beach Post noted that the Dolphins have given up the fewest fantasy points to tight ends according to Yahoo, while Football Outsiders has the Dolphins ranked first in yards given up to tight ends per game at 27.6.
Many factors go into this improvement, but the biggest factor has been Miami's opposition. Last season, the Dolphins had to contend with a healthy Rob Gronkowski twice with New England, as well as Chargers tight end Antonio Gates and Saints tight end Jimmy Graham.
This season, the Dolphins had a less healthy Gronk to deal with in Week 1, along with an injury to Julius Thomas when they faced off against Denver.
As for Gates, there was improvement in that matchup, as Gates only caught three passes for 28 yards in Miami's meeting with San Diego this season.
Injury Report
3 of 5
| Player | Position | Injury | Status |
| Jamar Taylor | Cornerback | Shoulder | Out |
| Jonathan Freeny | Linebacker | Hamstring | Out |
| Nate Garner | Guard | Illness | Out (Per Andrew Abramson of The Palm Beach Post) |
| Chris McCain | Linebacker | Ankle | Doubtful |
| Charles Clay | Tight End | Hamstring/Knee | Questionable |
| Cortland Finnegan | Cornerback | Ankle | Doubtful |
| Brian Hartline | Wide Receiver | Knee | Probable |
| Samson Satele | Center | Ribs | Probable |
| Mike Wallace | Wide Receiver | Chest | Probable |
| Daryn Colledge | Guard | Back | Full Participation in Practice |
| Ja'Wuan James | Left Tackle | Neck | Probable |
| Jelani Jenkins | Linebacker | Shoulder | Probable |
Injury status provided by MiamiDolphins.com as of 12/6/2014 and will be updated as changes are made.
No shocking new names to report on the list other than linebacker Chris McCain, who was limited in practice but was on crutches following practice, per Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald.
As for Cortland Finnegan's return, as we mentioned earlier, it's about a 50-50 chance against Baltimore and would be a much-needed shot in the arm for the defense. Sadly, with Finnegan being listed as doubtful, that's a shot in the arm that might not come to pass.
Nate Garner was doubtful as of Friday, but now it's been confirmed by Andrew Abramson of The Palm Beach Post that Garner will be out on Sunday.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
X-Factor/Matchups to Watch
4 of 5
Dallas Thomas vs. Elvis Dumervil
I'm a little less worried about this matchup than I would've been three weeks ago.
Ever since getting mauled by Mario Williams in Week 11, Dallas Thomas has stepped up at right tackle, allowing no sacks in the last two weeks after allowing three against Williams and the Bills.
With that being said, Thomas faces his toughest test thus far against the Ravens' ace pass-rusher Elvis Dumervil.
Dumervil has 12.5 sacks this season, which leads a Ravens attack that as a unit has 31. Getting to the quarterback is his specialty.
Ja'Wuan James vs. Terrell Suggs
On the other side, rookie Ja'Wuan James will have his hands full with Terrell Suggs.
Suggs has seven sacks this season, which is second on the team. He has also been very effective against the run, with Pro Football Focus grading Suggs out at 10.7 in that category.
Last week, both Suggs and Dumervil (as well as the rest of the Ravens' defensive line) got off to a slow start and couldn't get it going. Miami hopes that history repeats itself this week.
Olivier Vernon vs. Eugene Monroe
The Dolphins must produce pressure on Joe Flacco on Sunday. Cameron Wake will be paired up with Ricky Wagner, but I'm focusing on the matchup between Eugene Monroe and Olivier Vernon due to it being the true X-factor matchup along the trenches.
Vernon only has five sacks this season, and he has had difficulty getting to the quarterback the last two weeks.
The easier it is for him, the easier it will be for Wake (who won't face as many double-teams) and the rest of Miami's defensive line, which is in a funk we would've never expected with this unit only three weeks ago.
X-factor: Mike Wallace
Baltimore's secondary is the biggest weakness on the Ravens, one that should be exploited with impunity by Miami's offense.
The key to that will be Mike Wallace. When Tannehill does go deep to Wallace (which should happen due to the matchup), can Wallace haul in the catch, or will it be similar to the so-close yet so-far non-catch we saw on Monday night?
Tannehill and Wallace will have to create at least one big play on Sunday if for no other reason than to open up Miami's passing game, as well as give the run game some room to breathe.
Prediction
5 of 5
Both teams went 8-8 last season, with one game played against each other back in October.
The Ravens won that contest 26-23 in a game that featured a Caleb Sturgis missed field goal, Ryan Tannehill struggling while still flashing potential and an offensive line that buckled at the very end.
In short, last season's contest against the Ravens was the perfect microcosm of Miami's 2013 season, especially when you consider that a key sack late in the fourth quarter was given up by a left side of the offensive line manned by Jonathan Martin and Richie Incognito.
This season, neither Martin nor Incognito will be there, but the offensive line, while improved, still has challenged opponents.
Baltimore's defensive line will be a little bit worse than last season's, but that won't be the ultimate equalizer.
The question is, can Miami go vertical? If it can, it should win this game. If not, it might be a long afternoon for the offense.
I do expect improvements on defense. Yes, the Dolphins have had two horrible games against the run, but it would be like this team to answer the bell against a team that should have the best run game of the last three games.
Either way, it won't matter if Miami can't get vertical and exploit Baltimore's porous secondary. I have enough doubts to say that it won't be too effective, and the score won't be too high.
Prediction: Ravens 17, Dolphins 14.
Statistics provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com and Pro Football Focus (subscription required).
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
.png?w=480)
