5 Bold Predictions for Miami Dolphins' Week 1 Matchup

Things are looking up for the 2015 Miami Dolphins, and what better way to kick off the season than against the Washington Redskins, a team that already appears headed for turmoil.

Even Washington doesn't feel great about its chances of competing in 2015.

If the Dolphins want to prove that they belong in the hunt for the playoffs, they must do two things: 

1. Beat the teams that they should beat; that is to say, suffer no upset losses.
2. Win more often at home (8-8 the past two seasons).

They will have a chance to accomplish one of those two things on Sunday, when they can get off on the right track by putting a beatdown on a subpar Redskins team. That means there could be plenty of opportunities for players to cash in with a huge game against a weak opponent.

Here's a look at five bold predictions that just might come to fruition in Week 1.

Ndamukong Suh Will Log at Least 2 Sacks

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Ndamukong Suh has been widely regarded as one of the NFL's best defensive linemen for years, but what if I told you that he's only notched two sacks in four games out of a possible 78 games in his career?

On Sunday against the Redskins, Suh will line up against guards Brandon Scherff (a rookie) and Shawn Lauvao as well as center Kory Lichtensteiger. In theory, the Redskins should double-team Suh on every snap. It'll be much easier said than done, though, when they must also account for defensive ends Cameron Wake and Olivier Vernon on the edges as well as Earl Mitchell next to Suh.

Put it this way: The Dolphins should be playing with a lead in this game. If all goes according to plan, the Redskins will call pass play after pass play, which will open up their quarterback to the possibility of sack after sack.

The Dolphins signed Suh to be a dominant presence up front, and there's no reason he can't get off to a roaring start.

DeVante Parker Will Score His 1st and 2nd NFL Touchdown

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Soon enough, the Dolphins will finally get to see the reward of their first-round draft pick, DeVante Parker. The Louisville product stands 6'3" and weighs 218 pounds, which immediately made him the biggest wide receiver on the Miami depth chart when the team drafted him. 

It's not a coincidence that one of the Dolphins' biggest shortcomings in 2014 was their inability to consistently convert red-zone trips into touchdowns (54 percent, tied with two other teams for 19th in the NFL last year). A big-bodied receiver such as Parker should help that cause.

He has been rehabbing from surgery to replace a screw in his foot, so ordinarily, expectations would be kept in check for the rookie receiver. That being said, as one of the biggest pass-catchers for the Dolphins, it wouldn't be a surprise for Parker to find himself on the back end of at least a couple of jump-ball situations.

Parker has the size and ball skills to come down with those targets. As long as his foot is OK, there's no reason this can't be a statement game for the rookie receiver.

Lamar Miller Will Rush for 150 Yards

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Some people had their doubts as to whether Lamar Miller would enter the 2015 season as the Dolphins' No. 1 running back. Jay Ajayi may have been "just" a fifth-round pick, but with Miller entering a contract year, a transition seemed to be taking place. 

As it turns out, the only transition is that for once Miller will begin the season as the starter and could use the season as an opportunity to transition his value from good to great when he becomes a free agent after the season.

Is there a better way to kick off a contract year than against a defense that ranked 29th overall in 2014 and was average (at best) against the run? The Redskins' 1,722 rushing yards on defense were 12th-best in the NFL and their 4.1 yards per rush attempt was 13th-best, but they allowed seven teams to rush for 125 yards or more.

In order to reach this number, the Dolphins coaches will have to finally put their money where their mouth is and put the ball in Miller's hands early and often. He did not get 20 carries or more in a single game in 2014; that still didn't stop him from putting up 178 yards against the New York Jets (on 19 carries), but he'll need to get at least 20 carries if he wants to cross the 150-yard plateau against the Redskins.

So long as Miller gets a majority of the opportunities, that mark should be well within reach.

Ryan Tannehill Will Complete at Least 80 Percent of His Passes

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2015 could be the year when Ryan Tannehill takes his game to new heights and inserts himself in the discussion among the league's top 10 quarterbacks. The season opener against the Redskins could prove to be the first steppingstone along the way.

The Dolphins' signal-caller has been trending upward ever since entering the NFL; he has improved his touchdown-interception ratio, completion percentage and passer rating each year. There's no reason to believe that trend won't continue in 2015, as Tannehill enters the season with quite possibly the best group of skill-position players he's ever had at his disposal.

In 2014, the Redskins defense was the league's worst in passer rating allowed (108.3) and also allowed the fourth-highest completion percentage (66.5). Washington also yielded at least 70 percent completions in five different games last year.

If Tannehill is on point, the Redskins could find it difficult to get him out of rhythm. 

The Dolphins Will Win by at Least 14 Points

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Two touchdowns is an awfully large margin of victory for a road team, especially since the Dolphins have only won four road games by two touchdowns or more in Joe Philbin's three years as head coach.

That being said, the Redskins might just be bad enough to give the Dolphins this once-in-a-blue-moon blowout victory on the road.

If the Dolphins offense gets off to a fast start and the defensive line can pin its ears back to rush the passer, there's no telling how quickly this game could get out of hand. 

For the past two years, the Dolphins have threatened to accomplish this feat but fell short by just one point both times (won 23-10 on the road against the Cleveland Browns; won 33-20 at home against the New England Patriots). 

The Dolphins are expecting to take the next step as a franchise this year, and this needs to be the game that they come out hot and prove that they're ready to hunt for a postseason berth. 

Unless otherwise noted, all quotes obtained via team news release.