Miami Dolphins' Week 2 Loss to Jaguars Puts Joe Philbin Squarely on Hot Seat

On paper, the Miami Dolphins looked like a playoff contender headed into the 2015 season.

On paper, the Dolphins should have beaten both the Washington Redskins and the Jacksonville Jaguars by double digits. On paper, the Dolphins have the talent to win 10 games and earn the team's first playoff berth since 2008. 

Unfortunately for the Dolphins, football games are not played on paper. They are played on a football field that is 100 yards from goal line to goal line and 53.3 yards from sideline to sideline. 

The Dolphins lost to the Jaguars, 23-20, and showed many of the same issues that have plagued the team for as long as Philbin has sat on the throne as the team's head coach. And now, that throne is burning with the heat of a thousand suns. 

Make no mistake, there are some talent issues on this roster. The Dolphins defense features an elite group of defensive linemen but a mediocre and inconsistent group of defensive backs. Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles hit the gas early with some big plays and finished the game 18-of-33 passing for 273 yards and two touchdowns.

The Dolphins offense features a dominant group of skill position players but a woeful offensive line that has struggled for going on three years. Quarterback Ryan Tannehill has already been sacked five times this season (on pace for 40 sacks). The running game has earned just 116 yards and averages 3.4 yards per carry through two games. 

Even with those blemishes on the roster, the Dolphins still won in Week 1 and had a chance to win in Week 2. But these aren't just games that playoff teams should win; these are games where playoff teams should assert their dominance. 

The Redskins and Jaguars are both in the second year of their respective rebuilds. Both of those teams have a lot of young players and are searching for an identity. The Dolphins have been building under Philbin for four years. Their roster is loaded with veterans and should be hitting its peak.

But it's been difficult to tell the difference between the Dolphins and their opponents over the past two weeks.

This is a performance-driven league. Jobs are earned and lost based on wins and losses.

Philbin is in the fourth year of his tenure as head coach, which is exactly as long as a president stays in office before he's up for re-election. If Philbin were running for office, would he get re-elected?

Before the season began, Dolphins owner Stephen Ross said he wasn't just hoping that his financial investment in the team would finally pay off with a playoff berth in 2015; he was "expecting it."

So let's make this clear: The expectation isn't just improvement anymore. The expectations are much greater.

Philbin can't earn another four years "in office" even if the Dolphins make the playoffs this year, but if he's going to stay the Dolphins head coach through 2015 and beyond, his team will need to rebound in epic fashion over the next 14 games.

It may sound unprecedented, but don't flush the Dolphins down the playoff contender toilet just yet. Let's not forget, the New England Patriots began the 2014 season 2-2, and the entire nation was burying them. 

The Dolphins have a chance to turn things around. They finally have their home opener in Week 3 against a Buffalo Bills team that is looking to rebound after a painful 40-32 loss to the Patriots in Buffalo in Week 2. The Bills have won four of their past six matchups with the Dolphins and have made life miserable for Tannehill. 

Surely, Dolphins fan will have renewed confidence if their team can turn it around with a win over the Bills. But the job will be far from done, and Philbin's job will be far from safe.

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