Motivated Dolphins Finally Show Offensive Potential Under Interim Coach Campbell

It's no secret that the Miami Dolphins put a lot of resources into their offense during the offseason. The team traded for wideout Kenny Stills, signed free-agent tight end Jordan Cameron and spent a first-round pick on former Louisville receiver DeVante Parker.

The Dolphins also locked up quarterback Ryan Tannehill with a four-year, $77 million contract extension.

Tannehill was already in place, of course, but the new pieces were added to an offense that already boasted emerging players like Jarvis Landry, Lamar Miller and Rishard Matthews.  

Unfortunately, the Miami offense failed to live up to its potential during the team's 1-3 start to the 2015 season. Coming into Sunday's game against the Tennessee Titans, the Dolphins were rated a dismal 29th in overall offense by Pro Football Focus.

The defense, which added superstar defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh during the offseason, has also largely disappointed, but Miami's 31st-ranked scoring offense (16.2 points per game) and 31st-ranked rushing offense (69.2 yards per game) have been a much bigger issue.

This waste of offensive talent, along with an overall lack of motivation, is likely why the Dolphins decided to part ways with head coach Joe Philbin before the team's Week 5 bye.

After Philbin was released, offensive coordinator Bill Lazor tried to take some of the heat.

Lazor said, per Adam H. Beasley of the Miami Herald: 

"

My first reaction was a sense of disappointment in that I let him down and that we hadn’t performed as a team well enough. Disappointed. I respect him. I appreciate the opportunity that I had to work for him and I just kind of look at it as wishing I had done things better so it would have changed.

"

Whether Lazor truly feels responsible or not, the Miami offense has looked like an entirely different animal under interim head coach Dan Campbell. For game, sure, but the difference in atmosphere was tangible on Sunday against the Tennessee Titans.

The running game, in particular, took major shape on Sunday.

Against the Titans, Miller rumbled for 113 yards and a touchdown, with a stellar 5.9 yards-per-carry average. It was easily Miller's best outing of the year to date.

Sunday's game also represented Miami's best overall offensive outing of the year. The team racked up 434 net yards of offense and 38 points as a unit. That's nearly 22 points more than what the Dolphins had averaged before.

Call it the extra motivation that comes with potentially playing for your job under an interim head coach, if you want. It could have just been the additional focus that comes with a bye week, as well. The change might also stem from a sense of respect for Campbell, who spent 10 years as a player in the NFL (Philbin did not play in the NFL). 

Campbell seems to have passion for the game, which typically carries over to the team.

Or perhaps, Sunday's outcome was simply a result of superior coaching from Campbell. 

However you want to look at it, the fact remains that the Dolphins finally played up to their potential on Sunday, and the result was a definitive victory. Whether this carries over and is enough to save Miami's season is a question that lingers like a Miami sunset.

For the moment, though, the outlook appears a lot brighter than it did in the first month of the season.