New York Giants vs. Miami Dolphins: What's the Game Plan for Miami?

The Miami Dolphins and the New York Giants have the same 5-7 record. Yet while Miami needs to win out and have every team ahead of it lose to have a playoff shot, the Giants are still in control of their own destiny. 

On Monday the two will meet in prime time (8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN) in a game that will hopefully be as exciting as the last two Monday Night games have been. 

The Dolphins, at the moment, are nothing more than possible spoilers for contending teams they play down the stretch and could ruin a possible Giants NFC East run with a win.

But how do they get said win? 

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Offensive Game Plan for the Dolphins

You can pass on the New York Football Giants. 

This isn't even a doubt. The Giants rank last in the NFL in pass defense, giving up 314.5 yards per game while teams gain an average of 7.9 yards per pass. 

In other words, Miami has to go vertical. 

I don't mean the Dolphins need a pass-happy offense. In fact, it should be the opposite. (The Giants allow 108.8 rushing yards per game.) I mean the passes have to go farther than four or five yards an attempt. 

The eyes will be on Jarvis Landry, since the billing is the matchup between him and his former teammate Odell Beckham Jr. But the real centerpiece of the Dolphins' passing attack should be DeVante Parker. Parker somewhat had this role against Baltimore but only had three catches for 63 yards and a touchdown. I'd up the number of targets for Parker, but I would not throw a pass to him that goes less than 10 yards in the air. 

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As for the run game, that's still going to be the driving force. However, forcing carries, (which we saw against Baltimore), isn't the way to go. Instead, the Dolphins should get the running game going early and line up Ryan Tannehill under center throughout the entire game. That way the plays won't be telegraphed too much. 

As for how many times the Dolphins should run the ball? Against the Ravens, they ran the ball 26 times, which is a good number to shoot for. 

Defensive Game Plan for Miami

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The Dolphins are still at the bottom in the NFL in rushing but will get a nice little respite from teams trying to run it down their throat, as the Giants are ranked 29th in the league in running the ball. 

New York averages 24.1 run attempts per game. That is more than the Dolphins, but on those 24.1 tries, the Giants gain a paltry 3.7 yards. 

Per Pro Football Focus, the Giants run better up the middle than they do on the outside, which plays right into Miami's strengths as the team has a better run stopper in Ndamukong Suh. Meanwhile, the run defense of the defensive ends and linebackers leaves much to be desired. 

The best thing the Dolphins can attempt to do is aggressively blitz the outside to try to funnel the Giants' run attack up the middle. They will need Reshad Jones to come in from the corner to nail New York's running backs when they do try to bounce the outside, while the corners will have to be able to tackle well, something that has been a problem all season. 

As for the Giants' pass attack, once again the name of the game is pressure. I would be extremely aggressive all game long, whether it's a run play or a pass play. That's your best bet at getting the upper hand against the Giants' offense. 

Matchups and X-Factors

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Miami's offense should revolve around Lamar Miller and Parker, just as we saw against Baltimore. 

However, I would attempt to pass the ball more than the 19 times they tried against Baltimore. The better forecast on Monday compared to what we saw last Sunday should help with that balance. Using Miller and Parker to establish true rhythm on offense should be the goal. 

The Dolphins defense must keep an eye out for wide receiver Dwayne Harris, who could very well swing the game. 

Harris could clean house as an underneath receiver, with Odell Beckham Jr. getting most of the attention. He's also an X-Factor on special teams against a weak Dolphins special teams unit, as he has already returned one kickoff for a touchdown and averages 29.5 yards per kickoff return. 

The main X-Factor: quarterback Ryan Tannehill. He can't turn in another stinker like he did against Baltimore since the Giants offense actually has the ability to score. 

Prediction

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You will see a better Tannehill on Monday Night, but that's not exactly a ringing endorsement. He can complete 10 of 20 passes and be a better quarterback, and even if he does that the Dolphins will lose by at least two touchdowns. 

Tannehill will be exponentially better, showing a prime-time audience the best of him—the Tannehill that his biggest fans always see and not the Tannehill his detractors always see. In the end, this game is about him. 

However, that doesn't guarantee the Dolphins will win. 

The Giants' weaknesses play to what Miami wants to do on both sides of the ball, and the Dolphins should be able to exploit said weaknesses. 

That won't be enough on Sunday, though. The Giants have the edge at head coach and at quarterback and are more equipped than the Dolphins for a possible shootout. 

The first team to hit 30 will win the game, and Miami will get close—but not quite there. 

Final Prediction: Giants 31, Dolphins 27

Statistics provided by NFL.com; advanced statistics provided by Pro Football Focus.