2016 Miami Dolphins Schedule: Full Listing of Dates, Times and TV Info

The Miami Dolphins hired Adam Gase in January to become their fifth full-time head coach since the start of the 2005 season. He's tasked with doing what none of the previous four could: win a playoff game during his tenure.

Miami has only qualified for the postseason once since 2002. That came when Tony Sparano led the Dolphins to an 11-5 mark and the AFC East title in 2008, his first year in charge. They proceeded to get blown out by the Baltimore Ravens in the Wild Card Round.

The team is coming off a particularly frustrating 6-10 campaign. The question is whether another change at the top of the coaching staff can finally get the franchise trending back in the right direction.

Let's check out the schedule the 2016 edition of the Dolphins will face this fall. That's followed by some analysis about what lies ahead as Miami tries to make a trip back to the postseason.

The schedule is courtesy of NFL.com. 

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Time (ET)	TV
1	Sept. 11	at Seattle Seahawks	4:05 p.m.	CBS
2	Sept. 18	at New England Patriots	1 p.m.	CBS
3	Sept. 25	Cleveland Browns	1 p.m.	CBS
4	Sept. 29	at Cincinnati Bengals	8:25 p.m.	NFL Network
5	Oct. 9	Tennessee Titans	1 p.m.	CBS
6	Oct. 16	Pittsburgh Steelers	1 p.m.	CBS
7	Oct. 23	Buffalo Bills	1 p.m.	CBS
8	BYE WEEK
9	Nov. 6	New York Jets	1 p.m.	CBS
10	Nov. 13	at San Diego Chargers	4:05 p.m.	CBS
11	Nov. 20	at Los Angeles Rams	4:05 p.m.	Fox
12	Nov. 27	San Francisco 49ers	1 p.m.	Fox
13	Dec. 4	at Baltimore Ravens	1 p.m.	CBS
14	Dec. 11	Arizona Cardinals	1 p.m.	Fox
15	Dec. 17	at New York Jets	8:25 p.m.	NFL Network
16	Dec. 24	at Buffalo Bills	1 p.m.	CBS
17	Jan. 1	New England Patriots	1 p.m.	CBS

Analysis

Wilfredo Lee/Associated Press

Between the coaching change and some offseason roster moves, there are a lot of questions the Dolphins need to answer in 2016. None of them are bigger than determining whether Ryan Tannehill can become a top-tier quarterback.

The fifth-year Texas A&M product has been a popular choice to enjoy a breakout campaign each of the past few seasons. It's never materialized. He's tallied just 87 touchdowns and tossed 54 interceptions across 64 games while posting a mundane 85.2 career passer rating.

Gase still believes Tannehill has the tools to succeed over the long haul, though. It comes down to figuring out exactly what needs to change, as relayed by Kevin Patra of NFL.com in February:

"

He has the skill set you are looking for. Really, it's going to be about, how do things go starting in the spring? How does he feel? What do we have to do to adjust to help him? It's not easy to talk about now, it's got to be more of seeing him. How does he do things, what's his process?

"

Gase was the offensive coordinator of the Denver Broncos when Peyton Manning set the record for passing touchdowns with 55 in 2013. He served in the same role with the Chicago Bears last season, helping Jay Cutler post the best passer rating of his career.

Getting Tannehill to showcase some of his untapped potential would go a long way in covering up other issues the Dolphins may have.

Defensively, the biggest addition is Kiko Alonso in the middle. He should go a long way in helping improve a run defense that finished 28th last season. He racked up 159 combined tackles with the Buffalo Bills in 2013 before injuries slowed his development.

It's unlikely the Dolphins will dominate on either side of the ball. But they can be good enough in all areas to remain competitive and in the playoff race deep into the regular season.

Pivotal Matchups

Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images

The Dolphins' margin for error is thin. Playing in the AFC East, which has been dominated by the New England Patriots in the Bill Belichick and Tom Brady era, usually leaves one less playoff spot available for Miami, along with the Buffalo Bills and the New York Jets.

That makes those divisional contests with the Bills and Jets all the more important. If the Dolphins want to make a serious push toward the postseason, they probably need to win at least three of those four games as part of a schedule that's the 11th-toughest based on 2015 records, per John Breech of CBSSports.com.

Getting Mario Williams off the Bills' roster and on to their own should provide a boost in those meetings. The veteran defensive end had registered 13 sacks in 12 career games against Miami.

Beyond that, the Dolphins face the Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals and San Diego Chargers on the road. All three of those teams are potential wild-card contenders. Taking two of those contests would provide a major boost to their playoff hopes.

It's hard to imagine a scenario in which Miami eases into the postseason. It will be a battle from start to finish, especially with so many games against teams they'll likely be competing with for two spots, barring an unexpected collapse from the Patriots.

All told, the Dolphins will need a lot of things to break perfectly to make the playoffs, but they're one of the teams in the muddled middle that cannot be completely counted out.