The Miami Dolphins and their fans received the best Christmas gift they could’ve asked for from the Kansas City Chiefs. With the Chiefs beating the Denver Broncos, the Dolphins secured a playoff birth for the first time since 2008, capping off what’s been a remarkable 2016 regular season.
Starting out the season in Seattle and New England proved to be too much for Miami, and after a 1-4 start, most people counted out the Dolphins. But, something seemed to click when the Dolphins defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers at Hard Rock Stadium, as the Dolphins reeled off six straight victories and with Saturday’s win in Buffalo have now won nine of their last ten games to put them in the playoffs. Looking at this Dolphins team, it’s really stunning to see how they’ve gotten to this point. Often over-matched and overlooked, they have won games in every way imaginable. Let’s take a look back at how the Dolphins got here.
Their first win came thanks to multiple missed field goals from the Cleveland Browns. They beat the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Buffalo Bills with consecutive 200 yard performances from Jay Ajayi. Kenyon Drake saved the day with a 4th quarter kickoff return for a touchdown to beat the New York Jets, Kiko Alonso intercepted Phillip Rivers with a minute left and ran it back for a touchdown to win in San Diego against the Chargers, and Ryan Tannehill brought the Dolphins offense back from the dead to score two touchdowns in the last five minutes against the Los Angeles Rams after no points up to that point. Back home, the Dolphins defense stood tall and stopped San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick near the goal line to escape with a win. Then, after a heartbreaking injury to quarterback Ryan Tannehill, Matt Moore stepped in to steal a win in a downpour versus the Arizona Cardinals, and then he threw for four touchdowns in a thrashing of the Jets in New York. Finally, in the Dolphins’ biggest game in eight years, kicker Andrew Franks nailed a 55 yard field goal with the clock running down to send the game to overtime ,where he then made the game winning field goal that ultimately eliminated the Bills and clinched a playoff spot for Miami.
Not only have the Dolphins pulled out crazy victories, but they’ve also done it through a plethora of injuries. Quarterback Ryan Tannehill, center Mike Pouncey, an entire linebacker unit, and many more have missed countless games, yet someone always steps up for the Dolphins. No game has been like the other, and the next man up continues to keep the Dolphins afloat.
Now, the Dolphins just have to wait and see whether they’ll face the Steelers again or the Houston Texans. Regardless, the Dolphins will once again be the underdog, just as they have been all year. However, don’t be surprised if they continue to shock the NFL well into January.
Great posting. Esther and I still have a soft spot for the Dolphins from our time in South Florida. Great to see them make the playoffs even if we remain mostly A NY Giants family.
Hard not to like what they’ve done this year.