The Dolphins became the first team in NFL history to clinch a playoff spot without scoring a TD ! Hat’s off to the defense.

Also, Mike McDaniel joins Adam Gase and Tony Sparano as the Dolphin coaches to get to the playoffs in his first year. It’s a dubious omen, because it shows you how hard the NFL is. Year-One success is no indicator of a bright future. Just ask Gase and Sparano.

More to come later, but I don’t care if the Bills win 90-0 next week, at least our young players closed out the season with a win and will get a taste of playoff football.

Well done!

32 Comments

  1. I’m shocked that we were able to win with Skyler and also shocked that Sanders kicked the game winning field goal. The big question is will Tua play. It’s looking doubtful.

  2. This is gonna be off topic, but I’d like to mention it anyway. Since I’m a lifelong Dolphins fan from Indiana, I only get to watch 2-3 games per year. I rely on SiriusXM to listen to our radio network for the past 15 years or so. I give big props to Jimmy and Joe as they are probably the best radio team in the NFL. We are very lucky to have them call our games. I’d like to thank them for a job well done over the years and hope they stay for many more.

    1. Author

      Reader Sean talks about them all the time too. I hear them occasionally on highlight shows.

    2. I can attest to this! As a 21 year season ticket holder I can tell you back in the day before the 5 second delay we used to listen to them on our headphones while watching the game in person! That’s how good they are! Than after the delay we would obviously only get them for the fifth quarter (which for those that haven’t heard it is the after game commentary) These guys are about the most insightful football minds on the radio or tv in my opinion! They also always gave a little hope even when all looked hopeless which for us has been often!

  3. Author

    It must have been painful for Stephen Ross to see his favorite team, U Michigan, lose to TCU, followed up by his second favorite team, the NY Jets, collapse all through December…culminating by a loss to a third-string rookie QB. Maybe he will become a Dolphin supporter now that his other favorites are eliminated.

    1. Admin….. if you think that Ross is going to be a Dolphins fan I think you might need to go through concussion protocol too

      1. Author

        I have fuzzy memories that Ross was illegally tampering with people, and that he cost us a FIRST-ROUND draft pick. That is probably my concussion right? I mean, it can’t be real, right? An owner wouldn’t F his own team like that, right? I better enter protocol, because I am imagining things now. 😉

        1. Lol…. Actually I wish your memory was bad and none of that really happened! After reviewing this comment maybe Ross is actually an ANTI-Dolphins fan!

    2. No truer words have ever been spoken Admin. Imagine owning a team for 2 decades and not having ONE playoff win to your credit. You would think we would have stumbled onto a few just by accident…but then you realize disfunction starts at the top and he’s led this clown show through all the changes. No one has done more to hurt his own team than Ross. He’s right up there with Dan Snyder as the worst owner in the NFL.

      1. Author

        Soon I will be creating my list of all the things Ross does to hurt the team. I harp on the same stuff over and over again, but there are many other things over the years that negatively affect the team. Some are facts (costing us a first-round pick). Some are iffy (like bringing in celebrity owners like J-Lo and Venus Williams, which causes a distraction rather than a missing draft choice).

  4. Feels amazing to make in after so long! This week is going to be super tough! Without Tua I think we get blown out, that is unless the defense just balls! The offense just isn’t the same without him.

    1. Author

      I agree, but as I’ve been saying….even if we’re blown out, it’s important for these 23, 24-year olds to taste the playoffs instead of wondering and imagining. I also thought we’d get blown out 3 weeks ago at Buffalo, and we held firm and only lost on a last-second FG

  5. I am very content with this limp-to-the-finish-line playoff clinching win.

    TBH, I actually got emotional and vee-clempfed when Sanders nailed that TD. It was weird, man. Crazy Season.

    1. Author

      A lot of us were. Very similar to 2016 when we made the playoffs but we all knew that Matt Moore wasn’t going to go into Pittsburgh and lead us to victory. Of course I hope for 4 wins in a row coming up. But realistically, I just see this is a stepping stone and hope McDaniel continues it next year. Gase also took us to the playoffs in his first year, and I thought we’d only go UP from there…

  6. After reflecting, I think that in the 4th quarter, the Dolphins fixed everything we have been bitching about all season:

    * McDaniel won his first red-flat challenge
    * Refs were fair with their penalty calls
    * Instead of going for it, McDaniel punted on a 4th and 5 from mid-field as part of the field-position game
    * Offense did not turn the ball over
    * Sanders made a clutch 50+ yard field-goal

    Did I miss anything? Phins In!

    1. Author

      We RAN the ball in key situations. 4th and 5, and Wilson RAN for the first down. And I think Ahmed’s 7-yard run at the end was huge. He only ran for 7 yards, but his lone rush of the day got us into FG range instead of McDaniel trying to pass us into FG range. A huge rush for a guy who had just come into the game.

  7. I’m with Admin it was better to make it in than lose six straight. The young guys will get a taste for playoffs now. They also did it with a third string rookie QB. Everyone should be happy but unfortunately there’s a large crowd fixated on firing Grier and moving on from Tua. I suggest we enjoy the playoffs and discuss all of the offseason once it’s actually offseason. Although I don’t believe that the Fins could possibly have as bad of luck with injuries next season!

    Definitely need Tua and Armstead to have a chance. I have no faith in Bridgewater. I’d rather Sky but let him throw a few balls over 20 yards or they simply won’t be able to score enough. Buf has some weaknesses they are beatable but the Fins have to play a clean solid game.

    Lastly hopefully Mostert can play he won angry runs today he has a sceptre now unstoppable!

    1. Author

      If you have 10 minutes, watch this funny video. It’s some frustrated Jet fans commenting on the game. The dudes sound EXACTLY like me when they’re bitching about a catch that “no-name” Durham Smythe made. “Why can’t we cover a backup tight end.” Making this 3rd-string rookie QB look like a Superstar! “We love giving up yards to these no-name, practice-squad tight ends”

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zStSER3fAOE

  8. We’ll, Tua was just officially ruled out for the Bills game. This one might get ugly!!!

    1. Just heard this. Looks like Sky would start. To have any chance they’ll have to loosen the reigns on him a bit and run the ball effectively. Figures team makes it in and is devastated with injuries. Yet some fans don’t think injuries hurt them that bad this year makes me sick…

      1. Author

        Poor play cost us the 49er game, but every other loss along the way were close games that were affected by injuries. We don’t need all 53 starters to be 100% healthy all year (Although many teams do have that kind of luck). But we do need at least some 2nd stringers available, instead of 5th and 6th. The Pats game two weeks ago is a great example, where we missed X Howard, Byron Jones, Brandon Jones, Nik Needham. That is our top FOUR starters gone, meaning we had to literally use 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th stringers in their place. Fans wanna blame Tua for that? Go ahead. But common sense proves that particular loss was due to injuries.

      2. Author

        Also, I can’t remember a single dropback last week for Skylar where he had “all day” to pass. He was running for his life all day, and no pass looked sharp and crisp. The line must step up if we wanna get past 10 points.
        The most exciting play that I remember all day was a pitchback to Mostert for about 15 yards. Normally a play like that shouldn’t be so exciting, but considering we run so few rushes like that (99% of our rushes are right up the gut), it was nice to see a little twist in McD’s playbook.

    2. Author

      Yeah, I’m thinking 38-3. If we eliminate all mistakes, maybe 34-13. Against the jets, we crossed midfield nearly every single drive, and then some stupid plays costs us. Remember the snap over QB19’s head that lost us 30+ yards?

      1. If we employ the newest NFL rule we can walk off the field if we’re losing in the 4th and let the refs flip a coin to see who wins!

        1. Author

          Don’t get me started on that. I’m devoting a whole column to that fiasco soon..

          1. That’s going to be an interesting read because that was totally made up nonsense. I can’t believe that there wasn’t anyone else really criticizing this!

            1. Author

              I’ve been questioning it from the get-go. This frightening picture of Tua is still engrained on my mind, and the Dolphins were forced to play with a worried, heavy heart all night.

              222Upload Attached

              1. Yep, we just need a player to have a heart attack on the field then the game will get canceled and both teams advance to the next round and also the player who almost died will be cleared to play too.

        2. Author

          I hesitate to comment too subjectively, because ALL the facets are not known. But based on what we’ve heard, Hamlin was revived and taken to the hospital. The NFL told the teams to warm up for 5-10 minutes and resume the game. The Bills instead went into their locker room.
          The Bengals, then, had a choice: either we warm up and look like unsympathetic assholes, or we also walk off the field and wait for the Bills to come back. The Bills never came back.

          1. The game definitely should’ve been forfeited. The nfl tho won’t do it. Reminds me of the Snowplow Gate game back in 1982. The Dolphins protested it and the commissioner at the time actually agreed with them, but added that they have never overturned the results of a game and they weren’t going to do so then either.

Leave a Reply to Jimbo Cancel reply