LOOKING FOR MORE

BY MARK ECKEL

les, it’s safe to say that just making the playoffs won’t be enough.

Not since the turn of the century have the Dolphins actually won a playoff game. That was in 2000 when head coach Dave Wannstedt’s team, with Jay Fiedler at quarterback, beat the Colts in overtime, 23-17. They were blown out by the Raiders the following week, 27-0.

The Dolphins last AFC Championship Game appearance came in 1992 and their last Super Bowl appearance was in 1984 when current head coach Mike McDaniel was one year old. They haven’t won a Super Bowl since they went backto-back in 1972 and 1973.

There is optimism and plenty of it. McDaniel begins his second season as head coach of the Dolphins. Here are some of the key factors for the team in 2023.

Tua

Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, the fifth overall pick of the 2020 NFL draft, is without question the key to the team’s success. You can say that about most every team and its quarterback, but there’s proof with the former Alabama star.

Tagovailoa has started 34 games for the Dolphins over his first three seasons in the league and the team has a 21-13 record, a .618 winning percentage. In the 16 regular-season games he has missed with injury, the Dolphins are 7-9, a .437 winning percentage. Last year the Dolphins were 8-5 with Tagovailoa and 1-3 without him. They also lost their only playoff game a year ago with Tua on the sidelines.

So the key for the Dolphins is keeping their quarterback on the field where he can live up to his draft status. To that extent, the team has an offensive line with a first-round pick (right tackle Austin Jackson), two second-round picks (guards Liam Eichenberg and Robert Hunt) and two free agent signings in left tackle Terron Armstead and center Connor Williams.

Raheem Mostert and rookie third-round draft pick De’Von Achane lead the running game, although the team was in talks with free agent running back Dalvin Cook this summer. The strength of the team’s offense, however, lies with . . .

The Wide Receivers

Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle form the best duo of wide receivers in the league. The Eagles may have an argument with A.J. Brown and Devonte Smith, but the numbers say Hill, the former Kansas City Chief, and Waddle, Miami’s first-round pick in 2021, are the best.

Hill, in his first season as a Dolphin in 2022, caught 119 passes for 1,710 yards and seven touchdowns. The catches and yards were both career highs, while the touchdowns were the least since his rookie season. Waddle caught 75 passes for 1,356 yards and eight touchdowns His 18.1 yards per catch average led the NFL. In his two years with Miami after leaving Alabama, Waddle has caught 179 passes for 2,371 yards and 14 touchdowns.

Last season’s 3,066 yards between the two receivers rank as the third-best of all time behind the 1995 Detroit Lions tandem of Herman Moore and Brett Perriman (3,176) and the 2000 St. Louis Rams duo of Tory Holt and Isaac Bruce (3,106). And remember Hill and Waddle didn’t have their QB1 for four games.

Hill wants more. Setting Dolphins records wasn’t enough. He wants to become the first NFL receiver to break the 2,000-yard barrier. Detroit’s Calvin Johnson came the closest with 1,964 yards in 2012.

“I do want to break the record,’’ Hill said this offseason. “So I feel like this is one of those years that I can achieve it. For me going into Year 2, it’s all about learning the playbook more, understanding where Tua wants me to be at on the field and how just everything operates Last year for me was like a blur. I had to come, I had to learn the playbook, I had to get to know my teammates. And this year everything has slowed down, so I’m just really trying to understand playbook, formations and routes and route depths and stuff like that. So it’s going pretty well.”

Vic Fangio

One of the biggest moves of the offseason was the Dolphins hiring the long-time defensive coordinator to take over for John Boyer. Last year the defense ranked 18th in total yards, 26th against the pass and 25th in the most important category — points allowed. The hope is that Fangio, who has been with six different teams in his 22 years as a coordinator and three not-so-great years as a head coach in Denver, will fix all of that.

There is certainly some talent at the most important positions namely edge rusher and cornerback. Bradley Chubb, acquired during the 2022 season from Denver, will be reunited with his old head coach and could improve on his eight-sack season of a year ago. On the other side is 2021 first-round pick Julian Phillips, who is coming off a seven-sack season.

Cornerback could be the team’s strength where Howard teams up with perennial Pro Bowl player Jalen Ramsey, acquired in a trade with the Rams and rookie Cam Smith, of South Carolina, who could be a second-round steal.

“We have some really good talent at some places,’’ Fangio said during the team’s OTA [organized team activities]. “In other places, we’ve got to find the talent. I think it’s a good mix right now. Our good players have got to play really good for us to be good, and we’ve got to find the other guys to fill in that play good in spite of their lack of playing time and experience.’’

The Division

Among the Dolphins’ AFC East foes are the defending three-time champion, who have won 37 games in that span; one of the best quarterbacks of this generation and the best head coach of this generation. So it’s not going to be an easy task for them to win the division for the first time since 2008.

Buffalo, which won its third straight division title in 2022, isn’t going away. The Bills are still one of the best teams in the NFL, led by quarterback Josh Allen. The Jets, who have the longest playoff drought of any NFL team, traded for future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers to end their postseason misery. And the Patriots still have sixtime Super Bowl champion Bill Belichick at the controls.

Oddsmakers have made Buffalo the favorite to win its fourth straight division title at odds of +125. New York is the second choice at +250, while the Dolphins are third at +300. New England is the long shot at +750.

The Dolphins might be the best bet of the quartet.

City Success

It has not gone unnoticed by the Dolphins regime the success of the other professional teams in the city. The Heat shocked both the Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics and made it to the NBA Finals. The Panthers did the same to the Boston Bruins and made it to the Stanley Cup Finals. And as of early July, the Marlins were in the running for a playoff spot as one of the top National League wild-card teams.

“How cool is that for South Florida sports just in general,” Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel said. “Just riding the 2023 but specifically the Heat and the Panthers doing a lot of things that people said they couldn’t do. Which I very much appreciate. We are definitely taking note.” l