The Dolphins offense is treading on thin ice

If there is one word that describes the Miami Dolphins offense it would be unorthodox. This years version of the offense is definitely going against the norm. The offense has shown signs of promise behind the recent hot hand of Ryan Tannehill but it has also still been stagnant, especially in the first half of games. They are up and down and up and down. The naked eye would tell you that this unit is much improved, which it is.

That however does not mean they should get a pass for the costly mistakes and misses the offense seems to have on a recurring basis. Now granted, they are ranked 11th in scoring, and if that is enough to satisfy you then by all means, be satisfied. However, for me anyways, I see missed opportunities and visions of what could be if some of this stuff can be corrected. So what’s wrong?

Part of the problem for the offense is that they have lacked big play scores from both the passing game and the running game.The Dolphins have one score of 20 yards or more which ranks them dead last in the NFL. Their longest score of the season was a 21 yard touchdown pass to Rishard Matthews against the Chargers. It’s very hard to consistently nickle and dime teams down the field week in and week out and come away with touchdowns. You can’t beat playoff caliber teams kicking field goals

The new look offense has moved the ball at ease down the field and have had no problems reaching the redzone. In fact the Dolphins are ranked first in redzone opportunities. However they rank 3oth in redzone efficiency. Part of the problem is that once they get inside the redzone they lack a big target to throw to and a power back to run against goal line defenses.

Another problem is mistakes and mental breakdowns. The Dolphins have had numerous penalties, fumbles, drops and interceptions inside the twenty. They went three straight games getting inside the opponents fine yard line and came away with ZERO points. To be a playoff team and to be a contender in this league they have to cut down on these mental mistakes.

Also the scoring balance is a major problem. They start off putrid. Ranking 30th in 1st quarter scoring and they finish poorly as well ranking 27th in 4th quarter scoring. Thats not a recipe for success. Luckily they rank 1st in 3rd quarter scoring, which is enough to rank them 1st in second half scoring. The numbers are very deceiving.

The running game has been a pleasant surprise behind the running of Lamar Miller. He is having somewhat of a breakout season and has been great at the 10-15 yard gains but for some reason he can’t break the big one. His longest rush this season has been for 33 yards and his longest touchdown has been nine yards.

As for the passing game, Tannehill has been much improved. He has improved in almost all areas of his game. The one thing that is still missing is his deep ball. While there haven’t been a lot of opportunities he still has missed frequently when he gets his chances. Everyone knows it is much easier to score on long passes than it is to score on long runs. His longest pass has been 50 yards to Mike Wallace against the Jaguars. The longest score was to Matthews for 21 yards. It is such a waste to have deep ball talent like Wallace and not be able to utilize that. He currently ranks 39th for longest pass completed and ranks 26th for yards per attempt.

While it is plain to see that this years offense is much improved compared to last year as they have improved in almost every major statistical category, it can also be said that the offense is holding this team back. The Dolphins have positioned themselves in the middle of the playoff race and if they want to make their first playoff appearance since 2008 they must start capitalizing rather than squandering away points. Good teams don’t consistently leave 10-14 points on the field week in and week out.

So for those keeping score, we have :

and

This week the offense faces the Broncos and for them to have any chance at beating Peyton Manning and company the offense will definitely have to be at its best  Phins Up!