#FinsUp - The Miami Dolphins

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Madden 21
XB1
Starting at the end of the season

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Despite success, 2020 season ends on sour note for the Miami Dolphins
The last game of Brian Flores’ second season looked a lot like his first three games at the helm of the Miami Dolphins.
By Jakemen | Jan 5, 2021, 8:36am EST



The story of the 2020 Miami Dolphins is certainly an unpredictable one. It is hard to imagine a 10-win team missing the cut for the playoffs — especially with the league kicking the tires on a new format that allowed seven teams from each conference to earn a spot in the dance.

Miami’s hype train was ahead of schedule in 2020. The team had a chance to prove they belonged and Brian Flores, the team’s second-year head coach, was viewed as a potential coach of the year candidate.

With one game left in a year most will never forget, the Dolphins had a chance to prove they belonged in the same breathe as the AFC’s best, but a 28-point second quarter and a 21-point fourth quarter by the Bills will be a lasting memory until the 2021 season is underway.

Doom and gloom is the last way to identify the direction of the Miami Dolphins, but Sunday’s game was a reminder that winning is a challenge.

Brian Flores had the opportunity to dial up a plan to slow down Josh Allen and Buffalo’s offense — at least until the backups came in. There could’ve been stories about the pre-game speech that instilled confidence in a young team, but that wasn’t the case.

Tua Tagovailoa, who certainly helped the Dolphins win throughout the year, had a solid rookie season despite the lack of numbers that shined like sixth-overall pick Justin Herbert. Coming into the season, especially after Allen Hurns and Albert Wilson opted, it was clear Miami lacked playmakers on the offensive side of the ball.

However, with an opportunity to showcase a bit of magic, Tagovailoa looked like a long list of quarterbacks not named Dan Marino to struggled at the tail-end to the season. Not only did he have three interceptions, but the rookie hadn’t averaged more than 6.6 yards per attempt since early December.

A win would’ve locked the Dolphins into the fifth seed. A win may have been the difference between just one primetime game in 2021 compared to potentially three or four. With a win, the legend of Flores and Tagovailoa would’ve reached new levels.

It takes time to adjust the lens from week-by-week to year-by-year when talking about a football team. Keep in mind, from the third-overall pick in the 2021 draft and a rookie class that out-kicked expectations, there is a lot to like about the Miami Dolphins and this team certainly doesn’t feel like the same ol’ Dolphins.

However, Sunday’s loss to the Bills is a sign that those feelings can’t be eviscerated just yet and there is plenty of work to be done before the Dolphins are playing football deep into January.

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Tua Tagovailoa will be the Miami Dolphins’ starting quarterback in 2021
Brian Flores and Chris Grier reaffirmed their commitment to Tua as the team’s starter going forward.
By Justin Hier | @HierJustin | Jan 5, 2021, 4:24pm EST



As the Miami Dolphins head into the 2021 offseason following an unceremonious departure from the NFL playoff picture, there are many questions that the team’s brass must address to help catapult this team from 10-6 playoff chaser to a top-of-the-league Super Bowl contender. Some NFL pundits believed the quarterback position would be the center of one of those questions. Per head coach Brian Flores and general manager Chris Grier, that is simply not the case.



During a press conference on Tuesday afternoon, Grier reaffirmed rookie QB Tua Tagovailoa’s status as the team’s starting quarterback of the future. “Tua we’re very happy with,” Grier began. “He’s our starting quarterback. He did a nice job this year coming in as a rookie with no offseason and the challenges of dealing with all that. We’re very happy with that and looking forward to watching him progress here over the next offseason and going into next year.”

Those kinds of comments could maybe be blown off as simply “front office-speak.” Maybe Grier just wanted to avoid fracturing Tua’s confidence (as if that was possible) or the team’s relationship with the presumed face of the franchise.

Nope.

“We want to be clear that Tua’s our starter,” Grier emphasized. “And we’re very happy with his development so far.”

Clear as crystal.

Flores and Grier believe in Tagovailoa. Yes, they had front row seats to his struggles this season. Tua may have been benched for Fitzpatrick at times when the team needed a more reckless, gunslinging approach, he may have struggled to consistently throw the ball downfield, and he may have not meshed with Chan Gailey’s scheme in ways that Flores hoped for. But Flores and Grier are happy with the development they saw. Tua had an 11:5 touchdown to interception ratio. He made game-winning plays in Miami’s contests against the Arizona Cardinals and New England Patriots. Tua exhibited poise, leadership, and an ability to protect the football every week. There were tangible signs that Tua can win games (and be the reason that Miami wins games too).

There are plenty of questions for the Dolphins going forward, many of which revolve around the QB position. How will Miami build around Tua? What will the Dolphins do with the offensive scheme around Tua. But one thing seems certain at the center of it all: Tua will be back in 2021.

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Dolphins, Chan Gailey part ways
By Kevin Nogle | @KevinNogle | Jan 6, 2021, 9:35am EST



The Miami Dolphins and offensive coordinator Chan Gailey have parted ways. The Dolphins made the announcement on Wednesday morning that Gailey had resigned.

“I want to thank Chan for all of his hard work and dedication in what was a unique year,” Dolphins head coach Brian Flores said, via the team’s website. “He played an important role on the staff and in the development of our young roster. I wish him all the best.”

Gailey came out of retirement in January 2020 to assume the offensive coordinator position for the Dolphins. He previously served as an offensive coordinator for the New York Jets (2015-2016), the Kansas City Chiefs (2008), the Dolphins (2000-2001), the Pittsburgh Steelers (1996-1997), and the Denver Broncos (1989-1990). He also served as the head coach for the Buffalo Bills (2010-2012) and Dallas Cowboys (1998-1999).

Under Gailey, the Dolphins offense was 22nd in yards (339.0 per game), 20th in passing offense (233.5 yards per game), 22nd in rushing offense (105.5 yards per game), and 15th in scoring offense (25.3 points per game).

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Mortensen: Deshaun Watson would “consider” a trade to the Miami Dolphins
Could Watson actually force his way from Houston to South Florida?
By Justin Hier | @HierJustin | Jan 10, 2021, 12:19pm EST



The Deshaun Watson saga continues. Reports have been swirling for several days that the face of the Houston Texans is frustrated with owner Cal McNair’s lack of commitment to his promise that he’d keep Watson involved in the organization’s hiring process of its next general manager and head coach. Watson’s anger reportedly reached an all-time high after McNair hired former New England Patriots executive Nick Caserio without even considering any of Watson’s recommendations for the position.

Per ESPN’s Chris Mortensen, reports about Watson’s unhappiness in Houston are real, and the uber-talented quarterback would consider a trade to the Miami Dolphins, a trade that would likely require Miami to yield 2020 5th-overall pick Tua Tagovailoa and a treasure trove of additional draft capital. Mortensen explained:

Reports about Deshaun Watson’s unhappiness with @HoustonTexan are accurate and sources close to the QB say he is still angry about team’s insensitivity to social justice, including hiring practices, after the franchise failed to interview Chiefs OC Eric Bienemy this past week. Sources say Watson could play hardball with Texans about a trade. His new $156 million contract includes a no-trade clause but informed speculation from a source is that he would consider the @MiamiDolphins in which Tua Tagovailoa and additional compensation goes to Houston.

Whether Dolphins head coach Brian Flores and general manager Chris Grier would be truly interested in sending their recent prized draft selection and face of the franchise in Tagovailoa along with the several first-round picks it’d likely take to snag Watson remains to be seen. That said, a chance to acquire a bona fide star like Watson after he already signed a massive contract extension with the team that drafted him almost never appears in today’s NFL. The Phinsider’s own Sern explained as much in a piece this morning.

Watson is coming off a career year in which he led the league in passing and played his best football on a talent-stripped team just one year after losing his top weapon in DeAndre Hopkins. He’s young, personable, a true leader, and has his best football ahead of him. Could Miami brass really deny themselves a chance at a superstar like Watson?

For what it’s worth, some of Houston’s most esteemed local media believe there’s little chance Watson would ever actually be available. Esteemed Houston Chronicle reporter John McClain said on the Rich Eisen Show this week that “there’s no chance in hell” Watson is traded.



With several months remaining until the new league year begins in March and the NFL Draft rolls around in April, it doesn’t appear as though this story is going to go away any time soon.

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