Winners of consecutive games for the first time this season, the Miami Dolphins will face off with the New England Patriots Sunday for the second time this year. In their previous matchup, the Dolphins defeated the Patriots, 15-10.
Miami is clinging to postseason contention in the AFC, and with victories over the Las Vegas Raiders and Los Angeles Rams, back to back, the Dolphins (4-6) hold the No. 9 position in the conference. If the Dolphins want to make the playoffs for the third straight season under coach Mike McDaniel, they will need to hold a rank of No. 7 or higher.
“We’re not entitled to go out there and win based upon X, Y, or Z, you have to go earn it,” McDaniel said in his Wednesday press conference. “You’re not entitled to any position in the National Football League and if you think you are, then you’re very delusional.”
The Dolphins are chasing the No. 8 Indianapolis Colts (5-6) and No. 7 Denver Broncos (6-5), but a win against a 3-8 Patriots team would keep hope alive.
Ahead of the divisional matchup, Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa commented on one of his club’s biggest rivals, adding that Miami “is looking forward to playing New England.”
But — despite the winning streak and the team’s sudden resurgence — there are many adjustments that need to be made ahead of Sunday’s game in the quarterback’s eyes.
“One thing that I know, with the players in the locker room, is they’re not satisfied,” he said. “There’s a lot of things that we wish we could have done better, especially on my end with my play, with some throws. I wish I could have had back for certain guys. But that’s just the way the game goes. It’s football. You learn from it and you continue to play the game as it is.”
McDaniel specifically has focused his attention on Patriots quarterback Drake Maye, a rookie who now holds the starting position, commending him for his recent play.
“I saw a true quarterback that has the ability to gain the confidence of his teammates and lead and orchestrate an offense,” McDaniel said. “I saw a guy that can make plays in a multitude of ways. I think the Patriots are kind of feeling that right now where he’s a guy that can see down the field, can play fearlessly in the pocket and make every throw with the arm strength to do it.”
Maye is an athlete the Dolphins will have to compete against in many years to come, twice a season at that. The former North Carolina Tar Heels quarterback lost to the Rams, 28-22, last week, but led an upset over the Chicago Bears, 19-3, the week before.
“A very good athlete that has some juice and can make plays off schedule. I think that’s a huge bonus to their offense as of late,” McDaniel said. “he had some explosive plays whether he threw it outside of the pocket, or he scrambled outside of the pocket. He’s a guy that you expect to continue to get better.”
McDaniel is 4-1 against the Patriots as Miami’s coach. But he was quick to point out what that really means in his weekly preparation.
“It means nothing for this week. I think that is important for either scenario of matchups,” he said. “Those are different teams. Those are different times of the year. It’s the NFL. Are you ready to play? And has the collective group mastered the plan to go attack? And I think the biggest setup in the National Football League is praise or overindulgence into stats of former teams.”
Sunday’s kickoff at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens is set for 1 p.m. The game will be televised on CBS.
