Miami Dolphins 2020 NFL schedule: 5 must-win games
By Matt Conner
If Brian Flores really hopes the Miami Dolphins can make the big leap in the AFC East, they’ll need to make sure and win these five games.
The Miami Dolphins were a basement-dwelling team in 2019, but not all last place teams are made the same. Some, like the Cincinnati Bengals, are lifeless in every way. The offense is bad, the defense is bad, and the coaching, while unproven, doesn’t look good, to be sure. Other last place teams, like the Dolphins, weren’t able to get the job done but not for the lack of spunk on their part.
In his first season as Dolphins head coach, Brian Flores looks like he might have the Dolphins on the brink of turning the corner in 2020 and beyond. After a pathetic 0-7 start, the Dolphins showed plenty of life down the stretch and even went 5-4 in their final nine games. Included in that mid-to-late season surge were impressive road wins over the Indianapolis Colts and New England Patriots—the latter putting a confident stamp on the end of the year.
Looking forward, the Dolphins last place defense has imported plenty of new talent, from defensive back Byron Jones to pass rusher Emmanuel Ogbah to defensive end Shaq Lawson to linebacker Kyle Van Noy. Given the team’s league-leading total of 14 draft picks and there’s plenty of reason to believe the unit can leap forward from 32nd overall.
There are, of course, also questions about who will be leading this team offensively as well. Will the Dolphins end up with Tua Tagavailoa, as many suspect? Will Ryan Fitzpatrick start the majority of games? Will another rookie and/or veteran enter the picture? That’s the biggest question, but the Dolphins will be a lot more talented in 2020 and they’ll be expected to win these five games—at least.
Home: Cincinnati Bengals
If the Dolphins are going to take the leap to the next level (e.g. not a cellar dweller), then they have to be able to put away the league’s also-rans (of whom they are no longer supposedly a part). A big way to begin to make such a statement is to welcome the Cincinnati Bengals into South Florida with a significant loss.
Halfway through the 2019 season, this game on the books would have been considered laughable. Now it should be a nice opportunity for the Dolphins to put together a complete game plan against a team that looks to be a step or two behind Miami in terms of roster construction and readiness.