I’m sure some of you will be glad to hear that I’m actually a little excited to watch this upcoming matchup with the Dolphins traveling to Pittsburgh to take on the Pittsburgh Steelers. It’s not because I think we’re on our way to the Superbowl or even heading towards making the playoffs. The Dolphins have won 4 in a row, and 5 of 6. Head Coach Mike McDaniel has decided to make some changes on offense, namely taking the ball out of his mistake prone QB’s hands and delivering it to a now potent rushing attack. It’s precisely the type of offense that can play well in cold weather, and while the offense is humming without Tua, the defense has also kicked it up a notch. Over the last 6 games, only 1 team has scored more than 20 points our defense, and that was the Baltimore Ravens back on October 30th. That’s winning football right there, although the opponents do have something to do with that.
Here’s the thing, it’s not that I think the Steelers are a great team, they’re not. Their defense is not the Steel Curtain Defense of the 70’s, but they do have a fearsome pass rush, but that might be hindered if star LB T.J. Watt can’t play. He was admitted to the hospital after having discomfort in practice and has a lung issue. Bad news for the Dolphins is that was yesterday (Thursday) and the game is Monday Night, so Watt still has time to get right. The Steelers defense even with T.J. Watt have been allowing more points than the Dolphins D at a sliver under 24.0 PPG, good for 19th in the NFL. The Dolphins are currently at 15th allowing a shade under 23 PPG. Steelers are #21 in rushing yards allowed, and #28 in passing yards allowed.The Steelers are 6th in sacks though with 36. The Dolphins are #10 in passing yards allowed and #24 in rushing yards allowed.
I’m really curious to see what this Miami Dolphins team can do. Again, the Steelers are not a top NFL team, but they’re not a bad team either, and we’ve been playing some bad competition lately with the Jayden Daniels-less Commanders, the Tyler Shough led Saints and then the Brady Cook led Jets (After the early departure of QB Tyrod Taylor). So you can see we caught a break in some of those games, although somehow Saints QB Tyler Shough managed to easily out play our QB Tua Tagovailoa, but we still got the dub. It’s going to be a cold game for sure, a night game in Pittsburgh in mid December is a guarantee for low temps, and Monday night is expected to be around 15 degrees and cloudy, but no precipitation is expected at the moment. Historically this team would wither like a flower in the winter would, but this iteration of Mike McDaniels offense can play in this type of weather.
The story for the Dolphins is how much abuse can RB De’Von Achane take with an rib injury (not a broken rib, just sore)? Jaylen Wright had a breakout game last week against the Jets, but the Steelers are atop the AFC North division and would very much like to stay there, so they won’t roll over like the Jets did last week. There has been talk about potentially letting long term HC Mike Tomlin go, or maybe Tomlin wants a change of scenery, but either way, he doesn’t want to lose a game like this in his house. Will they sell out to stop the run and make QB Tua Tagovailoa beat them? You’d have to think that’s in the cards, and then the question will be can Qb Tua Tagovailoa turn the switch back on? It’s been on OFF the last 4 games, throwing no more than 23 passes in all 4, while also not topping 175 yards in ANY of the 4 games.
RB De’Von Achane has been one of the best RB’s in the NFL. He leads the NFL with 12 rushes of 20+ yards, and is 4th overall. If you watch the games, he’s the most important player on our offense, he makes it go. Jaylen Wright is not the same type of player. Achane has amazing quickness and vision and zero hesitation. He sees the hole and is through it in a blink. While he’s not a physical runner, he’s very elusive with excellent body control and rarely takes dead on hits. He has an uncanny ability to not get leveled. Any time he touches the ball in the pass game, even if it’s behind the LOS as it is many times, and even if defenders see it, he still manages to get positive yardage, and he’s a dangerous receiver a few yards past the LOS as well. No other RB on our team can duplicate what he does, in fact not may RB’s across the NFL can. He’s in Bijan Robinson, Jahmyr Gibbs, James Cook, even Jonathan Taylor territory. We’re going to need a healthy Achane to win this one.
Back to my curiosity for this game. Let’s assume the Steelers sell out against the run, and let’s also assume that Steelers LB T.J. Watt is playing. Can the Dolphins rely on QB Tua Tagovailoa to win this game when both big games and cold games have been his ruination? It’s fascinating to me, it really is. If Achane is anywhere near 100%, I don’t think the Steelers can shut him down entirely and force us to pass more, I think Mike McDaniel can find a way to get Achane some room, whether it’s a 6th OL, or motion or fakes, Mike knows who gets the offense going. On the other hand, I’m interested to see if Jaylen Wright can put together another successful day. I doubt he gets 24 carries like he did against the Jets, but hopefully it’s not one carry and then off the field. Will RB Ollie Gordon be able to play his physical style and get some action. All questions that will be answered in 3 days time, so buckle up!
GO DOLPHINS!!!
Finsmob Unleashed 
Thanks MikeE! I can see a run heavy/short quick pass game. I don’t we see many passes of 20+ from Tua. I believe it’s not just supposed to be cold but windy also. The wind will also affect the kicking game. It will come down to capitalizing in the red zone. If you have Waddle in FF, I would sit him. I can vision most passing targets to Waller/Dulcich over the WR’s.
Thanks Mike – I agree with the Waddle situation, thankfully I have a BYE this week, although Bijan Robinson had a great night for me last night.
Thanks for the content MikeE!
My pleasure Randy!
BBM,
Now that they are putting helium in the FG footballs, they tend to float more. Harder to control the trajectory in the wind with a lighter ball.
That’s true, I forgot about that.
“I’m really curious to see what this Miami Dolphins team can do.”
I feel pretty much the same way, Mike. I am curious to see how we come out to play on Monday against a team fighting for their division and the playoffs.
In the past few years this is exactly the kind of game we get blown out in. December football, cold, a hard nosed team. Can we put together a good performance?
This is “Must Watch TV” if you’re a fan of this team. It truly is extremely interesting to us fans who have watched this team collapse in games just like this, although despite the fact that Pittsburgh is in first place in the North (King of the North?), they don’t look like a real playoff team. Regardless of that, everything else, the frigid weather, wind, and the “Big Game Hype” are all things that spelled doom for our team for as long as MM and Tua have been here. This will be a trench warfare game , we’ll see if we’re up to the task. My best friend Scott is a Steelers fan and he doesn’t think Watt is playing, despite the fact that the hole in his lung has been fixed and he needs a lot of rest. He has 4 more days to rest since the game isn’t until Monday night, so I’d be willing to bet some fundage that Watt is going to play.
I agree, Pitt is a marginal playoff team IMO. I can’t remember the last time both the Steelers and the Ravens were in the position of also rans in the same year (assuming either or both make the playoffs).
Who here thinks T.J. Watt will play Monday night?
I am not sure. I think he will play, and I hope he plays so they play against the best possible Steeler team. Show me something! Beat down Aaaaaron.
I hope he plays because I don’t want us to catch another break, I want to play their best team possible so if we win, it’s a legit win. Losing Watt for the Steelers would be a big loss.
Nice write up Mike, as usual!
Thanks bud!
BBMike – Dolphins have signed TE Hayden Rucci to the PS
Cool, I like him as a blocker.
Last week’s win vs the Jets was Tua’s first win in sub 46 degree weather. It was 41 degrees.
Thank you, Mike E.!
Also, are you excited because we control our own destiny?
Quoting Jason Picks….
“At 6-7, the Dolphins believe it or not actually control their own destiny. If they somehow finish the season by beating Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Tampa, and New England, they’re in the postseason. However, finishing the season on an eight-game winning streak is an extremely hard task in this league of parity. Literally every game from here on out is a must-win.”
I think the schedule has been very kind to us so far. The team doesn’t have to make excuses for winning, but that doesn’t mean the wins mean much. This is another game this year, where I’m not sure beating this team means a whole lot. But, An away game, Late in the year, Against a decent team….it would certainly be a nice win.
I was past focusing on wins and losses about 2 months ago.
Some notable college players who have declared for the 2026 NFL Draft so far.
Arizona State – WR Jordyn Tyson
Boise State – OT Cage Casey
Clemson – DT Peter Woods, Edge TJ Parker, CB Aveon Terrell, WR Antonio Williams
Nebraska – RB Emmitt Johnson
South Carolina – Safety Jalon Kilgore, CB Brandon Cisse
Tennessee – CB Jermod McCoy, WR Chris Brazzell II
Texas – ILB Anthony Hill Jr
The NFL notified teams today that it will shorten the time between picks in the first round of the draft from 10 to 8 minutes starting with the 2026 draft in Pittsburgh.
That works for me, it’s too damn long, and if they’re trying to trade, they better have an idea what they want before they do it, and if they don’t get it done, so be it. They should definitely know who they want to draft by the time that pick gets there, even if players they wanted are gone.
^
CB Aveon Terrell, 5’11, 180, 4.39 projected 40, would be a good option if we were to trade down a little. Ten sites all have him as a first rounder, 3 ranking him close to where we are slotted. He’s one of the top tackling/run defending CB’s in the draft. In 2 seasons starting at Clemson, he has 90 solo tackles (125 total) with 9 TFL, 4 sacks and 8 forced fumbles. In coverage, he has 2 INT’s with 21 PD’s.
@AdamSchefter
Steelers standout TJ Watt underwent surgery Thursday to repair a partially collapsed lung suffered Wednesday, as JJ Watt reported. TJ Watt is expected to be discharged from the hospital today but he is unlikely to play Monday night versus the Dolphins.
When he doesn’t take the field, I’ll believe it. If we do somehow miss him though, I think it definitely lessens the victory (if we win) in my eyes. I would love to beat them “whole”.
Fuck! I just read he’s been ruled out to play.
Mike E,
Nice write. Me too… I’m very curious to see how this game goes on Monday night. I’m also happy you noticed my post yesterday about TJ Watt being nobody seemed to notice. Looks like he’s out for Monday night, but not guaranteed (unlikely).
Thanks M – Still a game, but man i would have liked to see Watt healthy to gauge where we are. We’ve caught a few breaks lately. Cousins playing his first game of the season, Jayden Daniels not playing for the Commanders, Justin Reid not playing for the Saints. It is what it is, all teams have injuries, but you get what I’m saying
Mike E,
You’re right. Coach Tomlin just ruled TJ out moments ago.
https://x.com/steelers/status/1999573209880924606
Mike E.
says:
December 12, 2025 at 3:17 pm
Thanks M – Still a game, but man i would have liked to see Watt healthy to gauge where we are. We’ve caught a few breaks lately. Cousins playing his first game of the season, Jayden Daniels not playing for the Commanders, Justin Reid not playing for the Saints. It is what it is, all teams have injuries, but you get what I’m saying
———–
Oh yeah, I totally get what you’re sayin’. It would have made for a great test of our newly improved (rushing) Offense as of late.
The other interesting component to Monday night? Minkah, Ramsey, and Jonnu face off against their old teams.
Minkah knows that Stealers* Offense very well… just as Ramsey and Jonnu know our Offense very well.
And the Defensive tendencies for each team as well.
Jack Frost is undefeated vs Tua.
I can tell you this, not for a fact of course because you never know, but I think if we beat the Steelers it will hardly be because of Tua. Not that it will prevent he Tua stans from losing their minds and proclaiming him King on Earth! lol
Lots of talk about the Bengals trading Joe Burrow. I’m not giving up tons of draft capital for Burrow. We already have a guy who can’t stay on the field. Granted, when he is on the field, he’s much better than Tua, but I’d rather take my chances in the draft and build a team the right way, no big trades.
Right there with ya, Mike E. Tua has played 4 more games than Burrow (regular season) in their careers. Availability is a must, and Burrow is less trustworthy than Tua to see the field… that’s alarming!
I wouldn’t say Burrow is MUCH better than Tua in terms of production: they are actually ‘fairly’ close statistically and Tua has a better starting record… even after the shit seasons Tua has managed to string together in ’24 and ’25 (minus his dink-n-dunk completion % in ’24).
However, YES… Burrow IS better than Tua and there’s no doubt about it… especially now that Tua is damaged goods. Burrow isn’t damaged goods (yet), while Tua clearly IS damaged goods at this point.
NOPE! I’m not trading for Burrow either.
Not gonna lie, I wanted Burrow bad in that draft , but didn’t see it happening and it didn’t … Burrow CAN put a team on his back and win a game by himself . TUa has not shown that he can .. having said that , unless it was a Tua for Burrow straight up deal , and both teams paid full salaries for their new qb , don’t think we could afford burrow salary , or pick/player exchange … Burrow has shitty little injuries, Tua has career threatening issues on an on going basis
Same here, Manitoba: I wanted Burrow badly in the ’20 Draft!
I can tell you (and it has been reported), we tried to trade up to nab him @ R1P1. The Bengals pretty much told us to F-off. We tried!
As of TODAY, I (and MOST!) believe Fernando Mendoza is the clear-cut #1 QB in the ’26 Draft. We have NO chance at drafting him, barring unforeseen or bizarre circumstances (see Laremy Tunsil’s ‘gas mask’, or the ’04 fiasco regarding Eli Manning). Why? The stej have the draft ammo and THEN some to take him if they want him.
After Mendoza? I’m not sure there’s a clear-cut #2 QB in the ’26 Draft… and most who would be considered the #2 QB are likely not declaring for the ’26 Draft.
BBM has been on this for some time, suggesting we draft a QB in the mid-rounds: I agree. Maybe we get lucky, but we probably don’t.
We may be contractually obligated to the damaged Tua through the ’26 season (fiscal OUT after the ’26 season, which is still bad), not able to draft the next great QB in ’26, and not able to bring in a FA QB who can make it happen for us in ’26.
The ’27 Draft is what we’re looking at, IMO, for our next STUD QB.
So… do ya keep Capri McD for ’26, hoping we suck again? Or do we find a new HC, and giving him the cordial mulligan for ’26? THAT’S where I’M at, if I’m Steve Ross.
If one is ‘playing the game’ (playing the long game), we want a very early selection in the ’27 Draft in order to nab our QB of the future. Of course, we don’t want to alienate FAs from coming through our doors after a horrific ’26 season.
We can always do things the RIGHT way… which is to trade up in the ’27 Draft by spending future draft picks (1st and 2nd rounders). BUT… we’d better have a damn good GM by then… that’s all I’ve got to say!
I recall back in ’07, we could have made Mike Tomlin our HC over Cam Cameron. We had chosen… poorly…
https://tenor.com/view/youhavechosen-indianajones-lastcrusade-chosen-choose-gif-14225991833513791175
We did choose poorly, but Tomlin has had great support from the Rooney family and also a great organization with a couple of really good GM’s. He wouldn’t have had that here in Miami
agreed
I believe he’s a product of their system and wouldn’t have had success in Miami
today he’d be a better Fins HC
Great point, both of you, Mike E and Steve. Tomlin probably would have flopped in Miami back in ’07 and thereafter.
playing in the cold you need to play complimentary football, we now do that
the D allows the O to run the ball, and our O allows the D some rest time
in years past our O would be off the field too quick score or punt, and the D couldn’t stop anyone making our O have to score each drive to keep up
it doesn’t make any sense that we control our own destiny, going to have to look it up
didn’t think so
Yes, the Miami Dolphins control their own wins, but they don’t fully control their playoff destiny because their poor early-season conference record (3-6) means they need major help from other teams losing, even if they win out to finish 10-7; they need several AFC contenders (Jaguars, Bills, Texans, Chargers, Colts) to collapse, needing at least two to fall significantly to snag a Wild Card spot, making their path mathematically improbable despite recent wins.
Thank you….it didn’t seem right to me either. They need to win out to be the “hunt” but still need help.
M13, yeah, it’s Mendoza and that’s it unless Simpson or Moore declare but they are not top 10 picks, IMO. There are a few I like in 3rd round.
^
I can’t believe how far Mateer has regressed. That’s a shame to me, man.
Mateer took way too many hits playing the way he does.
Spent some time watching tape, trying to figure out just WHEN Tua became damaged goods. I checked the tape vs his (career) stats.
I’m CERTAIN it’s when he received his hip injury last season against the 49ers. Even after his concussion in week two against the Bills (his run into Hamlin), he came back and was throwing 300-yard games, three weeks in a row from weeks 7 through 9.
He’s never come back from the latest hip injury. Can he come back from the hip injury? I doubt it.
Is it possible Tua can come back from his hip injuries? Sure… I suppose modern medicine, modern rehab, stem-cell treatments, etc, might be able to heal Tua.
However, I feel the odds are against him at this point. What’s more, he’s still one more hit away from becoming scrambled eggs. He’s damaged goods.
LOL, don’t ya just love how I debate MYSELF here?!! 😆
I think aloud! 😉
Here’s a scenario I could see happening when it comes to Joe Burrow. The Raiders.
Raiders currently are slotted to pick #2 overall. They are tied with the Giants and Titans at 2-11 who don’t need a QB.
Does the 74 year old Pete Carroll want to roll with a rookie in Mendoza? I don’t think so.
The Raiders trade the #2 overall pick to Cincy for Burrow. Adding Burrow and cutting Geno Smith will actually clear cap for the Raiders as Burrow will only cost the Raiders 25.2m in base salary. Geno Smith has no guaranteed money left on his contract. Raiders can cut Geno with zero dead cap clearing 26.5m. Not that it matters because the Raiders look to have about 112m in cap space to spend next year.
Cincy can then draft Mendoza. They may need to trade up to the #1 spot to ensure they get him ahead of the Jets or even Cleveland. Heck, by seasons end, the Raiders may have the #1 overall pick anyway.
Not to mention the NFL would love to have Burrow, Mahomes and Herbert dueling in the same conference.
M – You’re probably close to when it happened to Tua, but the “when” is not as important as the “result”. He’s pretty much done, whether he plays next season or not.
I think the biggest difference between Burrow and Tua is scoring. Burrow has 30 more TD passes with 4 less games. Burrow had over 30 TD’s twice (34, 35) and over 40 once (43). The TD:INT ratio is also much better. Plus, Burrow has 12 rushing TD’s, Tua has 6. So 36 more TD’s with 4 less games played. Burrow puts points on the board! Burrow really is a superstar, Tua, NOT!
sorry to burst your bubble Krishna, but whoever that dude is is wrong. The Dolphins do not control their own destiny They still need several teams to lose multiple games
although their odds have increased significantly from less than 1% to about 10%
Yeah, Dolphins don’t control shit.
lol…no bubbles bursting
I’m doing some ancient porcine rituals so that we can control our own destiny….
Does anyone know a chicken I can sacrifice?
🐓🚫
Tua plays like he is chicken…
basically we need
the 3rd one is the big issue
if either the chargers, bills or jaguars win this weekend, even if it’s their last win of the season, they will probably get in over us
none of the, are plying each other this weekend
so in theory, they can all lose and you know who to root against tomorrow
If we beat the Steelers and Ravens end up winning their division, we will have the head to head on the Steelers if we finish with the same record.
If Steelers win their division, we need Ravens and Chiefs to lose 1 more.
Then we need Texans AND the Colts to lose 3 more. Colts have the head to head advantage on us.
Good luck with that.
The last time Pittsburgh lost on Monday night at home was 1991.
They are 22 and oh on Monday night under Tomlin
All good things come to an end. lol
I just wish it were going to be a snow game.
@PFF_College
South Carolina QB LaNorris Sellers is bypassing the NFL Draft and returning to school for the 2026 season
As expected, and he’s not going to be the only one.
Smart move. I would actually put that as a plus for next year’s draft evaluation.
Agreed, Rich.
Mike E.
says:
December 13, 2025 at 6:42 am
I think the biggest difference between Burrow and Tua is scoring. Burrow has 30 more TD passes with 4 less games. Burrow had over 30 TD’s twice (34, 35) and over 40 once (43). The TD:INT ratio is also much better. Plus, Burrow has 12 rushing TD’s, Tua has 6. So 36 more TD’s with 4 less games played…
———-
I couldn’t have said it better, Mike E. Passing TDs are something Tua has had much trouble with over his NFL career.
You may have remembered me saying before this season even began, to watch Tua lead the NFL in passing TDs this year: that’s his final frontier after having led the NFL in completion %, passer rating, and passing yardage in a single season.
WELP! Damaged Tua isn’t going to lead the NFL in TD passes this season… and probably never now.
I recall seeing a stat from last year… that the majority of Tua’s TD passes have come from outside of the redone (run and catch, long TDs). I cannot verify if it’s true (I’m NOT going to subscribe to StatHead… too many other subscriptions!), but I wouldn’t doubt it.
At any rate, I’ve ALWAYS stated that I’d like to see Tua’s passing TDs go up, even when he was kicking ass out there when healthy.
Part of the problem? After DeVante Parker and Mike Gesicki were gone, we’ve had little to no redzone targets… just diminutive, burner receivers. The other part? Perhaps Tua just isn’t an elite redzone QB. I dunno, and it really doesn’t matter anymore at this point.
There was one season where we had the best RedZone offense IIRC. It might have been the first MM season.
but the caveat was we didn’t make it to the redzone much. We stalled too much between the 20s.
Our redzone Offense was #1 when Raheem Mostert led the NFL in rushing TDs (18) in ’23, if I’m not mistaken. It wasn’t on account of Tua being great in the redzone.
And no, I’m not suggesting that YOU suggested that it was due to Tua! I got ya.
CONGRATS TO FERNANDO MENDOZA!
@CollinRugg
JUST IN: Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza honors his mother during his speech after winning the Heisman Trophy. Mendoza’s mother suffers from Multiple Sclerosis (MS). “Mom, this is your trophy as much as it is mine. You’ve always been my biggest fan … Your sacrifices, courage, love…” “Those have been my first playbook and the playbook that I’m gonna carry by my side, through my entire life…”
Tua was damaged goods before he went to Alabama. His father destroyed his mind and made him throw with a hand he wasn’t naturally born to throw with. Then gets injury prone at Alabama and gets thrown into the fire with a coach that hated him in the NFL.
Now he’s got a coach that grew up without a father coaching a player who grew up with an abusive overbearing one, so the relationship is automatically askew. There are lots of reasons I didn’t want to draft him, but tried to support him. We had a chance to get away from him properly, but Grier gave him that awful new contract.
^
they always talk about conference record for playoff tiebreaker
control their own wins, but they don’t fully control their playoff destiny because their poor early-season conference record (3-6)
early season, late season conf record, that’s too complicated
all you have to do is look at out of conf loses and that tells it all, there’s 5 other conf games now, we lost to Carolina, won 3 and still have to play TB, but if we lose to TB we’re out anyways, so if a tiebreaker matters to us at 10-7 we’ll only have 1 out of conf loss, meaning we aren’t winning any tiebreaker
Steelers would be the only one we could win, because of head to head
1509 yards from scrimmage, Achane closing in on 2k
I must be a freak because it is -2 here right now with a foot of snow and I am elated.
Keep that cold and snow in your state! I don’t want it over here! LOL 😉
BBM loves some snow but not the -2 temps (not counting wind chill). Mainly, I miss going skiing, both down hill and CC.
Also, miss ice fishing. My cousin up in Indiana has been going the last 2 weeks.
Also miss drag racing snowmobiles across the lake.
M13, Tua won his first game in the cold last week against the Jets
It was 41 degrees. Not necessarily cold but chilly. It was his first win in temps under 46 degrees though.
yes, that cold weather stat is typically 45 degrees and under
its Tua cold, but not real cold and he didn’t have to win it, the jets are a mess
in years when we sucked anyways team could go to Miami in Sept and win
the jets game doesn’t count😜
now, if he wins in Pitt, that’s another story, he’ll have to do something to win
South Carolina QB LaNorris Sellers is bypassing the NFL Draft and returning to school for the 2026 season
———–
He should hit the transfer portal. Not for the NIL money, if he is smart, do it and go some where he can get better coaching.
Congrats to Mendoza! Though the Heisman competition was not that strong this year. I think he would still have won though. Congrats to Diego Pavia for finishing second. Dudes got game. I just wish he were not only 6’0, if he is really that tall.
changing someone’s height changes how they play
at 6’3″ I dominated smaller guys, but once I played BB against guys my size or taller I had to relearn the game
yep
something in our favor is Pitt coming off of a must win vs Baltimore, just like Buffalo against KC, we may not get their best effort
I think we get nothing but their best effort. Their division is too close, especially if the Ravens beat the Bengals today.
It’s kind of funny to me to say Tua won anything at this point. He had as much to do with that win as P Jake Bailey
agreed
and Bailey had a punt 6😜
I’m stoked to watch this game tomorrow. Too bad it’s tomorrow and not tonight. We got some snow in the NE, got about 5″ right now and it’s still coming. Too bad it happened today and not tomorrow.
Julian Neal might be a decent CB option on day 3. Though he is much like Jason Marshall we already have. He’s big 6’2, 200 but lacks top end speed. He is ranked high in tackling and run defense. Those rankings are higher than his coverage grades which are just in the good range.
I’m not suggesting Tua makes it into the ring of honor.
if he threw for 300 and three TDS and lost, the cold weather stat would be thrown around everywhere.
yes, he was mediocre, but he was the starting QB. Can’t bash everything he does .
If he did that in a cold weather loss, I would think differently about him in cold weather.
I just wonder how his hip will hold up in colder weather. The ground is harder and everything hurts more in cold weather.
I like don’t like bashing him. It just happens during games sometimes. lol
It’s a shame his body is failing him. He has or had the talent.
Oh, I criticize him as well, but he should get credit where it’s deserved.
Lastly, I have put quite a few of his big game losses on MM more so than him. The bad play calling and getting the plays in with little or no time for him to get a pre read on the defense and forget about having time to call an audible.
41° is flip-flop and shorts Weather.
Bad play calling doesn’t dismiss the awful job Tua has done personally. Good players make bad calls work.
Tua has looked like he’s just going thru the motions all season. Time for him to go play with his kids in the back yard. Take your millions and run, so you might actually be able to run in 15 years when the body catches up….but you’re still a relatively young man.
Tua has looked like he’s just going thru the motions all season.
———–
100% agree. I was referring to previous seasons under MM.
Drake Maye is the real deal. It’s insane that the Patriots are this good again si soon after Brady left.
It does suck and they got a really good HC.
the Bills are really bad at run defense
patriots are on their way to 200 yards on the ground
I don’t understand why every team they play doesn’t just run the ball over and over again
Maye looks like he doesn’t even have to throw the ball much
Bri – The directive is clear and it’s not to allow Tua to lose the game by being careless with the football. You have to see that, because it’s clear as day. He’s never been a playmaker on his own, so now his game that was limited to begin with is even more limited. That’s part of the reason why I’m so interested in tomorrow night’s game. If the Steelers sell out to stop the run and make Tua beat them, can he do it? Now to be fair, the Steelers have been awful against the run all season, so it will be surprising if we don’t have success on the ground, at least a moderate amount of success. Still, there may come a point in the game where we might need Tua to step, and I’m curious to see if he’s up to the task.
I also want to see if our defense that has been playing very well the last few games stays at that high level, or does the big game expose them with a veteran QB who’s seen it all, and a Head Coach who has as well, and doesn’t lose on MNF. Must watch TV if you’re a football fan, and especially so if you’re a Dolphins or Steelers fan. Hope it’s a great game!
The Patriots quick turnaround just makes me that much madder at our inept organization’s continual cycle of buffoonery.
Exactly Kong! It’s also why I really don’t want to waste another season with MM and Tua and Champ Bailey as GM. Finish the job, clean the house, and find a good executive with a scouting background to rebuild this team. Why fall behind one more year?
I honestly don’t know anymore. Whatever happens, whatever choice we make, it’ll be the wrong one- sigh.
What a bizarre stat. The Pets have given up fewer redzone opportunities than any other team in the league, but when a team gets into the redzone against them, they give up more TDs than any other team.
This means their defense is really good between the 20s. Considering all the advantages offenses have and as a result the way defenses are built that is so odd.
That is odd. Buffalo coming back in this game now. Offense woke up, and now the defense did too. Should be fun!
Yep, and they are driving again.
The Patriots quick turnaround just makes me that much madder at our inept organization’s continual cycle of buffoonery.
I was just saying that. I’m so envious!
Add to that, I was visiting my mom earlier today, she’s in a nursing home now, fairly well along with dementia but she still knows us etc. She asked me what day it was, after telling her Sunday she asked if the Dolphins were playing. I told her no, season is pretty much over anyway because we suck! 😂 So she then asks, is it the players or coaches? Answer- Both! Can’t they get rid of them and get better ones? Answer- apparently not 🤦🏼♀️
Tough call against the Pats there. Receiver turns to catch the short throw, defender is step for step with the receiver. I don’t agree with the pass interference there
Great game in New England! Bills up 27-24.
Sorry, 28-24
Holy shit! Patriots TD, Henderson with a huge TD run! WOW!
I hope our game is this good
Another bullshit pass interference call that goes against the Pats
Heavyweight Championship Fight in NE. Bills back on top 35-31. What a great game with the season on the line for the Bills, and the Pats at home trying to close out a division rival to take the division. I just love how both teams are competing. Yearn to be one of those teams . . .😒
Drake Maye is an epic 13/20 with 1 interception even though the patriots have rushed for nearly 250 yards.
he barely had to do a thing and looks like he blew it
He still has a chance to win it though.
You forgot that Maye has 2 rushing TD’s though, pretty big omission Pigster
who cares about QBs sneaks.
just watched the first of hopefully many more chokes by Drake Maye
I was pulling for the Pats. I fucking hate the Bills
me too. We also needed it. They choked
Bills have been in these games so many times. Bills have a huge edge in that department. I’m not counting the Patriots out at all, or Drake Maye
Who cares about QB sneaks? Obviously not the Dolphins!!! 😂
KC is out
if Hou beats LV next week we may be eliminated
not sure about tie breakers with Bills, don’t see them losing all 3
Bills play Clev, Phillips, nyj
so basically we’ve been eliminated
If Houston wins any more games, we are eliminated.
Chargers, Bills and Texans win. Chargers and Bills can lose their last 3 games and it won’t help Miami.
Miami’s only hope is the Texans have to lose their last 3 games and Colts lose 3 of 4.
At least the Chiefs got eliminated before the Dolphins, even if it ends up being only by one day. lol
6-11 would be nice for draft position
Another interesting aspect of the new kickoff rules I just saw in the Packer/ Broncos game.
After a TD, if the defending team has a 15 yard penalty on the PAT that is enforced on the kickoff, the kicking team can just kick the ball out of bounds and the receiving team gets the ball at the 25 instead of the 40.
yes, 25 yards from kickoff spot, saw it again last week
Patriots have won 2 games against teams with a winning record. Take out Buffalo, and the teams they’ve played have a combined 51-112 record. They’ve had one of the easiest schedules in NFL history. I loved watching them implode today. Most hated team outside of the Jets.
I had a huge discussion with another Dolphins fan on “X” about this. I don’t hate the Patriots, I don’t belittle them. They turned their shit around! This guy was making fun of Drake Maye and the Patriots and even after today’s tough loss they’re 11-3. They’re going to win the division. I’m more angry with our shitty team for never getting it right, and BTW, we played basically the same damn schedule, and we’re at fucking 6-7, so what does that say? Everyone does what they want of course, everyone fans their own way, but making fun of the Bills and Patriots when we really suck, just makes me laugh.
I miss Mack Hollins.
I miss our team being relevant contenders.
Exactly
@jeffphowe
Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes has a torn ACL in his left knee, the team announced.
hit out of the pocket low, by old Fin Hand, cheap shot
next year they’ll have a rule for it
really don’t know why Hand would hit him from the back and to the side like that, it served no purpose other than to injure and it did
It was not a cheap shot, not sure what you saw.
@schadjoe
Tough day for Miami Dolphins Bills win Texans win Chargers win Ravens win Jaguars win *Colts lose If Dolphins win out to finish 10-7, they now have 2 percent chance to make the playoffs NY Times/Athletic predictor
well at least the colts lost
I was afraid I would have to sacrifice an ox next week
Dolphins just need to go out and play a great game in Pittsburgh and block everything else out. Do what you need to do.
and hopefully lose
play great, but lose, there’s really no point in winning any more games, we’ve seen improvement from just about everyone, sans Tua
Just be competitive is all I ask
at 6-11 we’ll still only make it to about the 10th pick, bad year all around
meaning lots of shitty teams taking the top spots, and as a result the top teams have a lot of wins
shitty teams taking top drafting spots
never new this scam, r and n together rn look like an m
watch out for URL scams
We lost to the Panthers in week 5 by 3 points: we had 19 (NINETEEN) total yards rushing in that game on 14 attempts… INEXCUSABLE.
We lost to the Chargers in week 6 by 2 points: Riley Patterson missed a FG in that game, but he wasn’t the reason we lost (plenty of blame to go around).
We were literally 5 points away from being 8-6 right now, instead of 6-7.
We kept it within 6 points in our week 2 loss against the Patsies* (33-27), and we had no business getting blown out by the Brownies 31-6 in week 7… PATHETIC.
So for those keeping score at home, we lost three 1-score games by a total of 11 points against playoff potential teams, and got blown out by the shitty Brownies by 25 points.
Stupid mistakes, uninspired play, horrible play-calling, clock mismanagement, untimely timeouts, and lack of vision in the first half of our season… some of which has carried over to the second half of our season.
We either start off hot and fold late, or start out cold and catch fire late. There has been NO CONSISTENCY over the last 2+ decades of Miami Dolphins football, barring Cam Cameron’s 1-15 season in ’07… where we consistently sucked.
So once again, we’re mired in mediocrity… too good to get a really solid Draft pick, and too bad to even make the playoffs. And even WHEN a get a rare Wildcard berth, we’re one and done.
I’m so very, very frustrated with our beloved Phins, y’all.
Every team that doesn’t make the playoffs goes through this exercise. Just win 12 or 13 games and it doesn’t matter. Tired of the if/but excuse.
We’re way past if/buts. We started awful, and it took MM half the season to realize that he needed to keep Tua away from the football to win. It also took an injury to Axhane to finally give Jaylen Wright a decent workload. Haven’t we seen wnough of all of this?
Mike E.
says:
December 14, 2025 at 7:06 pm
I miss our team being relevant contenders.
_____
You should be used to it by now. We haven’t been truly relevant since Jake Scott roamed the field.
I will never make excuses for MM, but is it possible he never wanted Hill, and obtaining him put pressure on MM to utilize him? MM came from the SF offensive system, there is no Hill type player. Now Hill and Grier are gone , and now the offense flourishes behind a strong running game? Just throwing it out there.
we should go after Mac Jones, wanted him this year
Bridge QB
He signed a 2 year contract with SF this year. I doubt they let him go. Mac Jones was the one I wanted us to sign as a backup. Grier shit the bed on that one.
SF signed Jones for 2 yrs 8m and Grier signs Zach Wilson for 1 year 6m. SMH
bookman11
says:
December 14, 2025 at 8:50 pm
Every team that doesn’t make the playoffs goes through this exercise. Just win 12 or 13 games and it doesn’t matter. Tired of the if/but excuse.
———
EXACTLY, Bookman! I’m so tired of the if/but excuses as well.
Why did we wait until we were 1-6 before making fundamental changes (ie: our running game)? Once again, we were a day late and a dollar short.
steveccnv
says:
December 14, 2025 at 9:38 pm
Bridge QB
———-
We bought a Bridge (that went to nowhere) QB named “two gloves” a few seasons ago…
*rotten tomatoes are being thrown at M13 right now* LOL
On the serious tip,
Capri McD’s Offensive system is VERY styled to a QB who can read quickly, get rid of the ball quickly, and rely on YAC from receivers.
I’m not sure I see a vet bridge QB who can do as much. I mean, the system is very, very specific about what the QB must do.
With so much speed on our Offense, it would be nice to get a QB who possesses a deep-ball with accuracy like Tua had in ’22 and ’23.
I just don’t know if a vet can be ‘re-trained’ into a system such as Capri McD’s. One almost has to be trained into it.
We’ve seen the failures of several other vet QBs we’ve signed over the last several seasons, and list continues to grow.
I didn’t realize Mahomes tore his ACL until I saw M post it. As much as I dislike the Chiefs, I feel bad for him. I wonder if his knee was already injured a bit and he was playing through it. When he scored the TD earlier in the game he got up and had a slight limp coming off the field.
Shouldn’t the Vikings had gone for 2 after that TD? They were up 7 with the TD. Going for 2 you make it a 2 score game. They kicked giving them an 8 point lead and still a 1 score game. You don’t convert on the 2pt conversion, you are still up 7.
I was just talking to this repo guy who has his lot and office next to our office. He just got back with a car he picked up. He said the ordeal took almost 4 hours. The car was parked along the road. He was hooking the car up when the guy came out of his house with a gun and argued with the repo guy and threatened him. He called the cops while hiding behind his tow truck. The dude then fired 2 shots into the car he had hooked up and went back into the house. Police dispatch heard the gun shots and 9 police cruisers showed up. Said the dude finally came out of the house unarmed. He’s getting booked in now with 5 charges totaling 100K.
The guy should have kept up with his car payments because now he will have to pay 10K just to get bonded out.
I’m not sure I see a vet bridge QB who can do as much. I mean, the system is very, very specific about what the QB must do.
———
M, I am not so worried about the system and would not worry about bringing in a vet to be a bridge QB. Besides, the free agent market for QB is not very good. Just about the same old guys who are there every year.
Tua will be the bridge QB next year. Draft one and sign another UDFA QB to compete with Ewers. Best one wins the QB2 spot.
With the Chiefs loss, the Dolphins dropped to the 13th overall pick. If the Dolphins win, they could drop 2-3 more spots depending on how it changes our SOS. I don’t think it would change that much so a win would probably just drop us to #14.
A loss, for the same SOS reasons, would move us back up to #11.
Michah Parsons looks to have torn his ACL also.
Dang! Director Rob Reiner and wife Michele stabbed to death in Los Angeles home.
That’s terrible. I didn’t agree with any of his political beliefs but that’s just awful.
Same
I see Diego Pavia is being kind of a bitch about finishing second in the Heisman voting. He posted “F- all the voters”. “Well, the Heisman Trophy winner goes to the best player in college football,” Pavia said during a recent taping of Hot Mic w/ Hutton & Withrow.” “I believe that to be myself, you check the numbers and especially — there’s two things that don’t lie to you: Numbers and tape. I’ve been taught that since I was young, you go check that out. I feel like I’m undoubtedly the best player in college football.”
The numbers:
Mendoza – 2980 yards, 71.5%, 33 TD’s, 6 INT’s, 240 rush yards, 6 TD’s, zero fumbles lost.
Pavia – 3192 yards, 71.2%, 27 TD’s, 8 INT’s, 826 rush yards, 9 TD’s, 2 fumbles lost.
Mendoza played 5 less quarters of football than Pavia due to blowout wins.
Mendoza beat #1/12-0 Ohio State and #3 Oregon in Oregon. Both of OSU’s and Oregon’s only loss was to Mendoza/Indiana.
Pavia best wins were vs 8-4 Tennessee, 8-4 Missouri and 7-5 LSU.
Dolphins practicing in Pittsburgh last night
https://x.com/KDPomp/status/2000276848442314907?s=20
Looks fun!!
Mike E,
It’s no different than when had the best offense in the NFL but couldn’t beat good teams. The Patriots have beaten one winning team this year. That’s it. If you think that’s an amazing accomplishment, then you do you.
If they win division, yes, that will be an accomplishment, and if they get the #1 seed, yes, that will be a great accomplishment. Like I said, we basically had the same schedule, who’s had the better season? You can also see a clear designation line of a team on the rise with the Patriots, what are we? That’s what makes me laugh. Dolphins fans throwing stones living in a paper house.
Let’s see how they look against the Ravens who also aren’t a winning team this year…yet. They are at least normally a good team. If you look at what Denver has accomplished compared to the Pats, it’s night and day.
Of course, the Pats are on the rise. Good young QB and good coach. We have neither. That doesn’t make what they’ve accomplished as an awesome thing. Beating bad teams isn’t amazing. That’s some low standards.
Ok, think of it this way. In ’23, the peak of Tua and MM, how did we look at the end of the season? Were we competitive with the Ravens? Did we give the Chiefs the slightest bit of friction? The Patriots were in that game the whole way, but you and I both know that when Josh Allen gets going in a big game, he’s hard to stop. I never said what they’ve done is amazing, but 11-3, and if they win 2 of the next 3, they could have 14 wins. I can’t remember the last time we had a 14 win season. This also really isn’t aimed at you, more to that Dolphins fan on “X” who was just constantly making light of what they’ve accomplished. They haven’t played anyone etc etc etc.
so what you’re saying Mike is, when we crushed the crappy teams, but couldn’t beat the good teams we were posers in 2023, now NE has done the same thing, sans having good teams to beat at EOS is somehow different?
Yeah, I think the hype on NE is a bit too much. But, that’s the NFL.
What a shock….a little punk QB thinks he’s the best player in college. How about you go look at the tape and watch players who aren’t QBs ball out and NEVER get a shot at this trophy. Try not to be a selfish little bitch. You sound like Manzel.
Rock, my coworker who came in to takeover this morning brought it up. He made the same reference and called him Manzel 2.0.
He thinks he might be a target for the Cardinals in the second round. I am sure he will bitch about not getting drafted in the 1st.
Again, I really like the way he plays. Too bad he is only 6′, if that.
I meant Randy, lol
Still pumped for the game tonight! Hope it’s a great, well fought game!
Same here! I was just trying to figure out what I was going to make to eat during the game. lol
It’s cold, maybe chili.
BBM looking at the mid round projected WR’s, especially the bigger ones. Josh Cameron from Baylor is one of them. He caught my eye while checking out Baylor QB Sawyer Robertson. Cameron is like a big RB playing WR. He’s 6’1, 224 with sub 4.45 speed. Not a burner but not sure how fast he really is until the combine. He did hit 20.51 mph in a game. He’s a decent route runner and can be physical after the catch.