SB Nation: Why the Miami Dolphins Will Make the Playoffs

SB Nation over the past few days has looked at every NFL team, projecting what it will take for that team to make the playoffs this year. For some of the teams, like the New England Patriots and th Pittsburgh Steelers, it's pretty straight forward. But, to project how the Miami Dolphins will make the playoffs, might take a little more....creativity.

Here's what Joel Thorman (who, by the way, is one of the Chiefs' blog's managing editors, who were are trying to catch with the Ryan Tannehill video below) had to say about the Dolphins' playoff hopes:

The Dolphins will make the playoffs on the heels of another big year from Reggie Bush, who finished with a career high 1,086 rushing yards last season. Matt Moore -- who was actually decent last year -- will make the Dolphins' decision on Ryan Tannehill very difficult as Moore will put up his best season.

While I agree with Thorman on the Dolphins needing another big year from Bush, I think there are two points that he missed. The firsy is the emphasis that a big year from Bush is not necessarily a big year rushing the ball. I beleive Bush will see his carries drop this season, but his total touches go up as he is worked more into the passing game.

The other strength that the Dolphins have that a lot of people are not seeing, as they focus too much on the No-Name Offense the team is trying to build in South Florida right now, is the defense. This defense should be able to carry the offense a little better than it did last year. Of course, if they are able to get off to any better of a start than they did last year, the defense should be able to carry the offense a LOT better than they did last year.

It will not be a popular choice among "experts" around the mass media (ahem, ESPN, ahem), but, if things go right for the Dolphins this year, they could surprise people by being in contention for the playoffs late in the year. And, Thorman is right - if Moore does have a strong year (or David Garrard if he gets the starting nod), a decision on when to start RT17 could become a difficult one.

[Editor's video note: Current standings for the Chiefs video versus our video: KC 4,600, MIA 2,400. We are doing great, but we have some work to do still. Thanks and keep it up!]