The Miami Dolphins finished the 2015 NFL season with a 6-10 record, good enough for last place in the AFC East. It was a season that did not live up to any of the preseason expectations and, ultimately, led a change to the entire coaching staff. The team hired Adam Gase, the former Chicago Bears and Denver Broncos offensive coordinator, to be their new head coach, spending free agency and the NFL Draft to find players that better fit the systems Gase and his coordinators will install with the team.
The changes to the coaching staff and players has optimism starting to creep back into Dolphins fans, who are rightfully slow to fully trust that the team is heading in the right direction. That optimism has not changed the odds that the Dolphins are going to finish the 2016 season in the same position as the 2015 season: last place in the AFC East.
Bovada.lv released updated odds for every team to win their respective division. For the AFC East, the odds look pretty much how last season looked:
Odds to Win the 2016-17 AFC East
New England Patriots - 5/11
Buffalo Bills - 21/4
New York Jets - 21/4
Miami Dolphins - 8/1
Sadly, it is hard to argue against these standings as of right now. The Patriots are still the class of the division, while the Bills appear to be getting better under Rex Ryan. The Jets are a question mark, given they still have not signed quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, but they should and will likely fight with the Bills for the runner-up position in the division. Miami has a chance to jump into that mix, but right now, there is just not enough known about how the 2016 Dolphins will come together.
Will the Dolphins beat the odds and win the division? Will they be in the middle of the pack when the season ends? Or, are they going to finish in last place in the first year of the Adam Gase regime?