Jets vs. Dolphins Week 9 and 15 team preview

The Miami Dolphins come off their bye week with their third AFC East division rivals on the schedule. Having already played the New England Patriots and Buffalo Bills this season, the Dolphins start the third of their home-and-home series with the New York Jets heading to South Florida. This Week 9 contest will mark the half-way point for the Dolphins through the season, with three road games and five home games played in their first eight contests, including the four game home stand that began in Week 5 and ends now with this game.

The second meeting with the Jets takes place at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey in Week 15, which will begin a three-week run to the end of the season, with all three games the second half of the AFC East schedule for Miami. The game will also be a Saturday night, nationally televised game, and the first of two straight Saturday games for the Dolphins.

We are working our way through the Dolphins’ 2016 schedule, posting team previews from each club as we go. Below, you will see Miami’s schedule, as well as links to the previews already completed and a link to the team’s SB Nation blog site.

(Note: We would recommend going ahead and joining the team sites for each of Miami’s 13 opponents this year if you are not already a member of their site. This will prevent you from running into any waiting period those sites may have established for membership, allowing you to join in pre-game discussions with their fans.)

Week 1 - @ Seattle Seahawks team preview - Field Gulls

Week 2 - @ New England Patriots team preview - Pats Pulpit

Week 3 - vs. Cleveland Browns team preview - Dawgs by Nature

Week 4 - @ Cincinnati Bengals team preview (TNF) - Cincy Jungle

Week 5 - vs. Tennessee Titans team preview - Music City Miracles

Week 6 - vs. Pittsburgh Steelers team preview - Behind the Steel Curtain

Week 7 - vs. Buffalo Bills team preview - Buffalo Rumblings

Week 8 - BYE

Week 9 - vs. New York Jets team preview - Gang Green Nation

Week 10 - @ San Diego Chargers team preview - Bolts from the Blue

Week 11 - @ Los Angeles Rams team preview - Turf Show Times

Week 12 - vs. San Francisco 49ers team preview - Niners Nation

Week 13 - @ Baltimore Ravens team preview - Baltimore Beatdown

Week 14 - vs. Arizona Cardinals team preview - Revenge of the Birds

Week 15 - @ New York Jets team preview (Saturday) - Gang Green Nation

Week 16 - @ Buffalo Bills team preview (Saturday) - Buffalo Rumblings

Week 17 - vs. New England Patriots team preview - Pats Pulpit

On to Weeks 9 and 15. Thank you to the Gang Green Nation crew for taking the time to preview the Jets for us.

New York Jets

Notable free agent additions: Matt Forte, Khiry Robinson, Steve McLendon

Notable free agent departures: Chris Ivory, Damon Harrison, DeMario Davis

Trades: Jets acquired Ryan Clady from Denver for a late round pick.

Draft picks expected to contribute as rookies:

Darron Lee: The first round pick is expected to begin the season playing situationally on passing downs. Can he eventually take Erin Henderson’s starting job and show enough to be a three down linebacker? That is the question.

Jarvis Jenkins: The third round pick plays a position, outside linebacker, where the Jets do not have a single player with a proven track record in the NFL. He has a real chance to win a camp competition and begin his rookie season as a starter.

Biggest offseason addition:

Matt Forte is the most significant addition. The Jets offense took off in November as Bilal Powell emerged as the third option in the passing game. The Jets re-signed Powell to continue contributing out of the backfield, but they also added one of the most decorated pass catching backs in the league today.

Biggest storyline heading into training camp:

Who is the quarterback? After a career year, Ryan Fitzpatrick is still unsigned. There doesn’t seem to be interest outside of New York in his services, but he still isn’t happy with what the Jets are offering. Team management is on record saying the deadline for any deal is the start of training camp. Will something get done?

Under-the-radar storyline heading into training camp:

Can Marcus Williams adjust to a bigger role? The third year cornerback impressed last season in his role as number four on the depth chart with six interceptions. There is a big leap in responsibilities between the fourth spot and the third spot in Todd Bowles’ defense, however. The number three corner is essentially a starter. Can Williams become more than a role player in this league? It will have a big impact on the team’s success.

Notable injuries heading into training camp:

Muhammad Wilkerson is recovering from a broken leg suffered in the season finale against Buffalo. Darrelle Revis is recovering from a wrist injury he apparently played through last season. Clady is coming off a torn ACL.