Dolphins fan confidence remains among league best in Week 14 SB Nation Reacts poll

The Miami Dolphins saw their five-game winning streak snapped last weekend as they visited the San Francisco 49ers, leaving the game on the wrong side of a 33-17 score. Dropping to 8-4 on the season, the Dolphins fell out of the lead in the AFC East and down to the sixth-seed position in the AFC playoff picture, but they are still in a good position to make the postseason this year. Now, they are preparing for the first of two-straight primetime appearances, a Sunday Night Football contest against the Los Angeles Chargers.

How are fans feeling about the Dolphins this season? After a loss in which quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, wide receiver Tyreek Hill, wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, and the rest of the offense just never seemed to settle into a rhythm, did the fan confidence in the direction of the team drop? Our latest SB Nation Reacts poll gives us an answer.

In Week 13, 98 percent of Dolphins fans responded they were confident the team is headed in the right direction. That was down from the 99 percent the previous two weeks. This week, we see another little dip as it dropped to 96 percent of the fans responding favorably about the Dolphins’ direction.

With the Dolphins hovering around the 96-99 percent mark right now, I wanted to take a look around the league to see how Miami matches up to the rest of the NFL. There are nine teams in the league with 90 percent or better fan confidence poll results. Miami is one of only four teams at 96 percent or better:

1. Philadelphia Eagles - 99%
2. Cincinnati Bengals - 98%
3. Detroit Lions - 98%
4. Miami Dolphins - 96%
5. New York Jets - 95%
6. Seattle Seahawks - 94%
7. Dallas Cowboys - 93%
8. Buffalo Bills - 91%
9. New York Giants - 90%

Of the nine teams, the Eagles and Bills are the only two teams that are currently leading their division. However, the NFC East, with the Eagles at the top, includes the Cowboys and Giants, while the AFC East, led by the Bills, also has Miami and the Jets giving six of the top nine spots to those two divisions. The Bengals are tied for the best record in the AFC North but are currently second due to tie breaks, while the Seahawks are second in the NFC West, a game behind the 49ers (12th in the fan confidence standings at 86 percent). The outlier of the group are the Lions, who are 5-7 on the season - though that is good enough for second in the NFC North right now. Detroit is favored over the Minnesota Vikings (10-2, 10th in the fan confidence at 87 percent) this weekend, despite Minnesota leading the division. Could the Lions continue to impress their fan base with a win over the Vikings this weekend?

To round out Miami’s AFC East fan confidence levels, the New England Patriots are 22nd in the rankings, with just 36 percent of their fans positive about the direction of the team.

Taking a look at the bottom of the league, the New Orleans Saints have the worst rating, with just two percent of their fans feeling positive about the direction of the team. The Arizona Cardinals have a three percent rating, while the Denver Broncos are at seven percent and the Chargers - Miami’s Week 14 opponent - have just eight percent of their fans confident in the team. The Indianapolis Colts are 28th with a 14 percent mark.

Miami is among the elite when it comes to fan confidence in the direction of the franchise. Will that continue into Week 15 and throughout the rest of the season? If you would like to join in our SB Nation Reacts polls each week, come back here on Tuesday when our Week 15 survey will be released.

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