What It Will Take For The Dolphins To Win Sunday According To The Phinsider Faithful

Earlier This week I asked the question, what do the Miami Dolphins have to do to pull off the upset over the Buffalo Bills in the upcoming playoff game this coming Sunday? Many of the faithful from the site chimed in. Here are some of the opinions from our own site members.

dolphinfan4lyfe, despite the issues at quarterback and the fact that we are down to the third-stringer, believes a W or L hinges on our ability to throw the ball this week.

Normally I would say run the ball, run the ball, run the ball. But the truth is, this may be a time to pass the ball early and often. Their secondary is hurt, and no i am not talking about the safety, but they have 3 injured corners and another injured safety on the roster. Not to mention their best pass rusher in von miller is out.

Phincent believed that it all fell to Tua but if he doesn't play, which we all now know he will not then all may be lost.

Tua needs to play and needs to play within himself ie not press the ball and just take what the defense gives him. We need to run the ball efficiently and not go away from the run when it’s working. Defense needs to get off of the field on 3rd down especially 3rd and long. If Tua does not play all bets are off.

EJPLAYA upon hearing that Tua was out against the Bills seems to agree with Phincent on Tua playing being our chance in this game.

Just announced Tua will not play vs Bills. While disappointed and likely means we have no shot now, I’m glad they are taking care of his health. Like Phillips, with enough rest you can put the concussions behind you.

Phinsox has a more optimistic take on the game, assuming the team plays up to their potential I am guessing.

To beat Buffalo the Dolphins must finish drives and finish the game. They must run the football, minimize penalties, and have a solid fourth quarter. Despite all the criticism they have received and as bad as they may have looked at times, the worst they have done in the 8 games they lost is start the 4th quarter down 6 points and they only did that once. They have collapsed late, but in every game they either had the lead or had the ball with a chance to take the lead in the fourth quarter. I believe they will be in this game late, as they have been all year, I just hope they can finish strong and that they don’t miss early TD opportunities and settle for FGs to make things even more difficult.

Shula’sShadow believes the team just has too many issues at this point in the season to make an honest run at a win Sunday.

Hard to see any scenario where the Fins can win except for a complete whiteout and rain where limits the game to a 3-3 type score. Bills actually did us a favor and beat the Pats so at least we have one more week of Dolphins. So can’t complain.. Qb issues, secondary, offensive line, running back, tight end room bad anyways, and a defense that cant get off the field often......... so many issues and at the wrong time..... This Team needs the offseason badly to be honest.

Yarganaught believes the key to the game is to score early and often.

I think the most important thing is for Miami not to get down too early in the game. If they don’t score on each of their first 3 drives, they could find themselves down by 21pts when the 2nd quarter starts. No coming back from that with our injured Offense.

h-townchief seems to also think that the game hinges on Tua playing (or at least Skylar playing at a much higher level than last week) and even wonders about Tua’s future (as many of us are).

I’d love to see Waddle and Hill make big plays this weekend, but have a hard time seeing a lot of that happening without better QB play. Unfortunately, this isn’t Tua’s 2nd concussion this year. It’s his 3rd. Had the organization stepped in and shut him down after the initial one, for at least one game, he might have had the opportunity to keep playing through the year. The Dolphins would have at least 3 more wins, and be a strong contender for the SB. Now, I’m wondering if the NFL will lose a tremendous QB to early retirement.

edwinpena believes his late Christmas present will be a successful Dolphins run game this weekend.

Run Run Rudolph !!! Phins need to give a heavy dose of Wilson and Ahmed and give very manageable third downs to whomever QB is out there. Should’ve picked up Duke Johnson this week. I believe he is available somehow. Last year Pats and Belichick beat Buffs by running like 95% of the snaps, very few pass attempts by Mac Jones. This limited Josh Allen on the field and Pats won the game.

Bill Moody has a list!

1. Run the ball

2. Run the ball

3. Generate a pass rush

4. No stupid penalties

5. Make every kick

TheMiamiUte is another Phinsider faithful hoping for a good run game Sunday.

Run the ball early and often. Make the game shorter. Limit the amount of possessions that the Bills offense has. Hope that Allen has one of his multiple turnover games. Hold the Bills to FGs instead of TDs. Take advantage of all (or almost all) of your opportunities to score points. Avoid big plays on STs (Naheim Hines took two KOs to the house versus NE). Have Sanders be clutch like against the Jets. Do all of that and it’s Dolphins by five.

If you would like to join in on the conversations where we highlight some of our favorite comments (and even some that I don’t agree with) be sure to sign up for a Phinsider account. You can look for our Tuesday evening question of the day post (usually posted at 8:00 PM EST) and we will post the follow-up on Fridays during the season and Saturdays in the offseason.