Record: 8-8 (3rd Place in AFC East)
Playoffs: Missed Playoffs
Head Coach: Joe Philbin
Notable Assistant Coaches: Bill Lazor (Offensive Coordinator), Kevin Coyle (Defensive Coordinator), Lou Anarumo (Defensive Backs), Jim Turner (Offensive Line)
Regular Season Overview
What an interesting year the Dolphins went through. On a year where fans should be looking forward to improvement from sophomore quarterback Ryan Tannehill and the offense, fans got to hear an earful of locker room issues that started with Jonathan Martin and Richie Incognito. But for this Season Review, I will stay away from such topics and focus on the on-field play from the Miami Dolphins.
Coming into the season there were high hopes for the Dolphins offense. Tannehill is prepping for year two, Mike Wallace was signed to a big deal to help create a deep threat, and Lamar Miller is the starting running back. As the season drug on it just got worse and worse for these players.
Tannehill had an average year and was statistically between the top 10 to 15 quarterbacks in the league. Miller was up and down for the first half of the season then was completely irrelevant in the second half. Wallace never played up to his full potential and dropped more passes than I could count. This offense was ranked in the bottom 10 for total offense this season.
Defensively this team was just as average as the offense which explains why this team ended with eight wins and eight losses. The defense sat right in the middle of the pack for most passing and rushing yards given up per game. Teams didn’t score a lot on this team but they didn’t have to because the offense wouldn’t put up that many to compete.
Biggest Win
The biggest win for this team would be in Week 15 when the Dolphins defeated division rivals the New England Patriots 24-20. At this point of the season the Dolphins were hoping to make a run for a Wild Card spot and this win brought them a little closer with an 8-6 record. Winning out the season would project them into the playoffs and it started here with this division win at home.
Statistically, the Patriots won this game but we all know games aren’t won on paper. The game came down to the final seconds and Tom Brady is driving down the field to get the game winning touchdown. On fourth down and two seconds left, Michael Thomas came through and intercepted Brady which ended the game.
Toughest Lost
Ironically the toughest loss came right after the Dolphins biggest win. Week 16 they played the Bills in Buffalo and lost 19-0. This loss pretty much eliminated the Dolphins from playoff contention and gave them no chance going into Week 17. Had they won this game, they would’ve controlled their own destiny and possibly made it to the playoffs.
The Bills defense completely shut down the Dolphins offense. A grand total of 103 yards were gained by the offense which also had two interceptions thrown by Ryan Tannehill. Six first downs were made and the Dolphins were two for fourteen on third down conversions. If that’s not a complete dominance by the defense, I don’t know what is.
Offensive MVP
The offensive MVP would have to go to wide receiver Brian Hartline. Although he only had four touchdown receptions this year, he was able to rack up over 1,000 yards receiving on 76 receptions. Hartline was one of the more consistent players on a weekly basis and outperformed their big sign of the offseason in Mike Wallace so Hartline gets the offensive MVP award. His biggest performance of the year came in Week 13 against the New York Jets where he had nine catches for 127 yards and a touchdown.
Defensive MVP
Unfortunately there was not a player on the Dolphins defense that makes you think of an MVP but if I had to choose, it would go to defensive end Olivier Vernon. He was able to rank in the top 10 in the NFL for sacks with 11.5. He also recorded 57 tackles. The best performance from Vernon this year was Week 13 against the New York Jets where he achieved 10 tackles and three sacks on Geno Smith.
Most Disappointing Player
There were several disappointing players on the Dolphins roster this season. The most disappointing in my book belongs to running back Lamar Miller. He was supposed to be the main guy in the backfield and produce some good runs for this offense. It seemed that way early in the season but as I stated earlier he just fizzled out and became a non factor for the second half of the season. Miller ended up with only two touchdowns all year and rushed just over 700 yards. As a starter he needs to produce a lot more and maybe we will see that next year.
Best Rookie
Believe it or not there was not a single rookie on the Dolphins that made any difference at all. I hate to do it but the best rookie will go to a kicker and that is Caleb Sturgis. He made 26 of his 34 attempted field goals and never missed an extra point. Sturgis’ longest field goal of the year was a 54 yarder that came in Week 2 against the Indianapolis Colts.
Statistical Leaders
Quarterback: Ryan Tannehill – 3,913 pass yards, 24 touchdowns, 60.4 completion percentage, 17 interceptions
Running Back: Lamar Miller – 709 rush yards, two touchdowns, 26 receptions, 170 receiving yards
Wide Receiver: Mike Wallace – 73 receptions, 930 receiving yards, five touchdowns
Wide Receiver: Brian Hartline – 76 receptions, 1,016 receiving yards, four touchdowns
Tight End: Charles Clay – 69 receptions, 759 receiving yards, six touchdowns
Tackles: Philip Wheeler – 118
Sacks: Olivier Vernon – 11.5
Interceptions: Brent Grimes – Four