The Miami Dolphins are gearing up for a pivotal Week 5 contest against an unfamiliar opponent, the San Francisco 49ers. With opponents outside of the conference, football always becomes a bit more unpredictable. These teams and their players don’t quite know each other as well as they do against the teams that are competing for postseason positioning in the AFC or the NFC each and every season. With the dynamics of unfamiliarity at play, what will we see in Week 5 as the Dolphins square off against the San Francisco 49ers?
Here are some bold predictions.
Jesse Davis starts at left tackle
The Dolphins are embracing the gamesmanship of changing their left tackle amid the injury to Austin Jackson. Brian Flores was quick to reference every single offensive lineman on the roster who currently doesn’t hold a starting spot when asked about how the team will tackle the void at left tackle. But pushing Robert Hunt into the lineup is the most logical move — so look for incumbent right tackle Jesse Davis to kick to the left side to make room for Hunt to play next to Solomon Kindley.
Dolphins log a season high in rushing yards
Getting Hunt’s power into the lineup will probably help the Dolphins’ run game, believe it or not. Miami can fall in line behind Kindley and Hunt and should get plenty of push to that side when they’re committed to running the football. And, in order for Miami to keep San Francisco’s talented safeties and linebackers on their heels, Miami will need to keep the 49ers defense on their heels with play action and misdirection. That means more runs than we’ve seen in some of the other games this season so long as the game script doesn’t get away from the Dolphins.
Noah Igbinoghene plays his best game as a Dolphin
The root of this bold take? The presumed return of Byron Jones. If Jones is back, Igbinoghene can play the Dolphins’ preferred role for him — not the role that was meant for Jones. And after getting pressed into bigger action, the 2020 1st-round pick has been exposed to some baptism by fire and learned some hard lessons on the gridiron.
Applying those issues to a role more tailored to his current development should equate to some good football in Week 5.
DeVante Parker goes off for 150+ receiving yards
Parker logged 10 receptions for 110 yards against Seattle. Against San Francisco, Parker will face another secondary that has been decimated by injuries. No Richard Sherman is a big loss — but he’s only one of several losses that the 49ers have incurred in the secondary coming into this football game. Parker will presumably draw a lot of former 1st-round pick Jason Verrett in coverage, a matchup that should favor the Dolphins.
The team who has the ball last will win
Expect a close football game. A very close football game. The odds favor heavily the 49ers quite a bit and bettors should definitely be eager to take the Dolphins with the points. But who will ultimately win the game will ultimately come down to who has the ball last. Our final big bet is that a last minute score will serve the deciding difference between San Francisco and Miami.
Just don’t ask us who it will be.
