The Miami Dolphins will resume play in Week 8 of the 2020 NFL season after defeating the New York Jets handily by a final score of 24-0 in Week 6. Miami can use this time to lick their wounds, get healthy, game plan heavily for the Los Angeles Rams and catch their breath as the rest of the league continues to churn towards the postseason.
And, unlike last year, Miami appears to be right in the thick of the conversation. And as the schedule continues to unfold in front of the Dolphins, it is clear that Miami is going to have the chance to make some noise down the stretch and may potentially be in position to play a 17th game this season. But if Miami is going to make the playoffs, they’re going to have to out-pace some of the competition. Who are the teams that loom as the biggest threats to Miami after the first six NFL Sundays of the season? Here’s the biggest threat by division:
AFC EAST
The New England Patriots
The Patriots currently sit in third place in the AFC East, a half a game behind the Dolphins at 2-3. But with a head to head win over Miami already in their ledger, the Patriots do have some leverage and a win next week at home against the San Francisco 49ers would push the Patriots back into a .500 tie (with a tiebreaker) over the Dolphins.
The good news? Miami plays the Patriots again and this time New England must come to Hard Rock Stadium. Also good news? New England still has to play the Bills twice and the Ravens this season.
AFC NORTH
The Cleveland Browns
Cleveland currently sits at 4-2 but has been dramatically outclassed by their division rivals in Pittsburgh and Baltimore this season. The Browns will have to play each one more time and also look to tackle the Tennessee Titans — three difficult games. But the Browns do have a fairly soft schedule and with one of the wildcard spots presumably locked into either Pittsburgh or Baltimore, it is going to get crowded. Miami does not play the Browns head to head, but the Browns do play another one of the contenders on this list: the AFC West representative. Fortunately, there’s an extra playoff spot to go around. That will keep Miami in the picture even if they don’t catch the Browns.
AFC SOUTH
The Indianapolis Colts
The Colts are looking good at 4-2. But three of their wins have come against the Jets, Vikings and Bengas: none of which are good football teams. And the Colts also dropped a Week 1 game against the same Jacksonville Jaguars squad that Miami shellacked by 18. The best news for Miami in the race against the Colts? The rest of the schedule for Indy is unforgiving. They must play the:
- Ravens
- Titans (Twice)
- Steelers
- Packers
- And the AFC West representative on this list…
AFC WEST
The Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders are 3-2 and have claimed impressive wins over both the Saints and Chiefs already this season. The Dolphins will get a chance to prove they deserve a spot over the Raiders in Week 16 when these two teams clash head to head; but the Raiders still have a rocky road ahead. They must play the Dolphins but also need to tackle the Chiefs again, the Colts, the Browns and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Plus not slip up the rest of the way.
