MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Mike McDaniel has a big week planned. There are some swing sets and playgrounds in his future for the next few days, since a bye week for the Miami Dolphins will afford him an opportunity to catch up on family time.
It just so happens the fun stuff is coming at a good moment for the Dolphins.
For the first time all year, the Dolphins are on a winning streak. A 16-13 overtime win over the Washington Commanders on Sunday in Madrid gave Miami back-to-back wins and pushed its record to 4-7 — far from optimal, yet a whole lot better than things looked at 1-6 and 2-7.
So, when McDaniel sees his team at work on Tuesday for the final time before a few days away, his message will be clear: Go reconnect with the family and get ready for the final six games that await.
“I think it’s important and I try to lead by example,” McDaniel said Monday. “So, I will be investing in family time so that I can have an excited daughter at games for the rest of the year.”
There might be some excited players at those games as well.
The Dolphins are still well out of playoff contention; they’re mathematically alive, sure, but remain an absolute long shot to find their way into the postseason. That said, three of their next four games are against teams that are currently either 2-8 (New Orleans and the New York Jets) or 3-7 (Cincinnati).
McDaniel said he doesn’t worry about momentum being sidetracked by the bye week.
“I think it’s a good time to get rest,” McDaniel said. “That’s the next thing that we have to win … an inward look at our game, see where we can minimize inefficiency, and then people doing the right things with their body and their mind so that we can hit the next stretch running.”
What’s working
The defense deserves high praise for its continued turnaround. Over the first seven weeks of the season, Miami allowed 29.3 points per game — ranking No. 29 in the 32-team league. In the four weeks since, Miami has allowed 16 points per game — ranking No. 3 in the league.
What needs help
Miami continues to struggle on third and fourth down. In their first six games, the Dolphins converted on 47.4% of third- and fourth-down chances. In the five games since, that number has plummeted to 29.9% — and the 26.8% percent success rate on third downs in that span is 31st in the NFL. Only Atlanta (17.5% in that span) has been worse.
Stock up
LB Jordyn Brooks had a 20-tackle game Sunday, the most by any player in the NFL this season. There have been three games of 18 or more tackles so far in this regular season; Brooks has two of them, and Las Vegas’ Elandon Roberts has the other.
Stock down
McDaniel exposed himself to a ton of second-guessing by not having the Dolphins kick what would have been a chip-shot field goal that could have given Miami the lead late in regulation; imagine carrying that into a bye week if the Commanders had won the game. That said, the decision was gutsy, as was the (ultimately correct) decision to take the ball second in overtime. Even the analytics types are split on what best practices are for the OT coin toss.
Injuries
It’s possible that Miami may get a few players back after the bye, including TE Darren Waller (pectoral), K Jason Sanders (hip), OT Austin Jackson (toe), CB Rasul Douglas (foot, ankle) and WR Dee Eskridge (shoulder). S Jordan Colbert (stinger) left Sunday’s game early, as did CB JuJu Brents. In Brents’ case, the injury — announced Sunday as an ankle problem — is evidently severe enough that the Dolphins aren’t optimistic about him returning this season.
Key number
21 — The Dolphins are 32-32, including playoffs, under McDaniel. They’re 27-4 when giving up 21 or fewer points (4-0 this season) and 5-28 when allowing more than 21 points (0-7 this season).
Next steps
After Sunday night’s eight-hour flight back to South Florida, the Dolphins are off this week before playing host to New Orleans on Nov. 30.