The New England Patriots will officially have quarterback Tom Brady available for every game during the 2015 NFL campaign, so the Miami Dolphins must take advantage of a favorable early-season schedule in order to challenge the reigning AFC East champions.
While Brady was temporarily working under a four-game suspension, Ryan Tannehill and the Dolphins steadily climbed the standings in predictions—sometimes even reaching No. 1.
Tannehill, Lamar Miller, Jarvis Landry, Cameron Wake, Oliver Vernon, Brent Grimes and Reshad Jones highlighted an already-promising roster, but Miami upgraded multiple spots during the offseason. Plus, the team signed defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh and drafted wide receiver DeVante Parker.
“The Dolphins haven’t won the AFC East since 2008,” Bleacher Report’s Cian Fahey wrote in May. “As the Super Bowl winners last season, the New England Patriots will still feel like they are the favorites, but Tom Brady’s impending suspension and a roster that has lost some key pieces will offer the Dolphins reasons to be optimistic.”
However, now that Brady’s suspension has been overturned, Miami’s slowly-growing hopes of winning the division for the first time since 2008 have fallen slightly.
Fortunately for the Dolphins, though, their early-season slate could propel them to a convincing advantage over the Patriots.
Miami opens the year against the Washington football team, followed by the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Buffalo Bills before squaring off with the New York Jets in London. After a bye week, the Dolphins take on the Tennessee Titans and Houston Texans.
If that’s not a stretch that screams 6-0 or 5-1, what does?
Dolphins' respect growing nationally."This is the year of the Dolphins,I think in the AFC East,"Jon Gruden said when I asked him about Fins
— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) September 3, 2015
New England, on the other hand, challenges the Pittsburgh Steelers on the opening night of the 2015 season. After taking on Buffalo and Jacksonville, the Patriots enter a bye week before embarking on a two-game road trip that features the Dallas Cowboys and Indianapolis Colts. New England plays the Jets in Week 7.
There’s a realistic chance Brady and Co. bring a 3-3 record into the Week 8 matchup with the Dolphins.
If Miami enters that Thursday Night Football showdown sporting a 5-1 record while New England stumbles in at 3-3, a midweek upset in Foxboro would propel the Dolphins to a three-game lead.
At that point, Miami would control its own destiny in the AFC East, and the revamped roster could prove its worth over the final nine games of the season, which includes the same Cowboys and Colts teams. Should Joe Philbin’s squad pass that tough test, they’ll likely dethrone the six-time defending division champions.
That hope begins with a strong opening to the 2015 season, but the Dolphins’ early-season schedule offers that opportunity.