Packers Look To Out Swim The Dolphins
The Packers look to get back on the winning track after two straight losses when they face the Miami Dolphins at Lambeau Field on Sunday at 3:25 pm Central Time. (Note: This was originally slated for a Noon start, but it got flexed back.)
The Packers are 3-4-1 after their loss to the New England Patriots last Sunday at Gillette Stadium. Meanwhile, the Dolphins are 5-4 after they defeated the New York Jets 13-6.
Knee brace or not, Aaron Rodgers is still out there battling. He knows he isn’t playing the way he is capable of right now. In order for them to make the playoffs, he needs to be better.
Aaron Jones was having a nice game at New England until that critical fumble. He has the potential to be a great running back, and hopefully he learns from this moment and doesn’t let it ruin a promising career.
Geronimo Allison is probably out for the remainder of the season. It’s a tough loss, but it gives more playing time to Marquez Valdes-Scantling. This Miami team is not good against the run or the pass, so the Packers need to get their offense going and score touchdowns when they get inside Miami territory.
Despite the low rankings on defense, Miami is getting takeaways. They lead the league with 15 interceptions and have a +5 turnover ratio. Ball security, especially in key moments of the game, is extremely important.
Brock Osweiler gets the start for Miami. Frank Gore is in his 14th season in the league, but he is still producing and he is still more than capable of having a 100-yard rushing day. Danny Amendola leads the team in receptions, but Albert Wilson and Kenny Stills are the deep threats. Like the defense, their offense (5th worst) is ranked in the bottom half of the league. That doesn’t mean they aren’t capable of putting together drives and scoring. Just ask the Chicago Bears.
Miami has a winning record at 5-4, but I doubt anyone takes them seriously as a Super Bowl contender. Their point differential is -38, by far the worst of any team with a winning record. They lost all 4 games by double digits while their largest margin of victory was 8 points, which they accomplished twice. They are very inconsistent. For example, a week after beating the Bears in overtime, they fell to the Lions at home, allowing Detroit to run wild on them.
Miami is trapped in mediocrity right now, but they used to be one of the top teams. They were the only team in NFL history to have a perfect season as the 1972 team finished 17-0, including the playoffs. They followed that by going 12-2 in the regular season the following year and winning the Super Bowl once again. Although many former players get together and celebrate whenever the last undefeated team in the NFL loses (such as this past week when the Los Angeles Rams fell to the New Orleans Saints), many of them will probably tell you that they think the 1973 team was actually better since they faced a tougher schedule and also probably because they felt the need to back up that perfect season with a Super Bowl Title the next year.
Former Dolphins’ Head Coach Don Shula is the winningest head coach in NFL history. Unlike many head coaches today, Shula was able to adapt his offense to the talent around him. He had a strong running game with Larry Csonka and Mercury Morris, and he would later have one of the best passers in the history of the game in Dan Marino.
Since Marino left, they haven’t come close to replacing him. Some of their starters include Jay Fiedler, Gus Frerotte, Joey Harrington, Chad Henne, and Jay Cutler. None of them are even close to Marino, especially Cutler, despite his arm strength. One of their biggest blunders since Marino retired was when they passed on signing Drew Brees. He suffered a shoulder injury while with the San Diego Chargers, and team doctors weren’t convinced that it had healed completely. They convinced the team to not sign him, and they traded for Duante Culpepper instead while the New Orleans Saints signed Brees. Moves like this can set a team back for a long time.
Miami hasn’t won a Super Bowl since the 1973 season, hasn’t been to one since the 1984 team, hasn’t made the AFC Championship Game since the 1992 team, and hasn’t won a playoff game since the 2000 team won 23-17 in overtime over the Indianapolis Colts.
The Packers are 4-10 all time vs Miami. They lost their first 8 games to Miami until they finally broke through in 1997. The last meeting in 2014 had a memorable finish. Trailing 24-20 late in the game with no timeouts left, Rodgers faked a spike in Dan Marino’s old backyard and fired a pass to Davante Adams, who got the first down and ran out of bounds. Rodgers would find Andrew Quarless in the endzone on the next play and took a 27-24 lead with 3 seconds left. Joe Philbin was Miami’s head coach at the time.
After a pair of tough road losses to legitimate Super Bowl contenders, the Packers get a “break” as they face Miami at home and are 9.5-point favorites as of Thursday morning. That of course does not guarantee a win. Just look at the San Francisco game, a game the Packers had to come from behind to win on a field goal at the end.
The Packers are entering the second half of their season. After this Miami game, they have two road games, including one on Thursday night. They need to take control of this game and win it handily. Fans are getting restless and are calling for changes. The time to respond is right now.
This is the only game at Lambeau Field in November after only one home game in October. That just means the fans will be hungry and ready to go. We need the players and coaches to do the same. Let’s get behind the team and cheer them on to victory this Sunday afternoon.
Get Loud Lambeau!
Go Pack Go!
@DieHardPackrFan #DHPF #GetLoudLambeau #GregGoshaw @gg901
