Your eyes are not lying: The Miami Dolphins are among the most injured teams in the National Football League.
They know they’ll be without at least five — and as many as nine — starters Sunday night against the Buffalo Bills, with as much as $58.8 million of their salary cap in street clothes.
Just How Injured Are the Miami Dolphins?
Bradley Chubb (knee) and Xavien Howard (foot) are the latest two Dolphins to get hurt, delivering two more body blows to the unit that was supposed to carry them through the winter months.
Instead, the defense is a major concern in this week’s matchup against a Buffalo offense that since the start of the 2015 season has scored an average of 32.4 points per game against Miami.
The Dolphins would have had their hands full with the Bills at full strength. Without Howard and Chubb, they’re three-point home underdogs against the AFC’s hottest team not named the Baltimore Ravens.
On offense, Miami has had its envisioned offensive line together for just one game: The Dolphins’ Week 3 drubbing of the Denver Broncos.
They’ll be lucky to have three-fifths of that line on the field Sunday. (Robert Hunt is trending in the right direction and could play for the first time since the Washington Commanders game.)
At the skill positions, Jaylen Waddle and Raheem Mostert are both dealing with ankle injuries that kept them out of Week 17. There’s no guarantee that either, let alone both, will play Sunday.
Put it all together, and you have the NFL’s eighth-most injured team, per Sports Injury Central, which has a team of doctors with past NFL experience assign all 32 teams a health grade based on the importance of each position.
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The Dolphins’ grade, as of Tuesday morning, was 81.3 out of 100 (including 78.1 on offense, 84.6 on defense).
“It’s one of the things that is a challenge for every single team that’s in the league at this stage of the year,” Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said Monday. “It’s something that takes a collective mindset from everyone with those types of injuries in that you have to be worried about the right things.
“Not who’s not there, but what can I do in my game better? … It’s really the entire team and how you pick up for that slack. But that’s what you have to do every single year to win in December, January. It’s just kind of the deal. I know one thing that there will be some inspired play as a result of it from his teammates because they truly care about him a ton.”
Can Dolphins Overcome Injuries?
It’s up to McDaniel to ensure this year doesn’t echo last year, when the Dolphins’ offense completely collapsed after Tua Tagovailoa suffered his second concussion of the season.
The offense actually should be OK this time around, particularly if Waddle and Mostert can return. However, the defense will need to be both solid and opportunistic to hang with a Bills team that is sixth in EPA per play (.073) since Week 11.
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McDaniel and defensive coordinator Vic Fangio get paid a ton of money to figure it out. If they cannot, their legacies will reflect it.
McDaniel got a pass last year because of the Tagovailoa injury. But another late-season collapse would be an important part of his résumé.
They need to figure it out like the Browns have. Cleveland is surging to the finish despite a much worse SIC score (74.1 as of Tuesday, ahead of only the Patriots and Chargers).
Then there’s this: The Bills have had a long list of injuries this year as well. Their SIC score as of Tuesday morning is 84.2, and they have $30 million on IR.
“We are all in the NFL, so those other guys are here for a reason,” Dolphins safety DeShon Elliott said Monday. “They’re given an opportunity to make plays.
“Some guys that have wanted an opportunity all their life, they’re blessed to be here and never got a chance to get the opportunity. Now they have it. So with the right preparation, hopefully, they will step up and do things that I know they can do. And hopefully, they believe in themselves that they can do.”
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