Speaker 1: Looking down field, touchdown, Miami Drun. What is up? Dolphins?
Speaker 1: And welcome to the Drive Time Podcast, part of the
Speaker 1: Miami Dolphins podcast network, covering your team, your Miami Dolphins.
Speaker 1: How's it going everybody? It is Wednesday. I am your host,
Speaker 1: Travis Wingfield, and as always, I am here to bring
Speaker 1: you your daily dose of Miami Dolphins football. And on
Speaker 1: today's show, it's Wednesday, which usually is reserved for a
Speaker 1: deep dive pod, but on a short week, it's gonna
Speaker 1: be preview day. We'll go position by position and break
Speaker 1: down the key matchups for Dolphins and Ravens tell you
Speaker 1: how Miami can win this game. We'll give you the
Speaker 1: three keys, and since it is a short week, will
Speaker 1: move up the picks the week ten picks to this podcast.
Speaker 1: All of that and more from the Baptist Health Studios
Speaker 1: inside the Baptist Health Training Complex. This is the Drive
Speaker 1: Time Podcast. It's Ravens Week. And I don't know about
Speaker 1: you guys, but the rivalries within the division still reigned
Speaker 1: supreme to me. But for me, there are still two
Speaker 1: more rivals out there that we play in different divisions
Speaker 1: that I look forward to when we play them every
Speaker 1: year every other year or so and it's former a
Speaker 1: f C East resident Indianapolis Colts and the Baltimore Ravens,
Speaker 1: and ironically one used to be the other. And it
Speaker 1: began for me back in two thousand one after the
Speaker 1: wild Card round defeat here at hard Rock Stadium formerly
Speaker 1: Pro Player Stadium. I had always heard this story about
Speaker 1: what the Ravens players did on the field, and it
Speaker 1: was one of those things where you start to believe
Speaker 1: that as it gets more and more in the past,
Speaker 1: maybe that was one of those myths that you just
Speaker 1: never quite knew was a myth until you became old
Speaker 1: enough to realize it was, and it kind of was.
Speaker 1: And I googled this and there's a story from the
Speaker 1: Baltimore Sun from January eight thousand two, and then head
Speaker 1: coach Brian Billock told the players during their Saturday walk
Speaker 1: through that they needed to mark their territory at Pro
Speaker 1: Player Stadium. So far different from the legend of the
Speaker 1: story of actually marking your territory on the field itself,
Speaker 1: but it gives you a sense of how those games
Speaker 1: kind of went back in those days. Because you might
Speaker 1: remember the Dolphins beat down that two thousand Ravens team
Speaker 1: that would go on to the Super Bowl with a
Speaker 1: nineteen to six when I think it was, and that
Speaker 1: was two of the best defenses in the National Football
Speaker 1: League in those years, and Miami's defense held that Baltimore
Speaker 1: offense to just six points in that game with the
Speaker 1: two corners pass rush from Jason Taylor, Zach Thomas. You
Speaker 1: guys know the suspects from those teams. And that was
Speaker 1: the second to last. So I guess penultimate home playoff
Speaker 1: game for us and the next one. Guess who Baltimore?
Speaker 1: Once again? The Wildcats season division champions eleven and five.
Speaker 1: They fumble the ball in the opening kickoff and I'm
Speaker 1: out here thinking, here we go again, baby, this miracle
Speaker 1: run continues for Chad Pennington, Ronnie Brown, Tony Sperrano and
Speaker 1: these Wildcat Dolphins. It results in the field goal, and
Speaker 1: that was the last real fun moment from that game,
Speaker 1: except though I still contend if Ted Ginn doesn't bobble
Speaker 1: that end around snap when the game is twenty nine,
Speaker 1: it might have become a game at that point. But
Speaker 1: I digress, because four I N T S two ed
Speaker 1: read picks in that game won for a touchdown, And again,
Speaker 1: this just felt like payback from Baltimore after we got them,
Speaker 1: and that thrilling two thousand seven thriller, the one game,
Speaker 1: the one win season, I should say, Camerie over the middle,
Speaker 1: got it, touchdown, Dolphins, They're gonna win this football game.
Speaker 1: Since then, Miami has won just one game in this matchup,
Speaker 1: and that was a late season snoozer, a fifteen to
Speaker 1: thirteen final between Matt shob and a Dolphins team led
Speaker 1: by Dan Campbell. The fighting Dan Campbell's back then as
Speaker 1: the novelty kind of wore off late in that year
Speaker 1: after just a tumultuous season. Was one of my least
Speaker 1: favorite years as a Dolphins fan. Since that victory, though,
Speaker 1: Baltimore has won three straight by a combined score one
Speaker 1: thirty seven to sixteen, including a middle match on a
Speaker 1: Thursday night up in Baltimore. Back in that game, a
Speaker 1: forty two zip result in Miami came into that. I
Speaker 1: remember flying high because Matt Moore was starting. A lot
Speaker 1: of us were not very thrilled with Jay Cutler's production
Speaker 1: so far at that point, four and too off of
Speaker 1: a big win in overtime or a comeback win against
Speaker 1: the Jets in the previous game. Fun times until that
Speaker 1: game began. So plenty of symmetry here in the rivalry,
Speaker 1: and in fact, that two thousand eight playoff loss was
Speaker 1: the first year of current head coach John Harbaugh, who
Speaker 1: is one of the most accomplished coaches and best current
Speaker 1: coaches in the National Football League, and several things have
Speaker 1: helped the Ravens into the blue blood status since Harbaugh's
Speaker 1: two thousand eight arrival. I put them up there with
Speaker 1: the Steelers, the Seahawks, the Patriots. Who else goes into
Speaker 1: that mix? The Packers, these teams that are regularly a
Speaker 1: top the NFL standings and in the content and contention
Speaker 1: every single year. The Chiefs are in that mixes. Well, uh,
Speaker 1: there's a couple of teams in that next I miss.
Speaker 1: But anyway, that started in earnest in two thousand and
Speaker 1: eight with Joe Flacco and John Harba's rookie season that
Speaker 1: brought them all the way to the a f C
Speaker 1: title game that season, and that was the first of
Speaker 1: five straight playoff appearances for that Ray Wins club. And
Speaker 1: they would then win at least one playoff game every year.
Speaker 1: That sounds fantastic, and that culminated in a Super Bowl
Speaker 1: championship in that two thousand twelve season against his brother
Speaker 1: Jim Harbaugh. But after that a bit of a dip
Speaker 1: for this Ravens team. One playoff appearance in the next
Speaker 1: five seasons, and then something else happened to join with
Speaker 1: what the Ravens already did well and playing lights out
Speaker 1: defense and stertling special teams Lamar Jackson. Since Lamar's arrival,
Speaker 1: or rather when he took over the starting role in
Speaker 1: mid two thousand eighteen, the Ravens are thirty eight and ten.
Speaker 1: Nobody has a better record since that time, and at first,
Speaker 1: after that first round playoff exit in which the Chargers
Speaker 1: found a way to stifle the rushing version of Lamar
Speaker 1: Jackson enforcement of beat you from the pocket, that dynamic
Speaker 1: dime package defense that was spearheaded by Derwin James, helped
Speaker 1: them get into a position to really make folks think, well,
Speaker 1: maybe during or maybe rather Lamar can't do this. All
Speaker 1: Lamar did was come back with a fourteen and two
Speaker 1: season in an MVP award and a first or second
Speaker 1: round exit after a first round by to the Ryan
Speaker 1: Tannehill lad Titans. But I digress now. This season, despite
Speaker 1: a league high twenty one players on I R. Baltimore
Speaker 1: six and two right back in that same position. They're aggressive,
Speaker 1: They trust analytics as much as anybody else. They go
Speaker 1: for it on fourth down as much as anybody else.
Speaker 1: And they you know, they even though they have Justin Tucker,
Speaker 1: they still know that the best way to win games
Speaker 1: of scoring seven points over three, and they go aggressively
Speaker 1: in that regard. And there are a threat to make
Speaker 1: a run to the Super Bowl every year because well,
Speaker 1: they usually play terrific defense, not as much this year,
Speaker 1: but again, injuries have depleted this team in so many
Speaker 1: areas they're normally balanced on offense, and again the running
Speaker 1: game is also depleted with just about every running back
Speaker 1: they had back in camp on I R. And everybody
Speaker 1: who had the opinion that the Ravens can't win games
Speaker 1: coming from behind, which in some ways is legitimate, but
Speaker 1: all it was a commentary on Lamar Jackson. And if
Speaker 1: you do that, you're telling on yourself, because this kid's
Speaker 1: one of the most electrifying best players in the National
Speaker 1: Football League. That's all they've done all year long, come
Speaker 1: back from defice sits, and they do it because Lamar
Speaker 1: can basically do whatever the hell he wants with the football.
Speaker 1: In fact, last week, he became the first quarterback to
Speaker 1: throw for three touchdowns and rush for a hundred and
Speaker 1: twenty yards and multiple games in the same season. Ever,
Speaker 1: not Kyler Murray, not Michael Vick, Lamar Jackson did that.
Speaker 1: Not Randall Cunningham, not fran Tarkenton. He's a monster. He's
Speaker 1: brought this team back from double digit deficits three times
Speaker 1: this season. So the Ravens are six and two. There
Speaker 1: was dangerous as anybody. But if there's one thing that
Speaker 1: has sort of plagued them this year, it's the way
Speaker 1: they've started some of these games, and it's playing some
Speaker 1: games maybe a little bit closer than they should have been,
Speaker 1: Like they were a bad penalty away from losing in Detroit,
Speaker 1: which never should have happened for this talent with Ravens team.
Speaker 1: And to top it all off, before we get into
Speaker 1: positional previews, it's a tough, tough ask for the Ravens
Speaker 1: to travel on a short week after playing a full
Speaker 1: fifth quarter on Sunday against the Vikings, going to the
Speaker 1: buzzer and overtime and that win over Minnesota, but their
Speaker 1: offense was on the field for plays the defense just
Speaker 1: for fifty two, as they dominated time of possession too
Speaker 1: in that game. So that's your intro and the small
Speaker 1: footnote there. But as we do weekly, we start here
Speaker 1: with the Baltimore quarterback versus the Miami safeties in our
Speaker 1: week number ten game preview, over the halfway point, over
Speaker 1: the hump and heading into the mid November portion of
Speaker 1: the schedule. And I mean, I told you how it goes. Rushing, passing,
Speaker 1: play action, game zone read r p O, on the
Speaker 1: move from the pocket, QB, draw design runs, and the
Speaker 1: red zone. He's an absolute problem. And I think that's
Speaker 1: one of the best players in the league, regardless of position,
Speaker 1: and I doubt I'm alone on that unless you haven't
Speaker 1: caught up yet. But he creates so much conflict for
Speaker 1: everything you want to do. Play Man coverage, well that's
Speaker 1: tough because if you make if he makes you miss
Speaker 1: on the initial rush, or even if the coverage is
Speaker 1: good and you just can't quite get home in the
Speaker 1: first three seconds of that rush, he can break contain
Speaker 1: and get loose with his legs. Again, hundred and twenty
Speaker 1: yards rushing on Sunday play zone, He'll just hang out
Speaker 1: in the pocket and beat you that way too, gotten
Speaker 1: taking his game to another level in terms of the
Speaker 1: passing from the pocket in that sense, I never thought
Speaker 1: it was bad, but it's certainly gotten a lot better
Speaker 1: since that time. Byron Jones had a best like if
Speaker 1: he thought that he was only a one dimensional player
Speaker 1: back then you had it wrong then too. I mentioned
Speaker 1: Derwin James earlier, and it's got me thinking about the
Speaker 1: Dolphins recent surge and safety is coming on blitz Is.
Speaker 1: That's a big test for these two young kids. Javon
Speaker 1: Holland to me, has some of that Derwin d n
Speaker 1: A in terms of versatility that dog to him and
Speaker 1: the ability to impact the game from multiple positions. And
Speaker 1: this Dolphins defense is capable of getting deep into their
Speaker 1: sub packages really as well as anybody across the National
Speaker 1: Football League. We've seen a lot of it. Dime quarter
Speaker 1: half dollar. They won't shy away from unloading six, seven,
Speaker 1: even eight defensive backs onto the field, and that can
Speaker 1: be kind of a key for defending this track star offense.
Speaker 1: And I think I mentioned this in the season preview
Speaker 1: back in September August, whenever the hell that was. The
Speaker 1: loss of Dobbins was so big to me because for
Speaker 1: such a long time. The Ravens game ran as smoothly
Speaker 1: as it did because of Lamar Jackson. And this is
Speaker 1: not a slight against you know, mark Ingram or Gus Edwards,
Speaker 1: but those are just kind of guys. Those are guys
Speaker 1: that are They're good players, but they're not game changers.
Speaker 1: And then getting Dobbins, a true game changer at the position,
Speaker 1: would make that defense, make the posing defense. So the
Speaker 1: Ravens have to pay equal mind to both options. Because
Speaker 1: when you have too key on on Lamar, it's obviously
Speaker 1: gonna open things up for running back X whoever the
Speaker 1: case may be. But when you have a guy like
Speaker 1: Dobbins who can not only make tacklers miss, get skinny,
Speaker 1: have that wiggle in the hole, but hit the home
Speaker 1: runs and make guys miss in the second and third level, Gosh,
Speaker 1: that would have been difficult to defend. I'm looking forward
Speaker 1: to seeing it as a NFL fan in general next
Speaker 1: year when Dobbins comes back. But having to pay equal
Speaker 1: mind to both options on all that zone, Reed and
Speaker 1: ball face a king that Lamar does. What a tall
Speaker 1: order that would be. And you can see that in
Speaker 1: their numbers right now, Lamar has six hundred rushing yards.
Speaker 1: Second place on the clubs Latavius Murray with two d
Speaker 1: and twelve, and that speaks to their injuries at the position.
Speaker 1: They got Levi on bella touchdown last week. Davonte Freeman
Speaker 1: also scored. Bell has just eighty two rushing yards this
Speaker 1: season and Freeman has one eight where Tyson Williams was
Speaker 1: kind of the guy that was supposed to kind of
Speaker 1: seize that role, but he's missed a few games, including
Speaker 1: last week against the Vikings. At least he didn't play
Speaker 1: at all. I didn't see the injury report, but he
Speaker 1: had zero carries in that game. And all this is
Speaker 1: to say that it starts with number eight. So for
Speaker 1: Jones and Holland, two of their best traits have been
Speaker 1: coming from depth, the angles they take to the football
Speaker 1: and sound tackling. That's the big test here, maybe even
Speaker 1: the matchup of the game for me. Then there's the
Speaker 1: also the whole idea of the passing game, Like the
Speaker 1: biggest way to hurt someone's with the passing game. Right
Speaker 1: e p A always favors passing game, like for example
Speaker 1: in Tennessee. As good as Derrick Henry is, they improve
Speaker 1: their odds of winning when they go to handed hill
Speaker 1: more because passing is more efficient than running. That's how
Speaker 1: it works in football. And in the passing game, they
Speaker 1: will pump the football to their tight ends, which works
Speaker 1: so well to complement their running game because it helps
Speaker 1: keep them balanced, it keeps the defense guessing, and it
Speaker 1: stresses that middle part of the field. And when you
Speaker 1: also want to get your safety is involved in the
Speaker 1: running game, it creates conflict, not just for the linebackers,
Speaker 1: but for those guys. So there's so much conflict within
Speaker 1: this offense, and real quick before we bleed that over
Speaker 1: into our next positional group preview here on the Wednesday
Speaker 1: special Drivetime edition of the Drivetime Podcast presented by Auto Nation.
Speaker 1: This is one of the most unique personnel deployment offenses
Speaker 1: in the entire national football They just thirty seven percent
Speaker 1: of their snaps come from eleven personnel. Most clubs run
Speaker 1: that anywhere from six all the way up to like
Speaker 1: of the time. That's the second fewest to only us
Speaker 1: the Miami Dolphins at or rather reverse those two numbers,
Speaker 1: but Baltimore and they also run by far the least
Speaker 1: amount of twelve personnel just four percent of the time.
Speaker 1: Miami by comparison, which you take from that eleven personnel
Speaker 1: packaging most of the time is that fifty twelve personnel.
Speaker 1: It's the two back sets they run they leave the
Speaker 1: NFL and twenty one personnel atent. That's two backs, one
Speaker 1: tight end. Patrick Recard their full back, gets plenty of work,
Speaker 1: and they've also Ransom two running back sets in there
Speaker 1: as well. The second most at that package is nineteen percent,
Speaker 1: and almost everybody else is in single digits. So they
Speaker 1: run it way more than the average in the NFL
Speaker 1: than the twenty two personnel package. What does that mean?
Speaker 1: Two tight ends, two backs, and that's eighteen percent. The
Speaker 1: next closest is eight percent. Most teams are anywhere from
Speaker 1: zero to three percent in that uh. In that arena again,
Speaker 1: we'll talk about Patrick Recard their fullback in a few segments,
Speaker 1: but back to the Baltimore receivers and tight ends versus
Speaker 1: Miami corners. The thing about this team is despite the
Speaker 1: varied personnel groupings, they can get to really any look
Speaker 1: from all of those packages. Like they can go tight
Speaker 1: and condense everything, or they can go empty. They run
Speaker 1: tons of empty even from those two back or two
Speaker 1: tight end heavy type of sets, so they cannot only
Speaker 1: line up they can yeah, they cannot only line up
Speaker 1: with their two back set. Go from the gun, from
Speaker 1: the pistol, under center, jet, sweep, single wing, double wing.
Speaker 1: I'm not joking. They can do everything and they will
Speaker 1: try everything to give them an advantage in the running game.
Speaker 1: And then from that Lamar is able to play pass
Speaker 1: and attack the middle. Watching these guys on tape for
Speaker 1: me was stressful, Like I have to imagine coaches feel
Speaker 1: the same way across the NFL, and they watched this
Speaker 1: team on tape and it starts with that quarterback and
Speaker 1: when he attacks the middle of the field. Mark Andrews
Speaker 1: is a Pro Bowl tight end. He had to one
Speaker 1: yard games this season, a bit of a dip and
Speaker 1: touchdown production compared to his usual stats, just three so
Speaker 1: far this year, but he's good for at least a
Speaker 1: handful of catches every single week. And when you look
Speaker 1: at his matchups and splits in the big one hundred
Speaker 1: yard games he had, he got on top of Bobby
Speaker 1: oka Riki for five catches. That's a smaller, super fast,
Speaker 1: but smaller linebacker. He also had a twenty seven yard
Speaker 1: reception on safe d Julian Blackman, who's one of the
Speaker 1: best young safeties in the National Football League, although he
Speaker 1: got hurt this year. Uh two for thirty six on
Speaker 1: Darius Leonard in that game and two forty three on
Speaker 1: cornerback Isaiah Rogers. So what do all those guys kind
Speaker 1: of have in common? Not undersized, that's the wrong word,
Speaker 1: but lighter than the average typical matchup for your tight ends. There.
Speaker 1: Then in the Detroit game, he posted forty one yards
Speaker 1: on slot cornerback A J. Parker, thirty seven on mike
Speaker 1: backer Derek Barnes, and twenty four more on their will
Speaker 1: backer Jalen Reeves. Maybe, And why am I telling you
Speaker 1: all this? Because if you want to commit to slowing
Speaker 1: Eric Mark Andrews, I almost said Aaron Andrews, it typically
Speaker 1: takes takes a multifaceted player, and that's what Miami has
Speaker 1: a few of them. Actually, Holland Jones, row and Jerome Baker.
Speaker 1: I think is also up to the task because of
Speaker 1: his speed and physicality in coverage. Get the head around though,
Speaker 1: So that is a key matchup I'm looking at Because
Speaker 1: of all those players, I think there are options. Maybe
Speaker 1: you want to assign someone that follows him down to
Speaker 1: the line who can also kind of keep their eyes
Speaker 1: in the backfield and contribute in the running game, and
Speaker 1: that would require that excellent eye discipline. So perhaps it's
Speaker 1: a veteran like Eric Row. I like the idea of
Speaker 1: Javon Holland, but with how much he does elsewhere, especially
Speaker 1: in that deep post, maybe that's not the best usage
Speaker 1: for his skill set. Maybe it is, but when a
Speaker 1: certain receivers on the field, I think you need that
Speaker 1: post safety, and that certain receiver is none other than
Speaker 1: Hollywood Florida Brown Mark Keys. Brown himself was such a
Speaker 1: great addition to help this offense stretch the field and
Speaker 1: make you defend more grass than you would otherwise. He
Speaker 1: changes the way defenses defend that team, and you better
Speaker 1: be damn good in man coverage if you do want
Speaker 1: to bring those safeties down, kind of like Miami did
Speaker 1: all game long against the Texans, because he's a big
Speaker 1: play machine. He's had a few drops this year, but
Speaker 1: he consistently gets on tops of defenses, and I thought
Speaker 1: one of his best performances with that playoff game last
Speaker 1: year against the Buffalo Bills, because he showed you that
Speaker 1: he can win underneath and create separation in short areas
Speaker 1: because of really refined route writing. He's a great player.
Speaker 1: Love watching him play, and that's kind a structure of
Speaker 1: this entire offense, like track speed all around their track
Speaker 1: star quarterback. Lots of I candy and missdirection, tons of conflict,
Speaker 1: and it makes an incredibly challenging to defend, especially on
Speaker 1: a short week. Their top snaptakers last couple of weeks
Speaker 1: have been Marquis Brown. Around the season, I should say
Speaker 1: Marcus Brown, Mark Andrews, Rashad Bateman, Devin DuVernay, and Eric Tomlinson.
Speaker 1: The tight end. I think for Marcus Brown, I think
Speaker 1: you probably roll a safety a lot of the time there,
Speaker 1: but if you go in man coverage, I would probably
Speaker 1: go more towards the idea of Byron Jones. You recall
Speaker 1: last time we played this team, we didn't have Byron
Speaker 1: Jones and they went He went off in that game
Speaker 1: for too long touchdown passes. I think Jones's athletic ability
Speaker 1: matches up with Brown really well in terms of what
Speaker 1: the Dolphins have at that position. Mark Andrews, I think
Speaker 1: I might cap him, I might double Mark andrew I
Speaker 1: don't know. That's that's a tough decision. They're gonna have
Speaker 1: to make. But trying to get someone to reroute and
Speaker 1: then coverage over the top might be the best route
Speaker 1: on him. Rashad Bateman to me, if he's out there,
Speaker 1: down in and down, now, that's an Xaving Howard matchup
Speaker 1: for days, and just kind of lock that guy out
Speaker 1: and take him out of the game of the best
Speaker 1: you can. Devin Duverney one of these speed merchants. If
Speaker 1: he comes inside the slot, I have to think about
Speaker 1: kind of changing things up there because he has a
Speaker 1: lot of speed from that position and I'm not sure
Speaker 1: how you would attack that. And then Eric Tomlinson, Look,
Speaker 1: you can't let him beat you, but he will play
Speaker 1: a lot. But if Eric Tomlinson beat you, that's that's
Speaker 1: bad news. So just finding a way to neutralize his
Speaker 1: impact and really focus on the other guys that have
Speaker 1: gotten way more targets in the passing game. And of course,
Speaker 1: the first way to really disrupt a passing game and
Speaker 1: to control the running game is up front and the
Speaker 1: and the trenches almost a chrenches. Baltimore offensive line versus
Speaker 1: Dolphins defensive line. Man, They're they're banged up here. No.
Speaker 1: Ronnie Stanley, a All Pro level left tackle who got
Speaker 1: hurt again this season. I feel terribly for him. Two
Speaker 1: years in a row he ends up on on season
Speaker 1: ending i R no. Ben Cleveland and Patrick McCary did
Speaker 1: not practice on Monday nor Tuesday listed as a d
Speaker 1: NP in those practice reports. But as for the guys,
Speaker 1: they do have three hundred forty three pass blocking snaps
Speaker 1: for the Evens this year, so keep that number in mind.
Speaker 1: With their overall snap counts. Only one guy has hit
Speaker 1: that mark. That's Kevin Zeitler, who also happens to be
Speaker 1: their best player on the offensive line right now. He's
Speaker 1: allowed nine pressures, no sacks or no hits on all
Speaker 1: three hundred forty three pass blocking snaps. At left tackle
Speaker 1: is the massive Alejandre Villaneueva thirty two pressures on three
Speaker 1: hundred thirty six snaps at six quarterback hits and five sacks.
Speaker 1: Eleven times he's been responsible for a hit on Lamar Jackson,
Speaker 1: Bradley Boseman the center twelve pressures on three hundred thirty
Speaker 1: seven snaps, two sacks and two hits. Ben Powers ten
Speaker 1: pressures on just two four snaps, two hits and three sacks,
Speaker 1: and then Tyree Phillips is a guard who's playing tackle
Speaker 1: because of lack of availability on that position for this team.
Speaker 1: He's allowed six pressures, one QB hit on a hundred
Speaker 1: and seventeen pass blocking reps. I'm gonna be curious to
Speaker 1: see how Miami wants to match up here. We talked
Speaker 1: about the length of Jalen Phillips and also condensing him inside,
Speaker 1: but I think I like to see him back more
Speaker 1: the traditional outside position here because of what he can
Speaker 1: match up with on Ale Handre Villaneueva, and because of
Speaker 1: phillips lateral agility and kind of getting heavier hands as
Speaker 1: we go along here at six ft nine, He's not
Speaker 1: bending real well, doesn't move real well. He's a huge,
Speaker 1: huge human being. But if you can kind of work
Speaker 1: him in the finesse part of the game and the
Speaker 1: speed part of the game, which we saw Phillips really
Speaker 1: excel in last week, I like that matchup there is
Speaker 1: pressure numbers had been either really good or really bad
Speaker 1: this year. For for for Villaneuva against Vegas ten pressures
Speaker 1: against Yannik and Goackway and Max Crosby, but primarily in Gockway.
Speaker 1: In that game against Detroit, Romeo Aquara and Charles Harris
Speaker 1: put eight pressures on him together. Those are kind of
Speaker 1: some speed guys. So it was in Gockway, Cincinnati. Trey
Speaker 1: Hendrickson does a little bit of everything, but he's really
Speaker 1: a technician. He got eight on him as well, or
Speaker 1: him him among other guys, but the Bengals got eight
Speaker 1: pressures in total, mostly from Hendrickson, then three against the Colts,
Speaker 1: and then one or zero against everybody else. So Jalen
Speaker 1: Phillips keep an eye on him this week. Also keeping
Speaker 1: on Emmanuel og Bob because Tyree Phillips is the greenest
Speaker 1: of the group and he lines up at right tackle,
Speaker 1: where Miami's most experienced, slash accomplished ed rusher largely resides.
Speaker 1: Emanuel ogba on Phillips big on big, he's six ft five.
Speaker 1: I think speed to power to test the feet, to
Speaker 1: test the sand, the pants, but also the ability to
Speaker 1: kind of angle like he does and get that big
Speaker 1: long arm the cross shop. This is my favorite matchup
Speaker 1: I think of this game from Miami, the two edge
Speaker 1: rushers against the two tackles of the Ravens. But inside,
Speaker 1: Kevin Zeitler has been so solid. Just three pressures of
Speaker 1: the last two weeks against the Vikings and barrass combined.
Speaker 1: He gets them aligned inside, he communicates well. Detroit gave
Speaker 1: him the most problems back in Week three, and that
Speaker 1: came from a pair of defensive tackles and Michael Brockers
Speaker 1: and Nick Williams, who are right around three hundred pounds.
Speaker 1: So he's done well against the bigger types, like a
Speaker 1: ray Kwon Davis type. We'll see if that's a matchup
Speaker 1: the Dolphins can find a way to exploit. And then
Speaker 1: Ben Powers only allowed more than two pressures once, that
Speaker 1: was earlier in the season. He sat out of the
Speaker 1: game last week, so that's tough matchup inside. I like
Speaker 1: the match up on the outside Baltimore running backs and
Speaker 1: Dolphins linebackers. We talked at length about this already, so
Speaker 1: not much to cover here, but it's tough for them
Speaker 1: to find a rhythm with how they've had to rotate guys,
Speaker 1: but they still managed to get production. Tyson Williams has
Speaker 1: the most receiving production, but he's in single digit with
Speaker 1: just nine catches and eight passing or receiving yards. So
Speaker 1: it's part of their game plan, but not the biggest
Speaker 1: chunk that they go to. I think you absolutely have
Speaker 1: to find a way to take the backs production completely
Speaker 1: off the board in this game because of the rest
Speaker 1: of the weapons they have, and again most notably Lamar
Speaker 1: Jackson is that weapon. Their leading player in terms of
Speaker 1: forcing miss tackles is also Tyson Williams of seven. Davonte
Speaker 1: Freeman also has seven and the most on the team
Speaker 1: besides running backs. Lamar Jackson is twenty four. Guy's elite man.
Speaker 1: So it's a challenge. The combination of speed and misdirection
Speaker 1: and the ability to be flexible formationally with that speed.
Speaker 1: It's so tough. It's a tall, tall order for this
Speaker 1: Dolphins defense. On Thursday night, onto the offense, we don't
Speaker 1: know who the quarterback is gonna be. Flora said on
Speaker 1: Tuesday that will come right up to the game time
Speaker 1: like it did last week, and he said there's been
Speaker 1: a reduction in the swelling. There's some discomfort, but he's
Speaker 1: certainly made some progress. He also said that's a medical
Speaker 1: decision and he also has some saying that as well. Now.
Speaker 1: He also said up the game where Tuesday it would
Speaker 1: be Jacoby, So the Dolphins quarterbacks versus the Ravens safeties,
Speaker 1: and that kind of makes it a tricky one to preview. Right.
Speaker 1: We talked about the differences in the games of Tua
Speaker 1: and Jacoby and what they both bring to the table,
Speaker 1: but I think since we aren't sure, it's worth exploring
Speaker 1: at least what the Ravens do well, and what they
Speaker 1: do well is get their hands on footballs. It hasn't
Speaker 1: been as prevalent this season compared to previous years, and
Speaker 1: losing Marcus Peters will certainly contribute to that. But Deshaan
Speaker 1: Elliott and Chuck Clark have their shell of share of
Speaker 1: ball production seven total pass defense between them, and they
Speaker 1: can move. Chuck will certainly come down and play around
Speaker 1: the line of scrimmage. He's already got twenty nine pass
Speaker 1: rush reps this year with seven pressures including a sack,
Speaker 1: and they also has twelve run stops. Those are the
Speaker 1: fifth most on the football team. Elliott can come up
Speaker 1: to seven team pass rush reps and six pressures with
Speaker 1: six run stops. Now, Justin Jefferson got behind their defense
Speaker 1: on Sunday for a long touchdown pass in that game,
Speaker 1: and Chuck Clark talked after the game saying it wasn't
Speaker 1: a miscommunication, just that it was a mistake Jefferson was
Speaker 1: was way behind them, and on that play you see
Speaker 1: Clark closing down like really, you know, taking away his
Speaker 1: depth and Jefferson goes right by him. And earlier, I
Speaker 1: should say earlier in the week, Ravens coaches I found
Speaker 1: this in one of their um their transcripts discussed the
Speaker 1: third safety on the roster, Brandon Stevens. They talking about
Speaker 1: improving communication more pre snap and Clark talked about how
Speaker 1: it will come with more experience, and maybe that's something
Speaker 1: to keep an eye on in terms of getting some
Speaker 1: of those vertical shots built in. And one last thing here,
Speaker 1: I'd assume you're gonna get a good showing from Clark
Speaker 1: because that Jefferson ball and then later a Dalvin Cook
Speaker 1: run for sixties six yards, he had really poor angles
Speaker 1: on both those plays. I just don't think that will
Speaker 1: be what we see continually going forward from him. But
Speaker 1: maybe Miami can find a way to get big plays
Speaker 1: in this game. They're definitely gonna need them. Now. We
Speaker 1: did mention Marcus Peters being out as he has been
Speaker 1: all the year long. As we die into the Dolphins
Speaker 1: receivers and tight ends versus the Ravens cornerbacks and Marlon
Speaker 1: Humphrey is not out and he's one of the best
Speaker 1: in the game. I'll always remember that Manning cast on
Speaker 1: Week number one with the Ravens and Raiders, when Peyton
Speaker 1: kept saying this Ravens team and Wink Martindale are a
Speaker 1: man coverage team. Though you do want to mix it up.
Speaker 1: All the success the Raiders had in that game, Manning
Speaker 1: said was coming against their zone coverage. So if they
Speaker 1: want to get in that zone, look, that's going to
Speaker 1: be an important aspect for Miami to beat that. So
Speaker 1: if you pair that with the big play the Vikings hit,
Speaker 1: with the fact that Waddle continues to really have some
Speaker 1: of these chances we talked about on the All twenty
Speaker 1: two reviews, vertically, if they go man coverage, it's sure
Speaker 1: would helped to get them to go back to zone
Speaker 1: if you can get deep on them and beat them
Speaker 1: that way and then go back to kind of breaking
Speaker 1: them down play by play in the short to intermediate game.
Speaker 1: In terms of their corners, Humphrey and Anthony Averett play
Speaker 1: almost every snap both over nine, and Humphrey is just
Speaker 1: smooth and everything he does on that long touchdown pass,
Speaker 1: he wasn't looking at the snap, so I think that
Speaker 1: wasn't really an indication of skill set. Just the vikings
Speaker 1: caught him off guard, and he's tremendu just at the
Speaker 1: line and the way he transitions and kind of changes
Speaker 1: direction to the top of the route and the way
Speaker 1: he challenges the catchpoint makes me wonder if you want
Speaker 1: to guard Wattle with him. And although Avereite has sixty
Speaker 1: two targets against him the year, Humphrey has forty seven,
Speaker 1: both are holding opponents to less than sixty completion just
Speaker 1: fifty for Humphrey. But back to Waddle. Tavon Young plays
Speaker 1: in the slot and teams are twenty one of twenty
Speaker 1: six going after him, but for just nine point nine
Speaker 1: yards per catch. They all tackle well. But again that
Speaker 1: being said, if Waddle can draw Humphrey, he averages just
Speaker 1: under four yards after the catch, while Humphrey has surrendered
Speaker 1: two five yak yards this season per Pro Football Focus.
Speaker 1: But kind of bringing that point back together, they don't
Speaker 1: really travel, so Miami can in this case if that's
Speaker 1: how they play it, dictate the matchups how they like.
Speaker 1: We talked about moving Wattle inside and out last week.
Speaker 1: Same deal here for Mike Kasiki, who can get those
Speaker 1: one on ones into the boundary. The one handed catch
Speaker 1: you saw kick inside eat in the middle of the
Speaker 1: football field as well. The key for me here doesn't
Speaker 1: change it. Those two guys going is always going to
Speaker 1: be a big key to victory from Miami. And then
Speaker 1: a quick note the Bengals game, just looking at some
Speaker 1: target numbers and trying to figure out teams attack the Ravens.
Speaker 1: Tee Higgins have fourteen targets in that game against Anthony
Speaker 1: aver alone. He had three otherwise too, so seventeen targets
Speaker 1: for te Higgins, So that might give you an idea
Speaker 1: how they want to take away the number one receiver
Speaker 1: and make you go to the number two or number three.
Speaker 1: And Jamar Chase and Tyler Boyd both had one against
Speaker 1: te Higgins, So sixteen total targets they're going up against Averitt,
Speaker 1: but also ten against Humphrey in that game, so really
Speaker 1: interesting splits across the board in that game. Let's go
Speaker 1: inside to the trenches. Dolphins offensive line, Ravens defensive line.
Speaker 1: Klaias Campbell kind of changed the course of this franchise
Speaker 1: once upon time, didn't he That hit on Ryan Tannehill
Speaker 1: that knocked him out and basically left Miami had a
Speaker 1: quarterback for a season and a quarter or so. They're
Speaker 1: in a playoff game, our last playoff game. You gotta
Speaker 1: have an answer for this guy. I'm excited to watch
Speaker 1: him against Rob Hunt because Rob has been really good
Speaker 1: so far, or i should say lately, especially last week,
Speaker 1: he was fantastic. He's staying on block so well this season.
Speaker 1: And this is not just one of the biggest, longest
Speaker 1: players in the league. He's also one of the most
Speaker 1: technically refined. It will be a good challenge for anybody.
Speaker 1: He has twenty one pressures and ten run stops this season,
Speaker 1: justin Mattabuki does it with does it more with quickness
Speaker 1: in his game. I'll never forget scouting him at A
Speaker 1: and m Tasmanian Devil was the comp He's a He's
Speaker 1: an absolute fierce monster. He's only got seven pressures this year,
Speaker 1: but he will one gap and beat you to blow
Speaker 1: up plays immediately if you don't find a way to
Speaker 1: cut him off at the past and stop that from happening.
Speaker 1: And then Brandon Williams another one of these guys that's
Speaker 1: just massive. You have to find a way to move
Speaker 1: him off the football, and you have to be ready
Speaker 1: for these guys inside their big and Mattabuki's quickness as
Speaker 1: well to set picks two pick stunt and free up
Speaker 1: the linebackers. You know, more onlinebacker pressure in here in
Speaker 1: just one minute. But they do blitz the fourth highest
Speaker 1: rate in the National Football League at thirty two point
Speaker 1: five percent. And we talked about this with our guys.
Speaker 1: You know, big bodies setting picks to help bring Patrick
Speaker 1: Queen or a safety like a Chuck Clark. Some instances
Speaker 1: it's either Justin Houston or Tias Bowser as the extra rusher.
Speaker 1: Very exotic, very complex, and the quarterback and offensive line
Speaker 1: need to be on the same page to be prepared
Speaker 1: to face overloads, simulated pressures, cross dogs. They might green
Speaker 1: dog one of those guys. Sometimes cat blitz is it's
Speaker 1: all on the table. Back to the matchups outside, they
Speaker 1: are a challenge. Odolphe O Way is explosive and long
Speaker 1: and he can angle around that corner. He leads that
Speaker 1: team with twenty four pressures. He has two forced fumbles,
Speaker 1: a game record already in his rookie season. He's a
Speaker 1: guy you might want to think about chipping and doubling
Speaker 1: and if you're in third and long, get those receivers
Speaker 1: into nasty splits and chip him like you gotta find
Speaker 1: a way to take care of him. There are a
Speaker 1: collection of players to round out their rush. Justin Houston
Speaker 1: can still get done twenty pressures this year. He has
Speaker 1: lethal hands and Taias Bowser has seven team pressures in
Speaker 1: the season, he will drop more than the others coverage
Speaker 1: reps for him compared to fifteen for Houston and twenty
Speaker 1: for Way to last position. Here the running backs versus
Speaker 1: the Baltimore linebackers back to Patrick Queen, he can ruin
Speaker 1: things as a rusher. He can fire through for some
Speaker 1: TfL as at times. He's a speedy player with sideline
Speaker 1: to sideline range when he's at his best. When he's
Speaker 1: at his worst, he's a little bit slow off the snap,
Speaker 1: but he leads them with seventeen run stops and really
Speaker 1: does it with diagnosed diagnosing and quickness off the snap.
Speaker 1: He's played Mike and Will and I continue to look
Speaker 1: at how teams cover backs in the passing game. He's
Speaker 1: been targeted twenty six times and allowed twenty one complation.
Speaker 1: So if you can displace him by flexing your back
Speaker 1: out and go after him in the passing game, but
Speaker 1: also find a way to create more space. I like
Speaker 1: the way that can change the way they defend you
Speaker 1: on special teams once they crossed the forty, basically three points.
Speaker 1: Justin Tuckers in his career on three thirty eight attempts,
Speaker 1: that's outrageous. He's sixteen for seventeen this year, He's three
Speaker 1: for three from fifty plus and in the career he's
Speaker 1: forty five of sixty three from fifty plus. He's missed
Speaker 1: thirteen kicks in his career under fifty yards on two
Speaker 1: seventy five attempts. Like, come on, he's so good. And
Speaker 1: they will also pump the ball well. Sam Cook averages
Speaker 1: just under forty six yards per punt their second and
Speaker 1: special teams d V o A and Devin DuVernay has
Speaker 1: average six point seven yards per punt return. Wow, it's
Speaker 1: a big number yards per kick return. He has Olympic speed,
Speaker 1: so you want to limit his opportunities in the kicking game.
Speaker 1: And with that said, they did surrender a kickoff touchdown
Speaker 1: last week, so maybe Jalen can find a way to
Speaker 1: get loose. The Dolphins will win this week if they
Speaker 1: can solve the second and third quarter woes because the
Speaker 1: script for these teams have been similarly opposite. Does that
Speaker 1: even make sense? And that Miami has begun games hot
Speaker 1: and finished and finished games hot as well, with a
Speaker 1: bit of a lull in between, where the Ravens have
Speaker 1: started games slowly and come on, So get that same
Speaker 1: quick start with stand the near certain on thought that
Speaker 1: will come at some point in this game. It's tough
Speaker 1: to hold these guys down for a sixty minutes, So
Speaker 1: fight Playing a sixty minute game obviously always your key,
Speaker 1: but more so in this one than any other. The
Speaker 1: Ravens will win if Lamar is able to be multidimensional.
Speaker 1: He cannot beat this team if he's running through the
Speaker 1: air and on the ground, running through the air, if
Speaker 1: he's competing and cooking you through the air and doing
Speaker 1: on the ground. They've got to find a way to
Speaker 1: take away one of those two elements. My three keys
Speaker 1: to the game. Keep Jackson and the Ravens offense one dimensional.
Speaker 1: Just talked about that number two explosive plays on offense
Speaker 1: and defense quite frankly, gonna get some takeaway's gonna need
Speaker 1: some chunk plays in the passing game. How about some
Speaker 1: big plays in the running game for really the first
Speaker 1: time this season. Need all that stuff against a team
Speaker 1: that is as good as Baltimore when you're struggling, the
Speaker 1: way of Miami is and number three, start fast and
Speaker 1: finish strong. We just talked about that as well. So
Speaker 1: those are your three keys, and really quick. Doing this
Speaker 1: on a Wednesday because we do not have a podcast
Speaker 1: until the wee early hours on Friday morning, going to
Speaker 1: be a real late one for you. Boy. Week ten
Speaker 1: picks Ravens over Dolphins, like the Cowboys over the Falcons,
Speaker 1: and bounced back game for Dak Prescott. I like the
Speaker 1: Saints over the Titans because the Saints plays such a
Speaker 1: good defense in that secondary, and I think they can
Speaker 1: get after Ryan Tannehill and that one. Give me the Saints,
Speaker 1: Colts over Jags, the Browns over the Patriots. I think
Speaker 1: Nick Chub's gonna give the must any dose of running
Speaker 1: in that game, although I think they just went on
Speaker 1: the COVID list, so it's only Deernest Johnson still taking
Speaker 1: the Browns anyway. Give me the Bills over the Jets,
Speaker 1: the Steelers over the Lines, the Bucks over the football team,
Speaker 1: the Cardinals where the Panthers with or without Kyler, Chargers
Speaker 1: over the Vikings, and that one, that's that's kind of
Speaker 1: a toss up for me. But give me the Chargers.
Speaker 1: The Eagles and Bronco is a tough one. But give
Speaker 1: me Philly in that one. I'll take the Packers over
Speaker 1: Seattle without Rogers, I'm taking the Seahawks. Do not hold
Speaker 1: me to that if they change him. Chiefs over Raiders
Speaker 1: and Rams over Niners on a Monday night to drop
Speaker 1: the Niners three and six, hopefully and help improve that
Speaker 1: first round draft pick. All right, that is my time
Speaker 1: here on the Preview podcast again. The next time I
Speaker 1: talk to you guys, it'll be after the Dolphins and
Speaker 1: Ravens late late on a Thursday night. Actually again early
Speaker 1: on a Friday morning, so keep it posted there. Check
Speaker 1: out the postgame show as always. Post game against the Ravens,
Speaker 1: me Seth and o J coming to you live from
Speaker 1: hard Rock Stadium right after the game concludes. In the meantime,
Speaker 1: that's gonna be my time you all. Please be sure
Speaker 1: to subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcast, Leave us
Speaker 1: a rating, leave us a review. You can follow me
Speaker 1: on Twitter at Wingfield NFL. Follow the team at Miami Dolphins.
Speaker 1: Check out the Fish Tank Podcast with uh Terrell Buckley
Speaker 1: this week with Seth and o J. You don't want
Speaker 1: I missed that one YouTube channel for our media availabilities,
Speaker 1: and of course Dolphins Today and last but not least,
Speaker 1: Miami Dolphins dot Com. Until next time, benz Up Caroline
Speaker 1: Daddy's Coming Home.