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There’s plenty of optimism surrounding the Miami Dolphins for 2024, thanks to the head coach’s new contract. Also, quarterback Tua Tagovailoa believes in his offensive line. Ahead of the 2024 NFL season, here are bold predictions for the Miami Dolphins.
It shouldn’t be surprising these predictions start with the quarterback position. Tagovailoa should have a good year, guiding an explosive offense.
Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa will set a career-high mark
The category shining for Tagovailoa will be touchdown passes. He will easily break his career-high mark of 29, set last year. His yardage total will be down from the 4,624 he put up last year, but he’ll be more efficient. Look for him to get 35 touchdown tosses this season.
Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel said he believes Tagovailoa is ready for the challenge and the pressure, according to dolphinswire.com.
“It’s a pretty hot place to be, quarterback of the National Football League,” McDaniel said. “One of the cool things about sports is that Tua can know that, his teammates know that, and they already have pressure and expectations for themselves. So we focus on the way we play, understanding that we will always hear about the results regardless of what they are.”
Also, McDaniel said simply having expectations are important, according to a team transcript via media.miamidolphins.com.
“I think expectations are important from one vantage point, for the personal expectations that one has for themselves,” McDaniel said. “Those expectations of how you do your job and then a bigger understanding about how much other people have to do with your job. I think naturally it’s important to have expectations evolve over time; if you’re trying to be the best version of yourself.
“You better be getting better, because if not you’re getting worse. But then I think it’s also you have to understand the bigger picture and how truly dependent you are on teammates to execute your jobs so that you don’t get caught up in the fake land of result-based opinions that have a lot to do with a lot of other people.”
Is Tagovailoa ready to take next step?
Because of his nature and makeup, Tagovailoa is well-prepared to handle the ups and downs of a high-expectation season. This will be the year he thrives in the process. And if Tagovailoa finds this path, the Dolphins will win a lot of football games.
According to McDaniel, it comes down to Tagovailoa staying in control.
“If you want to be on a good team, then you better bring everything that you can control, or you should have nothing more than marginal expectations for your team at best,” McDaniel said. “External expectations will adjust, but I think it’s important that you focus on your internal expectations because that’s the best way to lend the most powerful results that hopefully satisfy all your friends, fans, and every other person.”
RB Devon Achane explodes to NFL stardom
In a small way, Achane already did this. He averaged an insane 7.8 yards per carry as he racked up 800 yards only 103 attempts in 2023. He also scored 11 touchdowns with fairly limited touches.
This year he will blow past the yardage and touchdown totals, although his per-carry average will come back to a more reasonable level. But it will still be very high, like 5.5 or better.
The only thing holding a healthy Achane back this year would be McDaniel. But McDaniel seems to be in Achane’s corner because the running back has added more strength to his speed, according to dolphinswire.com.
“Seeing some strength gains and you can tell by his body he’s put some work into it,” McDaniel said. “Just understanding everything about our offense so he can be as big a part of it as possible. That’s his goal.”
And McDaniel said he expects Achane to get hungry this season.
“A lot of times if you have success as a rookie, you go one of two ways: you’re either starved for more or you can get kind of comfortable,” McDaniel said. “I know each and every year there are examples for both and that’s something that we were talking with De’Von in our exit interviews when he was exiting the building.
“Whatever you did this year, are you expecting more or less? Well, if you’re expecting more, you definitely can’t do less. You get out what you put in, and I think he’s aware of that because nobody wants to have the climax of their career be the first year.”
Achane should blow past 1,000 yards rushing and threaten 1,500 total yards to go along with 15 total touchdowns.
At age 38, DE Calais Campbell will add 7 sacks to career total
This would be his biggest total since 2018 with the Jaguars. Despite his age, Campbell uses his NFL experience to make plays. The 6-foot-8, 307-pounder enters his 17th season.
McDaniel said Campbell is still a big-time NFL factor, according to a team transcript via media.miamidolphins.com.
“I think bottom line, you are so hard pressed to find someone that’s able to execute their job at the level he executes it,” McDaniel said. “How many quarterbacks are older than him in the National Football League? Probably – wow, there’s only one. He is doing his job over a crazy amount of time at a high level from the one-technique all the way to the five-technique, from next to the center all the way to on the outside of the tackle.
“It just takes such a tremendous person to be able to do what he’s done and continues to do in his career. The exuberance that he has to attack every day, what that takes in terms of preparation for your body, you can’t fake that career. You have to truly love football, love the team, and he exudes that every day. I’ll tell you what, it’s such a powerful piece to this team.”
Miami is the fifth NFL team for Campbell. He has 105.5 career sacks and 865 tackles. Also, he found a way to total three career interceptions while also scoring three touchdowns on fumble returns. Additionally, he has earned three All-Pro honors to go along with six Pro Bowl selections.
TE Tanner Conner will catch two TD passes
An undrafted free agent, the 6-3, 232-pound Conner played in 13 games for the Dolphins in 2022. He received only three targets without a catch. But things will turn his direction in 2024.
“Tanner Conner, really cool year, offseason for him,” McDaniel said. “I think a lot of the stuff, his teammates had firsthand experience with his journey. He was a position switch — a wide receiver that we moved to tight end and now owns the entire playbook.”
McDaniel said Conner is unique.
“One of the rare, rare players that — there’s probably three in my whole career — (who) knows fullback and then can line up at the slot receiver and run two-minute, which is all memorized word association. There’s nobody (who) has the rules of our offense and how to execute at every level down more than Tanner Conner does. I’m excited for what he has in store for the Dolphins, both on offense and on special teams.”
Miami’s offensive line will finish top 10 in PFF rankings
The Dolphins enter the season ranked No. 18, which is understandable with the loss of Robert Hunt and Connor Williams from the heart of the unit.
But with the way Tagovioloa plays, the unit has the luxury of not having to hold its blocks as long. And the group has been together in McDaniel’s system, which helps continuity.
“I’ve just had the fortune in being within the same system for 18 years,” McDaniel said. “And in that process, you learn that if you pre-judge something early in the process in understanding how to truly execute this scheme, if you take a player in Year 1 and forecast that as being how he’ll be in the system, you’re wrong way more than you’re right. You just get so much invaluable information from each and every player when you go through the journey of a season. And in that, I know if we didn’t have the right type of combination of people and skill set, we wouldn’t have just stayed steadfast, or the moves would probably be a lot different.”
Dolphins will make AFC championship game
Unfortunately, the Dolphins will lose that game to the Baltimore Ravens. But it will still be a step forward for a franchise that hasn’t enjoyed a lot of postseason success over the years.
The Dolphins reached three straight Super Bowls from 1971-73. And they made it back in 1982 and 1984. They also played in a conference championship in 1985 and 1992. Since then, the Dolphins haven’t won two playoff games in the same season. And they haven’t won a playoff game at all since a 2000 season victory over the Indianapolis Colts.
It won’t be an easy road for the Dolphins in the tough AFC. But McDaniel has a fat new contract and players’ support, according to miamiherald.com.
“There’s just so many things that we’ve gone through from the journey of two years ago, and it’s not just football related,” Tagovailoa said. “It’s just life-related. A lot of it is much more life related off the field type of things, the mental aspect of the game, just the mental aspect of life, the mental aspect of family life back home, and just a lot of things like that and it’s really helped me throughout the course of growing up. He wants us to make money, and he’s going to do everything he can to help us do that.”
