Subscribe
Follow Us
With a Miami Dolphins Week 13 matchup set against the Washington Commanders, a lot of eyes will be on the AFC East team to see if they can build their lead at the top of the division. Ahead of the game between Miami and Washington, we will be making our Dolphins Week 13 bold predictions.
The Dolphins are currently on a two-game winning streak after beating the Las Vegas Raiders and then on the road against the New York Jets last Black Friday. They once again get another game against a team with a losing record in the Commanders who themselves are on a streak of their own, but a negative one as they have lost three straight.
A quick look at the Dolphins and Commanders before the predictions
While people might write home on this that the Dolphins will win easily, it depends which offense comes to play for Washington. Funny enough, the game Sunday will feature two quarterbacks who are top five in the league in terms of passing yards as Sam Howell is No. 1 with 3,339 yards and Tua Tagovailoa is No. 4 with 3,177.
For the Dolphins last game against New York, it wasn't an explosive offensive day most fans are used to seeing, but one could credit that to the major talent of the Jets defense. On the other side of the ball, the Dolphins defense played exceptionally well and took advantage of the matchup against quarterback Tim Boyle, who started over Zach Wilson.
Looking at the Commanders, they lost to the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving day last week, and it was never really close. They only scored 10 points while allowing the Cowboys to score 45.
A win for Miami would further their lead as mentioned in the AFC East as the Buffalo Bills lost to the Philadelphia Eagles last weekend and after their bye week, have the Kansas City Chiefs after.
Nevertheless, let's move on to our Dolphins Week 13 predictions:
*Watch NFL games LIVE with fuboTV (click for free trial)*
Dolphins offense back on track against Commanders
Despite being on the road, this could be a get right game for the Dolphins offense as the unit hasn't been as explosive as it was in the beginning of the season. Even though, it's fair to say they've played winning football as of late, but fans might be used to the thought of the team scoring 70 points like they did against the Denver Broncos earlier.
One could argue that the Dolphins offense wasn't put in a high-pressure situation to score since the last few opponents were a slog on offense. This time around, the Commanders have been hit or miss in that area. However, a bold prediction will be that the Commanders will come into this game hungry to defend their home-field and throw whatever they have at Miami.
Because of this, the Dolphins offense will go off as the Commanders defense isn't anything to write home about. Expect Tagovailoa to have one of his best games in a while and the connection between himself Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle to be as strong as ever. If you have any Dolphins skill-player on your fantasy football team, start them immediately and you won't regret it.
Defense with an inconsistent game
Article Continues Below
If the offense has been trending “downward” the past couple of weeks, the defense has been on the upward direction. Ever since Jalen Ramsey made his debut to the team, the defense led by coordinator Vic Fangio has been successful in every aspect when it comes to the secondary, the pass rush, etc.
However, with dynamic player Jaelan Phillips out for the season with an Achilles injury, that is a huge blow for the Dolphins. Expect the team to totally miss him this Sunday as the defense will start very slow and allow Sam Howell to make some big plays to his receivers and running backs. However, this could be a game where both teams bounce back offensively with a possible shootout upcoming this Sunday.
While the first half will be a potential shootout between the two offenses, the defense will find their footing in the second half and contain the Commanders offense. As it has been seen this season, while Washington has shown they can score points, they've been inconsistent themselves in their offensive game-plan.
Dolphins come out of game with their third straight win
While it can be argued this this isn't a “bold prediction,” the one aspect people are overlooking is that the Commanders are sneaky in how they perform. The Dolphins are sure to come out of this game with a victory and their fourth win on the road, but it won't be an easy one as the line is currently at Miami winning close to 10 points according to the DolphinsWire.
As said in the predictions above, the game is sure to be close in the first half, but the Dolphins will find a way to trail away in the last 30 minutes of play to collect their ninth win of the season. Even with the previous wins under their belt, even the team will admit they haven't played their best football.
Is Miami a “fraudulent” team?
There's no doubt that a win is a win in anybody's eyes, but head coach Mike McDaniel, the offense, defense, and special teams want to see a complete, complementary game of football played Sunday. The chatter of the team unable to beat winning teams will always be present, but you play who you're scheduled to face against.
People can still talk all they want if Miami if “fraudulent,” but even with a win over another struggling football team, this time in the Commanders, the Dolphins have a good chance to be 9-3 by the end of Sunday afternoon. The three losses being two teams that were in the last Super Bowl and the other being the Buffalo Bills. Going panic mode with this team and their record is a waste of time at this moment.
After the Commanders game Sunday, the Dolphins will come back home to take on the Tennessee Titans on Dec. 11. They are currently 5-0 at home with a chance to make it a whopping six wins, matching the amount they did the season prior.
