The Dolphins hope to use the Jets as a springboard for late-season success

MIAMI GARDENS (CBS12 NEWS) — As disappointing as the loss to the Green Bay Packers on Thanksgiving night was and left the Dolphins’ playoff hopes hanging by a thread, there is still hope. Especially when the next opponent is the New York Jets next Sunday at the Hardrock Stadium.

Jets head coach Jeff Ulbrich confirmed this morning that the team will stick with veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers to start this Sunday against the Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium despite losing eight of its last nine games, most recently a 26-21 loss. Lost to the Seahawks on Sunday. The Dolphins will definitely need to take full advantage of the Jets’ ineptitude after losing their game in Green Bay in almost every facet on Thanksgiving night itself, a 30-17 loss. Now it looks like the Dolphins will need to win all five games to finish the season if they want to make the playoffs, including two tough tests in a row after the Jets. The Texans are followed at 8:5 by the 49ers, who were defeated by the Bills on Sunday evening in snowy Buffalo.

“We have to crawl out of here as best we can,” Dolphins defensive tackle Zach Sieler said. “And it’s still possible. So it’s all about winning the next five, and this week it starts with the Jets. They have a lot of weapons, they have a great quarterback.”

“We obviously need to get some rest on offense,” Dolphins tight end Jonnu Smith said. “When I say calm, I mean balance, not peace. You don’t want a peaceful football team, that wouldn’t be a good football team. (Laughter) But you definitely want to find a little more balance on offense and get things back to where we know they can be.”

Dolphins linebacker Jordyn Brooks even went so far as to say that the Dolphins played “softly” in the cold at Lambeau Field. Head coach Mike McDaniel has since defended his team, responding that Brooks was mostly talking about the 23 tackles the defense missed in the loss. McDaniel adds that the teams’ mental and physical strength must now be at its peak heading into the Jets.

“We were blessed with adversity early on,” Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel said. “So you feel like you have a mentally strong football team based on that and the expectations based on my experience with them. Our entire football team will have the opportunity to demonstrate their mental toughness and inner strength after a loss this week.”

On this week’s episode of the Best Florida Sports Podcast we’ll be talking Dolphins and Jets. A new episode hits YouTube this Wednesday, including one-on-one interviews with Dolphins players and expert analysis. You can listen on Apple or Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.