New Miami Dolphins season, who’s this?
While there’s plenty of Super Bowl talk in the backdrop of the lead-up to this season, my hope is that expectations remain reasonable because this is a good Dolphins team, but a flawed one.
Here are some basic instructions to help fans understand this year’s model.
Hopefully we can prevent hearts from being broken by not placing unrealistic expectation on a franchise that hasn’t won a playoff game in 24 years.
1. Fragile. Handle with care
The Dolphins have the NFL’s sixth-oldest roster, with a team that averages 27 years, four months and 23 days in age according to Bookies.com. Only the Buffalo Bills (27 years, five months and 29 days), Carolina Panthers, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns and Minnesota Vikings are older, and by a smidgen of days. The biggest concern about aged players is it takes them longer to recover from games and injuries. That’s why nearly half a dozen Dolphins players in their 30s consistently get veteran rest days each week because head coach Mike McDaniel is a big believer in sports science.