Once the euphoria of beating the Jets wears off, the reality of the playoffs being on the brink of out of reach once again sets in. Sure, Sunday’s win in the Meadowlands prolonged the Dolphins’ slim hopes, and at least prevented next week from being meaningless, but as long as there is hope, nobody is going to be satisfied with anything short of the postseason.

Those slim hopes may have become a tad more realistic if the Texans would have pulled off a win against the Ravens last night, but as we stand now, the Dolphins best chance of sneaking into the playoffs would be to win out and hope the Jets continue their late season skid.

Let’s take a look at the Dolphins’ playoff scenarios.

Scenario #1

-Dolphins win out

-Jets lose to Steelers in Week 15 and Bills in Week 17 (Week 16 against Bears would be irrelevant in this scenario)

-Chargers lose one more game (vs. 49ers, at Bengals, at Broncos)

-Colts lose one more game (vs. Jaguars, at Raiders, vs. Titans)

Scenario #2

-Dolphins win out

-Jets lose to Bears in Week 16 and Bills in Week 17 (under this scenario Week 15 against the Steelers would be meaningless)

-IF Chargers win out, Chiefs would then need to lose to either Titans in Week 16 or Raiders in Week 17

-IF Colts win out, Jaguars would then need to lose to either Redskins in Week 16 or Texans in Week 17

Scenario #3

-Dolphins win out

-Ravens lose out (vs. Saints, at Browns, vs. Bengals)

+ Two of the following three

-Chargers lose one more OR Chiefs lose in Week 16 or 17

-Colts lose one more OR Jaguars lose in Week 16 or 17

-Jets lose to Steelers/Bills OR Bears/Bills

Scenerio #4

-Dolphins beat Bills and Patriots but lose to Lions

-Jets lose out

-Colts finish 9-7

-Chargers finish 9-7

*All scenerio's possibly subject to current common opponents winning percentage and strength of victory tie-breakers holding up

Is there any doubting how far the Dolphins’ defense has come this season? Despite arguably the most inept offensive performance of the year, the defense rose to the occasion time and time again and helped the Dolphins keep their dismal playoff hopes alive for at least one more week.

Chad Henne completed a miserable 27 percent of his passes, the running game may have been slightly more productive than expected but that’s not saying much, and the offense fumbled the ball over to the Jets three times. Overall, just about as ugly of a performance as you can have on the offensive side of the football.

But how about that Dolphins’ defense? They set the tone early on with Nolan Carroll’s pick and Quentin Moses’ fumble recovery, which led to the only points the Dolphins’ needed in the first quarter, and they didn’t give up a touchdown the rest of the way.

With the playoffs being such a long shot and Chad Henne struggling as much as he has these past two games, fans may still want to focus on some of the negatives, and understandably so, but this defense deserves all the credit they get for how dominate they have been in recent weeks. And the good news is, they’re young, and arguably a couple key resignings away from sustaining this level of play for years into the future.

The playoffs may have to wait due to the struggles on the other side of the ball, but let me just defy logic for you and proclaim that the future isn’t nearly as dire as some fans have been saying lately when the Dolphins have found themselves a defense like this.

Another unit that put in a good days work was the Dolphins’ special-teams. And when I say special-teams I’m mainly just talking about Brandon Fields on this day. The coverage units were fantastic as well against a dangerous return team, but Brandon Fields was my MVP in a game that was a virtual field-position battle from start to finish.

The Dolphins’ offense didn’t help out the defense much at all buy going three and out inside their own twenty on several occasions, but each and every time Brandon Fields sent off a boot that prevented the Jets from taking over in great position to put points on the board.

Overall, this may just be another up in what has been a roller coaster of a year, but it’s always a little higher up when it’s the Jets who the Dolphins have beaten. Enjoy the win!

Game Ball: Brandon Fields, 10 punts, 49.6 yard average, long of 69

Complete Box Score

Unfortunately the blog had to take a little bit of a hit this week, as all my procrastination near the end of my college semester finally caught up to me. That’s something that won’t happen often, as I usually like to post something just about every day. But nevertheless, I thought I should at least get in my keys to victory for this always pivotal division rivalry.

The Dolphins’ slim playoff hopes all but ended on Chad Henne’s third interception against the Browns last week, but as long as they’re still mathematically alive, Dolphin fans have no choice really, but to keep on believing. After all, we did see these New York Jets sneak into the playoffs last season only a couple weeks after Rex Ryan conceded in a press conference that they weren’t going to the playoffs that year.

Although, the Dolphins have no choice but to win their remaining four games and get a whole lot of help along the way, if they can take this thing one week at a time and keep their slim hopes alive for at least a couple more games, we could be in for, at the very least, an exciting finish to the season. And while an exciting finish doesn’t guarantee anything, and in all likelihood won’t result in a playoff berth, anything beats meaningless December football.

A game against the Jets will always have plenty of meaning to it regardless of the standings, but a loss tomorrow in the Meadowlands would officially end any small hopes the Dolphins have and would turn the final three games of the season into preseason like exhibitions. So let’s see what the Dolphins have to do to avoid that fate.

Put the ball in Sanchez’s hands
If there is anything to be excited about in Dolphin land these days, it’s how dominate this front seven has been against the run in their last two games. The Dolphins engulfed Darren McFadden and the formally second overall rated Raiders’ rushing attack two weeks ago, by holding them to a mere 16 yards on 12 carries. Then, last week, the Dolphins held the second coming of Larry Csonka, Peyton Hillis, to 57 yards on only 3.2 yards per carry.

For the Dolphins defense to continue to quietly emerge as one of the league’s elite units, they are going to need another big day from their front seven. The Jets currently rank fourth in the league with nearly 150 yards on the ground per game. With the weather projecting to be cold, wet, and windy, the Jets will likely make a concentrated effort to pound the football early and often.

If the Dolphins can shut down the run off the bat, though, Mark Sanchez will be asked to make some big plays for the Jets’ offense. We saw last week how much he struggled when the Jets were forced to become pass happy playing from behind. Sanchez typically doesn’t play well in poor conditions, and the Dolphins could sure use a few turnovers to jumpstart an inconsistent offense. Now, let’s just hope the Dolphins’ DB’s can hang on to the football.

Chad Henne: continue stellar play against the Jets
Say what you want about how inconsistent Chad Henne has been, but two of his best performances as a pro have come against the Jets. Of course I’m referring to last year’s epic last minute drive on Monday Night Football and Week 3 this season when he threw for 363 yards and two touchdowns.

Unfortunately, the Jets will have Darrelle Revis back this time around, but fortunately for the Dolphins, Brandon Marshall will likely make his return from a hamstring injury that sidelined him two weeks. In a couple other injury blows, Brian Hartline and Vernon Carey didn’t make the trip up to New York, so Henne will be without his other starting receiver and starting right tackle. But in order for the Dolphins to win on Sunday, we will likely need to see another big game and bounce back performance from Henne that just may save his job in Miami as the starting quarterback.

We know the Dolphins probably won’t be able to establish much of Ronnie and Ricky against the Jets’ defense which ranks third against the run. So Chad Henne is going to need to play consistent, mistake free football in order for the Dolphins to have a realistic chance at winning this game. Not exactly the easiest person to trust nowadays, but there is no doubting how much the Dolphins need him tomorrow evening.

Have a big day on special-teams
Thinking back to last year’s win in the Meadowlands, it wouldn’t even have been possible, if it weren’t for a couple jaw dropping Ted Ginn Jr. kickoff returns. Obviously, we probably should never expect that type of performance ever again from the Dolphins on special-teams, especially this year when they have been disastrous at times, but a solid outing in the kicking game will do wonders for the Dolphins’ chances.

I would love to see Nolan Carroll finally break out for a big return, as he’s been oh so close on several occasions, but in reality, I would be perfectly content if the Dolphins limit the impact Brad Smith has on this game. Smith is one of the league’s top kickoff return men this season, with four 40+ yard returns and one touchdown.

With how poorly the offense is playing, the Dolphins must keep this game low scoring. Their defense is certainly capable of doing that, but one or two mishaps on special-teams would likely be too much to overcome.

It’s funny how drastically things can change in a week. Last week around this time, fans were starting to proclaim that Henne was finally coming into his own after responding well to his benching with two very solid showings against the Titans and Raiders.

One game of horrific decision making, underthrown balls, overthrown balls, and batted passes at the line of scrimmage, though, has fans once again calling for head.

Let me initially clarify that I’m not asking whether or not Henne should be benched in favor of Tyler Thigpen, as I do believe that Henne gives this football team the best chance to win, even though he’s been wildly inconsistent for nearly two whole seasons. I’m simply asking whether or not the Dolphins should give up on Henne as their long term answer at the position and go on the lookout this offseason for their man.

At the very least, Henne deserves to finish out the season with Brandon Marshall likely returning to the lineup, to see if he can finally put together a productive, consistent four games and save his job. What kind of performance will that take? I think just one more multiple interception game, like we saw on Sunday, should be enough to officially end the Chad Henne era.

We know the guy is capable of putting together one or two good games, we saw it against the Titans and the Raiders, but he still appears incapable of building off success. He may be able to string together one or two noteworthy performances, but so far, in that second or third game, he’s always reverted back to his horrendous decision making, and just refuses to take that next step as a quarterback.

It’s kind of a shame too, when you consider how much potential Henne has physically. You could argue, that of all the quarterbacks we’ve had to endure since the retirement of Dan Marino, Henne has flashed the most promise.

Who would have thought we would be having this discussion after watching that perfect last minute drive on Monday Night Football to beat the Jets last October, or when he threw for over 350 yards in Week 3 of this season against what was supposed to be the best pass defense in football?

Yet here we are, seriously doubting if Henne is the long term answer for this football team for the second time in a little less than a month.

Before you cast Henne off, though, first consider what ramifications that may have on the immediate future of this team. Going after another possible suitor at the quarterback position, means the Dolphins will likely find their man via the draft. After all, how often do you see potential franchise quarterbacks floating around on the open market?

If the Dolphins do indeed invest a high draft selection in a rookie quarterback, though, that would likely mean that the Dolphins would step back from a win now mentality as the young guy takes time to develop. Even if some impatient Dolphin fans are ready to hit the panic button, blow up the whole roster, and start from scratch, that is particularly discouraging when, in my opinion, the Dolphins are good enough on the defensive side of the ball to not only win now, but be serious contenders.

Then again, though, outside of some bizarre exceptions (cough, Trent Dilfer, cough), you can usually only go as far as your quarterback can take you in this league. Having said that, wouldn’t it be better to find a more reliable long term quarterback when the defense is still young, than to prolong the search in hopes that the light bulb will finally turn on for Henne.

I think the old Parcells’ saying goes something like, “if they don’t bite as a puppy, they won’t bite.”

With that said, let me know what you think the Dolphins should do in the comments section.

We are about 24 hours away from the Dolphins putting their season on the line for the second consecutive week. It is a little nerve racking knowing that the Dolphins can essentially be eliminated from playoff contention in any of their next five games, but it definitely adds a little more excitement to the equation.

At the very least, Dolphin fans should hope to witness some meaningful December football, which is about as close to playoffs as you can get, without actually going to the playoffs. The Dolphins are just one win away from getting a chance to play in a big December football game with playoff implications. Their game in the Meadowlands next week will be beefed up even more if the Jets can drop Monday night’s battle in New England, but for now, all the Dolphins need to do is worry about getting to 7-5 and letting the rest take care of itself.

Contain Peyton Hillis
I’m not exaggerating when I say that Peyton Hillis is the Cleveland Browns’ offense. He is closing in on 1,000 yards on a very productive 4.5 yards per carry and he leads the Browns with 46 receptions and is second on the team with 414 receiving yards. Heck, he even completed a pass earlier in the season. While Hillis gives the Browns’ offense the firepower to come down to Miami and spoil the Dolphins’ season, there isn’t much to this Cleveland offense if the Dolphins can stop or even contain the mighty Hillis.

To do so, I expect Mike Nolan to load up the box with eight man fronts in order to stop the running game and force the turnover prone Jake Delhomme to make plays for the Browns to move the ball. Unlike some of the speedsters Miami has lined up against in weeks past, Hillis is going to come right at the middle of the defense all game long.

So far, nose tackle Paul Soliai is putting together a breakthrough season, but his biggest test will come on Sunday. Soliai will be key if the Dolphins are going to shutdown Hillis, because if he can take on two blockers at once, unblocked linebackers will then be able to fill running lanes.

Speaking of linebackers, though, Channing Crowder is listed as doubtful. Crowder has been far from brilliant this season, but filling run lanes is one thing he can handle. That means the Dolphins’ defense will be counting on another solid performance from Tim Dobbins.