Dolphins-Ravens Week 17 Five Biggest Storylines

Ranking and breaking down the biggest subplots in the Miami-Baltimore showdown at M&T Bank Stadium

The Miami Dolphins will look to clinch their first AFC East title since 2008 and move closer to landing the No. 1 seed in the conference when they face the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium on Sunday.

Ahead of the matchup, we offer our weekly ranking and analysis of the five biggest storylines:

1. The QB Battle

In what appears to be a wide open MVP race, two of the leading candidates will match up in a game that will or could decide who lands the No. 1 seed in the AFC, While there will be more to determining the outcome than simply the performances of Tua Tagovailoa and Lamar Jackson, one of them clearly outplaying the other would go a long way toward that. It also could be that both again have tremendous outings, like they did a year ago on the same field, and the game again comes down to who can make the last big play.

2. Tyreek Time

The Dolphins are going to be missing two key skill position players for this showdown with Raheem Mostert and Jaylen Waddle out because of injuries, but they'll still have their ultimate playmaker. And let's not forget about badly Hill torched the Baltimore secondary in Week 2 last season, though one would think the Ravens will make it a point to actually cover him this time around.

3. The O-line and the Physical Ravens Front

The Dolphins offensive line has managed to do impressive work in spite of a rash of injuries throughout the season and the interior group again likely will be missing the three opening-day starters. In this one, Lester Cotton, Liam Eichenberg and Robert Jones will be going against one of the top pass-rushing defensive tackles in the NFL in Justin Madubuike along with massive run stuffers Michael Pierce (listed at 355 pounds) and Travis Jones (338). This will be a big (pun intended) challenge.

4. Limiting Lamar

We've already discussed the quarterbacks, but let's look at the task of defending Lamar Jackson from the Dolphins defense's standpoint. The thing that always jumps to the forefront there is making sure Jackson doesn't run wild or breaks a long one, like he did with his 79-yard touchdown last year, and that requires extreme discipline from the defenders in making sure everybody stays in their lane and doesn't overpursue. In the passing game, the Dolphins defenders will need to be aware of rookie Zay Flowers, who has become Jackson's go-to receiver in the absence of tight end Mark Andrews. Flowers is nursing a calf injury but figures to play.

5. The Special Teams Factor

The special teams obviously were huge for the Dolphins in their victory against the Cowboys, starting with Jason Sanders' brilliant performance, but let's not forget that Miami allowed a kickoff return for a touchdown against the Ravens last season. This matchup absolutely could come down to one key special teams play, and the Dolphins will need to be on top of that.

The Dolphins Playoff Picture After the Week 17 Thursday Night Game