Kelly: Ten Ways to Improve the 2023 Dolphins

Take a look at how the 6-3 Dolphins can turn up the volume on the season, finishing out the year strong enough to host playoff games

The bye week usually is used as an opportunity for NFL teams to rest bodies, recharge the batteries, and reassess strategies.

The Miami Dolphins know the narrative about this year's team. Based on the earlier performances in losses to the Buffalo Bills, Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs, the prevailing thought is that Miami can't beat good teams.

For Mike McDaniel's team to silence that chatter, and get where they want to go — which is to be one of the two teams playing in Las Vegas in February — the Dolphins need to find another gear, and avoid the struggles that surfaced in the second half of last season.

Here are 10 ways the Dolphins can improve in the second half:

1. Get De’Von Achane Going Again

The rookie sensation was one of the NFL’s biggest playmakers before suffering a knee injury in Miami’s 31-16 win over the New York Giants, which got him placed on injured reserve. The former Texas A&M standout began practicing this week and the hope is that it won’t take him long to pick up where he left off, injecting fear into Miami’s forceful rushing attack, which is averaging 147.9 rushing yards per game and 5.9 yards per attempt. If Achane provides the big plays that have him averaging 12.1 yards per carry and has allowed him to score seven touchdowns in four games, then Miami's offense will remain one of the NFL's top performing units.

2. Help Tagovailoa cut down the turnovers

Tua Tagovailoa has been carving up defenses when he’s given time to read the field, especially at home, where the scoring and yardage produced differential is significant. However, there are only seven quarterbacks who have thrown more interceptions (seven) than Tagovailoa this season, and four of them have played more games than Miami, which was on a bye week. Tagovailoa needs to become more clutch in critical situations when the game is on the line because he fell short of expectations in loss to the Eagles and Chiefs. He's better than that.

3. Blitz Jerome Baker occasionally

Baker, who has started 79 of the 90 games he’s played for Miami, is having a relatively quiet season in this new scheme. With the exception of his one interception, which he ran back for a touchdown against the Eagles, and the 1.5 sacks he produced against the Giants, his 52 tackles have been quite pedestrian. But the Dolphins are under-utilizing his ability as a blitzer (22.5 career sacks) and sprinkling in a handful of pressure plays with Baker could turn up the volume on Vic Fangio’s defense.

4. Mix up coverages more

Even though zone coverage is a staple of Fangio’s scheme, the Dolphins have a pair of cornerbacks who have excelled in playing physical, man-to-man press coverage throughout their career. It would be wise for Miami to switch up how the secondary uses Jalen Ramsey and Xavien Howard from time to time, giving opposing offenses a different look in the red zone and on third downs.

5. Find a starting-caliber guard

Since it doesn’t seem likely that Isaiah Wynn is returning from the hamstring injury he suffered a month ago, the Dolphins must find a left guard replacement capable of patching up the protection leaks, and burrowing open running lanes. It doesn’t help that Robert Jones is banged up (knee) again, but between Lester Cotton, Liam Eichenberg and Kendall Lamm, who has exclusively played tackle in his NFL career, the Dolphins need to find a lineman who will blossom playing between Terron Armstead and center Connor Williams.

6. Carve out a role for Claypool

Chase Claypool’s talent level motivated the Chicago Bears to trade what equates to a 2023 first-round pick for the receiver, who has a rare combination of size and speed. While the Dolphins acquired him for Chicago for the NFL equivalent of pocket change, it doesn’t change the fact he possesses a unique skill set the Dolphins would benefit from in the red zone. Miami would be wise to groom Claypool to play the slot, and H-back spot, having him fill Mike Gesicki’s old role. But he needs to get healthy (knee issue is slowing him) and learn the offense at a faster rate.

7. Allow Kader Kohou to settle in at nickel

Kohou, an undrafted rookie who thrived as a starter last season, had a rough stretch of games this season because he was being asked to play out of his depth on the boundary. Now that Ramsey and Howard are back, the Dolphins will allow Kohou to settle in as the nickel cornerback, which is where his physicality and instincts show up best. It would be ideal to see Kohou get comfortable enough to play the ball more.

8. Keep Terron Armstead healthy

Throughout his 11-year career, Armstead has struggled with injuries, but he’s only played fewer than eight games three times, and one of those came in his rookie season, where he only dressed for six games. The hope is that Miami will have its four-time Pro Bowl left tackle healthy for the remaining eight games, and the postseason. After being sidelined by two knee injuries in the first half of the season, the 32-year-old should have fresh legs.

9. Find a third option in the passing game

Everyone in the world knows Tyreek Hill is the best weapon on the team, if not in the NFL. And even though Jaylen Waddle has battled injuries most of the season he’s still on pace for a third straight 1,000-yard season. But Miami needs to find another weapon in the passing game who can help the offense improve its third down conversion rate (39.5 percent), which ranks 16th in the NFL.

10. Defense must tighten up in red zone

Fangio’s bend-but-don’t-break defense has made significant improvement throughout the season, but the one area where improvement is needed is Miami’s red zone defense and goal-to-go situations. The Dolphins rank 28th in the NFL when it comes to red zone defense, allowing touchdowns on 67.7 percent of possessions that reach the 20-yard line. The Dolphins are allowing 75 percent of the team’s goal-to-go situations to turn into touchdowns, which ranks Miami 20th. If the 12th-ranked Dolphins defense intends to finish the year in the top 10, Fangio’s unit needs to tighten up in these situations.