Ranking the 2024 Dolphins Schedule by Degree of Difficulty

Most of the Dolphins' toughest matchups comes in the final two months of the regular season

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen tucks the ball and scores a touchdown against the Miami Dolphins last season. / Jamie Germano/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK / USA TODAY NETWORK

It's now been three months since the Miami Dolphins' 2024 regular season schedule was released, though we knew beforehand who and where all their matchups would be.

The unveiling of the dates and times of all 17 of those regular season matchups offered a new perspective, and with it another opportunity to evaluate the schedule and rank each game by degree of difficulty.

Some circumstances have changed the outlook of certain games, such as the trade of New England linebacker Matthew Judon and the significant injury sustained by Buffalo Bills linebacker Matt Milano, but what hasn't changed if the fact the Dolphins schedule looks a lot tougher on the back end than the front end, as evidenced by our updated ranking (countdown style) of the Dolphins' 17 games by degree of difficulty.

17. Week 12 — vs. New England

This ain't Tom Brady's Patriots anymore. Whether it's rookie Drake Maye or veteran Jacoby Brissett at quarterback, the Pats figure to be heavy underdogs for most, if not all, of their division games. And losing Judon, who may well have been their best player, isn't going to help that.

16. Week 11 — vs. Las Vegas

This game will mark the return to Miami of defensive tackle Christian Wilkins and he's got a formidable defensive line partner with Maxx Crosby, but the Raiders offense with Gardner Minshew or Aidan O'Connell at quarterback and now without Josh Jacobs doesn't really scare anybody.

15. Week 5 — at New England

The one tricky part about this game is that the Dolphins will be coming off a Monday night game and going on the road, but the talent gap between the teams is pretty clear.

14. Week 8 — vs. Arizona

This ranking might end up being too low because the Cardinals do have some intriguing possibilities with Jonathan Gannon in his second year as head coach and Marvin Harrison Jr. a major addition on offense, but the Dolphins at home are tough to beat.

13. Week 4 — vs. Tennessee (MNF)

Yes, the Titans shocked the Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium in a Monday night game last December, but they no longer have Mike Vrabel as head coach or Derrick Henry at running back.

12. Week 1 — vs. Jacksonville

The Jaguars were one of the most disappointing teams in the NFL in 2023 and this will be a big season for QB Trevor Lawrence. But let's not forget Jacksonville won the AFC South in 2022, won a playoff game and then gave the Chiefs all they could handle in the divisional round. Still, the Dolphins at home in a Sunday afternoon game should provide confidence.

11. Week 14 — vs. N.Y. Jets

This obviously is dependent on Aaron Rodgers still being in the lineup in December, though Tyrod Taylor still would be way more challenging to face and defeat than the Jets' 2023 backups, Zach Wilson and Tim Boyle.

10. Week 7 — at Indianapolis

The Colts' 2023 season ended when they dropped a winner-take-all AFC South showdown against Houston, but early in the season QB Anthony Richardson showed great potential.

9. Week 3 — at Seattle

The Seahawks very well might wind up last in the NFC West by the end of the 2024 season, but Seattle always is a tough place for visiting teams and new head coach Mike Macdonald's defense could be tricky to solve. This game should offer a reunion with former Dolphins center Connor Williams.

8. Week 10 — at L.A. Rams (MNF)

We start getting to the really tough matchups here. Yes, the Rams no longer will have Aaron Donald, but there's plenty of talent on offense and Sean McVay is in the same category as Mike McDaniel as an offensive mastermind.

7. Week 2 — vs. Buffalo (TNF)

We probably should be ranking this game much higher given how Buffalo has handled the Dolphins in recent years, but while the Dolphins won't have their normal hot-weather advantage in this September game, they will have the advantage of playing at home on a very short week and no Milano on the Buffalo defense will make a difference.

6. Week 18 — at N.Y. Jets

Again, this assumes Rodgers is in the lineup. Don't be shocked if this ends up being for the AFC East title, even if the Jets don't exactly have great mojo because of the Reddick situation.

5. Week 17 — at Cleveland (SNF)

The Browns defense was ridiculous (as in ridiculously good) at home last season and even if it drops a little in 2024, facing it in what figure to be very cold conditions only will add to the challenge. The biggest story here, though, could be what Deshaun Watson can produce for the Cleveland offense in 2024.

4. Week 15 — at Houston

This is mostly about the expectation that the Texans could become a powerhouse this season after what they did in 2023 with a rookie quarterback and a rookie head coach. And we also should mention that Houston now has Stefon Diggs, who often has been too much to handle for Miami.

3. Week 13 — at Green Bay (TNF)

The Packers have a lot of similarities to Houston in that it's an up-and-coming team with an awful lot of good young players. And playing at Lambeau Field at night in what could be cold weather only will make this more challenging. This could be a fun battle between 2020 draft members Tua Tagovailoa and Jordan Love, who both got big contracts in the offseason.

2. Week 16 — vs. San Francisco

Sure, it's a home game, and we generally don't rank home games that high, but the 49ers have been really, really good in December in recent years and this being a 4:25 p.m. game in late December pretty much negates the Dolphins' home-field weather advantage.

1. Week 9 — at Buffalo

Until further notice, this has to get the top spot. The Dolphins haven't won in Buffalo since 2016 and despite the Bills' offseason losses (plus Milano), this still looks like the most daunting task on the Miami schedule.