Setting the Stage for the Week 1 Dolphins-Jaguars Matchup

Breaking down all the details for the Miami-Jacksonville Jaguars game at Hard Rock Stadium

Jacksonville Jaguars kicker Matthew Wright (15) follows through on a 53-yard field goal out of the hold of punter Logan Cooke (9) as time expires against the Miami Dolphins during an NFL International Series game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in 2021. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Miami Dolphins will look to kick off their 2024 season in style when they face the Jacksonville Jaguars at Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday.

Here's all the pertinent info for this Week 1 Dolphins-Jaguars matchup:

MIAMI DOLPHINS (11-6 in 2023) vs. JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS (9-8)

DATE: Sunday, Sept. 8

TIME: 1 p.m. ET

SITE: Hard Rock Stadium; Miami Gardens, Fla.

WEATHER.COM FORECAST: The temperature around Hard Rock Stadium between 1 and 4 p.m. ET on Sunday is expected to be 89 degrees, but with a "feel" of 99 or 100 degrees. The forecast calls for partly cloudy skies with a 1 percent chance of rain and winds of 12 mph.

TV: CBS

Announcers: Kevin Harlan (play-by-play), Trent Green (color analyst), Melanie Collins (sidelines)

SI Sportsbook betting line: Dolphins by 3.5 (over/under 49.5)

FINAL INJURY REPORT

Dolphins — WR Malik Washington (quadriceps) is out; CB Jalen Ramsey (hamstring) is questionable

Jaguars — S Daniel Thomas (Achilles) is questionable

Regular season series history: Series is tied 5-5

Last five meetings:

Oct. 17, 2021 at London, England — Jaguars 23, Dolphins 20

Sept. 24, 2020 at Jacksonville — Dolphins 31, Jaguars 13

Dec. 23, 2018 at Miami — Jaguars 17, Dolphins 7

Sept. 20, 2015 at Jacksonville — Jaguars 23, Dolphins 20

Oct. 26, 2014 at Jacksonville — Dolphins 27, Jaguars 13

Dolphins' largest margin of victory: 21 (2012 at Miami; Dolphins 24, Jaguars 3)

Dolphins' largest margin of defeat: 14 (2006 at Miami; Jaguars 24, Dolphins 10)

Highest-scoring matchup: 49 points (1998 at Jacksonville; Jaguars 28, Dolphins 21)

Lowest-scoring matchup: 24 points (2009 at Jacksonville; Dolphins 14, Jaguars 10 ... 2018 at Miami; Jaguars 17, Dolphins 7)

Former Jaguars players with the Dolphins:

CB Jalen Ramsey (2016-9), DT Calais Campbell (2017-19), offensive assistant Max McCaffrey (2017)

Former Jaguars coaches with the Dolphins:

QB coach/pass game coordinator Darrell Bevell was Jaguars offensive coordinator in 2021 and served as interim head coach for four games (1-3 record)

Former Dolphins players with the Jaguars:

Head coach Doug Pederson, DB coach Kris Richard (was in 2009 training camp)

Former Dolphins coaches with the Jaguars:

None

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JAGUARS SCOUTING REPORT

Jackonville enters the 2024 season much like the Dolphins went into last season, looking for redemption after watching an 8-3 start fade into disappointment, though with the Jaguars the collapse led to them missing the playoffs entirely. While the Houston Texans are generating most of the headlines in the AFC South, the Jaguars certainly appear to have the personnel to challenge for a scouting division title in three years. The key figure, of course, is quarterback Trevor Lawrence, who like Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa, signed a lucrative contract extension this summer. Lawrence has a very good group of skill position players around him, led by running back Travis Etienne, tight end Evan Engram, and wide receivers Christian Kirk, first-round pick Brian Thomas Jr. and free agent pick-up Gabe Davis. There are most question marks on defense, but the front four features three former first-round picks with 2022 No. 1 overall selection Travon Walker, Josh Hines-Allen and former 49ers standout Arik Armstead.

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THE BIGGEST REASON THE DOLPHINS WILL WIN ...

With the Dolphins, this usually comes down to the offense simply being too much to handle for the opponent, and this time is no different. Jacksonville does have some good pass rushers, but the question is whether the back end can cover Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle and company long enough to get to Tua Tagovailoa, whose skill set includes a very quick release. Jacksonville also was among the league leaders in turnovers last season and this new-look Dolphins defense has the playmakers to create some takeaways.

THE BIGGEST REASON THE DOLPHINS WILL LOSE ...

It's not just the Jacksonville defense facing a tough challenge here, particularly if it turns out that Jalen Ramsey misses the game because of that nagging hamstring injury. Even if Ramsey does play, the secondary never practiced together in training camp because of various injuries, and Lawrence has an awful lot of options in the passing game. The one concern offensively for the Dolphins not surprisingly is making sure that Walker, Hines-Allen and Armstead don't create havoc with their pass rush, whether with timely sacks or maybe even a sack-strip.

FINAL DOLPHINS-JAGUARS PREDICTION

There's always a lot of mystery and intrigue heading into a season opener because we think we know what each team is going to look like but we don't fully know (if that makes any sense). For this matchup, logic tells us the each team right now is better offensively than defensively, so nobody should expect a defensive struggle where both teams struggle to score. On the contrary, this should look a lot more like what we saw in the Dolphins' 2023 opener against the Chargers when the teams went back and forth until the Dolphins pulled out the victory at the end. As we mentioned earlier, Houston is the talk of the AFC South, but nobody should sleep on the Jaguars. This should be a fun game with lots of big plays and it could go either way, but we could see Jason Sanders winning it with a late field goal. Final score: Dolphins 37, Jaguars 34.