Dolphins, Bucs Look to Bounce Back After Week 7 Blunders
The NFL Florida trio struck out on a 0-3 count in Week 7.
The Jacksonville Jaguars get a much-needed break this week and will go on their bye. On the other hand, it’s right back to work for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Miami Dolphins, with both teams looking for a win, one more than the other.
Last week, NFL beat writers Riley and Dalton went 1-2 and 2-1, respectively. Dalton is inching his way to the top with an overall record of 12-9, while Riley is slowing down at 13-8.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at New Orleans Saints (Sunday, 4:05 p.m., FOX)
The injury-ridden Bucs were halted in Week 7. Tampa Bay struggled against the Detroit Lions on “Monday Night Football.” Already without running back Bucky Irving and wide receiver Chris Godwin Jr., wideout Mike Evans went down with a broken collarbone in the second quarter.
Wide receiver Emeka Egbuka received all of the attention from the Lions’ secondary and finished the contest with just four catches for 58 yards. Quarterback Baker Mayfield looked completely out of sync with his rookie sensation, committing a handful of overthrows.
Now, Tampa Bay will take on the New Orleans Saints in an NFC South matchup. The Bucs enter Caesars Superdome in search of a win ahead of its Week 9 bye.
The Saints have allowed opposing quarterbacks to throw for over 220 passing yards this season. If the Bucs want to bounce back, Mayfield will have to get back to his early season heroics and find a way to incorporate his other weapons.
Tampa Bay will likely be without Godwin and running back Irving once more. The Lions stalled ball carrier Rachaad White, giving offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard more reason to get him involved.
The Saints are coming off a loss in Chicago, in which Bears running back D’Andre Swift rushed for 124 yards and a touchdown. If White can perform similarly, watch out for the Bucs to become dangerous once more.
Riley’s pick: Buccaneers 31, Saints 17
Dalton’s pick: Buccaneers 28, Saints 17
Miami Dolphins at Atlanta Falcons (Sunday, 1 p.m., CBS)
What is going on in Miami? Owner Stephen Ross has made it abundantly clear that he will be sticking with coach Mike McDaniel through the trying times, but for no good reason.
The Cleveland Browns dominated the Dolphins last week in a game that was viewed in the offseason as an automatic win.
Instead, the abysmal Dolphins defense allowed Browns running back Quinshon Judkins to record a hat-trick. If not already bad enough, Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa threw three interceptions for the second straight week, forcing McDaniel to bring in quarterback Quinn Ewers in the fourth quarter.
The Dolphins will be on the road again this week to Atlanta to take on the Falcons (3-3).
Watch out for Miami running back De’Von Achane to see a heavy workload. Atlanta is ranked in the back half of the league when it comes to run defense. It allowed San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey to pick up 129 rushing yards and two touchdowns, plus 70 yards in the receiving game in Week 7.
With Achane as one of the Dolphins’ leading receivers, look for him to play a massive role Sunday.
The glaring challenge ahead of this game is how Miami will attempt to contain Falcons running back Bijan Robinson. The Texas product posted 170 rushing yards and two scores two weeks ago. He has already accumulated 914 total yards this season.
Miami’s shot at victory is contingent on slowing down Robinson. Easier said than done.
Riley: Falcons 28, Dolphins 21
Dalton: Falcons 35, Dolphins 17
Jacksonville Jaguars – BYE WEEK
Category: Jacksonville Jaguars, Miami Dolphins, NFL, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
