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Miami Dolphins vs. Carolina Panthers: Who has the edge?

david furones, south florida sun-sentinel
·6 min read
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Here’s a look at how the Miami Dolphins (4-1) and Carolina Panthers (0-5) match up in six key areas ahead of Sunday’s Week 6 game at Hard Rock Stadium (1 p.m., CBS):

When the Dolphins run: We now know the Miami run game will be without rookie sensation De’Von Achane for at least the next four games because of his knee injury. That’s 12.1 yards per carry that are vacated and a big home run threat gone from the backfield. But fear not. Raheem Mostert is still averaging 5.4 yards per attempt in his own right. The Dolphins could also be working Jeff Wilson Jr. back to returning, and Salvon Ahmed was actually the No. 2 behind Mostert in Weeks 1 and 2 when Miami won at Los Angeles and New England.

The Dolphins’ top-ranked rushing offense has continued churning even with left tackle Terron Armstead out of the lineup. Center Connor Williams’ return in last Sunday’s 31-16 win over the Giants was huge. They go against a Panthers run defense that ranks 26th in the NFL. Derrick Brown usually gets a good push on the line. Middle linebacker Shaq Thompson is on injured reserve, but Frankie Luvu has done a sound job in the linebacker corps. Safety Vonn Bell, after coming over from the Cincinnati Bengals, has been strong in run support and leads Carolina in tackles. But the Panthers just surrendered a season-high 159 yards on the ground to the Detroit Lions. Edge: Dolphins

When the Panthers run: Carolina doesn’t run the ball too well offensively either, ranking 21st in the NFL. The team was off to a hot start with 154 rushing yards in its opener against the Atlanta Falcons but has had 100 or fewer in every game since. On top of that, tailback Miles Sanders missed practice early in the week with a shoulder injury. It could be Chuba Hubbard leading the ground game Sunday.

The Miami run defense has rebounded strongly from allowing 233 rushing yards to the Chargers in the opener, holding three of the next four opponents under 100 yards on the ground. It’s got the Dolphins run defense back up to No. 18. Zach Sieler has played a big role in that. Linebackers David Long Jr. and Jerome Baker combined for 17 tackles against the Giants. Edge: Dolphins

When the Dolphins pass: The Miami pass game also ranks tops in the league, and quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is actually on a record pace in passing yards if he maintains his current clip over 17 regular-season games. What Tagovailoa is trying to avoid against Carolina is careless interceptions, like the two that kept New York in last Sunday’s game longer than that team should have been. One of them was a 102-yard pick-six when the Dolphins were trying to go up 21-3 and instead had their lead shrunk to 14-10.

Star wide receiver Tyreek Hill has 651 yards through five games. That puts him on pace to eclipse 2,000 yards on the season if he keeps it up. He caught a long touchdown vs. the Giants, and Jaylen Waddle finally got into the end zone this season against New York. After Cedrick Wilson Jr. got his highest snap count of the season, it’ll be interesting to see if he continues to see an increased workload — or if newcomer Chase Claypool can get incorporated quickly into the offense.

The Panthers’ secondary has Bell off to a decent start to the season, and they start Miami Columbus High product C.J. Henderson at one cornerback spot. Donte Jackson could be coming back after missing the Lions game for what is the league’s fifth-ranked pass defense. Former American Heritage High standout Brian Burns leads Carolina with four sacks and is a premium pass rusher. Left tackle Kendall Lamm will have to hold it down in pass protection while Armstead remains out. Edge: Dolphins

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When the Panthers pass: The No. 1 draft pick, Bryce Young, will be coming to town. The rookie quarterback, in four starts, has thrown five touchdowns to four interceptions, completing 63.9 percent of passes for 5.2 yards per attempt. He has not been as proficient as the No. 2 pick in Houston, C.J. Stroud, as the two will be compared for the rest of their careers after the Panthers traded up in the draft with the Bears for Young.

Veteran receiver Adam Thielen is in Carolina to ease the pro transition for Young, and he has 38 receptions for 394 yards and three touchdowns, leading the team in all categories. Tight end Hayden Hurst has not been used extensively, with just 13 catches for 100 yards, and Sanders is known as a receiving threat out of the backfield but has only collected 81 receiving yards through five games.

Expect Dolphins defensive coordinator Vic Fangio to play his standard zone coverages but also mix in some exotic blitzes that could stun the inexperienced passer. The Dolphins secondary should be looking for an interception after it didn’t come up with one against the Giants and Daniel Jones. The pass rush can expand on seven sacks against the Giants, with Sieler, Emmanuel Ogbah, Andrew Van Ginkel and Baker among those getting in on the act, along with Bradley Chubb with some pressures. Jaelan Phillips could also be returning from his oblique injury. Edge: Dolphins

Special teams: The Dolphins have strung together a pair of decent games on special teams, Jake Bailey’s shanked punt notwithstanding. Bailey barely has to punt, though, so there’s that. Jason Sanders hasn’t missed since Week 2 in New England, and Braxton Berrios has had some decent returns.

The Panthers have Miami Sunset High grad Eddy Pineiro 9 of 10 on field goals. Johnny Hekker has a net punt average of 43.1. Carolina hasn’t been too dangerous in the return game between Laviska Shenault Jr. on kick returns and Ihmir Smith-Marsette on punt returns. Edge: Even

Intangibles: The Dolphins know they should cruise but had enough things go wrong in an otherwise-dominant outing against the Giants that they’ll look to correct. Coach Mike McDaniel has the turnover margin, losing 3-0, that he can point, and he is not one to take any opponent lightly, noting this past week how eager a team on a five-game losing streak — like the Dolphins were toward the end of last year — can be. Miami can also play inspired with Hall of Fame linebacker Zach Thomas an honorary captain. Edge: Dolphins

PREDICTION: Dolphins 38, Panthers 10