NFL schedule release 2023: Miami Dolphins Instant Takeaways
The Dolphins have one of the most difficult schedules in the NFL in 2023.
And they will be among the league leaders in miles traveled, too.
Mike McDaniel's second season comes with high expectations.
And the addition of star cornerback Jalen Ramsey and star defensive coordinator Vic Fangio.
The schedule has finally dropped. And here are key takeaways:
Miami opens with two road games
It won't be easy to win both at the Los Angeles Chargers and at the New England Patriots (on NBC's "Sunday Night Football"). But Miami has to have the goal to win at least one of these as an 0-2 hole is steep.
Home opener vs. Denver
Fangio, Bradley Chubb and Malik Reed will get a shot to play their former team at Hard Rock Stadium in Week 3. Fangio is grateful that the Broncos gave him his first head coaching opportunity at an advanced stage of his career. But, they did fire him.
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No snow for Buffalo this time
The Dolphins will be in Buffalo in Week 4, their third road game in the first quadrant.
It's a tough way to open the schedule but at least it's very unlikely there will be a blizzard.
Five spotlight games
Unfortunately, only one of these five games is at home, with the Titans at home on a Monday night in Week 14. At New England (Sunday night), at the Eagles (Sunday night), Kansas City in Germany and at the Jets (Friday after Thanksgiving) are all on the road.
It's kind of odd that neither the Buffalo game nor the Dallas game is on the national stage. However, they are obvious flex options.
The bye in the right spot
Taking a bye after a game in Europe seems obvious, but the previous coach tried to outsmart everyone and not do it, which annoyed some players.
Miami's Week 10 bye comes conveniently after the game in Germany. And yes, it's a bit of a shame that Tyreek Hill does not get his homecoming to Arrowhead.
Four of final five at home
The AFC figures to be tight. And Miami has a chance to at least play four of the final five games at home.
After the Titans, it's four strong teams that are playoff-caliber, though: Jets, Cowboys, (at Baltimore) and Bills.
Which playoff teams when?
The Dolphins face these teams that were in the playoffs in 2022: Chiefs, Bills (2), Chargers, Ravens, Eagles, Cowboys, Giants.
Here is when they face them:
Weeks 1-4: @Chargers, @ Bills (2/4)
Weeks 5-8: Giants, @Eagles (SNF) (2/4)
Weeks 9-13: vs. KC (Germany) (1/5)
Weeks 14-18: Cowboys, @Ravens, Bills (3/5)
Tough sledding early
Of the Dolphins' first nine games, five are against teams that made the NFL Playoffs in 2022-23.
Only one of those is at home, one is in Europe and three are on the road.
This is a really tough start to McDaniel's second schedule.
If Miami can come out of the first nine at least 5-4, they've got a decent shot at a record of at least 11-6.
Joe Schad is a journalist covering the Miami Dolphins and the NFL at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at.jschad@pbpost.com and follow him on Instagram and Twitter @schadjoe. Sign up for Joe's free weekly Dolphins Pulse Newsletter. Help support our work by subscribing today
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Miami Dolphins schedule 2023 is released. Did Miami draw a fair table?
