Setting the Stage for the Week 18 Dolphins-Jets Matchup

The Miami Dolphins will look to improve to finish the regular season on a high note and keep their playoff hopes alive when they face the New York Jets at Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday.

Here's all the pertinent info for this Week 18 Dolphins-Jets matchup:

MIAMI DOLPHINS (8-8) vs. NEW YORK JETS (7-9)

DATE: Sunday, Jan. 8

TIME: 1 p.m. ET

SITE: Hard Rock Stadium; Miami Gardens, Fla.

WEATHER FORECAST: The temperature between 1 and 4 p.m. in Miami Gardens will 78 degrees, according to The Weather Channel, with partly cloudy skies and a chance of precipitation between 4 and 8 percent. The wind is expected to be 8-9 mph.

TV: FOX

Announcers: Joe Davis (play-by-play), Daryl Johnston (color analyst), Pam OIiver (sidelines)

STREAMING: fuboTV (start your free trial)

SI Sportsbook betting line: Dolphins by 3.5 (over/under 36.5)

Final Injury Report:

Dolphins — QB Tua Tagovailoa (concussion) is out; T Terron Armstead (toe/pec/knee/hip), T Kendall Lamm (ankle) and WR Cedrick Wilson Jr. (hip) are doubtful; QB Teddy Bridgewater (knee/right finger), LB Bradley Chubb (ankle/hand), CB Xavien Howard (knee), FB Alec Ingold (thumb) and S Eric Rowe (quad) are questionable.

Jets — T Duane Brown (shoulder), CB. Brandon Echols (quad), T George Fant (knee), G Nate Herbig (calf) and S Lamarcus Joyner (hip) are out; S Ashtyn Davis (ankle), G Laurent Duvernay-Tardif (knee), TE C.J. Uzomah (ankle), QB Mike White (rib) and S Jordan Whitehead (hamstring) are questionable.

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FOR EVEN MORE COVERAGE ON THE MIAMI DOLPHINS, CHECK OUT SPORTS ILLUSTRATED'S MIAMI DOLPHINS PAGE ON SI.COM

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Regular season series history: The series is tied 56-56-1

Last five meetings:

Oct. 9, 2022 at New York — Jets 40, Dolphins 17

Dec. 19, 2021 at Miami — Dolphins 31, Jets 24

Nov. 21, 2021 at New York — Dolphins 24, Jets 17

Nov. 29, 2020 at New York — Dolphins 20, Jets 3

Oct. 18, 2020 at Miami — Dolphins 24, Jets 0

Dolphins' largest margin of victory: 42 (1986 at Miami; Dolphins 45, Jets 3)

Dolphins' largest margin of defeat: 27 (2004 at New York; Jets 41, Dolphins 14 ... 2007 at Miami; Jets 40, Dolphins 13)

Highest-scoring matchup: 96 points (1986 at New York; Jets 51, Dolphins 45, OT)

Lowest-scoring matchup: 16 points (1976 at Miami; Dolphins 16, Jets 0 ... 2010 at New York; Dolphins 10, Jets 6)

Former Jets players with the Dolphins:

RB Raheem Mostert (practice squad), DB Elijah Campbell, P Thomas Morstead, T Brandon Shell

Former Jets coaches with the Dolphins:

Assistant defensive line coach Ryan Slowik

Former Dolphins players with the Jets:

S Will Parks, OL Adam Pankey, special teams coordinator Brant Boyer

Former Dolphins coaches with the Jets:

Offensive line/run game coordinator John Benton, senior defensive assistant Tony Oden

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JETS SCOUTING REPORT

It's not just the Dolphins who will go into this Week 18 matchup on a five-game losing streak, the only difference being that the Jets' fifth consecutive loss last Sunday at Seattle knocked them out of playoff contention. That 23-6 loss in Week 17 pretty much epitomized the Jets' downfall, with the offense failing to score more than 17 points in any of the team's past four games. Like the Dolphins, the Jets' signature win of the season came against the AFC East champion Buffalo Bills, 20-17 at home in Week 9.

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THE BIGGEST REASON THE DOLPHINS WILL WIN ...

The Dolphins will be starting rookie seventh-round pick Skylar Thompson in the season finale, but this is a game where the defense has to make the difference, the way it did in the opener against New England or the Sunday night game against Pittsburgh. The Jets have been dreadful offensively over the past month and they'll go into this game missing three starting offensive linemen. The last time Joe Flacco started a game in Miami was during the 2020 season and the Dolphins shut out the Jets 24-0. That kind of defensive performance might be the ticket, and maybe more likely than Thompson putting up big numbers.

THE BIGGEST REASON THE DOLPHINS WILL LOSE ...

There's a reason the over/under is an unusually low 36.5 points for this game, and it's not just because of the Jets. Let's face it, the Dolphins offense has been off kilter for several weeks now and it's entirely possible Miami will be without all-important left tackle Terron Armstead in this game. That could be a problem against a Jets defense that's actually pretty good. And let's also understand that Flacco actually might be the most dangerous of the three Jets quarterbacks who could have started this game because Zach Wilson has been a bust so far and Mike White showed recently he wasn't the answer, either. Flacco averaged 300 passing yards in the first three games this season when he started for the Jets.

FINAL DOLPHINS-JETS PREDICTION

The Dolphins can't possibly go 0-6 to finish out the season, can they? Well, sad to say, they absolutely can. We're at the point where Miami has lost whatever mojo it had during that since-forgotten 8-3 start and everything has been a struggle lately. This game should be no different. Logic says the Dolphins should win because they're the better team, but we frankly would feel better if Mike White or Zach Wilson were starting for the Jets because Flacco can be dangerous. It's going to be asking a lot of Skylar Thompson to get the offense humming again, especially if Terron Armstead can't play, but we like the rookie's ability to make plays off schedule. This absolutely should be a low-scoring affair, and maybe Jason Sanders wins it at the buzzer to end a down season for him on a high note. Final score: Dolphins 19, Jets 16.