Time for Dolphins Pass Rush To Step Up

The Miami Dolphins have a chance to salvage their season with a win against the Jets this Sunday, which, combined with a Patriots loss to the Bills, would vault them into the postseason for the first time since 2016.

One group must step up without excuses to make that a reality — the pass rushers.

The Dolphins have invested a considerable amount in their pass rush in recent seasons. They spent a first-round pick on Jaelan Phillips, traded multiple picks, including a first for Bradley Chubb, and signed Melvin Ingram this offseason.

That doesn’t even mention Chubb’s new contract, the first-round pick the Dolphins spent on Christian Wilkins in 2019 or the contract extension they gave the now-injured Emmanuel Ogbah.

On Sunday, Miami’s pass rushers have a great opportunity to turn the tide in the team’s most important game of the season.

The Jets will be without three usual starters on their offensive line (G Nate Herbig and Ts Duane Brown and George Fant). They’re expected to start Cedric Ogbuehi and Mike Remmers at tackle, while Dan Feeney could start at guard if Laurent Duvernay-Tardif also misses the game.

Ogbuehi has made four starts this season but has only finished three games, and Remmers has played a total of five offensive snaps this season.

Ogbuehi specifically should be an area the Dolphins' pass rush can attack. He’s given up 10 pressures this season, which ranks ninth on the Jets despite his limited playing time, according to PFF.

Additionally, the Jets' offensive line wasn’t having a great season even when healthy. They rank 29th overall in PFF’s pass block grading, and their 181 QB pressures allowed are the sixth-highest in the NFL.

To make matters worse for the Jets, they’re starting Joe Flacco at quarterback on Sunday. Flacco is 37 years old and was never exactly a mobile quarterback, to begin with. If Miami beats the offensive line quickly, it’s hard to imagine Flacco avoiding a lot of sacks.

The Dolphins sacked Flacco three times when he started for the Jets at Hard Rock Stadium in 2020, including a sack by Emmanuel Ogbah for a 28-yard loss.

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THE DOLPHINS PASS RUSH UP AND DOWN

While New York’s offensive line and quarterback should be an easy mark, the Dolphins' pass rush has been relatively inconsistent as of late.

Although the Dolphins rank 12th in the NFL in total sacks with 40, they’ve produced just seven sacks in their last three games, which is an average of just more than two per game.

Miami’s 12th-most sacks in the NFL is actually a misleading stat. The Dolphins blitz the fifth-most snaps of any team in the NFL, according to Sports Info Solutions. They’re generating a lot of sacks through scheme, rather than having a pass rusher win a one-on-one matchup.

Phillips and Ingram — with 7.5 and six sacks, respectively — are the only two players on the team with more than five sacks in a Dolphins jersey. The next two are linebackers Jerome Baker (4 sacks) and Elandon Roberts (4.5) sacks, which all came on blitzes.

Chubb has eight sacks this season but just 2.5 of them have come since joining the Dolphins following the trade deadline.

To put it simply, the Dolphins have spent a lot on defensive linemen whether it be through draft capital or trades, and while they might be good players individually, they haven’t quite produced up to expectations this season.

The Dolphins have relied on their scheme to generate pressure, but they shouldn’t have to do that given the talent they have on the defensive line. This applies even more so given the dearth of resources the Jets are working with up front.

There’s no excuse for Miami’s pass rush to underperform against the Jets on Sunday. Anything other than a multi-sack, highly disruptive game would be a disappointment.

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