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By Reice Shipley
Contributing Sports Writer
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The Miami Dolphins have their back up against the wall, sitting at 1-4 on the season in ahead of what could be a must-win game in Week 6 against the Los Angeles Chargers for Mike McDaniel to potentially try and save his job.
On paper, there is no shortage of problems that have plagued the Dolphins this season on both sides of the ball. Particularly, an inability to stop the run on defense, allowing the most rushing yards in the NFL this season, and an inability to run the ball on offense.
Rushing for the third-fewest rushing yards through five weeks has been among the biggest issues for the Dolphins.
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Former NFL defensive back Jason McCourty, who now serves as an NFL analyst at ESPN, has experience both playing against Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa during his final season with the New England Patriots in 2020 and playing alongside him under Mike McDaniel in 2021.
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Speaking about his former team on Friday's edition of "The Rich Eisen Show", McCourty raised his concerns for the Dolphins, which he believes start on both the offensive and defensive lines.
"It's both sides of the line for them," said McCourty. "Defensively, they can't stop the run because they are struggling up front in the way they are fitting a lot of their run plays. And offensively, from the first game of the season, they were excited. They had James Daniels, brought in from Pittsburgh. Austin Jackson was going to be the blind side of their offensive line for Tua on the right side. Both of those guys end up injured in Week 1. So, now you are playing with two backups. They have gone through so many injuries.
"So, for Tua, a lot of it is you have to get the ball out so fast and make a play. That brings down the efficiency. Yes, he isn't getting hit as much. But the offense isn't able to operate the way we saw it operate in 2022. And now, you couple that with the fact that Tyreek Hill isn't going to be out there for the remainder of the season for them. Jaylen Waddle had one hell of a game. So did Darren Waller in the first half. But now, for them, how do you adjust as the game goes on? As the season goes on? How do you get the run game going to take some of that pressure off of Tua and get Achane in space to do some things."
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McCourty would go on to allude to the fact that the Chargers are also facing their own offensive line problems, which may be a silver lining for the Dolphins going into Week 6.
"For them, very similar to the Chargers on the other side of the ball, their offensive line is so banged up that they are trying to figure out ways to still get the offense going," said McCourty. "Getting the ball out of Tua's hand and their playmakers. But they have to do it so fast and so efficiently."
If Miami isn't able to come away with a Week 6 victory, it could very well spell a very premature end to their postseason hopes, as only four teams in NFL history have ever made the postseason after a 1-5 start to the season.
So at the very least, Dolphins fans should expect an inspired effort from the team with their season potentially on the line.
For more on the Miami Dolphins and all things around the NFL, head to Newsweek Sports.
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