Dolphins face tough task in quick turnaround for Week 3

There is no rest for the weary — and there will certainly be no rest for the Miami Dolphins this week. Fresh off yet another frustrating defeat at the hands of a divisional rival, the Dolphins turn their eyes outside of the AFC East for the first time in 2020. The Dolphins’ next opponent? The Jacksonville Jaguars — a team that was presumed to be in the running to end up landing prized Clemson Tigers quarterback Trevor Lawrence with the No. 1 overall pick in 2021.

Jacksonville, like Miami last season, is undergoing a dramatic rebuilding effort. But, unlike the Dolphins of 2019, Jacksonville’s ability to outperform expectations hasn’t taken half of a season to settle into place.

Jacksonville defeated the Indianapolis Colts in Week 1 before giving the Tennessee Titans everything they could handle in Week 2, eventually losing to the Titans by a score of 33-30. Through two games, Jacksonville has been a more competitive football team than the Dolphins — though without seeing how either team matches up against a common opponent, it is difficult to put too much stock into their first few performances.

But what we do know is that the Dolphins now have the unenviable task of buckling down in an 0-2 hole and attempting to prepare for an upstart Jaguars team in four days that has everyone in the building playing for their jobs. Miami should have that kind of urgency, too — but they really haven’t shown it on the defensive side of the football. The Patriots wanted to run the ball against Miami and they did with success. The Bills wanted to pass the ball against Miami and they also did so with success. The Jaguars will look to out-muscle the Dolphins and quarterback Gardner Minshew has been opportunistic and big-play oriented through the first few games.

This isn’t a layup for the Dolphins by any means. As a matter of fact, Jacksonville probably enters Week 3 in more of a groove than the Dolphins. If Week 2 was a barometer of where the Dolphins are as a team, it told us that Miami is better but still flawed. They were close to beating the Bills yesterday but let several big plays slip through the cracks. Week 3? Week 3 will tell us if this Dolphins team has got the guts to take a stand. Learning to win is part of the process — but before you can learn to stack wins you need to get the first one.

Thursday night offers another chance, but not as easy of one was we thought just a few weeks back.