Omar Kelly: Dolphins aren’t tough enough yet to play in a conference title game

The Miami Dolphins have a long way to go before they reach their final destination and can be considered a legitimate championship contender.

While the 2020 Dolphins possessed one of the NFL’s top-ranked defenses, which was a byproduct of all the turnovers they created, let’s not be naïve enough to assume Miami is in the same league as the NFL teams we watched play this weekend.

What we’ve seen from these playoffs is that the franchises that advance either have elite quarterbacks like Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers, Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes, or Buffalo’s Josh Allen. Or they consistently own the line of scrimmage on offense and defense.

The elite teams have both.

The Dolphins fit neither of these descriptions as the organization’s focus turns to the design stage of this rebuild — since the foundation has been laid the past two years — should be to outfit the team with players who can help Miami get to the next level.

Right now, Tua Tagovailoa, the quarterback who led Miami to a 5-3 record last season as a rookie (really 6-3, but the Raiders win shouldn’t count since Ryan Fitzpatrick came in and saved the team in the fourth quarter of that victory), is at the back of the line when it comes to quarterback stature and league-wide respect.

And so we’re clear, there’s absolutely no shame in that right now.

Tagovailoa is young, and he spent all of last year’s offseason rehabbing a hip injury that some experts and teams speculated might shorten his playing career.

Last year the former Alabama standout got his body back to baseline, and then spent the season learning a new offense that is now going to be changed because of the retirement of Chan Gailey, and is getting accustomed to the speed of the NFL game.

He’ll be doing that all over again in 2021 when a new offensive coordinator is hired in the coming days, and the hope is that Tagovailoa will have better playmakers this year via free agency, the NFL draft, and the possible returns of Preston Williams from his season-ending injury, and Albert Wilson and Allen Hurns from their COVID-19 opt outs of the 2020 season.

It is obvious that Miami needs more playmakers on offense. That is this offseason’s top priority according to general manager Chris Grier because DeVante Parker won’t be mistaken for Buffalo’s Stefon Diggs anytime soon.

And as pleasantly surprising as Myles Gaskin and Salvon Ahmed were this past season, collectively rushing for 903 yards and six touchdowns on 217 carries, neither tailback has proven they can carry a playoff team’s rushing attack like Cleveland’s Nick Chubbs or Green Bay’s Aaron Jones.

But don’t forget the part about winning the majority of the snaps taking place at the line of scrimmage, those battles often determine if running lanes are present and if playmakers have time to throw the ball downfield.

It certainly would be beneficial if the Dolphins were more effective in the trenches, able to create more running lanes, protect the quarterback an extra second. And on defense do the exact opposite, shut down the run, and chase down quarterbacks quickly, without blitzing every snap.

Maybe that comes with time, experience, and some alterations to the offensive line, which featured three rookie starters most of the year, and the defensive front, which struggled defending the run most of the season but improved late.

But maybe it doesn’t.

In that case, the Dolphins would have beat teams like the Chiefs, Packers, Bills, Buccaneers, and Ravens with an inconsistent run game, which would put pressure on a young quarterback. In that scenario, their defense would have to again lead the league in turnovers to have any chance.

Playoff teams impose their will at the line of scrimmage, and that makes the game easier for everyone else on the field.

That’s the foundation of football, and improving the trenches has been a work in progress for Miami and has been a major failure for a decade with few exceptions.

Keep in mind the best Dolphins teams over the past two decades — the two playoff teams in 2008 and 2016 — were led by stout offensive line play, and defensive fronts that didn’t get pushed around regularly.

So while Dolphins fans dream of the ideal playmakers and obsess about whether Tagovailoa can take a gigantic step forward, remember that contests that decide what teams end up with the Lombardi trophy at the end of a season are won and lost in the trenches.