The Miami Dolphins want to flex their muscles, but doing so on Thursday will send a much bigger message to the league than beating up on the New England Patriots.
The Dolphins enter Week 13 one spot out of a Wild Card position. They don't fully control their own destiny yet, but they can control whether or not they win or lose. This week, the Dolphins will face their toughest game of the remaining schedule.
Green Bay is not an easy place to play when the weather is nice. It won't be nice on Thursday. A cold front will bring temperatures down below 20 degrees, and there may be snow. Miami can't control that, but they can control and fix other problems on the team.
Dolphins must improve in these areas to beat Packers on Thanksgiving
The Dolphins have to do better in the deep secondary
Jordan Poyer is not the football player he used to be, and it is becoming more evident when he needs to cover good receivers. Against the Patriots, Poyer didn't have to do much in terms of coverage, but the Packers are a lot different.
Green Bay has a good quarterback who has much better receivers than New England. Miami did well against the Rams' duo of Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua, and this will be a similar level of play. The Packers could miss Romeo Doubs, but they still have Christian Watson and Jayden Reed.
If the Dolphins are going to beat the Packers, they have to keep the receivers in front of them.
Stopping Jordan Love from controlling the game with his running ability
Miami has done quite well stopping the rushing attacks of opposing offenses, but the Packers' running game is better than what they have seen recently. Add to that Jordan Love's ability to move around the pocket and make plays with his legs, the Dolphins are facing a quarterback who can change the game flow quickly.
The Dolphins stopped Josh Allen from taking over the game several weeks ago, and they will need to do so again against Love. If Miami can contain him, they will be in a much better situation to control the tempo and flow of the game.
Tua Tagovailoa needs to stop talking about narratives and just end them
Tua Tagovailoa said he wants to end the narratives that he can't win in cold weather and the Dolphins can't beat teams above .500. This week, they have a chance to do both. Tua said, "Bring it on" when he was asked about those issues. Dolphins fans have heard this rhetoric before; now they want to see it on the field.
Miami could lose this game. Another narrative won't change if they do. The Dolphins will tell you they are still in the playoff race and can get into the postseason, another late-season declaration that most fans realize is nothing more than talk. If the Dolphins are going to be serious contenders for a Wild Card spot this year, they must beat the Packers on Thursday night.
