Fins & Jaguars Heading In Opposite Directions
MIAMI (CBSMiami) – The Miami Dolphins and Jacksonville Jaguars are on opposite ends of the state and both are going in opposite directions in the NFL.
The Dolphins are enjoying a renaissance of sorts after several years of mediocrity. The Dolphins defense is tied for the league lead in quarterback sacks and the Fins are +17 in scoring differential on the season.
Miami's offense is led by quarterback Ryan Tannehill who is enjoying a breakout open to the 2013 season. In just his second year, Tannehill is taking major strides as the team's leader. Tannehill has completed 65.3 percent of his passes for two touchdowns and one interception.
Tannehill has also upped his per game yardage by nearly 100 yards over his 2012 number, from 205.9 last year to 295.5 in 2013. Not surprisingly, Tannehill has seen his quarterback rating improve from 76.1 in 2013 to 94.2 through the first two games of 2013.
He's done all of that with the complete absence of a running game in week one and despite getting sacked nine times through two games. Tannehill is also getting a big hand from Mike Wallace, Brian Hartline, and Brandon Gibson on the outside and a lights out defense.
Overall, the Dolphins defense ranks fifth in the league in team defense. The Dolphins are tied for the league lead in sacks with nine through just two games of the season.
In other words, the Dolphins through two weeks of the season are well on their way toward possibly contending for a playoff spot depending on how they perform over the next three weeks.
Up I-95 in Jacksonville, it's safe to say the wheels have completely come off the franchise. The Jaguars are without a doubt the worst team in the National Football League. Coming out of week two, the Jaguars have scored a total of 11 points this season.
For comparison purposes, the Dolphins scored 14 points in the first quarter against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday.
The Jaguars are losing by an average of 18 points per game and are dead last in team offense, according to pro-football-reference.com. Other team numbers for the Jaguars are just as ugly, but things really hit rock bottom on Sunday with a loss to the Oakland Raiders.
The Raiders were predicted by some to be the worst team in football in 2013, but the Jaguars have taken that claim away from Oakland. In the game on Sunday, Jacksonville managed just nine points and gained just 248 yards of total offense. If you subtract out the penalty yards, Jacksonville gained just 178 yards of offense against a woeful Oakland defense.
The Raiders took it to the Jaguars on the ground, running for more than 225 yards in the game on 34 rushing attempts. Oakland had the most success running right up the gut of the Jaguars defense to the tune of nine carries for 101 yards.
To put in perspective how bad the Jaguars have become; the CBS-affiliate in Orlando was mandated by the NFL to show the Jaguars vs. Raiders game. As fans called to complain, the CBS station ran a crawl apologizing for showing the Jags game instead of the Denver Broncos vs. New York Giants game.
While the Dolphins focus on a bright future, the Jaguars can already start looking towards the 2014 NFL Draft. The Jags will have to hit the reset button again and try to improve by drafting a quarterback of the future now that Blaine Gabbert has completely failed and Chad Henne played like Chad Henne.
The Jaguars could always try to alleviate the quarterback situation this season by signing a hometown hero by the name of Tim Tebow, but that may not happen unless owner Shad Khan mandates it.
