Dolphins' Rooting Guide for NFL Playoff Bracket Implications of Week 16
The Miami Dolphins need some help from unlikely sources in Week 16 to clear their path to the postseason.
Miami enters Sunday's game against the San Francisco 49ers facing a 2.5-game deficit to the Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Chargers in the AFC wild-card race.
Miami already benefited from Los Angeles' win over Denver on Thursday, but now it needs more help so that the playoff dream stays alive.
If a miraculous run to a wild-card spot were to happen, the Dolphins need the two other 6-8 teams to lose and for one of the nine-win teams to collapse.
The minimum requirement for Week 16 is to beat the 49ers, but so much more is needed to make the postseason a reality.
Titans over Colts
The Dolphins need the Indianapolis Colts to be cleared out of the playoff picture to have a shot at a wild-card spot.
The Colts carry the same record as the Dolphins into Week 16, but they are ahead in the standings thanks to a head-to-head win against Miami from Week 7.
While the Tennessee Titans do not exactly inspire hope for the Dolphins, it's worth noting the Titans only lost by three points to the Colts in Week 6.
The Titans may get a spark from their quarterback change to Mason Rudolph, but the more likely path to a victory is from the Colts succumbing to the pressure of the playoff race.
The Colts, Dolphins and Cincinnati Bengals are have to at least win their own games in Week 16 to avoid elimination. That could weigh heavily on the Colts and allow some mistakes to slip in, which would benefit the Titans, and in turn, the Dolphins.
Bengals over Browns
The Dolphins are ahead of the Bengals on the conference record tiebreaker.
Cincinnati's playoff quest does not affect Miami's standing as long as both teams win.
Miami would actually prefer if the Bengals stay alive in the postseason hunt for another week with a win over the Cleveland Browns.
Cincinnati plays the Denver Broncos in Week 17. Denver is one of the three nine-win teams that the Dolphins, Bengals and Colts need to lose out to even have a chance of staying alive into Week 18.
Miami needs Cincinnati to be motivated next week to help with its own postseason chase, and because the Bengals can't jump the Dolphins if they have the same record, it doesn't make sense to root against the Bengals in Week 16.
Steelers over Ravens
With the Chargers and Broncos off this weekend, the Dolphins will put all of their rooting energy into Baltimore's opponent, the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Pittsburgh already beat Baltimore this season and the Steelers have their own motivation to win on Saturday because they can clinch the AFC North with a win.
A Baltimore loss would put all three teams in the AFC wild-card positions at 9-6 going into Week 17.
That's the ideal setup for the Dolphins, who hope to be two games back of the Ravens, Chargers and Broncos by the end of Week 16.
Baltimore finishes with Houston and Cleveland, and while it's unlikely that the Ravens lose out, it could happen with all the pressure on the Ravens if they are still fighting to clinch a wild-card spot.