What's the real reason why the Miami Dolphins will make the playoffs? - Leadership Edition

Why will the Dolphins make the playoffs this upcoming season? What is the main reason they will succeed in this season more than any in the last 20 years? The Miami Dolphins have made an enormous number of moves to help improve the team. Let’s break down all the positive moves made and see if we can truly dissect the real reason this team will make playoffs, and maybe advance further.

On the defensive side of the ball, they resigned key player Emmanuel Ogbah. In two seasons with the Dolphins, Ogbah had a combined 18 sacks, 45 quarterback hits, 15 tackles for loss and 4 forced fumbles. In 2021, he led the NFL in batted passes at the line of scrimmage with 11. Another key transaction was extending Xavien Howard and making him the highest paid CB in the NFL. He has 27 career INTs (10 in 2020 and 5 in 2021) and 71 career passes defended. These transactions were much needed to keep the nucleus of this already stout defense.

On the offensive side of the ball, they invested in speed and protection. They tagged TE Mike Gesicki who is fast (4.54 40) and has excellent hands. Dolphins also traded for 6x Pro Bowl WR Tyreek Hill to play along with Jaylen Waddle. They also added RBs Raheem Mostert and Chase Edmonds. They also improved an offensive line that ranked last in 2021 by adding Terron Armstead and Connor Williams. These additions alone should help Tua Tagovailoa succeed and improve an offense ranked 25th in yards/game and 22nd in points/game.

All the transactions made by the Dolphins have made this team a more talented group. But is this the real reason they will make, and possibly exceed, a playoff berth? The reality is that in any organization (sports, corporations, etc) talent can only get you so far. The right leadership is needed. Leaders are the reasons people execute a task or assignment with success. Leaders innovate, inspire, teach/coach and care. They understand that they're dealing with people first. People allow themselves to be led. They choose their leaders, even if appointed.

The main transaction that the Dolphins made this offseason was the hiring of Head Coach Mike McDaniel. McDaniel made UDFA RB Raheem Mostert and 6th round pick RB Elijah Mitchell successful. These guys executed with success, and this was mostly because of Mike McDaniel. In my opinion, McDaniel has the perfect balance of intelligence, X’s and O’s, and relationship-building capabilities to bring the Dolphins to the place where every fan wants them to be: The Super Bowl. The players have already begun to gravitate towards him. Because of this, he will get the most out of all his players and execute with success. I also believe he will get the best out of QB Tua Tagovailoa and win with him. Tagovailoa is a smart, accurate QB that has great pocket-presence. He also knows when he needs to run to get 1st downs. The only knock on him is that he doesn’t have a strong NFL arm. Having said that, I believe McDaniel can leverage Tua’s strengths to make him and the Dolphins successful. I’m not quite sure they will make the Super Bowl this year. The AFC is well stacked with great teams that are also well coached. But I do believe the Dolphins will have a playoff berth this upcoming season and possibly make it to the Divisional round. And the main reason? Head Coach Mike McDaniel.