The Dolphins are back on the road as they travel to Carolina to take on the Panthers on Sunday at 1 p.m. in their first inter-conference matchup of the season. The Dolphins are fresh off their first win of the season, a 27-21 decision over the New York Jets on Monday Night Football, while the Panthers lost to the Patriots 42-13 in Week 4. Both teams are 1-3.
The Dolphins path to victory could look a lot different than it has in four years. Star wide receiver Tyreek Hill was injured on Monday's win over the Jets and will miss the rest of the 2025 season.
Luckily, the Dolphins have plenty of offensive firepower to lean on.
"We're going to have different ways to attack the defense using everyone's skillsets in different ways," Offensive Coordinator Frank Smith said. "I think it's going to be a challenge for everyone involved and we're really excited for the opportunity to show how we're going to respond to losing such a great player like Tyreek."
Wide receiver Jaylen Waddle has been the other starting wide receiver opposite Hill the last four seasons. He averages over 1,000 yards per season through the first four years of his career.
Tight end Darren Waller caught a pair of touchdowns in his Dolphins debut on Monday and De'Von Achane continues to etch his name in the records books for running back production to start a career.
"I thought this past game was his best performance maximizing every opportunity given," Head Coach Mike McDaniel said of Achane. "He really was on his tracks and really coming out of the blocks at the snap, putting pressure on all players in the front and didn't hesitate. You can tell he was seeing the game or seeing the defense very well. There were three or four plays that he made within the scheme that I hadn't seen within the scheme, and I've been in a scheme for two decades."
The Dolphins posted 123 rushing yards in the win over the Jets and went a second-straight game without allowing a quarterback sack. They scored touchdowns on each of the first two drives after losing Hill and added a field goal on the fifth drive, giving them 17 points in five possessions in the second half. That's 3.4 points per possession, almost a point and a half higher than the league average.
Defensively, the Dolphins got on the board with three takeaways in the win over the Jets. The Panthers will be without running back Chuba Hubbard, which could help Miami get the run defense sorted. The Dolphins currently rank 30th in the NFL allowing 632 yards on the ground through four games.
"Unfortunately, I feel like I've been calling a lot of blitzes to stop the run, which you don't want to do," Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver said. "There was signs in the last game where we were able to play some split safety and stone the run and got some (tackles for loss), so that was encouraging…it all starts up front for us, and there's just been technique and fundamental lapses at different times for multiple players."
With Hubbard out Rico Dowdle will get the start for the Panthers. He's averaging three yards per carry this season with 83 total rushing yards.
Sunday marks the Dolphins first trip to Carolina since the 2017 season, a 45-21 loss on Monday Night Football. Since then, the Panthers have made two trips to South Florida with the home team winning both of those games (33-10 in 2021 and 42-21 in 2023).
Make sure to check out the Injury Report and the team's official social media accounts 90 minutes before kickoff to see who is active for the game.
Watch the game live on Sunday, October 5 at 1:00 p.m. ET on FOX, and listen on the Dolphins Radio Network and view the Game Center for the latest coverage.
