Injury Report and Game Statuses
Four Dolphins players will be questionable for Sunday's game in Buffalo: WR DeVante Parker, WR Jakeem Grant, DE Shaq Lawson and G Solomon Kindley.
The Buffalo Bills will be without wide receiver Cole Beasley and tight end Reggie Gilliam, they are both out.
Click here for the full Dolphins-Bills Week 17 injury report.
Week 17 Significance
Safety Bobby McCain is in his sixth year with the Miami Dolphins. He's one of four players on the team (Xavien Howard, Parker and Grant) that were part of the 2016 squad -- the last Dolphins team to make the postseason.
Friday, McCain discussed the opportunity in front of this Dolphins team, which has a win-and-in scenario for the postseason.
"It would be big just because that's something you know what we've worked for," McCain said. "It would be a big accomplishment for us as a team and myself as well, because this is what you work for."
McCain acknowledge that, for Miami to get into the playoffs, they'll have to beat a red-hot Bills team.
"The Bills are playing really good football right now," McCain said. "Josh Allen is playing at a high level. Stefon Diggs is playing at a high level. Cole Beasley is playing at a high level. Offensively they're playing really well. Their defense has always been really good. We know what we're up against. It's going to be a hard-fought game and a dog fight until the end and that's what we're prepared for."
Snow Angels
McCain is the most-tenured Dolphin, so he knows what a late-season, winter trip to the northeast is all about. Rookie defensive tackle Raekwon Davis revealed that he's never played in a snow game, but he's looking forward to the possibility with the weather report calling for a wintry mix on Sunday.
"I've never played a game like that," Davis said. "It might be fun. I might get on the field and do a snow angel."
Pass Protection
The Bills feature a variety of pass rushers from multiple positions. Off the edge, Jerry Hughes, Mario Addison and Trent Murphy have a combined 29 years of NFL experience. Hughes is first on the team with 11 quarterback hits while a pair of linebackers (Tremaine Edmunds and A.J. Klein) are tied for second on the team with nine QB hits each.
"They're good rushers," Dolphins rookie left tackle Austin Jackson said. "They have two 10-year guys on the end (Hughes and Addison). The only thing we have to do is just be decisive and execute. They're a great team so we have to bring our A-game. They've played a long time, especially those two, and they've got a lot of tools in the belt so just making sure we show up to the party ready."
Xavien Howard, Jason Sanders Make ESPN All-Pro Team
ESPN's Bill Barnwell published his 2020 selections for the NFL All Pro team, which featured a pair of Miami Dolphins.
Cornerback Xavien Howard leads the NFL with nine interceptions and 19 passes defensed. He's allowing a completion rate of just 48.4 percent and a passer rating against of just 49.3. Kicker Jason Sanders won Special Teams Player of the Week twice this season (most recently in Week 16, when he kicked four field goals including a game-winner with one second to play) and Special Teams Player of the Month for October and November. His 34 field goals made are one off the league lead and his 19 successful field goals from 40-plus yards are most in the NFL.
In Case You Missed It
With kickoff just 48 hours away, catch up on all the content you might've missed from this week on MiamiDolphins.com, the Drive Time Podcast with Travis Wingfield, The Audible and The Fish Tank, all part of the Miami Dolphins podcast network.
Written:
Podcasts:
