Mike McDaniel says family time, a chance for rest and a Dolphins’ winning streak align perfectly

MIAMI GARDENS Fla AP Mike McDaniel has a big week planned There are particular swing sets and playgrounds in his future for the next limited days since a bye week for the Miami Dolphins will afford him an opportunity to catch up on family time It just so happens the fun stuff is coming at a good moment for the Dolphins For the first time all year the Dolphins are on a winning streak A - overtime win over the Washington Commanders on Sunday in Madrid gave Miami back-to-back wins and pushed its record to - far from optimal yet a whole lot better than things looked at - and - So when McDaniel sees his club at work on Tuesday for the final time before a sparse days away his message will be clear Go reconnect with the family and get ready for the final six games that await I think it s fundamental and I try to lead by example McDaniel stated Monday So I will be investing in family time so that I can have an excited daughter at games for the rest of the year There might be several excited players at those games as well The Dolphins are still well out of playoff contention they re mathematically alive sure but remain an absolute long shot to find their way into the postseason That declared three of their next four games are against teams that are at this moment either - New Orleans and the New York Jets or - Cincinnati McDaniel reported he doesn t worry about momentum being sidetracked by the bye week I think it s a good time to get rest McDaniel noted That s the next thing that we have to win an inward look at our tournament see where we can minimize inefficiency and then people doing the right things with their body and their mind so that we can hit the next stretch running What s working The defense deserves high praise for its continued turnaround Over the first seven weeks of the season Miami allowed points per match ranking No in the -team league In the four weeks since Miami has allowed points per match ranking No in the league What requirements help Miami continues to struggle on third and fourth down In their first six games the Dolphins converted on of third- and fourth-down chances In the five games since that number has plummeted to and the percent success rate on third downs in that span is st in the NFL Only Atlanta in that span has been worse Stock up LB Jordyn Brooks had a -tackle battle Sunday the the greater part by any performer in the NFL this season There have been three games of or more tackles so far in this regular season Brooks has two of them and Las Vegas Elandon Roberts has the other Stock down McDaniel exposed himself to a ton of second-guessing by not having the Dolphins kick what would have been a chip-shot field goal that could have given Miami the lead late in regulation imagine carrying that into a bye week if the Commanders had won the contest That reported the decision was gutsy as was the ultimately correct decision to take the ball second in overtime Even the analytics types are split on what best practices are for the OT coin toss Injuries It s workable that Miami may get a sparse players back after the bye including TE Darren Waller pectoral K Jason Sanders hip OT Austin Jackson toe CB Rasul Douglas foot ankle and WR Dee Eskridge shoulder S Jordan Colbert stinger left Sunday s contest early as did CB JuJu Brents In Brents matter the injury stated Sunday as an ankle predicament is evidently severe enough that the Dolphins aren t optimistic about him returning this season Key number The Dolphins are - including playoffs under McDaniel They re - when giving up or fewer points - this season and - when allowing more than points - this season Next moves After Sunday night s eight-hour flight back to South Florida the Dolphins are off this week before playing host to New Orleans on Nov