2016 Miami Dolphins season

2016 Miami Dolphins season
Head coach Adam Gase
General manager Chris Grier
Owner Stephen M. Ross
Home field Hard Rock Stadium
Results
Record 7–4
Division place 2nd AFC East
Uniform

The 2016 Miami Dolphins season is the franchise's 47th season in the National Football League, the 51st overall and the first under head coach Adam Gase.

Offseason

Organizational changes

On January 2, 2016, two-year general manager Dennis Hickey was fired.[1] On January 4, the Dolphins promoted director of college scouting Chris Grier to replace Hickey as the new general manager. Grier has been with the Dolphins for the past sixteen seasons, nine as the director of scouting.[2]

The Dolphins front office, which is made up of owner Stephen Ross, executive vice president of football operations Mike Tannenbaum, CEO Tom Garfinkel, vice chairman Matt Higgins and Grier, developed a committee to find a permanent replacement for former head coach Joe Philbin, who was fired and replaced by tight ends coach Dan Campbell on October 5, 2015.[3][4]

The Dolphins conducted interviews with seven candidates. The candidates included former Atlanta Falcons head coach Mike Smith, former Washington Redskins and Denver Broncos head coach Mike Shanahan, former Buffalo Bills head coach Doug Marrone, Bills assistant head coach Anthony Lynn, Chicago Bears offensive coordinator Adam Gase, Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Teryl Austin and interim head coach Campbell. The Dolphins requested interviews with New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and defensive coordinator Matt Patricia,[5] as well as Cincinnati Bengals offensive coordinator Hue Jackson.[6]

Owner Ross expressed interest in New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton; however, on January 6, Payton announced he would remain in New Orleans for another season.[6]

On January 9, Gase was hired as the twelfth head coach in Dolphins history. He was the only candidate to receive a second interview.[7] On January 12, Gase hired Bengals' defensive back coach Vance Joseph as defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Matt Burke, who worked with Joseph in Cincinnati, in the same position. Gase also hired Washington Redskins' offensive line coach Shane Day as tight ends coach, San Francisco 49ers' offensive line coach Chris Foerster in the same position and former NFL wide receiver Shawn Jefferson as the wide receivers coach. Assistant general manager Eric Stokes was promoted to senior personnel executive.[8]

On August 16, 2016, the Dolphins announced the naming rights to their home stadium had been sold to Hard Rock International. The stadium, which was known as Sun Life Stadium in 2015 and was being called "New Miami Stadium" during the $500 million renovations completed during the summer of 2016, will be known as "Hard Rock Stadium."[9]

Roster changes

The Dolphins entered free agency with 11 unrestricted free agents.[10]

Position Player Free agency
tag
Date signed 2016 team
QB Matt Moore UFA March 15, 2016 Miami Dolphins
RB Lamar Miller UFA March 9, 2016 Houston Texans
C Jacques McClendon UFA March 11, 2016 Miami Dolphins
G Shelley Smith UFA August 13, 2016 Chicago Bears
WR Rishard Matthews UFA March 9, 2016 Tennessee Titans
DE Derrick Shelby UFA March 9, 2016 Atlanta Falcons
DE Olivier Vernon UFA March 9, 2016 New York Giants
LB James-Michael Johnson UFA March 10, 2016 Miami Dolphins
LB Spencer Paysinger UFA March 29, 2016 Miami Dolphins
LB Kelvin Sheppard UFA April 10, 2016 New York Giants
FS Louis Delmas UFA
RFA: Restricted free agent, UFA: Unrestricted free agent, ERFA: Exclusive rights free agent
LEGEND
   Light green background indicates a player has been re-signed by the Dolphins.
   Light red background indicates a player has departed the Dolphins.

Acquisitions

The Dolphins first addition of 2016 was the signing of wide receiver/cornerback Tyler Davis on January 4, on a futures contract. Davis became the first German Football League player to be signed by an NFL team.[11]

March 7, 2016 - The Dolphins acquire LB Kiko Alonso and CB Byron Maxwell from the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for swapping first round picks (8 and 13).

March 8, 2016 - The Dolphins sign DE Mario Williams on a 2-year, $16 million contract.

March 9, 2016 - The Dolphins sign S Isa Abdul-Quddus on a 3-year, $12.75 million contract.

Departures

The Dolphins first departure of 2016 was the waiving of offensive tackle Jason Fox, who had one year remaining on his contract, on January 12.[12]

The Dolphins also released cornerback Brent Grimes and wide receiver Greg Jennings on March 5, 2016 after an uneventful 2015 season.

On March 9, the Dolphins lost Olivier Vernon, Lamar Miller, Derrick Shelby, and Rishard Matthews to other teams during free agency.

Draft

Main article: 2016 NFL draft
2016 Miami Dolphins Draft
Round Selection Player Position College
1 13 Laremy Tunsil OT Ole Miss
2 38 Xavien Howard CB Baylor
3 73 Kenyan Drake RB Alabama
3 86 Leonte Carroo WR Rutgers
6 186 Jakeem Grant WR Texas Tech
6 204 Jordan Lucas CB/S Penn State
7 223 Brandon Doughty QB Western Kentucky
7 231 Thomas Duarte TE UCLA
Notes

Staff

Miami Dolphins staff
Front Office
  • Chairman/Managing General Partner – Stephen Ross
  • Vice Chairman/Partner – Jorge Perez
  • Vice Chairman – Don Shula
  • President/CEO – Tom Garfinkel
  • General Manager – Chris Grier
  • Executive Vice President of Football Operations – Mike Tannenbaum
  • Senior Director, Football Administration - Brandon Shore
  • Director, Player Personnel – Joe Schoen
  • Director, College Scouting - Adam Engroff
  • Director, Pro Personnel – Anthony Hunt
Head Coaches
Offensive Coaches
 
Defensive Coaches
  • Defensive Coordinator – Vance Joseph
  • Defensive Line – Terrell Williams
  • Linebackers – Matt Burke
  • Assistant Linebackers - Charlie Bullen
  • Defensive Backs – Lou Anarumo
  • Assistant Defensive Backs - Daronte Jones
  • Defensive Quality Control - Rusty McKinney
  • Senior Defensive Assistant/Pass Rush Specialist - Jim Washburn
Special Teams Coaches
  • Special Teams Coordinator/Assistant Head Coach – Darren Rizzi
  • Assistant Special Teams – Marwan Maalouf
Strength and Conditioning
  • Head Strength and Conditioning – Dave Puloka
  • Assistant Strength and Conditioning - Jim Arthur
  • Assistant Strength and Conditioning - Ted Rath

Coaching Staff
Management
More NFL staffs

AFC East
BUF
MIA
NE
NYJ
North
BAL
CIN
CLE
PIT
South
HOU
IND
JAX
TEN
West
DEN
KC
OAK
SD
NFC East
DAL
NYG
PHI
WAS
North
CHI
DET
GB
MIN
South
ATL
CAR
NO
TB
West
ARI
LA
SF
SEA

Current roster

Miami Dolphins roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists

Practice squad

Rookies in italics
Roster updated December 1, 2016
Depth ChartTransactions

53 Active, 7 Inactive, 10 Practice Squad

AFC rostersNFC rosters

Schedule

Preseason

This was the first preseason since 1999 that the Dolphins did not play the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Week Date Opponent Result Record Game site NFL.com
recap
1 August 12 at New York Giants W 27–10 1–0 MetLife Stadium Recap
2 August 19 at Dallas Cowboys L 14–41 1–1 AT&T Stadium Recap
3 August 25 Atlanta Falcons W 17–6 2–1 Camping World Stadium (Orlando, Florida) Recap
4 September 1 Tennessee Titans L 10–21 2–2 Hard Rock Stadium Recap

Regular season

Week Date Kickoff Opponent Result Record Game site TV NFL.com
recap
1 September 11 4:05 p.m. EDT at Seattle Seahawks L 10–12 0–1 CenturyLink Field CBS Recap
2 September 18 1:00 p.m. EDT at New England Patriots L 24–31 0–2 Gillette Stadium CBS Recap
3 September 25 1:00 p.m. EDT Cleveland Browns W 30–24 (OT) 1–2 Hard Rock Stadium CBS Recap
4 September 29 8:25 p.m. EDT at Cincinnati Bengals L 7–22 1–3 Paul Brown Stadium NFLN # Recap
5 October 9 1:00 p.m. EDT Tennessee Titans L 17–30 1–4 Hard Rock Stadium CBS Recap
6 October 16 1:00 p.m. EDT Pittsburgh Steelers W 30–15 2–4 Hard Rock Stadium CBS Recap
7 October 23 1:00 p.m. EDT Buffalo Bills W 28–25 3–4 Hard Rock Stadium CBS Recap
8 Bye
9 November 6 1:00 p.m. EST New York Jets W 27–23 4–4 Hard Rock Stadium CBS Recap
10 November 13 4:05 p.m. EST at San Diego Chargers W 31–24 5–4 Qualcomm Stadium CBS Recap
11 November 20 4:05 p.m. EST at Los Angeles Rams W 14–10 6–4 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Fox Recap
12 November 27 1:00 p.m. EST San Francisco 49ers W 31–24 7–4 Hard Rock Stadium Fox Recap
13 December 4 1:00 p.m. EST at Baltimore Ravens M&T Bank Stadium CBS
14 December 11 1:00 p.m. EST Arizona Cardinals Hard Rock Stadium Fox
15 December 17 8:25 p.m. EST at New York Jets MetLife Stadium NFLN #
16 December 24 1:00 p.m. EST at Buffalo Bills New Era Field CBS
17 January 1 1:00 p.m. EST New England Patriots Hard Rock Stadium CBS
Notes

Game summaries

Week 1: at Seattle Seahawks

Week One: Miami Dolphins at Seattle Seahawks – Game summary
1 2 34Total
Dolphins 0 3 0710
Seahawks 3 3 0612

at CenturyLink Field, Seattle, Washington

Week 2: at New England Patriots

Week Two: Miami Dolphins at New England Patriots – Game summary
1 2 34Total
Dolphins 0 3 71424
Patriots 14 10 7031

at Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts

Week 3: vs. Cleveland Browns

Week Three: Cleveland Browns at Miami Dolphins – Game summary
1 2 34OTTotal
Browns 0 13 011024
Dolphins 7 3 77630

at Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida

Game information

First quarter
Second quarter
  • CLE – Cody Parkey 46-yard field goal, 13:32. Dolphins 7–3. Drive: 10 plays, 58 yards, 5:03.
  • CLE – Briean Boddy-Calhoun 27-yard interception return (Cody Parkey kick), 6:47. Browns 10–7.
  • MIA – Andrew Franks 37-yard field goal, 1:57. Tied 10–10. Drive: 10 plays, 56 yards, 4:50.
  • CLE – Cody Parkey 48-yard field goal, 0:42. Browns 13–10. Drive: 8 plays, 45 yards, 1:15.
Third quarter
  • MIA – Jarvis Landry 42-yard pass from Ryan Tannehill (Andrew Franks kick), 5:17. Dolphins 17–13. Drive: 4 plays, 68 yards, 2:10.
Fourth quarter
  • MIA – Damien Williams 10-yard pass from Ryan Tannehill (Andrew Franks kick), 14:17. Dolphins 24–13. Drive: 6 plays, 64 yards, 3:16.
  • CLE – Terrelle Pryor 3-yard run (Cody KesslerGary Barnidge pass), 10:12. Dolphins 24–21. Drive: 9 plays, 83 yards, 4:05.
  • CLE – Cody Parkey 38-yard field goal, 3:14. Tied 24–24. Drive: 8 plays, 74 yards, 3:03.
Overtime
  • MIA – Jay Ajayi 11-yard run, 8:26. Dolphins 30–24. Drive: 3 plays, 44 yards, 1:13.

Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers

Week 4: at Cincinnati Bengals

Week Four: Miami Dolphins at Cincinnati Bengals – Game summary
1 2 34Total
Dolphins 7 0 007
Bengals 10 6 3322

at Paul Brown Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio

The Dolphins wore orange Color Rush uniforms for this game.

Week 5: vs. Tennessee Titans

Week Five: Tennessee Titans at Miami Dolphins – Game summary
1 2 34Total
Titans 7 14 3630
Dolphins 0 14 3017

at Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida

Week 6: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

Week Six: Pittsburgh Steelers at Miami Dolphins – Game summary
1 2 34Total
Steelers 8 0 0715
Dolphins 3 13 7730

at Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida

  • Date: October 16
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT
  • Game weather: 81 °F (27 °C), partly sunny
  • Game attendance: 65,351
  • Referee: Ed Hochuli
  • TV announcers (CBS): Spero Dedes and Solomon Wilcots
  • Recap, Gamebook

Week 7: vs. Buffalo Bills

Week Seven: Buffalo Bills at Miami Dolphins – Game summary
1 2 34Total
Bills 3 7 7825
Dolphins 3 3 81428

at Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida

Week 9: vs. New York Jets

Week Nine: New York Jets at Miami Dolphins – Game summary
1 2 34Total
Jets 10 3 01023
Dolphins 7 7 6727

at Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida

  • Date: November 6
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: 80 °F (27 °C), cloudy
  • Game attendance: 65,722
  • Referee: Walt Coleman
  • TV announcers (CBS): Greg Gumbel, Trent Green and Jamie Erdahl
  • Recap, Gamebook

Week 10: at San Diego Chargers

Week Ten: Miami Dolphins at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
1 2 34Total
Dolphins 0 7 141031
Chargers 0 10 7724

at Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Date: November 13
  • Game time: 4:05 p.m. EST/1:05 p.m. PST
  • Game weather: 85 °F (29 °C), sunny
  • Game attendance: 55,107
  • Referee: Terry McAulay
  • TV announcers (CBS): Greg Gumbel, Trent Green and Jamie Erdahl
  • Recap, Gamebook

Week 11: at Los Angeles Rams

Week Eleven: Miami Dolphins at Los Angeles Rams – Game summary
1 2 34Total
Dolphins 0 0 01414
Rams 7 0 3010

at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California

Week 12: vs. San Francisco 49ers

Week Twelve: San Francisco 49ers at Miami Dolphins – Game summary
1 2 34Total
49ers 7 0 71024
Dolphins 0 14 10731

at Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida

Week 13: at Baltimore Ravens

Week Thirteen: Miami Dolphins at Baltimore Ravens – Game summary
1 2 34Total
Dolphins 0 0 000
Ravens 0 0 000

at M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, Maryland


Standings

Division

AFC East
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
New England Patriots 9 2 0 .818 3–1 7–1 293 197 W2
Miami Dolphins 7 4 0 .636 2–1 5–3 249 240 W6
Buffalo Bills 6 5 0 .545 1–3 3–4 281 236 W2
New York Jets 3 8 0 .273 1–2 3–5 196 265 L3

Conference

# Team Division W L T PCT DIV CONF SOS SOV STK
Division leaders
1[lower-alpha 1] New England Patriots East 9 2 0 .818 3–1 7–1 .414 .370 W2
2[lower-alpha 1] Oakland Raiders West 9 2 0 .818 2–1 6–1 .508 .470 W5
3[lower-alpha 2][lower-alpha 3] Baltimore Ravens North 6 5 0 .545 4–0 6–2 .439 .257 W1
4[lower-alpha 2] Houston Texans South 6 5 0 .545 3–0 4–3 .541 .448 L1
Wild Cards
5 Kansas City Chiefs West 8 3 0 .727 3–0 6–2 .479 .455 W1
6[lower-alpha 4] Miami Dolphins East 7 4 0 .636 2–1 5–3 .415 .321 W6
In the Hunt
7[lower-alpha 4] Denver Broncos West 7 4 0 .636 1–3 4–3 .525 .448 L1
8[lower-alpha 3][lower-alpha 5] Pittsburgh Steelers North 6 5 0 .545 2–1 5–3 .521 .388 W2
9[lower-alpha 5] Buffalo Bills East 6 5 0 .545 1–3 3–4 .467 .364 W2
10 Tennessee Titans South 6 6 0 .500 1–3 3–5 .439 .333 W1
11[lower-alpha 6] Indianapolis Colts South 5 6 0 .455 2–2 3–5 .484 .411 L1
12[lower-alpha 6] San Diego Chargers West 5 6 0 .455 1–3 4–5 .566 .500 W1
13 Cincinnati Bengals North 3 7 1 .350 1–2 3–5 .561 .294 L2
14 New York Jets East 3 8 0 .273 1–2 3–5 .504 .353 L3
15 Jacksonville Jaguars South 2 9 0 .182 1–2 1–7 .529 .318 L6
Eliminated from postseason contention
16 Cleveland Browns North 0 12 0 .000 0–4 0–8 .576 .000 L12
Tiebreakers[lower-alpha 7]
  1. 1 2 New England wins tie break over Oakland based on best win percentage in conference games.
  2. 1 2 Baltimore wins tie break over Houston based on best win percentage in conference games.
  3. 1 2 Baltimore wins tie break over Pittsburgh based on head-to-head win percentage.
  4. 1 2 Miami wins tie break over Denver based on best win percentage in conference games.
  5. 1 2 Pittsburgh wins tie break over Buffalo based on best win percentage in conference games.
  6. 1 2 Indianapolis wins tie break over San Diego based on head-to-head win percentage.
  7. When breaking ties for three or more teams under the NFL's rules, they are first broken within divisions, then comparing only the highest ranked remaining team from each division.
Legend
w — Clinched wild card
x — Clinched playoff berth
y — Clinched division
z — Clinched first-round bye
* — Clinched home-field advantage

References

  1. Kelly, Omar (January 2, 2016). "Dolphins to fire GM Dennis Hickey". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  2. Perkins, Chris (January 4, 2016). "Dolphins name Chris Grier general manager". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  3. Perkins, Chris (January 4, 2016). "Grier: Dolphins are going to build a competitive roster at all positions". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  4. Hyde, Dave (October 5, 2015). "Dolphins name Chris Grier general manager". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  5. Kelly, Omar (January 4, 2016). "Former Falcons coach Mike Smith becomes first coach to formally interview". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  6. 1 2 Kelly, Omar (January 5, 2016). "Dolphins have expressed interest in Sean Payton, source says". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
  7. Beasley, Adam (January 9, 2016). "Dolphins name Chris Grier general manager". Miami Herald. Retrieved January 9, 2016.
  8. Beasley, Adam (January 12, 2016). "Miami Dolphins name Vance Joseph defensive coordinator, hire other assistants". Miami Herald. Retrieved January 13, 2016.
  9. Houtz, Josh. "Dolphins sell naming rights to Hard Rock International". The Phinsider. The Phinsider. Retrieved August 17, 2016.
  10. "Dolphins UFA". Spotrac. January 4, 2016. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
  11. Jackson, Barry (January 4, 2016). "New Dolphins GM Chris Grier vows 'talk of dysfunction' within organization is over". Miami Herald. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
  12. Jackson, Barry (January 12, 2016). "Miami Dolphins waive Jason Fox". Miami Herald. Retrieved January 13, 2016.
  13. Chase, Chris (March 10, 2016). "Dolphins complete trade for Byron Maxwell, Kiko Alonso". ESPN. Retrieved March 10, 2016.

External links

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