Five Things Still Worth Watching in the Miami Dolphins’ Last Two Games

We know the exact day the 2015-16 Miami Dolphins season will rest in peace; January 3, 2016, when the clock mercifully strikes zero against the New England Patriots. There is no intrigue in the Phins final two games. There is no more “in the hunt.” Another Dolphins  season has finished far too soon. 

The good news is there is still stuff to look forward to this season. I swear! OK, the exclamation point didn’t work. I can see you’re not excited. Just hear me out. There are still some intriguing things to watch in these last two Dolphins games.

Take the training wheels off DeVante Parker.
After getting all of eight combined targets in his first eight games, Parker has received 26 in his last four and turned them into 13 catches for 189 yards and two scores. Over the last few weeks, Parker has been the perfect example of a player flashing — he’s literally bolted across the television numerous times in a fashion that has caught Dolphins fans’ eyes. With what amounts to two bonus preseason games left, what better time to let loose the player the Phins drafted so high in the first round last year?

The Curious Case of Lamar Miller.
Are you confused as to why the Miami Dolphins most proven dynamic offensive weapon doesn’t see the ball for entire games at a time? Well join the club, because he is just as perplexed as you are. In a contract year where Miller has stated his continued presencein Miami will have a lot to do with how many carries/touches he gets, the Dolphins have seemingly phased him out of the offense at times. Are they planning on letting him walk? If so, that’s confusing. The sample size on rookie Jay Ajayi is less than 50 carries large, so the fallback plan doesn’t seem to be on the team if Miller leaves. It will be interesting to see if Ajayi gets the bulk of the carries down the stretch,or if Miller gets fed to keep him happy. 

Who is Tony Lippett and how can he help us?
The Miami Dolphins need roughly fifteen new cornerbacks before next season begins, so it’s time to find out who last season’s fifth-round draft pick Tony Lippett is. Drafted as a project (he played wide receiver at Michigan State), Lippett has been an afterthought all season until recently. Now that the Phins are out of the playoff picture and have benched nearly every corner ahead of him on the depth chart, Lippett is finally getting some real playing time. Whether he sinks or swims, the experience would be useful going into a fresh 2016-17. 

Will Logan Thomas get some run?
Logan Thomas is the Miami Dolphins quarterback of the future — the backup qb, that is. Recently, when realizing another team was trying to poach Thomas from the practice squad, the Phins signed him to a two-year, $1.2 million contract; That’s pretty ballsy stuff for a third-string QB. Matt Moore has collected millions and millions of dollars to play Tannehill mentor the last four seasons, but chances are his time with Miami is now up. 

Will Logan Thomas see a snap this year? Probably not. It will be interesting to see if he is made active, though. 

How will Dan Campbell finish out his Dolphins interim head coaching tenure?
Dan Campbell was easy to like when we first got to know him well. Philbin was gone and the Dolphins were suddenly playing with increased effort. Since those first few weeks, everything has gone back to normal, and when you are talking Miami Dolphins football, normal is not good. Campbell has constantly tried to instill some of his personality into the team, but on the field, the results still mirror Joe Philbin’s vision.

These last two weeks are a chance for Dan Campbell to either show he can keep a dead-man-walking team together or completely lose it. If he plans on being a head coach in the future, keeping the Dolphins together these next two weeks would look good on his resumé.