Dolphins fight to keep faint playoff hopes alive vs. hapless Jets

The Miami Dolphins are surely happy to be back home.The Dolphins (5-7) play host to the New York Jets (3-9) on Sunday in a battle between AFC East franchises nowhere near the destination set when the season began in September.Miami is coming off a 30-17 loss at the Green Bay Packers. After the game, Dolphins linebacker and leading tackler Jordyn Brooks said the cold weather was a factor in Miami’s defeat.”I thought we were soft,” Brooks said after the Dolphins missed 20 tackles that gave Green Bay an extra 132 yards. “Simple as that.”After several days to reflect, Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel said the team’s toughness is there.”I expect any and all things to be on the table when we don’t first and foremost fulfill our own expectations,” McDaniel said Wednesday. “Holding people accountable is an example of how you can impact toughness.””All I know is dudes are aggressively tackling each other, taking on hits. And all I assess is the tape.”Miami is two games behind idle Denver for the final AFC wild-card playoff berth. The Dolphins likely have to win out, going 5-0 down the stretch, including the Jets again in Week 18, to have a realistic shot at the postseason. The New York Times playoff simulator gives Miami a 13 percent chance of making the playoffs.Meanwhile, the Jets are out of contention — though not yet mathematically eliminated — in what has been a season of disasters. The Jets enter Sunday having lost eight of their past nine games, including three in a row.Coach Robert Saleh was fired on Oct. 8 after a 2-3 start. Jets general manager Joe Douglas was fired on Nov. 19.Nothing has been able to fix the Jets, who have not made the playoffs since 2010. Interim coach/defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich, who is 1-6 since Saleh was fired, said Aaron Rodgers will remain at quarterback despite a season that is way below the 10-time Pro Bowl player’s high standards.Rodgers turned 41 this week. He knows his mobility is a shortcoming at this stage of his career, but he can still show flashes of his amazing arm talent.

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