Bizarre takes:
From SI:
Dolphins finished 2023 season ranked first in the NFL in offensive yards (401.3) per game, sixth in rushing yards (135.8), first in yards per carry (5.1), second in red zone efficiency (65.5%), and second in scoring offense (29.2 ppg)
I completely understand being disappointed by how the season ended but this type of posting has just left reality behind completely
Maybe my way of thinking doesn't make sense to you, but that's okay. (I am an odd one!
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On one hand, stats can show basic tendencies and performance averages. However, on the other hand, those stats are misleading and don't show a true picture of the team's performance. For one thing, that 70 point Denver game was an anomaly and never repeated, so it really skewed the stats. Also, what good was being 6th in rushing yards and 1st in YPC when toward the end of the year McDaniel decided to stop running the ball on 3rd or 4th and short, and in goal-to-go situations? I realize some of that was due to having back-ups on the o-line, but it was also McDaniel refusing to run the ball when it would've been the smart thing to do. (On a related note, I sometimes wonder if McDaniel and/or maybe Tua were force-feeding the ball to a covered Hill even when other options were open because they were trying to help Hill reach 2K yards. If so, they really hurt the team.)
A lot of the yardage on those stats were from earlier in the season when Miami was playing mostly losing teams. Miami had 11 wins only because they got lucky, and the majority of their schedule was against inferior teams. Stats are nice, but being able to beat good teams in the regular season and winning in the playoffs against top teams is what makes a team successful. Unfortunately, Miami couldn't do that.
A further point to show that stats don't matter is this: Suppose that the 70 point game wasn't a singularity, and they also scored 50+ points against the Panthers, Commanders, Giants, Raiders, and once each against the Jets and Patriots. But on the flip side, Sanders misses one of his FGs against Dallas. This would make Miami #1 in probably every offensive category by far and would shatter the scoring record. However, that one missed FG against Dallas means that Miami ends up at 10-7 and misses the playoffs. So, what good were those stats if they couldn't make the playoffs?
It's not how many yards you get or how many points you score that really matters, it's the situation in which you get them that counts. TDs are not always equal to TDS in the overall picture. Three TDs in the 4th quarter of the Broncos game meant absolutely nothing, since they decided to not break the scoring record. However, if they had scored just two TDs in the 4th Quarter against the Bills in the final regular season game, they would have secured the #2 Seed and the AFC East title. Yes, my example here is just fantasy and not what actually happened, but it is within the realm of possibility for the top ranked team to miss the playoffs, because Miami came very close to doing that.