NFL

NBC 6 Weekend Football Preview: Never Too Early for Must Win Time

Will either the Dolphins or ‘Canes be part of another week of upsets in what has already been a wild season for many teams?

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If you’re either of the teams that calls Hard Rock Stadium home, you can’t really say that the first week of games for the 2020 season were much of a surprise - at least when it comes to the outcome.

For the Miami Hurricanes, it was a known fact that they were going to come out on top over UAB. What wasn’t known until the clock hit triple zeroes was how solid the running game might be and how much room for improvement could be needed from their much talked about quarterback transfer, D’Eriq King.

For the Miami Dolphins, any hopes of an upset last weekend left early on - but there was enough good to make fans think that the Tua Tagovailoa era might not start as early as expected since head coach Brian Flores’ team might not be out of things so quickly.

In fact, nothing surprising happened last weekend in the state of Florida. I mean, it’s not like a college team blew a double digit halftime lead and lost to a team that went 3-9 last season…right?

Yeah, 2020 might be a rocky road for some teams.

So, will either the Dolphins or ‘Canes be part of another week of upsets in what has already been a wild season for many teams? Here’s a complete preview as we break it all down with NBC 6's not-so-scientific ranking system.

Miami Hurricanes at Louisville Cardinals (Saturday)

MIAMI, FLORIDA - NOVEMBER 09: Tutu Atwell #1 of the Louisville Cardinals fumbles the ball against the Miami Hurricanes during the first half at Hard Rock Stadium on November 09, 2019 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

In front of their fans for the first time this season, the ‘Canes overcame a slow start and beat their one non-conference foe of the season in a game that saw King throw for just over 140 yards while the running game complied over 300 yards to beat down the Blazers as planned.

For head coach Manny Diaz, it’s important to follow up that game – and being ranked for the first time since October 2018 – with another convincing win, this time on the road against a ranked Cardinals team still upset about getting beat down last season in South Florida. Miami has games coming up against FSU and Clemson over the next weeks, so a letdown loss won’t fly this time.

Miami Dolphins vs. Buffalo Bills (Sunday)

MIAMI, FLORIDA - NOVEMBER 17: John Brown #15 of the Buffalo Bills lines up against Nik Needham #40 of the Miami Dolphins during the first quarter at Hard Rock Stadium on November 17, 2019 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

If anything positive can come out of the game last weekend against New England, it might be that the Patriots outplayed the Dolphins in nearly every area of the game and still won by just 10 points. After getting blown out by 49 points in the opener last season, you have to take anything positive you can get...right?

This week, Miami returns home to face a Bills team some experts think can take the AFC East now that Tom Brady has left the Patriots to go lose games in Tampa Bay. Can Miami get the win at home? Of course. Can they also get beat and set the stage for a long stretch before their chance to get win number one? Sadly, yes.

Other State Games

The Florida Atlantic Owls will not kick off their 2020 season against the Georgia Southern Eagles after COVID test results halted the game with both schools working to reschedule.

Both NAIA teams in Miami-Dade County will be in action with the St. Thomas Bobcats opening their second season of play against Southeastern while Florida Memorial continues their inaugural season in Southwest Florida against Ave Maria.

In the NFL, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are at home for the first time this season with Brady and a bruised up team after last week’s loss host another divisional foe in the Carolina Panthers. Meanwhile, the Jacksonville Jaguars look to build off pulling maybe the biggest upset from week one when they hit the road to face the Tennessee Titans.

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