Third and final part of the pre-Falcons game Miami Dolphins On SI mailbag:

From Marcus Zahn:

At what point will giving young players more playing time (Chop, Trader, Ewers, Biggers, Dulcich, Bonner, Biggers, Marshall) and evaluating be the primary focus of the rest of the season?

Hey Marcus, all logic says you don’t go to that route only after the Dolphins are mathematically eliminated from playoff contention, particularly if you have a head coach whose job security is in question. So I think we’re looking at 3-4 more weeks at minimum.

From Brandon Quinn:

Fins fan for 30 years, I’ve never been this down in the dumps. I’m in the minority, and think if we gave McDaniel a shot with even a Baker Mayfield, let alone a Lamar Jackson, he’d be successful and when winning, his positivity schtick would work. (Both have been available, thanks Chris Grier!) Tua at a league minimum salary, hamstrings you as a play caller. Tua paid like Lamar, decimates your roster. That said, shrugging and saying in front of TV cameras “not to throw 10 picks” is your baseline expectation, is begging to be fired. He wants to be put out of his misery. Tua has crushed this man. My question is, what the heck is taking so long? What is Ross busy doing? And why should I ever watch another game with Tua behind center?

Hey Brandon, wow, you sound displeased. Look, Tua had a really bad game against the Browns last Sunday and the “not throw 10 picks” very well might have been an attempt at humor (whatever we might think of it). Also looks like Tua has crushed you, partner. Look, he overall had a pretty solid game against Carolina and did finish well against the Chargers despite the three picks. And, like it or not, he remains the best quarterback on the Dolphins roster. You should watch if you’re a Dolphins fan because that’s your team and he’s the starting quarterback for the time being. Oh, and clearly Stephen Ross isn’t ready to fire McDaniel yet and I’m not sure it’s that surprising because he holds the Dolphins head coach in high regard (and also gave him a contract extension last year when he had two years left on his deal).

From Dunner:

Alain, how do you think Miami will attack Atl’s defense? A) Starting w scheme-McD vs a top-rated pass defense B) How to overcome our QB1’s limitation vs top-rated pass defense?

Hey Dunner, I think you’re going to see a lot of what we’ve seen so far, which means a lot of runs by Achane and a lot of quick, short throws and maybe a shot or two deep to Jaylen Waddle. Beyond scheme, the key will be execution and everybody being on point.

From Mike FinsUp:

Should I bet over/under 200 yards for Bijan?

Hey Mike, think you’re exaggerating a bit here, no? How about Robinson getting less than 100 yards rushing? I could see that happening after the major signs of progress I saw in the run defense at Cleveland.

From Andy:

If we lose again in ugly fashion, do you still think Ross will refuse to make any changes? If so, I’m assuming he’s fully in on the tank.

Hey Andy, very little chance anything happens next week regardless of the score because of the Thursday night game next week. And I don’t buy this idea of the Dolphins being in any sort of “organic tanking,” which is a term I’ve seen pop up this week.

From Kevin:

Do you think Zeek Biggers will ever get any playing time?

Hey Kevin, yes, I think once the Dolphins are out of playoff contention, the Dolphins are going to get him some playing time. It will come sooner obviously if injuries pop up. Let’s also not forget we’re talking about a rookie seventh-round pick here. He’s got a lot of promise, sure, but there’s also a reason he was available in the seventh round.

From Anthony:

Can we leave Tua in Atlanta?

Hey Anthony, that’s not very nice. And will you feel the same way if Tua has a good performance against the Falcons. I mean, it’s not like Tua hasn’t had good outings for Miami before.

From JB:

What quarter do you expect Ewers to be taking snaps?

Hey JB, if you check out my game preview, you’ll see I’m anticipating a close game, so the answer to your question is I’m not anticipating Ewers getting any snaps in this game — assuming he’s the one that Mike McDaniel chooses as the No. 2 QB for this game.

From Steve:

Here’s a question for you, Alain. Not necessarily Dolphins related. But other than the obvious reason of fear of injuries. Why did the NFL get away from QBs holding for kickers for field goals and extra points? At least use a backup QB. Thanks, Steve.

Hey Steve, if I remember correctly when the change first occurred, I think it’s a matter of the punter having more free time in practice to work on holding. But there is something to be said for having the backup QB in there for fake purposes or if the snap goes awry and a pass then needs to be thrown.

From socrates33172:

What is there to ask…we need to keep losing now and not mess up and miss on Mendoza.

Hmm, are we sure we want to go down that route? Is Mendoza really at the level where any team wants to tank for him? And do we really think any team will finish with a worse record than the Jets?

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