It's been a rollercoaster ride for the Dolphins this season. After Tua Tagovailoa went down with another concussion in Week 2 and Miami lost three of four games without him, it appeared the season was over. However, the Dolphins reignited their playoff hopes in recent weeks, winning four of their past five games heading into Week 15 against the Texans.
The Dolphins ultimately fell short in Houston, losing to the Texans, 20-12. Despite the loss, the Miami has not been mathematically eliminated from the postseason yet.
With just a few games to play this season, the Dolphins will have to get hot again and will also need to get plenty of help from some other teams. With the season winding down, Miami has a string of must-win games ahead of them, let's check in on their playoff picture ahead of Week 16.
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Dolphins playoff picture
| AFC Rank | Team | Record |
| 1. | Chiefs | 13-1 |
| 2. | Bills | 11-3 |
| 3. | Steelers | 10-4 |
| 4. | Texans | 9-5 |
| 5. | Ravens | 9-5 |
| 6. | Broncos | 9-5 |
| 7. | Chargers | 8-6 |
| 8. | Colts | 6-8 |
| 9. | Dolphins | 6-8 |
Through 15 weeks, two teams, the Bills and Chiefs, have locked up their divisions, meaning two of the top four seeds in the AFC are already accounted for. Miami is in Buffalo's division, so the Dolphins will be competing for one of the three wild-card slots in the AFC.
As of now, two wild-card teams have nine wins, while the Chargers remain stuck on eight (pending their result against the Buccaneers). If Miami can catch fire over the final few weeks of the season, overtaking one of these teams is certainly possible. Three wins to close out the year would certainly help the Dolphins, but they'll almost certainly need a team or two that's currently ahead of them to go on a slide.
MORE: Updated NFL playoff picture for Week 15
Dolphins remaining schedule
| Week | Opponent |
| 16 | vs. 49ers |
| 17 | at Browns |
| 18 | at Jets |
The Dolphins enter Week 16 with a 6-8 record and have a stretch against teams all on the outside looking in of postseason play. Matchups with the 49ers, Browns and Jets aren't a cakewalk. But they could go a long way in securing a spot in the playoffs.
MORE NFL:
- Week 15 NFL Power Rankings
- Week 15 NFL picks straight-up
- Week 15 NFL picks against the spread
- NFL Draft order heading into Week 15
- NFL playoff picture heading into Week 15
Dolphins updated playoff chances
After Week 15, ESPN's projections put the Dolphins' playoff chances at 5.1%, which is behind both the Bengals and the Colts. It gives Miami the lowest odds of any AFC team who hasn't been eliminated from playoff contention.
