ESPN 98.1 FM / 850 AM WRUF ESPN 98.1 FM / 850 AM WRUF
Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores announced on Wednesday that Ryan Fitzpatrick will be the starting quarterback this week against the Bills.
QB Confusion
The announcement of Fitzpatrick’s impending start on Sunday was met with understandable confusion. Just a few days prior to this announcement, Brian Flores stated that Josh Rosen would remain the starting QB moving forward. However, Flores decided that starting Fitzpatrick is what is best for the team heading into Buffalo.
The Dolphins have started both quarterbacks during the 0-5 season. Fitzpatrick started the first two games while Rosen started the last three games. While both players have had starter-quality moments, both have struggled as well.
Rosen Benched
It is no question that Rosen has had a less than stellar start to the season. Though Rosen has only started in three games this season, he has appeared in all five games. In these five games, Rosen has put up generally undesirable stats. Rosen has thrown for just 567 yards the entire season. This is supported by just a 53.2 completion percentage, only one touchdown and five interceptions.
Following the game against Washington last week, Brian Flores still expressed trust in Rosen’s abilities. Flores even stated that Rosen would remain the starter, noting that he doesn’t deserve to be benched because of one bad game. It seems, however, that against a tough Buffalo defense, Flores does not trust Rosen enough.
Is “Fitzmagic” Back?
So far this season, Fitzpatrick has appeared in four games and started two. He has a completion percentage of 55.7 with 435 yards, two touchdowns and four interceptions. These numbers are not much different than Rosen’s on the season. However, Fitzpatrick’s start comes off of his fourth-quarter performance last week against the Redskins. In the final quarter of the game, Fitzpatrick led the Dolphins to two touchdown drives in a victory campaign that fell short following a failed two-point conversion attempt.
Brian Flores says that the decision to start Fitzpatrick is based on the need for offensive production this weekend. Up against a solid 4-1 Buffalo Bills team, the Dolphins need to generate more offense than they have been all season.
The Dolphins and the Bills will face off this Sunday, 10/20 at 1 p.m. in Buffalo with the ball in Fitzpatrick’s hand.
