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The Miami Dolphins and Jacksonville Jaguars are set to face off in a battle of rebuilding teams in Week 3 on Thursday at 8:20 p.m. ET. The Dolphins are looking for their first win of the season and came close to knocking off the Buffalo Bills in Week 2 while the Jaguars are 1-1 after playing two close games against the Indianapolis Colts and Tennessee Titans.
It appears like Miami will only go as far as Ryan Fitzpatrick’s arm can take them while Tua Tagovailoa is on the bench. The Dolphins acquired two running backs in Matt Breida and Jordan Howard over the offseason, but Myles Gaskin has emerged as the most useful option out of the backfield. Fitzpatrick made the most of his top two targets — DeVante Parker and Mike Gesicki — in Week 2 to tally 328 passing yards and two passing touchdowns. The veteran signal caller should be looking to air the ball out again against a Jaguars team that gave up four passing touchdowns on 24 attempts to Ryan Tannehill on Sunday.
Jacksonville was suspected of tanking when it moved Jalen Ramsey, Leonard Fournette, and Yannick Ngakoue ahead of the 2020 season, but is playing solid football with Gardner Minshew II under center. Minshew has six touchdown passes this year, and only the Seattle Seahawks Russell Wilson has more this year. A talented, young receiving corps that includes D.J. Chark Jr. and Laviska Shenault Jr. has helped Minshew put up solid numbers. James Robinson has done a solid job as a rookie feature back and is averaging 5.1 yards per carry. Putting up points doesn’t appear to be a problem for the Jaguars.
There’s plenty of fantasy football potential here, as both sides have middle-of-the-road defenses so far this season. Here are some ESPN points projections to give you an idea of what you can expect from key players on Thursday.
Miami Dolphins
QB Ryan Fitzpatrick: 17.8
RB Myles Gaskin: 11.3
WR DeVante Parker: 12.5
WR Preston Williams: 10.5
TE Mike Gesicki: 11.5
K Jason Sanders: 7.5
D/ST: 4.6
Jacksonville Jaguars
QB Gardner Minshew II: 19.9
RB James Robinson: 13.8
WR D.J. Chark Jr.: 11.5
WR Laviska Shenault Jr.: 11.2
WR Keelan Cole: 9.2
TE Tyler Eifert: 7.6
K Josh Lambo: 7.7
D/ST: 5.4