The Miami Dolphins (5-8) take on the San Diego Chargers (3-10) in a battle of last-place teams at Qualcomm Stadium. Kickoff is slated for 4:25 p.m. EST.
It could be the last professional game of a 22-year run in San Diego. The Chargers are eliminated from postseason play; Sunday's home finale could be Qualcomm's too, if the team relocates to Los Angeles this offseason. A vote could be cast by owners next month.
Both teams will attempt to bounce-back from Week 14 losses. The Dolphins were shredded by Odell Beckham Jr. on Monday Night Football, while the Chargers couldn't score an overtime-forcing touchdown from a half-yard out last week.
Here are three keys to the game for both the Dolphins and Chargers:
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DOLPHINS:
1. Give young players a chance to showcase ability
The Dolphins' rookie draft class has been fairly inconsistent this season, getting contributions from some and limited production from others. DeVante Parker has had a chance to start the past few weeks but hasn't caught more than four passes in his last three games. Jay Ajayi has cooled off after a hot start, while defensive tackle Jordan Phillips has showed talent on the interior. Now that they're eliminated from playoff contention, the Dolphins need to let their young players showcase their talent and possibly provide a much-needed spark.
2. Blitz Philip Rivers often
One of the common trends through every coach this season has been the reluctance to blitz by the Dolphins. They rarely sent pressure at Eli Manning on Monday night and he torched the secondary, throwing the same number of touchdowns as incompletions: four. Attempting to get pressure with just four pass rushers clearly didn't work, so the Dolphins will need to send more pressure at Philip Rivers.
3. Push the ball downfield
Ryan Tannehill has completed just 61.3 percent of his passes this season, despite most of his throws coming at or around the line of scrimmage. The offense has struggled to move the football that way, so pushing the ball downfield with Parker and Kenny Stills could help. In Week 14, Tannehill made a great throw to Stills after calling an audible at the line, finding him deep down the left side for a touchdown. It can't hurt to take shots downfield with Tannehill having showed the ability to do so.
CHARGERS:
Get Melvin Gordon his touchdown
Melvin Gordon took 32 end zone trips as a Wisconsin Badger in his final college season. He's taken 32 fewer scoring trips as a San Diego Chargers rookie. It'll deflate Gordon to go all 17 weeks without a touchdown; luckily, the Dolphins' 30th ranked run defense will offer some chance to build momentum back up.
Throw away from Reshad Jones
Rivers has thrown 70 percent of his interceptions at home this season, so he'd be wise to locate No. 20 and throw the other way. Jones (4 INT, 2 INT-TD) is the only playmaker in a hurting Dolphins secondary; he can single-handedly spoil San Diego's last home game. They'd be much better off preying on defensive backs like Jamar Taylor, Brent Grimes, or the injured Brice McCain.
Keep a back or two in for Ndamukong Suh
Suh (48 tackles, 4.0 sacks) hasn't been his quarterback-scaring self throughout most of this 2015 campaign. A vintage performance could be coming against San Diego's depleted line, though. It'd be wise to establish a second line of defense with a tight end, fullback, or running back so Rivers won't step into Suh as he throws. That rarely ends well.
