The Miami Dolphins will look to stay in the hunt for a playoff place when they visit the beleaguered New York Jets in Monday Night Football.
The Dolphins are coming off the back of an avoidable loss to the Denver Broncos, when they threw away a big lead in the fourth quarter to fall 39-36 to Peyton Manning's team.
Miami have made it a bit of a habit of conceding late leads and going down in tight games, something that they need to address sooner rather than later if they are to make that charge for the wild-card spots.
"We have to find a way to win some of those games," Miami Dolphins coach Joe Philbin said. "We are going to be in some more of those games. That's just the way the NFL typically is."
The Dolphins (6-5) will see the game against the Jets as the perfect opportunity to get into the winning groove, considering New York are a woeful 2-9 this season.
A win will boost their chances of booking a wild-card playoff spot from a seriously crowded pack of teams, and Philbin will hope the pressure of needing the win will not affect his players.
"I don't think the records really matter right now," Philbin added. "We have to go win a game against the New York Jets. That's really the only thing that is on my mind and should be on our players' minds at this point."
The Jets go into the game with nothing much to lose, considering their situation, which is probably why coach Rex Ryan has decided to go back to Geno Smith as his starting quarterback. Smith was benched after eight games for Michael Vick, but will start against the Dolphins, after going 10-12 in the second half against the Buffalo Bills.
"We were getting ready for both players obviously," Philbin told the team's official website. "I don't know if either one is a huge, dramatic shift from the other. They have some similar traits.
"Offensively, the good thing is there's film on both guys. You can certainly take a look at both of them."
Linebacker Jonathan Freeny (hamstring) and cornerback Jamar Taylor (shoulder) are the confirmed absentees for the Dolphins, while the Jets will have to do without defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson (toe) and tight end Jake Amaro.
"It doesn't look good for Big Mo," Ryan said of the injury to Wilkerson suffered in the loss to the Bills last Monday. "If you're in a boot, that doesn't look good for this week.
"But, hopefully, we'll get him back as soon as we can."
Where to Watch Live
The game is scheduled to begin at 8.30 pm ET (7 am IST, 1.30 am GMT (Tuesday) with live coverage in the US on ESPN. Viewers can also live stream the game on Watch ESPN. There will be no live TV coverage of the MNF game in India.
