Miami quarterback Cam Ward didn’t take the field for the second half of Saturday’s Pop-Tarts Bowl in Orlando, but Hurricane fans shouldn’t be worried.

Miami backup quarterback Emory Williams started for the team to open the third quarter and immediately led the Hurricanes on a touchdown drive.

Hurricanes team reporter Christy Chirinos shared that Ward had a big smile on his face as the team scored the touchdown, which likely indicates he’s out of the game as a precaution for his 2025 NFL Draft preparations. In For The Win’s latest mock draft, we have Ward as the No. 2 overall pick.

Ward threw his 156th touchdown pass during the game, which gave him the NCAA Division I record for touchdowns thrown in a college career.

With the record in the books, Ward and the team perhaps decided it wasn’t worth the injury risk in the second half. He could be the first player off the board in the 2025 NFL Draft next spring.

However, it’s always possible he rejoins the game before it ends.

The Miami Dolphins will look to get back to .500 for the first time since September when they face the Cleveland Browns at Huntington Bank Field on Sunday in a game that might or might not have playoff implications.

Here’s all the pertinent info for this Week 17 Dolphins-Browns matchup.

Additional content:
— Is the end near for big-name Dolphins?
— Rain, not cold, could be challenge in Cleveland
— What the Christmas results mean for the Dolphins

Regular Season Series History: Dolphins lead 10-9

Last Five Meetings:

1. November 13, 2022 at Miami — Dolphins 39, Browns 17
2. November 24, 2019 at Cleveland — Browns 41, Dolphins 24
3. September 25, 2016 at Miami — Dolphins 30, Browns 24 (OT)
4. September 8, 2013 at Cleveland — Dolphins 23, Browns 10
5. September 25, 2011 at Cleveland — Browns 17, Dolphins 16

Series Superlatives:

Connections:

Heading into Week 17, it appeared likely the Dolphins would miss the playoffs after being in the postseason last year and the other AFC team in that position is the Browns. Yes, the Browns made the playoffs in 2023, even though that seems crazy considering how bad their 2024 season has gone. While the defense certainly hasn’t been great, it’s the Cleveland offense that’s most to blame for the collapse, and pointing the finger at QB Deshaun Watson probably wouldn’t be out of line since the Browns made their playoff run while he was on IR last season and Joe Flacco was running the offense. Cleveland was so bad on offense with Watson, it didn’t reach 300 total yards in any game until Week 7. Maybe the weirdest part about the Cleveland season is that two of its three victories have come against playoff-bound Baltimore and Pittsburgh.

Cleveland is down to its third quarterback with Dorian Thompson-Robinson, who still needs to show he can more than a third option for a team. The Browns won’t have Nick Chubb, who’s on IR, or injured tight end David Njoku in this game and scored 13 points in their past two games combined. The Dolphins defense has been good in recent weeks and it’s easy to envision it completely shutting down the Browns in this game.

The biggest X-factor in this game is whether the Dolphins will have anything at stake in terms of playoff ramifications. If they have been eliminated because the Chargers and Broncos both won Saturday, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Dolphins come out flat even if they want to finish the season with a winning record regardless. The elements also could be an issue, particularly if it becomes rainy and windy, and a wet ball on a wet field always can be a great equalizer.

This will be the Dolphins’ fourth and final shot at getting back to .500 this season for the first time since September and they can keep alive their streak of consecutive seasons with a winning record by defeating the Browns before turning their attention to the New York Jets in Week 18. Cleveland will play hard in this game, but injuries have left them talent-deficient on offense. The Browns committted 18 turnovers in their past five games and we can see at least a couple more in this one. This is the kind of game the Dolphins have managed very well over the past couple of years, and there’s no reason to think this will be different, regardless of weather or playoff scenarios.

Final Score: Dolphins 23, Browns 9