What are the Miami Dolphins talking about ahead of Sunday's Week 9 interconference matchup against the Detroit Lions at Hard Rock Stadium? Let's find out:

1. Dolphins head coach Jeff Hafley opened his Wednesday press conference with kind words for Lions linebacker Jack Campbell.

"We are thinking of him and praying for him and for the Lions," Hafley said. "I know that's a hard situation. But certainly, there are things that are bigger than football, so I just make sure I want to acknowledge that and we acknowledge that."

2. From Week 2 through Week 7 the Dolphins had rushed for 100 yards in five straight games. That streak was broken in last Sunday's 24-19 loss to New England when they rushed for 74 yards on 23 carries (3.2 avg.).

"I think it was a lot of missed assignments and just not being on our landmarks," tackle Patrick Paul said this week about the run game performance against the Patriots. "A lot of looks. They gave us eight in the box. It's really hard to run when there's eight guys in the box. Just different fronts and we need to execute better."

Since Week 2, Miami's 131.5 rushing average is fourth highest in the NFL behind only Tampa Bay (180.0), Buffalo (158.8) and Atlanta (136.9). Detroit currently ranks ninth defending the run allowing 96.6 yards per game on average on the ground.

3. Paul was asked this week about facing Lions edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson Sunday and what Miami needs to do to try to limit Hutchinson, who is second in the NFL with 43 total pressures this season.

"I mean, he's a great player," Paul said. "Has been since he's been in the league. I think just game planning and having a good game plan is the biggest thing."

4. Hafley said this week there's a point of emphasis limiting explosive plays in the pass game after his defense allowed two 40-plus-yard passing touchdowns (48 and 43) against the Patriots last week.

Miami has allowed opposing passers to have a 140.0 passer rating on attempts that travel at least 21 yards in the air this season, worst in the NFL. Detroit has one of the most explosive passing attacks in the NFL as quarterback Jared Goff has a 113.7 rating when throwing the ball down the field this season.

5. Miami is currently in a youth movement. The Dolphins have 14 rookies (26.4 percent) on their active roster, including 10 drafted by the team. The Dolphins' 14 rookies are the most in the NFL.

Chris Bell, Caleb Douglas and Kevin Coleman are three first-year wide receivers who have accounted for 476 of the team's 1,268 receiving yards, or 38 percent. That's the second-highest percentage in the NFL for rookie receivers. That trio combined for 11 receptions for 120 yards and a touchdown in a 24-19 loss to New England Week 8.

"They played well and competed against a really good defense and one of the best corners in the NFL (Christian Gonzalez)," Hafley said of his rookie receivers. "They got open and had opportunities. I'm proud of those rookies. It's not easy to play in this league, especially when you're looking to the left and it's a rookie and looking to the right and it's a rookie and it's like, 'Where's the older guy to tell me what to do?' I give them a lot of credit. They are getting better."

6. Hafley spoke for about two minutes Wednesday on Detroit's offense, going through all the weapons on that side of the football and how they can hurt opposing defenses in so many ways. When talking about the Lions' offensive line, Hafley said the biggest improvement he's noticed are along the interior.

"I feel like I've played these guys a lot in the last two years," said Hafley, who was Green Bay's defensive coordinator in 2024 and 2025. "The interior of the offensive line I see a lot of improvement there."

Christian Mahogany, Juice Scruggs and Tate Ratledge have been a good interior trio for Detroit all season.

Hafley said it's a combination of scheme, having playmakers all over the field and being physical in the run game that makes Detroit's offense so tough to face. He said the only way to be successful defensively against the Lions is to throw a lot of different things at them from a defensive perspective.

7. Are the Dolphins getting enough consistency from their pass rush to affect opposing quarterbacks?

"Probably not consistently enough," Hafley said of the league-low nine sacks for the Dolphins this season. "If you look to some games the answer would be yes. Like if you looked at last week (three sacks vs. Patriots) I though yeah, we got a lot of pressure on the quarterback. There's been some other games where we didn't."

He thinks it's something that's been an improvement lately and they must continue to build as the season progresses.

8. Hafley has a lot of respect for Goff.

"Goff has played at a really high level for a lot of years," Hafley said. "He's really smart. He can do it all. I respect his toughness. I respect the way he hangs in the pocket and takes shots. He can make all the throws. He sees the check-downs fast."