Am I reading too much into stats? In 2008 (playoffs) we had a total of 939 passes and rushes (attempts). That's an average of 58 plays a game. So far, we have had 212 plays, or 53 plays a game. The defense is allowing 71 plays a game this year compared to 58.
Football Outsiders is good for stats like this. I posted several last week. Through 3 weeks Miami averaged 0.6 more plays allowed per drive than the average which had them ranked 27th and 1 more defensive drive per game. In short, Miami was playing 13.2 more defensive snaps per game than the average team. They also ranked 25th in time allowed per drive at 3:01. The we're 31st in 3 and outs percentage. That was offset by a better than average punt percentage and red zone scoring percentage. In short, they're playing a bend but don't break style which is keeping them alive. Offense needs to do its part however because Miami's defense is being asked to shoulder too much of the load.