The Browns will wrap up their home slate of the 2024 season in Week 17 when they host the Dolphins.

Miami heads into Week 17 with a 7-8 record and sits at second in the AFC East with its playoff hunt still alive, while Cleveland is 3-12 on the season.

"Unique challenge with this group," head coach Kevin Stefanski said. "The things that they do on their offensive side of the ball, with the pre snap motion and the speed. Defensively, I think they do a great job in a variety of ways, but they're big and long up front with great length. They've got great movement, bunch of different things they can throw at you. We have to go play our best brand of football to go find a way to win in front of our fans. We're excited about the opportunity to go play one last time down there on the lake in front of our fans."

Here are three keys to Sunday's game against the Dolphins.

Contain the speed of the Dolphins offense

A common thread when talking about the Dolphins offense is their speed. Defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz highlighted the characteristic, not only from their receivers in Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle on the outside, but also with TE Jonnu Smith in the middle of the field.

"You can tell they've intentionally built their team around speed. And probably one of the biggest tales of the tape this week is going to be how well our D-line is able to redirect on perimeter plays, how well they're going to be able to retrace on some of the middle screens," Schwartz said. "The way these guys play, they make you defend from the guard all the way to the sideline. So, it really puts an emphasis on forcing your D-line to be athletes. And that's probably our biggest challenge this week is you have to play it a lot of different ways and be multi-dimensional."

For the Browns to be multi-dimensional, Schwartz described how they will have to defend the "B' gap all the way to the sideline. They will have to be prepared to chase on the quick perimeter screens.

"I think our ability to play well on defense is going to be determined in large part by our D-line's ability to flatten out, make perimeter plays, turn and run, and make tackles on short passes," Schwartz said. "Ball's going to be coming out fast so there's a lot of things they can do to help that effort."

Allow Dorian Thompson-Robinson to find his rhythm

Dorian Thompson-Robinson is set to make his second consecutive start this season at quarterback against the Dolphins. He will face a Miami defense that he characterized as a disguised defense, one that runs games up front even if they don't apply ample amount of pressure.

The Dolphins' quarterback pressure rate of 33.9 percent ranks 17^th in the NFL this season, and the different pass rush moves across the defensive line make it a challenge for opposing offenses.

Yet, he still has to be aware of the challenges they present at all three levels in order to protect the football. Thompson-Robinson threw two interceptions in Week 16 and is looking to eliminate those turnovers, while also not putting the Browns in difficult third down situations – especially against a Miami defense is third in the league this season in third down conversions, holding teams to 35 percent of third down conversions.

"They're going to switch the coverage on you every down and really try to make the quarterback think," Thompson-Robinson said. "Again, that falls on me not putting the ball in harm's way and keeping us moving on first and second down, so we're not stuck in third downs."

Thompson-Robinson uses his legs to help extend plays as well as run with the ball. He totaled nine carries for 49 yards against the Bengals in Week 16. As he looks to establish that rhythm in his game, he will need to make smart decisions on how to step up in the pocket, use his legs to extend plays and protect the football.

"With Dorian, it's really an 11-on-11 football, they have to account for him in all those run schemes," Stefanski said. "And that's like a lot of quarterbacks in this league. I think you're seeing guys that are very viable threats in the run game, and it certainly contributes to run game success."

Establish the pass game

One way the Browns offense can help Thompson-Robinson find his rhythm quickly is by starting off the game fast. By scoring early, it contributes to the overall play of the offense and prevent a situation where they have to play from behind.

One way the Browns may be able to do so against the Dolphins is through the air. The Dolphins run defense allows an average of 102.1 rushing yards per game, ranked sixth in the league, but allows an average of 210.9 passing yards per game this season, which ranks 12^th in the league.

While the Browns can use a balance of the run and pass game, they can look to take advantage in the pass game to move the ball downfield. This season, Cleveland is averaging 211.3 passing yards per game and have 18 passing touchdowns.

In order to do so, the Browns will have to account for CB Jalen Ramsey in the secondary. Ramsey has a total of nine passes defensed, two interceptions and one sack. He's recorded 56 tackles, five tackles for loss and four quarterback hits.

"(Ramsey is) big, physical, move him around, does a lot of different things," offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey said. "And then they got a ton of just really good players out there that play hard, play at an extremely high level and play well together."