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Five things left to play for in a lost season for… |
Allen Eyestone/The Palm Beach Post
By Ben Volin Palm Beach Post Staff Writer DAVIE —
But the Dolphins still have three games left to play, starting today at
1. Reggie Bush’s quest for 1,000 yards.
If the notion of Bush being an every-down running back seemed like a
But Bush has proven everyone wrong during the past seven weeks. He enters
Bush, who has rushed for 100 yards in back-to-back weeks, said he isn’t
The Dolphins have had just two 1,000-yard rushers since 2004 – Ronnie Brown
“It’s out there, it’s a goal, and it’s something to keep us motivated for 2. Milestones for Brandon Marshall and Jason Taylor.
Most of the attention on Marshall this season has been on his dropped
Marshall also is averaging 14.0 yards per catch, his highest average since
Taylor, who has six sacks this season, is steadily climbing up the all-time 3. Setting team record for “big plays.”
Ross’ demand this year was for a more exciting offense, and believe it or not,
The Dolphins have connected on 30 passing plays of 25-plus yards this season,
The Dolphins average 2.3 such passes per game, so the team record is within 4. Avoiding team record for sacks allowed. Not all of the milestones the Dolphins could reach this year are positive ones.
The Dolphins have allowed a whopping 44 sacks this season, second-most in the
In fact, they could tie the record today. The Dolphins allowed nine sacks to 5. Messing up the AFC East race.
The Dolphins play three familiar opponents to close out the season – the
The Dolphins may not be in the playoff hunt, but they’ll have their say in the
“It presents an opportunity to mess things up in this division, and help
The Patriots have a two-game lead for the division crown, while the Jets hold That’s all for today guys, i’ll be back to blog you tomorrow. Posted in Brandon Marshall, dolphins-news, Jake Long, Jason Taylor, Richie Incognito, Ronnie Brown, Tony Sparano | Comments Off
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Miami Dolphins running back Reggie Bush seeking… |
DAVIE —— Dolphins running back Reggie Bush has downplayed the fact he is closing in on 1,000 yards for the first time in his NFL career. His teammates, however, have made a bigger deal about it. Bush is just 230 yards from reaching the barrier. He needs to just average 77 yards the remaining three games. “He hasn’t talked about it at all,” running back Daniel Thomas said. “We need to make sure he gets it. It would be good to add that to his legacy.” Center Mike Pouncey echoed those statements, saying it would provide a sense of accomplishment despite enduring a disappointing season. The Dolphins will finish with a losing record for the third straight year. Bush, who has already surpassed his career-high for rushing yards in a season, would celebrate the feat more if it were accompanied by wins. “It just means that I rushed over a 1,000 yards, that’s it,” Bush said. I think that more importantly for me is that I want to win these last three games. I want to do it for Coach [Tony] Sparano just because he’s not here and I think that it would mean a lot to him.” If he makes the plateau, Bush said he will view it as a team honor. Ricky Williams was the last Dolphins player to run for 1,000 yards in a season, gaining 1,121 in 2009. Bush would become the franchise’s seventh 1,000-yard rusher, joining the likes of Larry Csonka, Ronnie Brown and Karim Abdul-Jabbar. “If I do rush for over 1,000 yards that means we did it as an offense,” Bush said. “It’s not just about me. It’s about all 11 guys out there who helped make that happen so that’s pretty much it.” Bush could also dispel the notion of him being unable to play as an every-down back. He’s fought the label since entering the league in 2006. This year, he proved he could run between the tackles while carrying the offensive rushing load. He has rushed at least 10 times in all but one game. His durability has been noticed by teammates. Some have even referred to Bush as “cannonball” because of his tough running style. “I tell you one thing that I really respect about the guy,” safety Yeremiah Bell said. “He’s not the big 230-pound back yet he runs inside with the best of them. People always say he can’t make a full season. If you look at him through this year, he’s still ticking.” Long questionable Left tackle Jake Long (back) practiced on a limited basis Friday, and was listed as questionable on the injury report. Interim coach Todd Bowles said a decision won’t be made until the team flight to Buffalo Saturday. “Jake’s a warrior,” Bowles said. “He wants to play and if he can play and is healthy, he will.” In other injury news, Bowles said quarterback Matt Moore (concussion) threw the ball better and remains a game-time decision. He is expected to start “if there are no lingering effects.” Tight end Anthony Fason (ribs) and guard Vernon Carey (ankle) are also listed a questionable. Linebacker Koa Misi (shoulder) has been ruled out for Sunday. srichardson@tribune.com Comment Below!. |
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Miami Dolphins have superior talent to the one-win… |
Paul Soliai was a rookie who barely knew how to put on his pads properly back in 2007, so imagine how difficult it was for a then young nose tackle to understand why he wasn’t playing. Or why his new teammates didn’t respect their rookie head coach Cam Cameron. Or why his team was winless until a Week 15 overtime victory over the Baltimore Ravens, which kept the Dolphins from entering the ranks of the NFL’s winless teams, keeping the 1-15 Dolphins from becoming a sports trivia question. What Soliai does remember is how painful that season was, and how mediocre they became due to injuries and poor quarterback play. “I been there before and I don’t want to go back,” Soliai said, referring to that team’s three-month stretch of losing. It appears the 2011 Dolphins, who are 0-7 heading into Sunday’s road game against Kansas City, are on a similar crash course. But take it from someone who was a passenger on that rough ride, there’s no comparing those two Dolphins squads, because the ’11 team has nearly twice as much talent. Zach Thomas was among the team’s seven starters who ended up on injured reserve in ’07. The talent drop off was so bad, Channing Crowder lead the team in tackles (78) despite missing the final six games with a knee injury. The only season-opening starter this team’s lost for good is quarterback Chad Henne, but safety Chris Clemons and cornerback Vontae Davis’ absence hasn’t helped. Cleo Lemon was the ’07 team’s leading passer, throwing for 1,773 yards and six touchdowns as the replacement for an injured Trent Green, and a struggling John Beck, the rookie who wasn’t prepared to start. This year Matt Moore, a five-year veteran who has started 16 games, replaces Henne. Jesse Chatman handled the most carries in ’07 after Ronnie Brown suffered a season-ending anterior cruciate ligament injury in week seven. The Dolphins also needed a ton of average backs — Lorenzo Booker, Samkon Gado and Patrick Cobbs — to make it through that season, which saw the Dolphins average 4.0 yards per carry and score 14 rushing touchdowns. Reggie Bush has started every game this season, and even though Daniel Thomas has been limited by a troublesome hamstring injury, the ground game (4.3 yards per carry) is one of the bright spots. At the trading deadline in ’07, Chris Chambers, a seven-year starter, was dealt to San Diego for a second-round pick, which figuratively waved the white flag to the players inside the locker room. Marty Booker finished that season leading the team with 50 receptions for 556 yards and scored just one of the team’s 12 touchdowns through the air. Brandon Marshall has just about trumped those totals (38 receptions for 538 yards and one touchdown) in seven games. The Dolphins needed seven safeties — Yeremiah Bell (injured in the season opener), Renaldo Hill and Cameron Worrell (both tore their ACL in Week 7) — to make it through that dismal season. In ’07 an injury-depleted defensive line — which saw a seventh-round pick named Rodrique Wright start nine games — allowed opponents to rush for 2,456 yards (4.5 a carry) and score 18 rushing touchdowns. Wright never started or played in another NFL game after that season. This defense features five linemen who could start on half a dozen teams. So any time someone wants to start comparing that talent-strapped ’07 team to this underachieving ’11 squad, remind them that the talent level, and the circumstances they were under, cannot and should not be compared. However, the lessons learned in ’07 better be utilized. “You have to take on the mind-set of whatever you’ve been doing, you better do it better,” said punter Brandon Fields, a rookie in ’07. “However hard you’ve been working you have to work harder till you finally get that payoff, a win on Sunday.” okelly@tribune.com If you like reading our blog, remember to bookmark it. Posted in Baltimore Ravens, Brandon Marshall, Chad Henne, Channing Crowder, dolphins-news, Ronnie Brown, Vontae Davis | Comments Off
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Commentary: Miami Dolphins find a rare bright spot… |
Allen Eyestone/The Palm Beach Post
By Greg Stoda Palm Beach Post Staff Writer Updated: 11:50 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 18, 2011 Posted: 9:45 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 18, 2011 MIAMI GARDENS — There is a sliver of light shining in the Dolphins’ bleak house, and its name is Daniel Thomas. He’s a rookie running back. A second-round pick, at that. He also happens to be Miami’s best hope for climbing out of the 0-2 hole in which it finds itself after Sunday’s 23-13 loss to Houston in Sun Life Stadium. Thomas had a fumbling problem at Kansas State and lost one to the Texans in making his professional debut (a sore hamstring kept him inactive Monday night against New England). The turnover doesn’t matter in the grander scheme of things. Not at this already desperate time for the Dolphins, it doesn’t. Because it can’t. But a crucial opportunity to determine Thomas’ worth is coming up next weekend when Miami visits Cleveland while staring at the possibility of falling into a dark and deep pit so early in the season. The Dolphins should feed him the ball. Again and again and again. The estimated 20-25 touches planned for Reggie Bush? They should go to Thomas in even more significant manner than they did against the Texans when he carried 18 times for 107 yards and caught one pass for 10 more. In terms of rushing yardage, it was the best introductory performance by a Miami rookie since Karim Abdul-Jabbar gained 115 yards in a 1996 game. Did Thomas expect such an extensive workload? “I wasn’t sure,” he said. “They didn’t give me any indication.” He reeled off runs of 10, 14, 13 and 13 yards along the way, although the last of those big gainers ended with the fumble. Houston cornerback Kareem Jackson knocked the ball loose. “It was just me trying to get extra yards and not carrying the ball with two hands,” Thomas said. “I had it tight, but his helmet hit it right on. It just popped out.” He nevertheless rendered Bush, acquired in an off-season trade with New Orleans, all but invisible with six rushes and one reception. Bush, though, praised Thomas. “He put a lot of pressure on the secondary to make tackles,” Bush said. “I’m proud of him.” It became The Daniel Thomas Show in the middle two quarters when he gained 97 yards and accumulated all but two of his carries. “He’s the kind of back it’s fun to block for,” tackle Jake Long said. “He has speed to get on the edge, but can lower his shoulder and run people over.” Oh, how Miami needs a runner with that combination. Oh, how Miami needs a bellwether of a running back. One game hardly provides proof of anything, but even a hint of delicious possibilities ought to be enough to entice the Dolphins into shoving the football into Thomas’ hands as often as possible against the Browns. “Daniel ran really well,” said Miami coach Tony Sparano. “He was really good between the tackles. Had a nice burst in there for a big guy (6-1, 228). He needs to take care of the football.” Thomas’ fumble scuttled a possession near midfield with Houston clinging to a 16-10 lead in the third quarter. Because of that turnover, Thomas allowed himself only a “pretty good” in evaluating his performance. “The coaches and Reggie are helping me out with film study and reading my keys,” Thomas said. “I felt pretty comfortable.” The Dolphins aren’t. They’re in a nasty predicament, and it’s still only September. But the Dolphins, who, by the way, had exactly zero 100-yard rushing games from an individual last season when Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams were around, now have a sliver of light in Thomas. They should feed him in Cleveland. They should feed him well. If you like reading our blog, remember to bookmark it. |
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A Thought About the Miami Dolphins: Troubles At… |
Last year, the Miami Dolphins won 1 game at home. Normally, when a team manages just one home win, they are drafting first overall. Miami, though, won six road games, resulting in a whopping five more wins away than at home. There are 21 other teams since 1978 that had a winning road record and a losing home record in a season. None had as large a spread as Miami in 2010. Three teams had four more road wins than home wins — the Oilers in 1996 (understandable since they were in the process of leaving town), the 2000 Saints, and the 2001 Jets. So how did those teams that could win on the road but not at home do the next season? Well, they usually won more home games, reverting toward the norm. They averaged 3.7 home wins and 2.9 road wins the next season. An improvement, though if we measure home field advantage as the difference between home and road performance, still not as strong as the league average. Miami is generally seen as an uninspiring team in 2011 [Ed. Jason thinks they will be the worst team in the league], which is also a way to describe the offense and its lack of explosiveness last year. The once dominant franchise, which produced three Super Bowl appearances in the 1970′s and two more in the 1980′s, has now gone 26 seasons without a Super Bowl appearance, and 18 years since playing in a conference championship game. That span, by the way, is the fourth longest among teams that have been around since 1992, ahead of only Cincinnati, Detroit, and the fighting Snyders. Why then, am I strangely optimistic that they will be a competitive team in 2011, in the running for a wildcard spot throughout the year? Lack of sleep, probably. Well, that, and the fact that they ranked poorly in turnover margin and in converting points to yards in 2010. I’ve already talked about the turnover margin with the Buffalo Bills. The Dolphins were 30th in turnover margin, as the defense, despite playing pretty well, didn’t generate turnovers, while the offense was unable to handle it. Sometimes, turnovers are a necessary part of an offense, and if you have a high-flying passing game, a few extra turnovers are a tradeoff to more first downs. No one will confuse the Dolphins offense as high flying, though. The amount of turnovers was unacceptable. But let’s talk about yardage differentials and point differentials. The Dolphins were actually 11th in the league in yardage differential (the difference between what the offense gained and the defense surrendered), but were only 22nd in point differential. I went back and looked at all other teams since 1990 that ranked at least 10 spots lower in point differential compared to yardage differential. This typically happens when a team tends to squander opportunities, have turnovers that lead to empty yards, loses special teams, or struggle in the red zone. All of these things can be notoriously fickle from season to season. The 37 other teams who met that criteria averaged 6.4 wins during the season they ranked poorly in scoring relative to yards. They improved by 1.7 wins, to just above average at 8.1 wins the next season. 23 of them improved their win total from the previous year, 8 declined, and 6 finished with the same record. 35.1% reached the playoffs. The Dolphins don’t inspire public confidence because Chad Henne is at quarterback. His own fans were chanting for someone else, causing him to express his hurt feelings this preseason. It’s a team that has a very good left tackle, and a pretty good defense that we should expect to produce more turnovers in 2011. The big offseason changes were bringing in Reggie Bush at running back and drafting Daniel Thomas in the second round, replacing the Ronnie Brown/Ricky Williams combo. The hope is that the running game produces more big plays in 2011, though Bush hasn’t exactly been a dynamic runner out of the tailback position, and Thomas has yet to show good form in the preseason. The other big addition may be a re-focused Brandon Marshall, who had issues throughout last year and also was injured. His mental health struggles were put in focus, and he appears to at least be ready. The Dolphins need him to be more consistent for the offense to improve. On defense, ILB Kevin Burnett was added in what looks like an upgrade, to play next to Karlos Dansby, and coupled with the dynamic Cameron Wake, the linebacker group is pretty strong. Vontae Davis (Vernon’s brother) is emerging as an excellent cornerback. This team doesn’t have the sizzle of their NBA brethren in South Beach. I think, though, they will be more competitive than people think, and I expect them to be in contention as the calendar turns to December. Whether they cross the barrier in a tough division (I think the AFC East is my pick for the toughest division) may depend on whether Chad Henne improves or stagnates in his third season as a starter. 2011 NFL PREVIEW: New Orleans Saints [photo via Getty] Thanks for visiting our blog =). |
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