After keeping up my live comments during the game, I was sure that it had been way too emotional a contest for me to have been doing that for the first time. The highs and lows were superlative on Sunday, and my writing clearly reflected it. After the game, I made the decision to take a day to cool off before I wrote anything else.
After taking a day, and two, and three, I can safely say that my emotions aren't going anywhere, and rightfully so. On Sunday, the Miami Dolphins will have a chance to win the 2008 AFC East Championship. Their destiny is in their own hands, and they have earned it. With one more victory, the division will be theirs.
As everybody has mentioned, this game is loaded with story lines. Pennington will return to the Meadowlands to face Favre and the Jets, and the millions of subplots that accompany that story have been well documented. Expect a great effort from this slumping Jets team, as they are not only fighting for a playoff spot, but this is a rivalry game, their coach's job is on the line, and Favre always seems to rise the highest when times seem hardest. Regardless, the Dolphins can only control their play, and if they can put together one more complete effort, nothing else will matter.
As for all the other subplots, and more on the Chad and Brett show, I'll leave that to the mainstream media, who seem to have that covered and then some. I'll do what I do best - the breakdown:
Quarterback:
Chad Pennington was phenomenal against the Chiefs. He put together one of his best games of his terrific season and was the biggest reason why the Dolphins won. With all the concerns about his arm strength and performance in the cold weather, he put together another huge fourth quarter drive (he was 7-7) to win the game in an MVP-caliber performance that raised his quarterback rating to second in the NFL. It is an absolute crime that he is not in the Pro Bowl. This is a career defining season for him that will never be forgotten.
Running Backs:
Another solid but not spectacular performance from both Ricky and Ronnie. While they both continue to be healthy down the stretch, they haven't been the weapons we had hoped for this year, but who can really complain? They each need more touches, and hopefully one or the other will get a chance to really get going against the Jets.
I was happy to see some signs of the coaches trying to get the hot back going on Sunday, but their plan was a bit flawed. Ricky Williams caught fire in the second half, especially in the passing game, and the coaches made an effort to get the ball to him which saw results. However, he is considerably more prone to fumbling than Ronnie Brown, and Ronnie should have been the one getting the ball as the Dolphins tried to run out the clock. This mistake could have been costly, especially against an Edwards-coached team.
On that note, the Dolphins for the first time that I can remember this season had some ball control issues. There were three situations during the game where the Dolphins could have easily lost fumbles (and the turnover record), but the refs bailed them out on two of them. This is not the time of season for these issue to come about, and nothing short of perfect Miami football will be required to beat the Jets.
Tight Ends:
How about those tight ends? Three touchdowns on the day, including a spectacular game-winning catch by Anthony Fasano. As far as their role in the passing game goes, enough said.
...However, as far as their role in the running game goes, there are issues. David Martin continues to struggle to block anybody at the point of attack, and the coaches love to keep running behind him. This could really hurt us against the Jets and is something to keep an eye on. As far as his future goes, he might be better served in a Dallas Clark, not-a-legit-tight-end-because-only-a-threat-as-a-receiver role.
Wide Receivers:
The wideouts on this team have effectively been narrowed to two guys at this point (we miss you, Greg), but fortunately they both played well against Kansas City. Still, this makes it all the more important for the Dolphins not to play from behind late in a game, because this offense doesn't have the personnel to match up against a lot of defensive backs on the field.
Regardless, I was pleased to see Ginn recover from a string of poor showings recently. Maybe it was because he was taken off the return team, but he opened the game with a quick score on an end around and helped move the ball all day long. I must admit I did cheer and then laugh as he caught a pass over the middle and immediately proceeded to the sideline. Baby steps.
As for Devone Bess, the guy can flat out play. Four of his receptions went for first downs, and none was bigger than his momentum turning conversion after the Dolphins had tried the Wildcat unsuccessfully for the first time. The Dolphins were at risk of a deflating three and out, but the conversion set up the long Patrick Cobbs run, and the rest was history. The combination of he, Camarillo, Ginn, and mystery receiver X next year will make the Dolphins awfully hard to defend.
Offensive Line:
My favorite group of boys to critique surprised me on Sunday, as Satele played the entire game at center. I guess the coaches were happy with his effort over the course of the week, and rightfully so. He played very well in leading a unit that didn't allow a sack, albeit against a putrid defensive line. Satele has struggled against bigger nose tackles, but hopefully his newly inspired play will continue against gimpy and exhausted Kris Jenkins. That matchup could very well be the key to winning the division.
I was happy to see the Dolphins again make use of some false pulling. On the first play of the game, Andy Alleman's deception freed up Ted Ginn for his touchdown run, and for the rest of the day the Chiefs were on their heels. That type of simple game planning with this offense can pay huge dividends.
Additionally, I haven't said it enough this year, but Jake Long is terrific. He is going to make a lot of Miami Dolphins quarterbacks and running backs look good for a long time, and we should all be thankful for that. A powerful run blocker and increasingly proficient pass protector, he'll have a spot in the Pro Bowl for years and years to come.
Wildcat:
While the Dolphins did employ some Wildcat successfully against the Chiefs, I continue to be more enamored by the Wildcat concepts they successfully plug into the rest of their offense. The full house formation must be good for eight or more yards every time they use it, and the "Pennington Wildcat" led to yet another touchdown to Anthony Fasano. Defensive coordinators must wet themselves every time they see these impossible-to-defend formations, and I hope that Dan Henning only uses them more and more.
As for the traditional Wildcat, I was stunned when the Dolphins went into it early in the second half after putting up 24 points without it in the first. Still, a Bess third down conversion bailed them out, and then their strategy paid off. Chad left the game, giving the Dolphins a true man advantage, and Cobbs went for a huge gain on the reverse. The key to the play was genius design: the Dolphins didn't overload and put all tight ends to the right, so without the quarterback in the game the Chiefs didn't know how to respond. Cobbs ran right up the left side behind our best blockers Alleman and Long.
Offensive Coaching:
I was pleased with everything...except one thing. The Dolphins were absolutely right to go for the first down on fourth and one from the five, but they way they went about it was extraordinarily stupid. Polite continues to be unstoppable in short yardage, among other options, but they decided to throw the fade to our rookie tight end in the elements. I hate the fade to being with, but to a rookie, in a big spot, with the elements...bad call.
Still, the Dolphins were generally clever on offense all day, and they came out and executed wonderfully. So, great job by the staff. Let's get it together for one more beauty.
Run Defense:
Our weak hitting on defense, which certainly had to do with the absence of defensive leader Channing Crowder, set the tone for the horrible defensive performance in the first half against Kansas City. It was absolutely terrible, as ugly a half of defensive football as you can get, and it all starting with the hitting.
Besides missing Crowder as a spiritual leader and heavy hitter, we missed him tackling in general. Led by Akin Ayodele, this was as poor a tackling day as the Dolphins have had in months. In fact, Ayodele and Torbor only combined for four tackles the entire day. Crowder alone has only failed to surpass that figure once this season!
It is a sure bet that the Crowder-less experiment failed, and the Dolphins desperately need him back against Thomas Jones and the Jets. Looking ahead, he appears to be a surefire priority in resigning this offseason. Ironically, he would excel as a second inside linebacker, the type that could play alongside a cerebral type who would stay on the field in passing situations...essentially, Zach Thomas. Instead, it appears at least for the time being he will fill that role, one that at this juncture is just a little bit too big for him to truly stand out in.
Moving on, it was a tale of two entirely different games for the outside linebackers. Discounting the last play of the Bills the game, it has now been two awful, invisible weeks in a row for supposed defensive MVP Joey Porter. I'll get to his pass rush issues later, but against the run he was just flat out horrible against the Chiefs. Every successful run that Kansas City had went to his side, including many where they intelligently got Tony Gonzalez out on him. He is a liability, and again the Dolphins are going to have to devise a way to protect him if they plan on having any success in stopping Thomas Jones.
On the other hand, Matt Roth was nothing short of amazing. In the first half and throughout, this beast dominated. There was not a successful run to his side all day, and even when he doesn't make the tackle, he squeezes and strings out plays beautifully. I'll take this opportunity to describe his best play of the day, though it was truly equal parts run defense, pass defense, and pass rush...I'll explain:
After the Dolphins had finally gone ahead in the fourth quarter, the Chiefs took over and quickly faced a fourth and one. They reached in and pulled out the best play in their playbook for the situation. Thigpen booted out towards the side of the field where Tony Gonzalez was trying to release. With Thigpen's wheels, it was designed to be a simple three man game - either cover the greatest receiving tight end in NFL history or attack the speedy quarterback - certainly no player could do both. Well, Matt Roth did. He punished Gonzalez at the line, refusing to allow him to release, and when Thigpen turned around to face the line of scrimmage, Roth shed Gonzalez so easily that Thigpen fell down out of fear, allowing big Matt to complete the sack. On a play where it is an accomplishment for most NFLers to just stay at home, it was the perfect execution of responsibility football.
Additionally, while we're on the topic of run defense, Ferguson also played well, especially late in the game. Along with Porter and Ayodele in the negative column was Renaldo Hill, who was by far the softest player on the field all day. He actually seemed afraid of contact, very uncharacteristic of him.
Pass Defense:
With the exception of Andre Goodman, pass defense was terrible all day, especially in the first half. Pretty much everybody was bad, as there is no excuse for getting torched by Thigpen. The pass rush didn't help, but again...Thigpen. The Dolphins seem to have monumental issues with their nickel package when teams spread them out. Though this certainly isn't the Jets strength, I wouldn't be surprised if they tried some of this, if only to run out of it. Also, they could be successful if they need to pass in a comeback bid. Let's hope not.
When Gonzalez was lined up against the man I dubbed our best linebacker in pass coverage, Akin Ayodele, it was a joke. In another aspect of Ayodele's disappointing performance (which could leave him jobless and should leave him out of the starting lineup next year), the Dolphins needed to compensate. The answer ended up being a combination of bullying Gonzalez at the line by Roth and Bell stepping up to really improve his coverage in the second half. As bad as the handling of Gonzalez was early, they got it together when it counted.
One guy who seemed to get it together - a sack and a pick looks nice - but is our biggest weakness in pass defense right now is Nate Jones. He gave up the first touchdown of the day with poor coverage; he allowed the receiver to break his cushion and bailed far too late. Whether or not there was a push off was insignificant...he didn't play it correctly. Similarly, when Kansas City had a free play before halftime (thanks Joey Porter), he again made a poor play and allowed the long completion which ultimately led to the Chiefs scoring their 28th point of the half. I am very worried about his standing as we head into the game against the Jets.
Still, Andre Goodman's fine play cannot be ignored. He played the entire game doing what he does best, in press man to man coverage. One on one with no help for most of the day, all he did was deflect five passes, many of them on deep balls, and return an interception 55 yards. I loved seeing, no matter the shell that the Chiefs were in, that he was up bumping the receivers, and I see no reason for him to be doing anything else (save the occasional trickery changing things up) on Sunday against the Jets and next year when - I can't believe I'm advocating this - the Dolphins resign him.
Pass Rush:
The Dolphins had a poor day rushing the passer, and it contributed to the poor pass defense all day. As I said before, they struggled against the spread, and the coaches need to take a good hard look at the four down lineman philosophy in nickel situations in the offseason. (Ed note: by good hard look, I mean eliminate it).
Joey Porter and Charlie Anderson were invisible, and as I mentioned before, that is two straight poor efforts from Porter. He needs to be stepping up at this time of year, not fading, and his ability not only to hold his own against the run on his side of the field, but to force Brett Favre into mistakes, will be a huge key in this week's game for the Dolphins.
Moreover, the Dolphins need more creativity in rushing the passer in general, especially out of their nickel. The two quarterbacks who have killed the Dolphins out of the spread formation, Cassel and Thigpen, both were able to read to blitzes and deliver the ball quickly to receivers. There needs to be a mix of press with safeties over the top, zone blitzes, man blitzes, and anything else the Dolphins can throw at Favre in passing situations. The strategy of giving one look for a whole drive is stupid and ineffective. Quite simply, by picking one of those rushers up out of their stance, the Dolphins can create a lot more issues and looks defensively than they can out of their stagnant, four down base.
I will add two pieces of advice for the pass rushing woes. First of all, don't be afraid to put Ferguson in the game in the nickel. He has made it through the whole season and is fresh. This is it. Obviously, we don't want him wearing himself out on every down, but big 95 has shown the ability to rush the passer when he is in the game, so we shouldn't let the offense dictate and sub him out for us. His presence would allow us to keep another linebacker in, and our rush packages can get much more creative and effective. Second, blitz Nate Jones like crazy. Maybe he will step up on Sunday, but he appears to be a liability, especially when we play man coverage (which we do, and need to do, a lot). However, he is a terrific blitzer. Send him in! Find different ways to do it. Get hits on Favre early and often and make him feel every year that he has played in this league until he can't wait to retire (again). We need to manufacture a pass rush, and this is an easy (and obvious) step in doing so. The zone blitz coming back from underneath him could even lead to a game changing turnover.
Special Teams:
The Special Teams continue to perform well since the addition of Erik Walden. To be fair, however, it was Walden who had an especially bad hold on a kick return, but it can be forgiven thanks to his wedge-busting prowess. The guy is an animal.
Speaking of kick returns, the most notable change the Dolphins made to their special teams on Sunday was replacing Ted Ginn with Patrick Cobbs on kick returns. Though I am a fan of Ginn and his game breaking ability back there, the timing just hasn't been working out of late with the unit blocking in front of him. So, a change to Cobbs made sense, especially since any change which gets Cobbs the ball in his hands more often seems to be a good change (like changing your name to "Latrine" from "Shithouse"). Apologies for the "Men in Tights" reference aside, Cobbs was excellent returning kicks on Sunday, from the opening kick and throughout.
The other great play on special teams came from new addition William Kershaw, who forced a fumble with a vicious hit in kick coverage when the Dolphins most needed it. Unfortunately, Miami failed to convert a touchdown on their ensuing position thanks to a certain Haynos play call (apologies again), but all worked out well by the end of the day.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Final: Dolphins 38 - KC 31
-The Chiefs have been running at Joey Porter with a lot of success. Ayodele got blocked by Gonzalez on that one.
-Yeremiah Bell is starting to step up in the big spot, and on third down the Dolphins finally got some pressure, allowing Goodman to break up Thigpen's attempt.
-I like the cleverness of bringing Cobbs back around again in the Wildcat and leading Ronnie Brown. I think there are better ways to do it than out of that formation, but the clever misdirection is the key.
-Pennington and Brown with terrific plays. Chad found him on the check down when it looked like he would be sacked, and then Ronnie took it for a first down punctuated by a sweet hurdle.
-Kansas City appears to be all over Ricky in the Wildcat, but it had opened up a lot of different things.
-Another third down conversion on a simple handoff...
-Nice pass by Pennington evading pressure, and Ricky took it for extra yards and a first down, protecting that football on the way.
-TOUCHDOWN MIAMI!! They got the huge drive for a huge touchdown. Chad Pennington did it again, and the long drive was a work of beauty. Ricky Williams was spectacular, along with Ronnie, Devone, and the big touchdown by Fasano. It was empty, and we knew they would blitz, so Fasano reached back beautifully on his hot read and rumbled in for his second touchdown of the day.
-The Chiefs have fourth and one with 3:41 left, and we could put this game away here. Thigpen is literally shivering thanks to the ten minutes he just spent getting cold on the sideline.
-Matt Roth closes out his terrific day with an outstanding play to win it. The Chiefs tried to play a three man game with Thigpen and Gonzalez attacking Roth. The beast held up the future hall of famer, and Thigpen fell down when he saw Roth standing in front of him. Excellent play and excellent game for Matt Roth.
-Unbelievable. Ricky Williams fumbles while running the ball out. Replays were inconclusive, but it seemed that he was down. Regardless, Ricky touched the ball while out of bounds, and I believe that should make the play dead anyway. I'll have to look into it later, but we need a stop now.
-Randy Starks and Joey Porter show how a big hit affects Thigpen. Too bad we didn't get more of that earlier. Next play, Renaldo Hill gets the pick and it's over. Crazy game, but a great win.
-Yeremiah Bell is starting to step up in the big spot, and on third down the Dolphins finally got some pressure, allowing Goodman to break up Thigpen's attempt.
-I like the cleverness of bringing Cobbs back around again in the Wildcat and leading Ronnie Brown. I think there are better ways to do it than out of that formation, but the clever misdirection is the key.
-Pennington and Brown with terrific plays. Chad found him on the check down when it looked like he would be sacked, and then Ronnie took it for a first down punctuated by a sweet hurdle.
-Kansas City appears to be all over Ricky in the Wildcat, but it had opened up a lot of different things.
-Another third down conversion on a simple handoff...
-Nice pass by Pennington evading pressure, and Ricky took it for extra yards and a first down, protecting that football on the way.
-TOUCHDOWN MIAMI!! They got the huge drive for a huge touchdown. Chad Pennington did it again, and the long drive was a work of beauty. Ricky Williams was spectacular, along with Ronnie, Devone, and the big touchdown by Fasano. It was empty, and we knew they would blitz, so Fasano reached back beautifully on his hot read and rumbled in for his second touchdown of the day.
-The Chiefs have fourth and one with 3:41 left, and we could put this game away here. Thigpen is literally shivering thanks to the ten minutes he just spent getting cold on the sideline.
-Matt Roth closes out his terrific day with an outstanding play to win it. The Chiefs tried to play a three man game with Thigpen and Gonzalez attacking Roth. The beast held up the future hall of famer, and Thigpen fell down when he saw Roth standing in front of him. Excellent play and excellent game for Matt Roth.
-Unbelievable. Ricky Williams fumbles while running the ball out. Replays were inconclusive, but it seemed that he was down. Regardless, Ricky touched the ball while out of bounds, and I believe that should make the play dead anyway. I'll have to look into it later, but we need a stop now.
-Randy Starks and Joey Porter show how a big hit affects Thigpen. Too bad we didn't get more of that earlier. Next play, Renaldo Hill gets the pick and it's over. Crazy game, but a great win.
Tied after three: Miami 31 - KC 31
-Good kick and coverage to start the second half. The Chiefs will have the wind in the fourth quarter.
-The Dolphin defense doesn't have any clue what to do. Renaldo Hill wants no part of Larry Johnson, and despite a different look, it looks like the Chiefs picked up right where they left off.
-Will Allen with the missed tackle...
-At this point we are trying everything and nothing is working. I think it might be the right time to just sit in our base and react. Nobody has a clue what they are doing right now.
-Finally we hit Thigpen once, even though Jones managed to miss him deep in the backfield.
-OK, that's a stop. They get a field goal out of it, but we got off the field, finally. Let's turn it up on O. We could really use a long drive to get the defense some rest and take Kansas City out of rhythm.
-I don't know why we turned to the Wildcat to start this drive. Last time I checked, we hadn't struggled on offense at all. No reason for it.
-Thank you, Devone Bess, for that third down conversion. Huge play to prevent a catastrophic three and out.
-And with Pennington out of the game, I see why the Wildcat was being set up. The interesting thing that happened on this long Cobbs run is that the Dolphins didn't overload, which kept all their good blockers on the left side (away from the tight ends). The misdirection worked, and it was intelligent design by the coaches.
-Touchdown Ricky Williams. We are tied up, and now we need to make a play to get the ball on defense.
-One player on this defense is playing stout. Matt Roth is a stud.
-Tony Gonzalez against Akin Ayodele on third down today is a joke.
-YES! Jason Ferguson finally got a hit on Thigpen and he made a horrible throw. Nate Jones, despite his horrible play on the day, was there for the pick, and we finally got a stop. That's twice all day that we've hit Thigpen...we've gotta get at him and make him make mistakes.
-Lou Polite runs for four yards on first and ten, and it just makes that fourth and one fade seem all the more idiotic. Still, let's control what we can control now.
Here we go. 31-31 heading into the fourth quarter, and the Chiefs will have the win. This is our opportunity to earn it...let's go Fins!
-The Dolphin defense doesn't have any clue what to do. Renaldo Hill wants no part of Larry Johnson, and despite a different look, it looks like the Chiefs picked up right where they left off.
-Will Allen with the missed tackle...
-At this point we are trying everything and nothing is working. I think it might be the right time to just sit in our base and react. Nobody has a clue what they are doing right now.
-Finally we hit Thigpen once, even though Jones managed to miss him deep in the backfield.
-OK, that's a stop. They get a field goal out of it, but we got off the field, finally. Let's turn it up on O. We could really use a long drive to get the defense some rest and take Kansas City out of rhythm.
-I don't know why we turned to the Wildcat to start this drive. Last time I checked, we hadn't struggled on offense at all. No reason for it.
-Thank you, Devone Bess, for that third down conversion. Huge play to prevent a catastrophic three and out.
-And with Pennington out of the game, I see why the Wildcat was being set up. The interesting thing that happened on this long Cobbs run is that the Dolphins didn't overload, which kept all their good blockers on the left side (away from the tight ends). The misdirection worked, and it was intelligent design by the coaches.
-Touchdown Ricky Williams. We are tied up, and now we need to make a play to get the ball on defense.
-One player on this defense is playing stout. Matt Roth is a stud.
-Tony Gonzalez against Akin Ayodele on third down today is a joke.
-YES! Jason Ferguson finally got a hit on Thigpen and he made a horrible throw. Nate Jones, despite his horrible play on the day, was there for the pick, and we finally got a stop. That's twice all day that we've hit Thigpen...we've gotta get at him and make him make mistakes.
-Lou Polite runs for four yards on first and ten, and it just makes that fourth and one fade seem all the more idiotic. Still, let's control what we can control now.
Here we go. 31-31 heading into the fourth quarter, and the Chiefs will have the win. This is our opportunity to earn it...let's go Fins!
Halftime: Miami 24 - KC 28
-The Chiefs do us a favor on fourth and one and pass the ball, but none other than Tony Gonzalez catches the touchdown pass to put the Chiefs up. This defense is officially having issues, allowing those two touchdowns. We need to win this game to make next week matter...New England is up 21-0. Let's fix it up.
-Cobbs with another great return, but a hold against Walden brings it back. Terrible hold.
-Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams sandwich nice runs around a Pennington to Bess completion. Unfortunately, Ricky might have hurt himself as he was tackled by his collar.
-Touchdown David Martin! A nice throw by Pennington out of (I'll admit it) the empty. Great drive. Now let's pick it up on defense and put this team away. We've got the wind now, so there are no more excuses.
-Nice kick and coverage on the ensuing kickoff, but Cobbs forgot to break down.
-We are having serious tackling issues. This is totally unacceptable right now as the Chiefs are on the doorstep.
-There is no tackling. Touchdown Chiefs. This cannot be the effort that this defense puts together in Week 16. Channing Crowder is sorely missed already.
-Another touchdown for Miami. It was out of the Pennington Wildcat, with play action to Fasano. Great play and great use of our talent, and even though I could talk about the offense all day right now, it comes down to the defense stepping up and making some plays.
-And there we go! New addition William Kershaw makes a HUGE hit on the kickoff and we recover the fumble. That is Dolphins football, and that is the type of play that we needed. Let's convert a touchdown here.
-Good playing on the drive. Ricky Williams and Ted Ginn have been doing nice things in the passing game. Ginn even went over the middle. Of course, he proceeded to leave the field immediately after the play, but I like that he got in there.
-The Dolphins go full house for a nice gain. I can't understand why they don't use this formation much more.
-On fourth and one from the five, the absolute right call was to go for it, but a fade to Joey Haynos was one of the worst calls imaginable. Do what you do well. Now the Chiefs will be able to run out the half, and that big fumble was for nothing. This should be a ten point game right now. I am livid.
-Nate Jones has had a horrible half. He has been absolutely abused, and now the Dolphins have managed to get in danger of giving up a touchdown here!
-And they do. It was a terrible call to go for the fade on fourth and one, and the defense that ensued was even worse. Unthinkably bad. This should be a ten point lead going into the half, but instead this defense is doing their best to throw the division away.
As we reach halftime, I can't complain about the offense. 24 points is plenty. Likewise, Patrick Cobbs and the special teams have done their part. But this defense has been absolutely putrid. After jumping out to an early lead, the Dolphins had no business letting the Chiefs back in the game. As usual, however, the struggles have come down to weak hitting and poor tackling. The secondary can't cover anybody underneath, there is no pass rush, and Thigpen looks like Tim Tebow against a high school team. Akin Ayodele has struggled mightily filling in for Channing Crowder, Nate Jones has been abused, and Joey Porter has been silent. The struggles are everywhere. Regardless, regroup and get it together for the second half, and you could be playing for the division championship next week. Let's go Dolphins.
-Cobbs with another great return, but a hold against Walden brings it back. Terrible hold.
-Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams sandwich nice runs around a Pennington to Bess completion. Unfortunately, Ricky might have hurt himself as he was tackled by his collar.
-Touchdown David Martin! A nice throw by Pennington out of (I'll admit it) the empty. Great drive. Now let's pick it up on defense and put this team away. We've got the wind now, so there are no more excuses.
-Nice kick and coverage on the ensuing kickoff, but Cobbs forgot to break down.
-We are having serious tackling issues. This is totally unacceptable right now as the Chiefs are on the doorstep.
-There is no tackling. Touchdown Chiefs. This cannot be the effort that this defense puts together in Week 16. Channing Crowder is sorely missed already.
-Another touchdown for Miami. It was out of the Pennington Wildcat, with play action to Fasano. Great play and great use of our talent, and even though I could talk about the offense all day right now, it comes down to the defense stepping up and making some plays.
-And there we go! New addition William Kershaw makes a HUGE hit on the kickoff and we recover the fumble. That is Dolphins football, and that is the type of play that we needed. Let's convert a touchdown here.
-Good playing on the drive. Ricky Williams and Ted Ginn have been doing nice things in the passing game. Ginn even went over the middle. Of course, he proceeded to leave the field immediately after the play, but I like that he got in there.
-The Dolphins go full house for a nice gain. I can't understand why they don't use this formation much more.
-On fourth and one from the five, the absolute right call was to go for it, but a fade to Joey Haynos was one of the worst calls imaginable. Do what you do well. Now the Chiefs will be able to run out the half, and that big fumble was for nothing. This should be a ten point game right now. I am livid.
-Nate Jones has had a horrible half. He has been absolutely abused, and now the Dolphins have managed to get in danger of giving up a touchdown here!
-And they do. It was a terrible call to go for the fade on fourth and one, and the defense that ensued was even worse. Unthinkably bad. This should be a ten point lead going into the half, but instead this defense is doing their best to throw the division away.
As we reach halftime, I can't complain about the offense. 24 points is plenty. Likewise, Patrick Cobbs and the special teams have done their part. But this defense has been absolutely putrid. After jumping out to an early lead, the Dolphins had no business letting the Chiefs back in the game. As usual, however, the struggles have come down to weak hitting and poor tackling. The secondary can't cover anybody underneath, there is no pass rush, and Thigpen looks like Tim Tebow against a high school team. Akin Ayodele has struggled mightily filling in for Channing Crowder, Nate Jones has been abused, and Joey Porter has been silent. The struggles are everywhere. Regardless, regroup and get it together for the second half, and you could be playing for the division championship next week. Let's go Dolphins.
Dolphins 10 - Chiefs 7 after 1st
-Patrick Cobbs was deep on the opening kickoff, and he had a spectacular return to the Chiefs 31. I don't know if it was a matter of him being a better returner than Ginn or if the timing was just right on this return, but it was a great way to start the game.
-Touchdown! 18 seconds into the game the Dolphins are up 7-0 after a Ted Ginn end around. The Dolphins came with multiple backs and misdirection. Everybody vacated on Andy Alleman's false pull, and it was an easy touchdown.
-It's already clear that the conditions are going to be a huge factor today. Both kickoffs have been very short, and even Carpenter's extra point looked like a difficult kick.
-Andre Goodman came up with a huge play when he returned a pick to near the Chiefs 20. I understand the need to get the ball to Tony Gonzalez, but in these conditions throwing into double coverage is not advisable. It was an easy interception for Goodman.
-Apparently, Ronnie Brown fumbled on what appeared to be just a dropped screen pass, but the end result was positive for the Dolphins when roughing the passer was called. It's a moot point, but I believe the fumble would've been easily overturned if challenged.
-The Dolphins came with the "Pennington Wildcat" look for a loss. I like the idea though, as I think it's going to be very important to run today.
-I don't like that on the next play the Dolphins went empty. The Chiefs blitzed and Pennington was rushed on an incompletion.
-After a third down incompletion, Carpenter squeaked a 34 yarder in. It's going to be tough to kick today, and an early 10-0 lead is big.
-I can't figure out why it seems that the Chiefs just want to throw today. Not the right conditions for that sort of game plan.
-A big run for Johnson, and on the next play Thigpen bootlegged and threw a touchdown pass over Nate Jones. There was a bit of a push off, but the fact is that Jones let his cushion collapse and was beaten on the play. Touchdown Chiefs, and already within five minutes of play the score is 10-7.
-Another nice return by Cobbs, and it is easy to see the value of somebody who just takes the ball up in there. I like Ginn as a returner, but he has been struggling, and it's nice to see Cobbs get more opportunities because all he does is make plays.
-The Dolphins moved the ball a bit, with a Ricky run and a nice pass to Fasano, but facing third and 21 in this weather they had to run on third down, a correct decision. Polite took the inside handoff on our bread and butter series for a nice play, but fumbled as he finished the run. Luckily, the play was ruled down by contact and was not overturned, because it looked to me like the ball was out. We cannot start making these mistakes today...that's two close calls already.
-Fields was unable to put the punt inside the 20, and on a day where it seems that Carpenter can hardly get the ball off the ground, he overkicked it. I'm really not a believer in Carpenter's leg strength.
-Akin Ayodele with a poor missed tackle on first down. Our tackling has not been up to par so far.
-Although I shouldn't speak too soon. Matt Roth never hesitates to knock the snot out of anybody.
-Twice on this drive, Thigpen went deep against Goodman, and Andre stepped up both times. The pass rush needs to punish Kansas City for trying to throw this much.
-Gonzalez is killing the Dolphins right now. They need two guys on him to take him out of the game.
-A fourth and five conversion for Kansas City, and the Dolphins defense is having issues. I'm hoping that it is just because the Chiefs were moving with the wind, but I'm not totally convinced. I've said over and over again that this defense comes down to whether or not they hit the offense and beat them up, and right now they are playing soft.
10-7 Fins after one, but the Chiefs are driving...
-Touchdown! 18 seconds into the game the Dolphins are up 7-0 after a Ted Ginn end around. The Dolphins came with multiple backs and misdirection. Everybody vacated on Andy Alleman's false pull, and it was an easy touchdown.
-It's already clear that the conditions are going to be a huge factor today. Both kickoffs have been very short, and even Carpenter's extra point looked like a difficult kick.
-Andre Goodman came up with a huge play when he returned a pick to near the Chiefs 20. I understand the need to get the ball to Tony Gonzalez, but in these conditions throwing into double coverage is not advisable. It was an easy interception for Goodman.
-Apparently, Ronnie Brown fumbled on what appeared to be just a dropped screen pass, but the end result was positive for the Dolphins when roughing the passer was called. It's a moot point, but I believe the fumble would've been easily overturned if challenged.
-The Dolphins came with the "Pennington Wildcat" look for a loss. I like the idea though, as I think it's going to be very important to run today.
-I don't like that on the next play the Dolphins went empty. The Chiefs blitzed and Pennington was rushed on an incompletion.
-After a third down incompletion, Carpenter squeaked a 34 yarder in. It's going to be tough to kick today, and an early 10-0 lead is big.
-I can't figure out why it seems that the Chiefs just want to throw today. Not the right conditions for that sort of game plan.
-A big run for Johnson, and on the next play Thigpen bootlegged and threw a touchdown pass over Nate Jones. There was a bit of a push off, but the fact is that Jones let his cushion collapse and was beaten on the play. Touchdown Chiefs, and already within five minutes of play the score is 10-7.
-Another nice return by Cobbs, and it is easy to see the value of somebody who just takes the ball up in there. I like Ginn as a returner, but he has been struggling, and it's nice to see Cobbs get more opportunities because all he does is make plays.
-The Dolphins moved the ball a bit, with a Ricky run and a nice pass to Fasano, but facing third and 21 in this weather they had to run on third down, a correct decision. Polite took the inside handoff on our bread and butter series for a nice play, but fumbled as he finished the run. Luckily, the play was ruled down by contact and was not overturned, because it looked to me like the ball was out. We cannot start making these mistakes today...that's two close calls already.
-Fields was unable to put the punt inside the 20, and on a day where it seems that Carpenter can hardly get the ball off the ground, he overkicked it. I'm really not a believer in Carpenter's leg strength.
-Akin Ayodele with a poor missed tackle on first down. Our tackling has not been up to par so far.
-Although I shouldn't speak too soon. Matt Roth never hesitates to knock the snot out of anybody.
-Twice on this drive, Thigpen went deep against Goodman, and Andre stepped up both times. The pass rush needs to punish Kansas City for trying to throw this much.
-Gonzalez is killing the Dolphins right now. They need two guys on him to take him out of the game.
-A fourth and five conversion for Kansas City, and the Dolphins defense is having issues. I'm hoping that it is just because the Chiefs were moving with the wind, but I'm not totally convinced. I've said over and over again that this defense comes down to whether or not they hit the offense and beat them up, and right now they are playing soft.
10-7 Fins after one, but the Chiefs are driving...
Dolphins-Chiefs: Starting at 1:00
I'm gonna be doing some live blogging of sorts today. Look for updates at the end of every quarter. Some pregame notes:
-It is "dangerously cold" in Kansas City according to the CBS announcers. Look out to see how Pennington and the Dolphins respond to that. It will take a gutsy effort to get a win, but Joey Porter doesn't seem fazed, with his jersey pulled up for warm-ups as usual.
-Look out for Matt Roth today. It will be interesting to see if he can beat up and wear down Tony Gonzalez at the line of scrimmage. Let's hope his stellar play continues.
-Expect to see a lot of Al Johnson at center and Samson Satele at right guard. I think with these two in at those positions and Alleman on the left, this is our best offensive line right now. I wouldn't be surprised if the Dolphins even started the game with this personnel.
-Word is that Crowder isn't playing. Let's see how well the defense can communicate against the improved Chiefs offense without him in there. Also, I'm interested to see if there is a drop off or even an improvement at the position, with Torbor getting more playing time and Ayodele getting the responsibility on passing downs. This could be a big day in determining if Crowder gets a contract this offseason.
-Please, Ted Ginn, show me something.
-It is "dangerously cold" in Kansas City according to the CBS announcers. Look out to see how Pennington and the Dolphins respond to that. It will take a gutsy effort to get a win, but Joey Porter doesn't seem fazed, with his jersey pulled up for warm-ups as usual.
-Look out for Matt Roth today. It will be interesting to see if he can beat up and wear down Tony Gonzalez at the line of scrimmage. Let's hope his stellar play continues.
-Expect to see a lot of Al Johnson at center and Samson Satele at right guard. I think with these two in at those positions and Alleman on the left, this is our best offensive line right now. I wouldn't be surprised if the Dolphins even started the game with this personnel.
-Word is that Crowder isn't playing. Let's see how well the defense can communicate against the improved Chiefs offense without him in there. Also, I'm interested to see if there is a drop off or even an improvement at the position, with Torbor getting more playing time and Ayodele getting the responsibility on passing downs. This could be a big day in determining if Crowder gets a contract this offseason.
-Please, Ted Ginn, show me something.
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Fins/Niners - The Breakdown (partial)
Note from the future: I began and wrote most of this analysis on December 20th, but never finished it. Since I still have it laying around, I decided to post it and sort it in its proper place. My apologies: the defensive analysis will forever remain unfinished...
Tight Ends:
Interestingly enough, I’m going to start the discussion with the tight ends this week, because I thought they were huge keys to the offense Sunday. I thought the coaches made a really great game plan, because by splitting the tight ends out wide early, it put the 49ers at a personnel mismatch. They were stuck with their bigs in the game, in to defend Miami’s Wildcat personnel groupings, while the Dolphins played out of a spread, hurry-up base offense. Great job of using your strengths, and as I have said all year, this offense is at its best when the tight ends are involved.
Immediately, on the first two offensive plays of the game, Pennington went to Martin and Fasano, and David Martin’s 61 yard touchdown catch and run was a work of beauty, the spectacular touchdown that Miami needed to get ahead. To that point, the tight ends were used brilliantly and were playing excellently, and it forced the 49ers to make adjustments. I can’t emphasize enough how important our backs and tight ends involvement in our passing game is to this offense. They are an advantage we have on almost any team we face. The touchdown pass to Haynos was a perfect example of how difficult this offense is to defend when we have teams concerned about our multiple running backs and different fronts.
Unfortunately, as the game wore on there were huge mistakes in the use of our tight ends. Specifically, the Dolphins continue to ask David Martin to make blocks at the point of attack, and he continues to fail time after time. On a third and one, the Dolphins asked Martin to block on the slide play and he got blown up. This was one of the few third and shorts that Miami hasn’t converted this year, and it contributed to the 1-7 showing on third down on Sunday. Likewise, on third down with the Dolphins driving at the end of the game, they ran behind Martin again, and the ensuing two yard loss was the margin by which Carpenter missed his field goal attempt, one that could’ve proved very costly. At this point, the coaches need to stop asking Martin to make pivotal blocks in key spots.
Offensive Line:
The Miami O-line, continuing to search for the best mix of players in the wake of injuries and/or underperforming by every player except Jake Long, had another mixed game. Sure, there were the mistakes. Alleman and Satele each had false starts that set the offense back, the type of mistakes that helped keep the offense off the field much of the day. Satele also allowed a bad sack immediately after his false start, a continuation of his season-long struggles, but what stood out today was the tactical experimentation by the coaches.
First and foremost, the Dolphins finally tried Satele at guard, a move that I have been anticipating for much of the season, as Samson is quick and athletic, but currently too weak to handle big time nose tackles. The move came almost immediately after the drive where he made the two mistakes, those possibly being the catalysts. Making it possible was Al Johnson, seeing his first action at center, and I thought the Dolphins had potentially their best personnel grouping on at that time, with those two in and Andy Alleman at left guard. It’s too soon, however, for a qualitative review, as the sample size isn’t big enough, but the important thing is that the look is there and we’ll see more of it. I think Satele could even find a permanent home at guard, as it seems like a much better natural fit, and he said he felt “quicker” without having to worry about the snap.
The other interesting development, besides that the Dolphins wisely employed false pulling a few times in their misdirection game, was that the Dolphins almost never ran between the tackles against the 49ers. More specifically, at first the Dolphins really didn’t run at all, but when they finally did, they relied almost exclusively on a speed game to the outside and their classic misdirection. Why would a team employ this strategy? Well, usually because they don’t feel like they can block anybody. The Dolphins won on Sunday, but they need to be careful with this strategy in the future. It will be impossible to be a consistent team in December without an interior running game, so let’s hope this was a one week plan to exploit matchups and not a blueprint for the future.
Quarterback:
Pennington played well, another efficient game for our star quarterback. His two first half touchdowns were enough to get the win, even if the Dolphins offense was far from dominant. Part of the blame for the 1-7 third down performance has to be on Chad, but as I look through each individually, it would probably be much more accurately attributed to dropped passes, negative plays, and penalties.
Chad’s worst throw of the day was just after the Dolphins got the ball at the 50 in the first half. He threw it right to a defender in double coverage, but luckily the interception was dropped. His best play of the day might have been his touchdown pass to Joey Haynos. The tight end was wide open, but the impressive aspect of the play was Chad’s ability to avoid the rush by stepping up in the pocket while still having the poise to make an accurate throw on time.
Wide Receivers:
The wideouts did not play well. In a game where passing was such a big part of the game plan, the hope was that Ginn might be able to do a little more with less attention placed on him by the defense. Unfortunately, he was terrible. His final line read two receptions for six yards, but if only his performance was so benign. He had at least one horrible drop, and failed to convert a third and three by running his crossing route only one yard down the field. Ladies and gentlemen, he is in a slump.
The only other real standout plays by the receivers were by Wilford and London, so you can imagine how those went. Wilford committed a false start penalty and didn’t see the field again. London, when the Dolphins had to get something going in the fourth quarter, had an interference penalty on first and ten. That drive was over before it started, as his career might be if he can’t stick as a special teams player next year. Poor game from this unit.
Running Backs:
The most talented members of the offense get last billing because that’s where they appeared in our offense. While I understand that the coaches were looking for matchups and to surprise the 49ers, I hope it is now clear to them that this is where the Dolphins offense needs to start. You need to use your talent, and these guys are our talent. Plain and simple.
Obviously not in much of a rhythm throughout the day, Ricky and Ronnie combined for three dropped passes. Still, after receiving virtually no carries in the first half, it’s hard to be too upset with their lack of impact. Nevertheless, when they did get the ball in the second half, especially Ronnie Brown, the running backs were very effective.
Most impressive, basically everything the backs did they got on their own. Almost all of their runs were outside in space, and no yardage was better earned than when Ronnie took his only Wildcat run for an important gain, moving the ball to help preserve victory. Brown literally had nothing in front of him, but he showed superior patience and vision, making use of sprawling blocks by Williams, Pennington, and Cobbs to get around the corner.
In the second half, when the running backs, especially Ronnie Brown, were utilized in the normal misdirection game, they had great success and moved the football well. The Dolphins owe it to themselves to see if one back or the other has the hot hand early because then they need to get the ball often. If that means doing it out of the Wildcat, fine, as long as it gets done, but I think there are more effective ways of using our immensely talented backfield.
Pass Rush:
The Dolphins switched some things up in their pass rush today and really attacked the 49ers to the tune of 5 sacks. After watching the Ravens play on Sunday night last week, I had longed for a pass rush like theirs, and I was pleased to see the Dolphins adopt a lot of the same principles to awaken their mostly dormant nickel pass rush. Their pressure was a big reason why the Dolphins made it through a third straight game without allowing a touchdown.
The Dolphins were very clever, and especially in the first half, effective. On one early play, the 49ers tried to isolate Matt Roth in space. All he did was come in untouched where the offense was outnumbered and register a punishing sack. Similarly, the Dolphins even experimented with putting two outside linebackers on the same side of the field in passing situations. Outnumbering an offense like this is how you guarantee easy pressure, and I was delighted to see the Dolphins make use of it.
Additionally, pressure came from the secondary. Renaldo Hill had a great time, seeming to enjoy his attacking role in the game plan. Still, no player caused more havoc in the Niner backfield than Nate Jones, who finished the day with two sacks from his nickel back position. He came in early and often, and I thought the most genius part of it was that his presence as the blitzing slot corner allowed Will Allen to lock down the outside, not wasting his skills rushing the passer.
As for our pass rushing specialists, it was Charlie Anderson who made a lot more noise than Joey Porter. Anderson had a first half sack, but before I could be too pleased with his ever-present attempts to swipe the ball away from the quarterback, he missed a sack in the second half because he neglected to wrap the quarterback up and take him down. Still, an active game is much better than a quiet one. He is really beginning to emerge. As for Porter, it was a quiet day for the loudest man on the field. That is, of course, until he ended the game with a huge sack and then gave me a heart attack by throwing his helmet. Luckily, the possession had already changed before the penalty could be enforced. Still, I wasn’t too happy about his effort, especially considering that Vernon Davis owned him all day, and the only reason he was able to make that sack was the Martz, arguably the stupidest genius in NFL history, took Davis out on that play.
Nevertheless, assuming the Dolphins keep up this attacking style in the future, there are only two real areas of concern as we look ahead. First of all, they simply need to finish sacks more consistently. You can’t let the quarterback get away from you, plain and simple. Additionally, Shaun Hill was really the second quarterback to give us fits in recent history, the first obviously being Matt Cassel, and the thing that both of these guys had in common was an ability to get rid of the ball quickly in the face of a blitz. Our defense was good enough today, as the 49ers made enough mistakes to bail us out in the end, but in the future, we need to find a way to disguise some blitzes so that when quarterbacks get into a rhythm with their hot receivers, we can come up with an easy turnover.
Tight Ends:
Interestingly enough, I’m going to start the discussion with the tight ends this week, because I thought they were huge keys to the offense Sunday. I thought the coaches made a really great game plan, because by splitting the tight ends out wide early, it put the 49ers at a personnel mismatch. They were stuck with their bigs in the game, in to defend Miami’s Wildcat personnel groupings, while the Dolphins played out of a spread, hurry-up base offense. Great job of using your strengths, and as I have said all year, this offense is at its best when the tight ends are involved.
Immediately, on the first two offensive plays of the game, Pennington went to Martin and Fasano, and David Martin’s 61 yard touchdown catch and run was a work of beauty, the spectacular touchdown that Miami needed to get ahead. To that point, the tight ends were used brilliantly and were playing excellently, and it forced the 49ers to make adjustments. I can’t emphasize enough how important our backs and tight ends involvement in our passing game is to this offense. They are an advantage we have on almost any team we face. The touchdown pass to Haynos was a perfect example of how difficult this offense is to defend when we have teams concerned about our multiple running backs and different fronts.
Unfortunately, as the game wore on there were huge mistakes in the use of our tight ends. Specifically, the Dolphins continue to ask David Martin to make blocks at the point of attack, and he continues to fail time after time. On a third and one, the Dolphins asked Martin to block on the slide play and he got blown up. This was one of the few third and shorts that Miami hasn’t converted this year, and it contributed to the 1-7 showing on third down on Sunday. Likewise, on third down with the Dolphins driving at the end of the game, they ran behind Martin again, and the ensuing two yard loss was the margin by which Carpenter missed his field goal attempt, one that could’ve proved very costly. At this point, the coaches need to stop asking Martin to make pivotal blocks in key spots.
Offensive Line:
The Miami O-line, continuing to search for the best mix of players in the wake of injuries and/or underperforming by every player except Jake Long, had another mixed game. Sure, there were the mistakes. Alleman and Satele each had false starts that set the offense back, the type of mistakes that helped keep the offense off the field much of the day. Satele also allowed a bad sack immediately after his false start, a continuation of his season-long struggles, but what stood out today was the tactical experimentation by the coaches.
First and foremost, the Dolphins finally tried Satele at guard, a move that I have been anticipating for much of the season, as Samson is quick and athletic, but currently too weak to handle big time nose tackles. The move came almost immediately after the drive where he made the two mistakes, those possibly being the catalysts. Making it possible was Al Johnson, seeing his first action at center, and I thought the Dolphins had potentially their best personnel grouping on at that time, with those two in and Andy Alleman at left guard. It’s too soon, however, for a qualitative review, as the sample size isn’t big enough, but the important thing is that the look is there and we’ll see more of it. I think Satele could even find a permanent home at guard, as it seems like a much better natural fit, and he said he felt “quicker” without having to worry about the snap.
The other interesting development, besides that the Dolphins wisely employed false pulling a few times in their misdirection game, was that the Dolphins almost never ran between the tackles against the 49ers. More specifically, at first the Dolphins really didn’t run at all, but when they finally did, they relied almost exclusively on a speed game to the outside and their classic misdirection. Why would a team employ this strategy? Well, usually because they don’t feel like they can block anybody. The Dolphins won on Sunday, but they need to be careful with this strategy in the future. It will be impossible to be a consistent team in December without an interior running game, so let’s hope this was a one week plan to exploit matchups and not a blueprint for the future.
Quarterback:
Pennington played well, another efficient game for our star quarterback. His two first half touchdowns were enough to get the win, even if the Dolphins offense was far from dominant. Part of the blame for the 1-7 third down performance has to be on Chad, but as I look through each individually, it would probably be much more accurately attributed to dropped passes, negative plays, and penalties.
Chad’s worst throw of the day was just after the Dolphins got the ball at the 50 in the first half. He threw it right to a defender in double coverage, but luckily the interception was dropped. His best play of the day might have been his touchdown pass to Joey Haynos. The tight end was wide open, but the impressive aspect of the play was Chad’s ability to avoid the rush by stepping up in the pocket while still having the poise to make an accurate throw on time.
Wide Receivers:
The wideouts did not play well. In a game where passing was such a big part of the game plan, the hope was that Ginn might be able to do a little more with less attention placed on him by the defense. Unfortunately, he was terrible. His final line read two receptions for six yards, but if only his performance was so benign. He had at least one horrible drop, and failed to convert a third and three by running his crossing route only one yard down the field. Ladies and gentlemen, he is in a slump.
The only other real standout plays by the receivers were by Wilford and London, so you can imagine how those went. Wilford committed a false start penalty and didn’t see the field again. London, when the Dolphins had to get something going in the fourth quarter, had an interference penalty on first and ten. That drive was over before it started, as his career might be if he can’t stick as a special teams player next year. Poor game from this unit.
Running Backs:
The most talented members of the offense get last billing because that’s where they appeared in our offense. While I understand that the coaches were looking for matchups and to surprise the 49ers, I hope it is now clear to them that this is where the Dolphins offense needs to start. You need to use your talent, and these guys are our talent. Plain and simple.
Obviously not in much of a rhythm throughout the day, Ricky and Ronnie combined for three dropped passes. Still, after receiving virtually no carries in the first half, it’s hard to be too upset with their lack of impact. Nevertheless, when they did get the ball in the second half, especially Ronnie Brown, the running backs were very effective.
Most impressive, basically everything the backs did they got on their own. Almost all of their runs were outside in space, and no yardage was better earned than when Ronnie took his only Wildcat run for an important gain, moving the ball to help preserve victory. Brown literally had nothing in front of him, but he showed superior patience and vision, making use of sprawling blocks by Williams, Pennington, and Cobbs to get around the corner.
In the second half, when the running backs, especially Ronnie Brown, were utilized in the normal misdirection game, they had great success and moved the football well. The Dolphins owe it to themselves to see if one back or the other has the hot hand early because then they need to get the ball often. If that means doing it out of the Wildcat, fine, as long as it gets done, but I think there are more effective ways of using our immensely talented backfield.
Pass Rush:
The Dolphins switched some things up in their pass rush today and really attacked the 49ers to the tune of 5 sacks. After watching the Ravens play on Sunday night last week, I had longed for a pass rush like theirs, and I was pleased to see the Dolphins adopt a lot of the same principles to awaken their mostly dormant nickel pass rush. Their pressure was a big reason why the Dolphins made it through a third straight game without allowing a touchdown.
The Dolphins were very clever, and especially in the first half, effective. On one early play, the 49ers tried to isolate Matt Roth in space. All he did was come in untouched where the offense was outnumbered and register a punishing sack. Similarly, the Dolphins even experimented with putting two outside linebackers on the same side of the field in passing situations. Outnumbering an offense like this is how you guarantee easy pressure, and I was delighted to see the Dolphins make use of it.
Additionally, pressure came from the secondary. Renaldo Hill had a great time, seeming to enjoy his attacking role in the game plan. Still, no player caused more havoc in the Niner backfield than Nate Jones, who finished the day with two sacks from his nickel back position. He came in early and often, and I thought the most genius part of it was that his presence as the blitzing slot corner allowed Will Allen to lock down the outside, not wasting his skills rushing the passer.
As for our pass rushing specialists, it was Charlie Anderson who made a lot more noise than Joey Porter. Anderson had a first half sack, but before I could be too pleased with his ever-present attempts to swipe the ball away from the quarterback, he missed a sack in the second half because he neglected to wrap the quarterback up and take him down. Still, an active game is much better than a quiet one. He is really beginning to emerge. As for Porter, it was a quiet day for the loudest man on the field. That is, of course, until he ended the game with a huge sack and then gave me a heart attack by throwing his helmet. Luckily, the possession had already changed before the penalty could be enforced. Still, I wasn’t too happy about his effort, especially considering that Vernon Davis owned him all day, and the only reason he was able to make that sack was the Martz, arguably the stupidest genius in NFL history, took Davis out on that play.
Nevertheless, assuming the Dolphins keep up this attacking style in the future, there are only two real areas of concern as we look ahead. First of all, they simply need to finish sacks more consistently. You can’t let the quarterback get away from you, plain and simple. Additionally, Shaun Hill was really the second quarterback to give us fits in recent history, the first obviously being Matt Cassel, and the thing that both of these guys had in common was an ability to get rid of the ball quickly in the face of a blitz. Our defense was good enough today, as the 49ers made enough mistakes to bail us out in the end, but in the future, we need to find a way to disguise some blitzes so that when quarterbacks get into a rhythm with their hot receivers, we can come up with an easy turnover.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Dolphins 14 - 49ers 9 (Overall notes and Offensive Strategy Update)
With two games left in the season, the Dolphins are 9-5. They are tied for first place in the AFC East, and they control their destiny to win the division. Beyond the already great accomplishment of having a winning record this year, something which all Dolphins fans should be happy about, this team has a chance to do something really special.
As for the game itself, it was more of the same from the 2008 Miami Dolphins. No turnovers, clinging to an early lead, creative developments on both sides of the ball, new heroes, not exactly the blueprint, but Joey Porter closing out another win. For the seventh time in the last eight games, the Dolphins were victorious. In the context of where we were last year, that's something every fan can appreciate, but right now all eyes are on the last two games of the season. Focus needs to be on taking care of business against the Chiefs - the last thing Channing Crowder wants to do is be playing for Matt Light to win the division in Week 17 - but a potentially huge showdown looms on the horizon for Chad Pennington's new squad against his former mates.
Looking ahead, which I do not advocate but cannot help, the Dolphins and Jets are each one win from playing for the division. Pennington will return to the cold Meadowlands, where he was forced out of town by the acquisition of future Hall of Famer and interception leader Brett Favre, but the question for one more week remains what the stakes will be. The consistent leader whose arm was just never good enough versus the fiery, laser-armed question mark. The you know exactly what you are getting and your limitations every week versus the limitless possibilities. Let's keep our focus on Kansas City so that we can set up this dream matchup of a football game. Don't mind me saying it now, but the winner of that game might very well host the Patriots in the first round of the playoffs. I don't like looking ahead, but let's take care of business so that Belichick's next home game will be checkers in his living room. (Did I mention I don't like looking ahead, but...)
Offensive strategy:
After my exhausting analysis of the direction I think Miami's offensive philosophy should go, the Fins came out and did some things which I thought were interesting and intelligent, but also some things which I thought weren't the best uses of their personnel. Across the NFL, misuse of personnel continues to dazzle me, and I hold to my "do what you do well and what's working" strategy. I fully understand that the Dolphins strategies aren't going to be exactly what I would choose, and though I was impressed by some overlap, I still feel like they could do better with some of their attempts at exploiting matchups. Just as in a game of chess, their are different approaches and strategies that you can use to achieve victory, but you always need to form those around and tailor them to what you have, and this is the key element of game planning which I think lacks consistency.
Now, I don't want this to read as a criticism. It is an analysis, and I thought the Dolphins actually did a lot of things very well. For example, I thought their strategy to open the game made great use of personnel mismatches. Wisely, the Dolphins coupled their Wildcat and power personnel groupings with spread formations, using tight ends and running backs masterfully against the 49ers overmatched linebackers and safeties. This is not a strategy that I talked about them employing, but it's an example of a different strategy that likewise makes good use of the pieces which you have. Every team needs to go very big to deal with the possibility of the Wildcat game, so with that knowledge, Dan Henning and company did a great job of exploiting that these guys may not be so savvy in coverage. Great job.
Unfortunately, though this strategy did build the Dolphins an early lead, things got very stale for a long time, and the Dolphins stopped moving the ball. To make matters worse, the 49ers held the ball for long drive after long drive, and Miami's offense had no chance at developing a rhythm. Penalties, including a few killer false starts, negative plays, mistakes, and dropped passes all led to issues.
Nevertheless, in the fourth quarter the offense did get moving again on one drive when they needed it, and interestingly it was the first time they used the true Wildcat. I liked that they had avoided it for most of the game, as I outlined why last week, but this was a good time to call for it. There was no movement on offense, and the team needed a spark. Ronnie Brown gave it to them with superb patience and vision, along with key blocks from Ricky, Chad, and Cobbs. Still, the lack of any actual push on the play was evidence that except for rare occasion, it should probably stay in hibernation.
The real great plays from that drive, though, mirrored by philosophy closely. The play I will discuss is the one where Chad was lined up as the focal point in the Wildcat. Although I didn't advocate this exact design - I believe there are much more beneficial ways of achieving the same principle, namely the full house and Chad in the "Spread Wildcat" - I thought the Dolphins executed the important principles perfectly. Twice earlier in the game they had run the same formation, and each time Pennington handed it off for a successful play, a run that the defense could not gang up on. However, this time Chad faked the handoff and waggled right, where Anthony Fasano was open for a nice gain. This is the type of play that is difficult in the normal Wildcat, but becomes routine when you keep the ball in Pennington's hands. I really liked how the Dolphins turned to this philosophy when they needed to pound it.
Unfortunately, there were also negatives throughout the day and that ultimately led to that important drive stalling. One that I thought clearly affected the Dolphins ability to get into a rhythm was a refusal to run the ball. I thought it was a great strategy to throw to the tight ends early and often, and it was one that worked, but at some point when the defense adjusts, you've got to put the ball in the hands of Ricky and Ronnie. The Dolphins don't have the type of passing game that can go wire to wire and win any games, so you've got to run some. It looked like Ronnie would've gone for 200 yards, too, if given the opportunity, so I didn't agree with that one. More specifically, I thought the biggest mistake the Dolphins repeatedly made over the course of the day was asking David Martin to block at the point of attack. That is quite simply not his strength right now, and the Dolphins continue to get burned on it. There was the third and one slide play at the beginning of the second half where he got blown up, and even worse than that, the third down at the end of the game where we lost two yards running behind him...two yards that would've put Carpenter's kick through the uprights. He's not good at it, and it's not working, so please stop doing it!
Still, at the same time there were definite positives, and I was impressed that I saw things that looked as if they came straight out of my last column. Importantly, there were several successful plays which relied on false pulls and misdirection. The 49ers were clearly taught to read guards this week, and a reason I think the Dolphins could have run for 200 yards is because when they gave the defense bad reads, they were not even close to making plays. The first one came straight out of my column. Pennington was lined up as the quarterback in our usual Wildcat formation, and as he handed it to Ronnie Brown coming left, the entire defense ignored him and went right, following where they believed Andy Alleman would take the misdirection on his pull. It was a big first down, and when you do things like that you get the defense confused and on its heels. Shortly thereafter, Haynos became a name learned by 49ers and Dolphins fans alike. On the few occasions that the Dolphins false pulled, it worked, and when you get something like that working, the defense can't key on pulls anymore. If the Dolphins exploit this, their misdirection game could work wonders as they approach the playoffs. The slight hesitation alone was enough to open up several pitch and counter pitch plays to Ronnie Brown, as he ran around the defense.
I really believe that the Dolphins offense will be at its best if the Dolphins keep using the misdirection game with Chad at quarterback. It gives you balance, and allows the Dolphins to have a real advantage. By continuing to pull and false pull while using multiple backs and spreading the ball around in the passing game, the defense will have no easy reads and difficult matchups. You've got to be able to run the ball with reliable quarterback play in the big games, and the Dolphins can achieve that if they allow themselves the opportunity. Most importantly, they need to make sure to keep using their strengths to win games. David Martin isn't going to win you much with his blocking, but he very well might with his hands. Likewise, there is no sense in having a Ronnie Brown on your team if you don't make it a point to get him touches. I think the blueprint is well-outlined at this point. Hopefully the Dolphins can continue getting closer to finding it.
As for the game itself, it was more of the same from the 2008 Miami Dolphins. No turnovers, clinging to an early lead, creative developments on both sides of the ball, new heroes, not exactly the blueprint, but Joey Porter closing out another win. For the seventh time in the last eight games, the Dolphins were victorious. In the context of where we were last year, that's something every fan can appreciate, but right now all eyes are on the last two games of the season. Focus needs to be on taking care of business against the Chiefs - the last thing Channing Crowder wants to do is be playing for Matt Light to win the division in Week 17 - but a potentially huge showdown looms on the horizon for Chad Pennington's new squad against his former mates.
Looking ahead, which I do not advocate but cannot help, the Dolphins and Jets are each one win from playing for the division. Pennington will return to the cold Meadowlands, where he was forced out of town by the acquisition of future Hall of Famer and interception leader Brett Favre, but the question for one more week remains what the stakes will be. The consistent leader whose arm was just never good enough versus the fiery, laser-armed question mark. The you know exactly what you are getting and your limitations every week versus the limitless possibilities. Let's keep our focus on Kansas City so that we can set up this dream matchup of a football game. Don't mind me saying it now, but the winner of that game might very well host the Patriots in the first round of the playoffs. I don't like looking ahead, but let's take care of business so that Belichick's next home game will be checkers in his living room. (Did I mention I don't like looking ahead, but...)
Offensive strategy:
After my exhausting analysis of the direction I think Miami's offensive philosophy should go, the Fins came out and did some things which I thought were interesting and intelligent, but also some things which I thought weren't the best uses of their personnel. Across the NFL, misuse of personnel continues to dazzle me, and I hold to my "do what you do well and what's working" strategy. I fully understand that the Dolphins strategies aren't going to be exactly what I would choose, and though I was impressed by some overlap, I still feel like they could do better with some of their attempts at exploiting matchups. Just as in a game of chess, their are different approaches and strategies that you can use to achieve victory, but you always need to form those around and tailor them to what you have, and this is the key element of game planning which I think lacks consistency.
Now, I don't want this to read as a criticism. It is an analysis, and I thought the Dolphins actually did a lot of things very well. For example, I thought their strategy to open the game made great use of personnel mismatches. Wisely, the Dolphins coupled their Wildcat and power personnel groupings with spread formations, using tight ends and running backs masterfully against the 49ers overmatched linebackers and safeties. This is not a strategy that I talked about them employing, but it's an example of a different strategy that likewise makes good use of the pieces which you have. Every team needs to go very big to deal with the possibility of the Wildcat game, so with that knowledge, Dan Henning and company did a great job of exploiting that these guys may not be so savvy in coverage. Great job.
Unfortunately, though this strategy did build the Dolphins an early lead, things got very stale for a long time, and the Dolphins stopped moving the ball. To make matters worse, the 49ers held the ball for long drive after long drive, and Miami's offense had no chance at developing a rhythm. Penalties, including a few killer false starts, negative plays, mistakes, and dropped passes all led to issues.
Nevertheless, in the fourth quarter the offense did get moving again on one drive when they needed it, and interestingly it was the first time they used the true Wildcat. I liked that they had avoided it for most of the game, as I outlined why last week, but this was a good time to call for it. There was no movement on offense, and the team needed a spark. Ronnie Brown gave it to them with superb patience and vision, along with key blocks from Ricky, Chad, and Cobbs. Still, the lack of any actual push on the play was evidence that except for rare occasion, it should probably stay in hibernation.
The real great plays from that drive, though, mirrored by philosophy closely. The play I will discuss is the one where Chad was lined up as the focal point in the Wildcat. Although I didn't advocate this exact design - I believe there are much more beneficial ways of achieving the same principle, namely the full house and Chad in the "Spread Wildcat" - I thought the Dolphins executed the important principles perfectly. Twice earlier in the game they had run the same formation, and each time Pennington handed it off for a successful play, a run that the defense could not gang up on. However, this time Chad faked the handoff and waggled right, where Anthony Fasano was open for a nice gain. This is the type of play that is difficult in the normal Wildcat, but becomes routine when you keep the ball in Pennington's hands. I really liked how the Dolphins turned to this philosophy when they needed to pound it.
Unfortunately, there were also negatives throughout the day and that ultimately led to that important drive stalling. One that I thought clearly affected the Dolphins ability to get into a rhythm was a refusal to run the ball. I thought it was a great strategy to throw to the tight ends early and often, and it was one that worked, but at some point when the defense adjusts, you've got to put the ball in the hands of Ricky and Ronnie. The Dolphins don't have the type of passing game that can go wire to wire and win any games, so you've got to run some. It looked like Ronnie would've gone for 200 yards, too, if given the opportunity, so I didn't agree with that one. More specifically, I thought the biggest mistake the Dolphins repeatedly made over the course of the day was asking David Martin to block at the point of attack. That is quite simply not his strength right now, and the Dolphins continue to get burned on it. There was the third and one slide play at the beginning of the second half where he got blown up, and even worse than that, the third down at the end of the game where we lost two yards running behind him...two yards that would've put Carpenter's kick through the uprights. He's not good at it, and it's not working, so please stop doing it!
Still, at the same time there were definite positives, and I was impressed that I saw things that looked as if they came straight out of my last column. Importantly, there were several successful plays which relied on false pulls and misdirection. The 49ers were clearly taught to read guards this week, and a reason I think the Dolphins could have run for 200 yards is because when they gave the defense bad reads, they were not even close to making plays. The first one came straight out of my column. Pennington was lined up as the quarterback in our usual Wildcat formation, and as he handed it to Ronnie Brown coming left, the entire defense ignored him and went right, following where they believed Andy Alleman would take the misdirection on his pull. It was a big first down, and when you do things like that you get the defense confused and on its heels. Shortly thereafter, Haynos became a name learned by 49ers and Dolphins fans alike. On the few occasions that the Dolphins false pulled, it worked, and when you get something like that working, the defense can't key on pulls anymore. If the Dolphins exploit this, their misdirection game could work wonders as they approach the playoffs. The slight hesitation alone was enough to open up several pitch and counter pitch plays to Ronnie Brown, as he ran around the defense.
I really believe that the Dolphins offense will be at its best if the Dolphins keep using the misdirection game with Chad at quarterback. It gives you balance, and allows the Dolphins to have a real advantage. By continuing to pull and false pull while using multiple backs and spreading the ball around in the passing game, the defense will have no easy reads and difficult matchups. You've got to be able to run the ball with reliable quarterback play in the big games, and the Dolphins can achieve that if they allow themselves the opportunity. Most importantly, they need to make sure to keep using their strengths to win games. David Martin isn't going to win you much with his blocking, but he very well might with his hands. Likewise, there is no sense in having a Ronnie Brown on your team if you don't make it a point to get him touches. I think the blueprint is well-outlined at this point. Hopefully the Dolphins can continue getting closer to finding it.
Friday, December 12, 2008
Special Analysis: Offensive Breakdown
In this column, I plan on discussing the state of the Dolphins offense, specifically the running game. We are at an interesting place because with just three regular season games left, the offense is still developing. Now, part of the reason this is happening is because of large shortcomings which Dan Henning has been planning around all year. However, I believe that if implemented properly, the continued evolution of the running game and offense can be an advantage, as the Dolphins could peek at exactly the right time of year. Also, the Dolphins might have stumbled upon the future of multiple back running attacks, but I digress. First, let’s review how the Dolphins got where they are.
The Dolphins, plainly, couldn’t run the ball with any consistency in the first two games. So, David Lee famously suggested the Wildcat to Sparano, and it was obviously very successful immediately and became the talk of the league. The Wildcat was a great fit for this team because of inexperience and issues up front, the presence of two good tight ends, and most importantly, multiple talented running backs. It allowed the Dolphins to get an extra blocker on the line of scrimmage, forced the defense to have to defend two or more possible ball carriers, and put the ball in the hands of their best players. It was a genius fit, especially because it forced opponents to game plan against a whole other offense.
Unfortunately, after a while, the Wildcat began to fade. It had worked some, but there are some fundamental issues with using this offense in the NFL, especially without a back who can consistently throw the football (I wouldn’t rule out the effectiveness of a Tebow running an offense like this, though durability would become the main concern; a different discussion for a different day). Mainly, defenses are just too strong and athletic at this level for any offense without a serious passing threat to work. They can commit too many players to the run (more than the single blocker you gain by taking your quarterback out of the picture), and you end up at a significant disadvantage without having a quarterback.
Still, though I do believe that the Wildcat has seen better days, and I would like to see the Dolphins relegate it to spot duty (if they see an advantage; if they can’t get anything else going; goal line; if they find/are saving a way to pass out of it), there are important lessons to be learned from the Wildcat. The basic principles of single wing football, which it relies upon, lend themselves very well to our personnel. First and foremost, we have four excellent ball carriers. Three of them, led by the patient, fast, and powerful Ronnie Brown, are very versatile and can run inside or out. This is our main advantage, and it is paramount, just as in the Wildcat, to force the defense to defend all of them. Additionally, we don’t have much up front outside of Jake Long, especially now that we have lost our two best guards for the season. Nevertheless, the pulling and misdirection game emphasized by the single wing can help mask deficiencies, especially at the guard position, by moving the linemen around. Moreover, through the course of the season the Dolphins have practiced a lot of pulling, including that of the tackles, so they would be fools to sacrifice another of their best weapons just because they are moving away from the Wildcat. Using multiple backs and pulling up front in a misdirection offense still needs to be a big part of what the Dolphins do.
Nevertheless, teams, after a while, did find ways to counteract the misdirection game employed by the Wildcat, and in a very unsurprising way. Teams used the simple, age-old strategies that have worked to combat the single wing for years. Included in these strategies, used most notably by the Bills in shutting down the Wildcat last week, are a combination of penetrating gaps and reading guards. Simply put, by employing an attacking defense, you allow the defense’s superior athleticism to take over, and you make it very difficult for the offense to move its guards. Every time the Dolphins tried to pull against the Bills, they had a defensive lineman right on our lineman’s hip, wreaking havoc in our backfield. Most importantly, the Bills were able to attack so wholeheartedly because, out of the Wildcat, we lose our ability to pass.
That leaves the Dolphins where we are now. We have not been consistently good enough up front to run in a traditional NFL style offense, and our advantages that we had exploited by using the Wildcat have now evaporated as teams have caught up. Screwed, right? Wrong. Thanks to the experimentation in and development of our base offense, I believe that the Dolphins could be in their best shape of the whole season, provided that Dan Henning implements the strategies that he’s been developing properly.
The answer is that the Dolphins need to use the Wildcat with one main change, Chad Pennington at quarterback. No, not in the sense that they have been doing, where Pennington literally replaces Ronnie Brown in the series. I mean that we need to operate our offense around all the same principles that made the Wildcat work, with multiple running threats and misdirection, while Chad Pennington is still lined up as quarterback in our base offense. By simply combining a passing threat with the Dolphins superior misdirection game, our offense could be the type that is build for success in the playoffs. A big statement, but I truly believe it is possible.
Putting Chad at the helm of an offense that relies heavily on multiple running backs and misdirection presents a lot of benefits. Number one, it tilts the scale back in our favor in terms of having an advantage over the defense. The original advantage that the Dolphins had was in their backs. On any given play, any of our running backs could take the ball and run effectively, which led to the Wildcat being effective. As opposed to most NFL offenses, where teams could key on a single tailback, our advantage was the luxury of multiple threats. However, by sacrificing the pass, the Dolphins were right back where they started, gaining one advantage, but losing another, as defenses could attack the Wildcat mercilessly.
Now we have that advantage back with Pennington taking the reins. His simple presence takes away the defense’s ability to attack the running game with such blatant disregard for the pass. By keeping Pennington back there as a passing threat, along with the multiple runners, the defense needs to respect his 3,000+ yards passing but also the numerous running threats, putting the offense in a great position.
Moreover, not only is Pennington just a quarterback who can offer balance, but he is the team MVP and, in my opinion, the best quarterback in NFL history at executing fakes. The Dolphins have been running this form of offense, the Wildcat, with a moderate degree of success, without even involving their best player in it most of the time. Now, just imagine how proficient this offense would be with their best player involved. When you say it like that, it seems like a no-brainer, but getting past the incorrect notion that the “Wildcat” is what made this running attack work is key. The Dolphins running backs are the advantage, not the offense, and adding Chad to that list of backs will increase their productivity exponentially. The fact that he is so skilled in play fakes just makes the whole fit even more perfect, as his skill set matches a misdirection offense perfectly. The defense won’t know where to look.
The next thing to analyze is how much the misdirection game will benefit from all of this. The Dolphins running backs are so great, and the misdirection game is already so good, that even with teams overplaying it, the Dolphins have still been able to move the ball enough to win six out of their last seven games. Without teams having the ability to overplay it, simply reading guards and penetrating at will, you can look no further than a single play in the Bills game to see how much the Dolphins stand to benefit.
Against the Bills, the Dolphins were faced with similar problems in the Wildcat that they've had in recent weeks. Buffalo attacked against it as much as any team we've seen this year, penetrating and hanging on the hips of our pulling guards. It didn't go anywhere. Even in our base running game, the Bills did the same thing a lot of the time. They attacked gaps and played our guards, trusting them rather than the numerous backfield keys to lead them to the play. On one play however, whether it was by design or the genius running instincts of Ricky Williams, the Bills plan backfired. As the Dolphins pulled to the left, the first line of the Buffalo defense followed and vacated, and Ricky Williams was free to run for a 14 yard touchdown to the right. Of course, the play was called back due to a bogus hold, but that moment shed light on just how much teams have been overplaying the misdirection, and more importantly, how much the Dolphins stand to gain by exploiting it.
By pulling their guards a lot this year, the Dolphins have gained a lot of advantages that football purists and innovators alike would be proud of. The Dolphins have even been clever enough to move their tackles. However, as they have mounted success doing so, defenses have used time-tested solutions to counter the pulling game. As I mentioned above, penetration can create a world of trouble for teams that like to pull. Still, on that should-have-been touchdown run by Williams, you saw that the Dolphins pulling game has been so effective that teams have had to compensate, and at times overcompensate to stop it. With Pennington at quarterback, the defense no longer gets the heads up about what to expect. It puts them into a bind: either play honestly against a superior offense and get beat by the misdirection game, as the Dolphins did to teams earlier in the season, or cheat and compensate to stop it, putting yourself at risk of not only false pulling, but now the arm of Miami’s best player and captain. Pennington at quarterback along with this multiple running back offense returns the most basic and important element of football back to the Dolphins: balance.
Moreover, now that it is clear that incorporating Pennington in a Wildcat-like offense, fueled by multiple running backs and misdirection, the Dolphins strengths this year, would be beneficial, the question becomes, how? There are only three games left, and the Dolphins playbook probably is what it is at this point. True, but luckily Dan Henning has been at work at figuring out exactly what would make this offense work best all year, and the formations and series vital to this new offense have all already been used. Now they just need to be refined and exploited.
Most notably, the formation that the Dolphins should rely on is their full house formation, where Pennington and the other backs create a diamond in the backfield. The ball can go to any number of backs in numerous different ways, but most importantly, the ball can also remain in Pennington's hands. Pitches, counters, inside handoffs, play action, leads, dives, traps, and anything else you can think of are all available in this formation. With our tight ends in the game, they are passing threats. Without them, you can incorporate multiple receivers. But the most important aspect is certainly the threat of Chad Pennington along with the three guys standing in the backfield. If the defense loads up like they do against the Wildcat, I like my chances with any of Ricky, Ronnie, or Patrick Cobbs in the passing game against a linebacker. It’s like daring, almost forcing defenses to put the game in Pennington’s hands.
Likewise, the formation that I dubbed the “Spread Wildcat,” where the Dolphins run a college-style spread offense with Ronnie Brown taking the shotgun snaps flanked by one or two other backs, can also be effective with Pennington running it, specifically the two back version. Pennington in the shotgun with two running backs allows for a plethora of misdirection running plays and also gives him the ability to pass. I know I said I do not support Pennington simply running the Wildcat, which I don’t, but this is a little bit different, a spread formation where he has two backs to hand the ball two as opposed to the usual one coming across the formation. This formation would be effective in a lot of the same ways as the full house, a more pass-geared formation though. With two running backs threatening the line and the possibility of a deep pass, safeties are in a huge bind here.
Additionally, the Dolphins finally have found a two back bread and butter run series, and it exemplifies this philosophy of keeping multiple running back misdirection with Pennington in the game, lending support to my argument that this should be the main approach of the offense. The series with quick pitch action along with the inside handoff to the up back has been very successful and is becoming our go to because it uses all of our strengths. It takes advantage or our multiple running backs who all carry the ball well, our speed game to the outside, our misdirection game inside, and our gifted fake-out artist, Chad Pennington. Most importantly, it keeps the ball in our quarterback's hands, opening up play action in a way the Wildcat never can. We saw this work for a touchdown against the Patriots. Look for the next step to be the pitch back throwing a pass, as teams begin to load up to find a way to stop it.
Notably, a key in the development of this series was finding a way to make the pitch play successful. Both David Martin and Anthony Fasano have been very inconsistent blockers, so the Dolphins intelligently adjusted to make Jake Long responsible for the reach block instead by taking the tight ends out of the game and running away from them when they are in. This completed the series by giving a legitimate outside threat along with the inside play, and it puts the linebackers in a very difficult bind. It's impossible to read our backs because there are too many weapons, and the Dolphins are now free to give false reads to linebackers who concentrate on our guards, making this a very effective series.
The fact it required eliminating the tight ends’ role in this series to make it more successful certainly relates to the argument for the replacement of the Wildcat. Part of the reason why we went to the Wildcat early in the season was because we had two strong tight ends, no receivers, and double tight was therefore our best personnel group. However, with the productivity falloff of the tight ends, their inconsistent blocking, and the emergence of our receiving corps, double tight is far from our best personnel group these days, so continuing to rely on the Wildcat, which employs both Martin and Fasano, is foolish. I am the biggest advocate of getting these guys involved in the play action game, but if they aren’t blocking anybody, there is no reason to keep running this offense where they are key blockers. This is just more supporting evidence for, and another benefit of, using a more flexible offense with Pennington as the quarterback and multiple running backs. Similarly, the overload was an important aspect of the Wildcat at the beginning of the year, but even that is unnecessary at this point, as your best two run blockers already line up next to each other in Jake Long and Andy Alleman. The evidence favoring a move to the proposed offense is overwhelming.
Overall, I think I have outlined a sound argument for where the future of the Dolphins offense should go, and how despite their issues they can use their strengths to become a very formidable offense as they approach the postseason. By studying the evolution of the offense, I pointed out why the Dolphins went to the Wildcat in the first place and also why it cooled off. Then, by examining the strengths of the Wildcat along with the current strengths of the team, I was able to make an argument for the future direction of this offense. After pointing out the numerous advantages of this offense, I discussed how, by using elements of the offense that are already in place, the new philosophy can be implemented. Finally, I used the evidence of a key series that Miami employs to demonstrate the effectiveness of this new line of thinking as already in place, and I am now making a plea for much, much more of it in the final three games and beyond.
I am tired of the Dolphins tipping off exactly what they are going to do by lining up in the Wildcat. It has become too easy to defend. Likewise, unless Miami is in their two minute offense, I have no desire to see the empty backfield anymore either. It too gives the defense way too much information, in this case allowing pass rushers to start their engines. With the strengths of this Dolphins offense, Chad and the backs, there is no reason for either of those formations. In fact, there is no reason to even see the singleback offense this year. The advantage is the multiple weapons and inability for the defense to get a key. The Dolphins must exploit it!
Essentially, the Dolphins need to capture everything that is excellent about the Wildcat and run it within the scope of their base offense. No, you can't have the extra blocker anymore, but you can have something so much more important: a quarterback. Not only that, but this particular quarterback is your best player and the most adept quarterback at making play fakes in NFL history, a perfect fit for this offense. Keep two or three runners in your backfield on every play and give the defense fits. Use the misdirection, send one guy wide on the quick pitch, come back with a tricky inside handoff, find a tight end on play action, get them on their heels and go at them with the power game...the possibilities and advantages you create are endless and all of this stuff is already in the Miami repertoire. If a team wants to overcompensate like the Bills, make them pay. There are a million different options that open up to the offense as we move ahead. I give Dan Henning a lot of credit, because this offense certainly has a lot of shortcomings and he has crafted around its strengths masterfully. However, this is the perfect point in the season for the offense to take the next step. The Dolphins have an amazing group of backs who work together brilliantly, and with the misdirection game that this offense has developed, they have this one advantage on any team that they face. With Chad Pennington in the picture, now is the time to exploit it.
The Dolphins, plainly, couldn’t run the ball with any consistency in the first two games. So, David Lee famously suggested the Wildcat to Sparano, and it was obviously very successful immediately and became the talk of the league. The Wildcat was a great fit for this team because of inexperience and issues up front, the presence of two good tight ends, and most importantly, multiple talented running backs. It allowed the Dolphins to get an extra blocker on the line of scrimmage, forced the defense to have to defend two or more possible ball carriers, and put the ball in the hands of their best players. It was a genius fit, especially because it forced opponents to game plan against a whole other offense.
Unfortunately, after a while, the Wildcat began to fade. It had worked some, but there are some fundamental issues with using this offense in the NFL, especially without a back who can consistently throw the football (I wouldn’t rule out the effectiveness of a Tebow running an offense like this, though durability would become the main concern; a different discussion for a different day). Mainly, defenses are just too strong and athletic at this level for any offense without a serious passing threat to work. They can commit too many players to the run (more than the single blocker you gain by taking your quarterback out of the picture), and you end up at a significant disadvantage without having a quarterback.
Still, though I do believe that the Wildcat has seen better days, and I would like to see the Dolphins relegate it to spot duty (if they see an advantage; if they can’t get anything else going; goal line; if they find/are saving a way to pass out of it), there are important lessons to be learned from the Wildcat. The basic principles of single wing football, which it relies upon, lend themselves very well to our personnel. First and foremost, we have four excellent ball carriers. Three of them, led by the patient, fast, and powerful Ronnie Brown, are very versatile and can run inside or out. This is our main advantage, and it is paramount, just as in the Wildcat, to force the defense to defend all of them. Additionally, we don’t have much up front outside of Jake Long, especially now that we have lost our two best guards for the season. Nevertheless, the pulling and misdirection game emphasized by the single wing can help mask deficiencies, especially at the guard position, by moving the linemen around. Moreover, through the course of the season the Dolphins have practiced a lot of pulling, including that of the tackles, so they would be fools to sacrifice another of their best weapons just because they are moving away from the Wildcat. Using multiple backs and pulling up front in a misdirection offense still needs to be a big part of what the Dolphins do.
Nevertheless, teams, after a while, did find ways to counteract the misdirection game employed by the Wildcat, and in a very unsurprising way. Teams used the simple, age-old strategies that have worked to combat the single wing for years. Included in these strategies, used most notably by the Bills in shutting down the Wildcat last week, are a combination of penetrating gaps and reading guards. Simply put, by employing an attacking defense, you allow the defense’s superior athleticism to take over, and you make it very difficult for the offense to move its guards. Every time the Dolphins tried to pull against the Bills, they had a defensive lineman right on our lineman’s hip, wreaking havoc in our backfield. Most importantly, the Bills were able to attack so wholeheartedly because, out of the Wildcat, we lose our ability to pass.
That leaves the Dolphins where we are now. We have not been consistently good enough up front to run in a traditional NFL style offense, and our advantages that we had exploited by using the Wildcat have now evaporated as teams have caught up. Screwed, right? Wrong. Thanks to the experimentation in and development of our base offense, I believe that the Dolphins could be in their best shape of the whole season, provided that Dan Henning implements the strategies that he’s been developing properly.
The answer is that the Dolphins need to use the Wildcat with one main change, Chad Pennington at quarterback. No, not in the sense that they have been doing, where Pennington literally replaces Ronnie Brown in the series. I mean that we need to operate our offense around all the same principles that made the Wildcat work, with multiple running threats and misdirection, while Chad Pennington is still lined up as quarterback in our base offense. By simply combining a passing threat with the Dolphins superior misdirection game, our offense could be the type that is build for success in the playoffs. A big statement, but I truly believe it is possible.
Putting Chad at the helm of an offense that relies heavily on multiple running backs and misdirection presents a lot of benefits. Number one, it tilts the scale back in our favor in terms of having an advantage over the defense. The original advantage that the Dolphins had was in their backs. On any given play, any of our running backs could take the ball and run effectively, which led to the Wildcat being effective. As opposed to most NFL offenses, where teams could key on a single tailback, our advantage was the luxury of multiple threats. However, by sacrificing the pass, the Dolphins were right back where they started, gaining one advantage, but losing another, as defenses could attack the Wildcat mercilessly.
Now we have that advantage back with Pennington taking the reins. His simple presence takes away the defense’s ability to attack the running game with such blatant disregard for the pass. By keeping Pennington back there as a passing threat, along with the multiple runners, the defense needs to respect his 3,000+ yards passing but also the numerous running threats, putting the offense in a great position.
Moreover, not only is Pennington just a quarterback who can offer balance, but he is the team MVP and, in my opinion, the best quarterback in NFL history at executing fakes. The Dolphins have been running this form of offense, the Wildcat, with a moderate degree of success, without even involving their best player in it most of the time. Now, just imagine how proficient this offense would be with their best player involved. When you say it like that, it seems like a no-brainer, but getting past the incorrect notion that the “Wildcat” is what made this running attack work is key. The Dolphins running backs are the advantage, not the offense, and adding Chad to that list of backs will increase their productivity exponentially. The fact that he is so skilled in play fakes just makes the whole fit even more perfect, as his skill set matches a misdirection offense perfectly. The defense won’t know where to look.
The next thing to analyze is how much the misdirection game will benefit from all of this. The Dolphins running backs are so great, and the misdirection game is already so good, that even with teams overplaying it, the Dolphins have still been able to move the ball enough to win six out of their last seven games. Without teams having the ability to overplay it, simply reading guards and penetrating at will, you can look no further than a single play in the Bills game to see how much the Dolphins stand to benefit.
Against the Bills, the Dolphins were faced with similar problems in the Wildcat that they've had in recent weeks. Buffalo attacked against it as much as any team we've seen this year, penetrating and hanging on the hips of our pulling guards. It didn't go anywhere. Even in our base running game, the Bills did the same thing a lot of the time. They attacked gaps and played our guards, trusting them rather than the numerous backfield keys to lead them to the play. On one play however, whether it was by design or the genius running instincts of Ricky Williams, the Bills plan backfired. As the Dolphins pulled to the left, the first line of the Buffalo defense followed and vacated, and Ricky Williams was free to run for a 14 yard touchdown to the right. Of course, the play was called back due to a bogus hold, but that moment shed light on just how much teams have been overplaying the misdirection, and more importantly, how much the Dolphins stand to gain by exploiting it.
By pulling their guards a lot this year, the Dolphins have gained a lot of advantages that football purists and innovators alike would be proud of. The Dolphins have even been clever enough to move their tackles. However, as they have mounted success doing so, defenses have used time-tested solutions to counter the pulling game. As I mentioned above, penetration can create a world of trouble for teams that like to pull. Still, on that should-have-been touchdown run by Williams, you saw that the Dolphins pulling game has been so effective that teams have had to compensate, and at times overcompensate to stop it. With Pennington at quarterback, the defense no longer gets the heads up about what to expect. It puts them into a bind: either play honestly against a superior offense and get beat by the misdirection game, as the Dolphins did to teams earlier in the season, or cheat and compensate to stop it, putting yourself at risk of not only false pulling, but now the arm of Miami’s best player and captain. Pennington at quarterback along with this multiple running back offense returns the most basic and important element of football back to the Dolphins: balance.
Moreover, now that it is clear that incorporating Pennington in a Wildcat-like offense, fueled by multiple running backs and misdirection, the Dolphins strengths this year, would be beneficial, the question becomes, how? There are only three games left, and the Dolphins playbook probably is what it is at this point. True, but luckily Dan Henning has been at work at figuring out exactly what would make this offense work best all year, and the formations and series vital to this new offense have all already been used. Now they just need to be refined and exploited.
Most notably, the formation that the Dolphins should rely on is their full house formation, where Pennington and the other backs create a diamond in the backfield. The ball can go to any number of backs in numerous different ways, but most importantly, the ball can also remain in Pennington's hands. Pitches, counters, inside handoffs, play action, leads, dives, traps, and anything else you can think of are all available in this formation. With our tight ends in the game, they are passing threats. Without them, you can incorporate multiple receivers. But the most important aspect is certainly the threat of Chad Pennington along with the three guys standing in the backfield. If the defense loads up like they do against the Wildcat, I like my chances with any of Ricky, Ronnie, or Patrick Cobbs in the passing game against a linebacker. It’s like daring, almost forcing defenses to put the game in Pennington’s hands.
Likewise, the formation that I dubbed the “Spread Wildcat,” where the Dolphins run a college-style spread offense with Ronnie Brown taking the shotgun snaps flanked by one or two other backs, can also be effective with Pennington running it, specifically the two back version. Pennington in the shotgun with two running backs allows for a plethora of misdirection running plays and also gives him the ability to pass. I know I said I do not support Pennington simply running the Wildcat, which I don’t, but this is a little bit different, a spread formation where he has two backs to hand the ball two as opposed to the usual one coming across the formation. This formation would be effective in a lot of the same ways as the full house, a more pass-geared formation though. With two running backs threatening the line and the possibility of a deep pass, safeties are in a huge bind here.
Additionally, the Dolphins finally have found a two back bread and butter run series, and it exemplifies this philosophy of keeping multiple running back misdirection with Pennington in the game, lending support to my argument that this should be the main approach of the offense. The series with quick pitch action along with the inside handoff to the up back has been very successful and is becoming our go to because it uses all of our strengths. It takes advantage or our multiple running backs who all carry the ball well, our speed game to the outside, our misdirection game inside, and our gifted fake-out artist, Chad Pennington. Most importantly, it keeps the ball in our quarterback's hands, opening up play action in a way the Wildcat never can. We saw this work for a touchdown against the Patriots. Look for the next step to be the pitch back throwing a pass, as teams begin to load up to find a way to stop it.
Notably, a key in the development of this series was finding a way to make the pitch play successful. Both David Martin and Anthony Fasano have been very inconsistent blockers, so the Dolphins intelligently adjusted to make Jake Long responsible for the reach block instead by taking the tight ends out of the game and running away from them when they are in. This completed the series by giving a legitimate outside threat along with the inside play, and it puts the linebackers in a very difficult bind. It's impossible to read our backs because there are too many weapons, and the Dolphins are now free to give false reads to linebackers who concentrate on our guards, making this a very effective series.
The fact it required eliminating the tight ends’ role in this series to make it more successful certainly relates to the argument for the replacement of the Wildcat. Part of the reason why we went to the Wildcat early in the season was because we had two strong tight ends, no receivers, and double tight was therefore our best personnel group. However, with the productivity falloff of the tight ends, their inconsistent blocking, and the emergence of our receiving corps, double tight is far from our best personnel group these days, so continuing to rely on the Wildcat, which employs both Martin and Fasano, is foolish. I am the biggest advocate of getting these guys involved in the play action game, but if they aren’t blocking anybody, there is no reason to keep running this offense where they are key blockers. This is just more supporting evidence for, and another benefit of, using a more flexible offense with Pennington as the quarterback and multiple running backs. Similarly, the overload was an important aspect of the Wildcat at the beginning of the year, but even that is unnecessary at this point, as your best two run blockers already line up next to each other in Jake Long and Andy Alleman. The evidence favoring a move to the proposed offense is overwhelming.
Overall, I think I have outlined a sound argument for where the future of the Dolphins offense should go, and how despite their issues they can use their strengths to become a very formidable offense as they approach the postseason. By studying the evolution of the offense, I pointed out why the Dolphins went to the Wildcat in the first place and also why it cooled off. Then, by examining the strengths of the Wildcat along with the current strengths of the team, I was able to make an argument for the future direction of this offense. After pointing out the numerous advantages of this offense, I discussed how, by using elements of the offense that are already in place, the new philosophy can be implemented. Finally, I used the evidence of a key series that Miami employs to demonstrate the effectiveness of this new line of thinking as already in place, and I am now making a plea for much, much more of it in the final three games and beyond.
I am tired of the Dolphins tipping off exactly what they are going to do by lining up in the Wildcat. It has become too easy to defend. Likewise, unless Miami is in their two minute offense, I have no desire to see the empty backfield anymore either. It too gives the defense way too much information, in this case allowing pass rushers to start their engines. With the strengths of this Dolphins offense, Chad and the backs, there is no reason for either of those formations. In fact, there is no reason to even see the singleback offense this year. The advantage is the multiple weapons and inability for the defense to get a key. The Dolphins must exploit it!
Essentially, the Dolphins need to capture everything that is excellent about the Wildcat and run it within the scope of their base offense. No, you can't have the extra blocker anymore, but you can have something so much more important: a quarterback. Not only that, but this particular quarterback is your best player and the most adept quarterback at making play fakes in NFL history, a perfect fit for this offense. Keep two or three runners in your backfield on every play and give the defense fits. Use the misdirection, send one guy wide on the quick pitch, come back with a tricky inside handoff, find a tight end on play action, get them on their heels and go at them with the power game...the possibilities and advantages you create are endless and all of this stuff is already in the Miami repertoire. If a team wants to overcompensate like the Bills, make them pay. There are a million different options that open up to the offense as we move ahead. I give Dan Henning a lot of credit, because this offense certainly has a lot of shortcomings and he has crafted around its strengths masterfully. However, this is the perfect point in the season for the offense to take the next step. The Dolphins have an amazing group of backs who work together brilliantly, and with the misdirection game that this offense has developed, they have this one advantage on any team that they face. With Chad Pennington in the picture, now is the time to exploit it.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Dolphins 16 - Bills 3
The Dolphins played an excellent, complete football game against Buffalo. In a "road" game against an AFC East opponent which they had to have, they put together their best game since, well, the last time we played the Bills. For the second game in a row, the defense didn't allow a touchdown and the special teams were sound. On offense, the battered offensive line stepped up and played well, allowing Ronnie Brown and Chad Pennington to control the game efficiently. Overall, this was 2008 Miami Dolphins football in its purest form. No turnovers, no mistakes, and a 15 minute edge in time of possession. Let's take a deeper look at the various elements of Sunday's game:
Offensive Line:
Without Justin Smiley, you had to be nervous going into this one. Jake Long was the only strong offensive lineman still on his feet from Week 1. However, the reshuffled group really stepped up and played well in the big game. Long was his usual monstrous self, but the key was the unusually fine play from the interior linemen.
Samson Satele had one of his best games of the year and seemed to thrive as the main man in the middle. A big key for the Dolphins offense is when Satele starts comboing off to the second level, and he was able to do that effectively numerous times Sunday. After Al Johnson got all the reps in practice on Wednesday, either the rest or fear of losing his job led Satele to play an inspired game. If he can consistently play this well, even against big tackles, he will be around for a long time.
As for the guards, Alleman again stood out for his run blocking prowess. He is very strong and always seems to get a push. He needs some work in pass protection, but he could be a really solid player for us in the future and is another potential answer at center next year.
Ndukwe also played well, and Frye made the most of his opportunities, impressively filling in at both guard spots throughout the day. Carey, too, had his best game in quite some time.
Running Backs:
This time, Ronnie was our best back, but what really stood out was how good this position is as a unit. We have four guys who can really run with the ball, and it makes the Dolphins very difficult to defend.
Ronnie Brown had a fantastic day. He gained seven yards by himself on a second quarter play and looked great carrying the ball all day. He was patient as usual and elusive in the open field, making the most of his 16 carries. Ricky Williams also was an effective runner, looking very fast on the track which he knows so well. Unfortunately, his best run, where he showed great vision cutting back for a touchdown, was called back.
The biggest surprise, and one of the best finds of the year, has been Lou Polite. He had a great second effort on a third and one which led to the touchdown, and he also converted a fourth and one en route to a field goal. That's two huge plays instrumental in scoring ten points. As usual, he also blocked very well.
My only gripe with this unit continues to be how they are used. I think Henning could to a better job managing and maximizing carries for the R+R show, as our two best weapons continue to get lots of R+R on the sideline. While it is a difficult circumstance to navigate having two backs who both get better with more carries, and I give Henning lots of credit for his innovations this year, it has usually been pretty clear who the better back is by the end of one period. I believe that if you make it a point to get the ball to that back, not only will he get 20+ carries, but the other should also end with at least 10 as you will probably be moving the ball and building a lead if one of these stars gets going. Give it to whoever is feeling it, and watch the yards and carries pile up for both by the end of the game.
Quarterback:
Mr. Consistency only missed six time of his 29 attempts in this one, including a perfect second half. People are starting to talk about him as an MVP candidate if this team wins the division, and while I don't think he'll win, he is mounting a bit of an argument.
Regardless, this was another game where, to use a pitching analogy, Chad didn't have his best "stuff." His balls lacked velocity, yet he found a way to get it done again. He abused the deep middle of the Bills' secondary early, and stepped up and converted a few third downs as well. Highlights included his touchdown to Fasano and another sweet throw on a little wheel over Ronnie Brown's shoulder. Thanks in large part to Chad, the Dolphins are on pace for the fewest turnovers in a season in NFL history, and Pennington became just the third Miami Dolphin to pass for 3,000 yards in a season on Sunday. Thanks, Brett!
Wide Receivers:
Devone Bess is quickly starting to look like Wes Welker III, with an extra special emphasis on the adverb. Not only in the sense of his feet, which jitterbug him away from defenders before and after the numerous receptions that he makes, but it has only taken him three games of extended duty to become one of the most productive undrafted rookies in the league. Even more impressive than his feet may be his hands, which hauled in nine passes on Sunday, and his quarterback friendly nature. He is truly a pleasure to watch on a bubble screen, always making the first defender miss, and at one point fearlessly taking the ball back across the formation for a big gain. If the Dolphins can acquire a big time receiver next year, the Dolphins become downright scary to defend for any secondary with less than four top notch corners.
On the negative side, Ted Ginn was invisible. In the first series of the game, he missed a catchable third down slant, apparently out of fear of taking a hit, and his day was downhill from there. He even had a false start penalty at one point, something that should never happen to a wide receiver. How invisible was he? Even Ernest Wilford had more catches than him.
Tight Ends:
Luckily, along with Bess, the tight ends stepped up and picked up the slack for Teddy. As has been the case all year, this offense is at its best when the tight ends are catching passes, and on Sunday they made their presence felt. There were five catches between them, a modest figure, but it was sufficient as Fasano had his first big play in weeks on the touchdown and Martin had a big first down reception. The play action game needs to work to these guys, so let's hope that they stay involved the rest of the way. They certainly aren't adding much with their blocking.
Wildcat:
The Wildcat was no good on Sunday. The Bills were all over it, penetrating and creating lots of issues. The Dolphins haven't shown any ability to pass out of it in weeks, and teams are loading up to stop the run. Just like when we go empty, I am beginning to take issue with it, because it unnecessarily tells the defense what we are going to do.
However, as I will discuss in a separate column, I think the Dolphins offense has evolved past the Wildcat, making it largely obsolete. You'll have to wait for that column, but as for the use of the Wildcat for the rest of the season, I would only like to see it for two reasons: 1) To test to see how a defense will respond to it, and continue if we have immediate success; 2) If our offense isn't moving as a way of changing things up. In either case, please find a way to pass out of it. I almost wonder if the Dolphins are saving something up.
Overall Offense:
Though they only scored 16 points, the Dolphins played very well on offense and controlled the football. The O played a large part in dominating the time of possession by 15 minutes, and it was truly Dolphins football with the tight ends involved and mistake-free efficiency. Look for the aforementioned follow-up column which will go into depth on the strategic state of the Dolphins offense, specifically the running game.
Run Defense:
The run defense was instrumental in allowing the Dolphins to play their brand of football on Sunday. Marshawn Lynch is a talented back, but by bottling him up the Dolphins were able to put the game in JP Losman's hands, exactly where they wanted it. It took discipline and solid tackling, and the guys up front got it done to the tune of 13 carries for 31 yards.
Kendall Langford was one guy who stood out and is coming on strong at the end of his rookie season. He had his struggles, but he has pushed through that wall and is using his strength well lately. He also had two hurries during the game.
Other highlights included Jason Ferguson coming unblocked and making a stop in the backfield, our destruction of the Wildcat when Buffalo tried to turn the tables, and the continued domination of Matt Roth. One big reason the Patriots were successful against the Dolphins is because they went small and took Roth out of the game, but any team that tries to use their base against us has to run away from Roth, who manhandles and abuses opposing tight ends.
Pass Rush:
The pass rush could not seem to muster much for a lot of the game, as the Dolphins continued to struggle in that department, until they suddenly flipped a switch and everybody seemed to be getting to JP Losman late.
A lot of the early struggles had to do with lane discipline issues. For a team that has trouble finishing a lot of their pressures with sacks, this created a huge problem. Losman took off and scrambled very effectively for a lot of yardage. Thankfully, this was the most effective way the Bills ever really moved the ball, as the secondary bailed the pass rush out on the many occasions when Losman had time back there.
All the way until well into the fourth quarter, the Dolphins struggled to rush the passer, with the exception of one play by Charlie Anderson, who I was very happy to see have his coming out party. On a third down in the second quarter, Anderson forced Losman to fumble, only to have Losman pick it up and throw to Marshawn Lynch, who proceeded to drop the pass. Still, the Dolphins continued having issues rushing the passer, even when the Bills went with an empty backfield. The one thing I will say is that they at least started changing up the looks they were giving. I noticed some zone blitzing amongst the cleverness that confused Losman.
Finally, after more missed opportunities at sacks (Ferguson) and offsides (Porter), the Bills had moved into field goal range in the fourth quarter. The secondary had taken Miami so far, consistently getting the defense off the field, but the Bills were finally moving it until Charlie Anderson made his biggest impact play of the season. Again, with a speed move, he forced Losman to fumble, this time knocking the Bills out of field goal range and forcing the punt. He really was excellent Sunday, and if pass rushing continues, he and Matt Roth make an excellent combination at the outside linebacker spot across from Porter.
Speaking of Porter, as he and the rest of the pass rush finally woke up, he made a great move on a sack to force the Bills to punt from their own two yard line later in the quarter, and he finished the game by retaking the sack lead in the league with a sack/forced fumble. Vonnie Holliday also awoke to force a tripping penalty when he had a pressure. Everybody looked alive and got into Losman's head in the final stanza, a beautifully ugly site for the Buffalo offensive line. At that point the only issue was, where was it the whole game? Let's hope that the Dolphins rediscovered something.
Secondary:
The Dolphins mixed things up in coverage on Sunday very effectively, with the two biggest personnel changes being the move of Will Allen back to the outside in the nickel and Nate Jones becoming the nickel back instead of Jason Allen or Joey Thomas, who was inactive. The secondary again played great, the most instrumental unit in holding the offense without a touchdown for the second straight game. Losman looked confused all day, and even when he had time, he didn't stand a chance.
Lee Evans, the noted Dolphin-killer, was held to three catches, and that was the type of day it was for the Bills passing game. They went 1-10 on third down conversions, and the defensive backs were as responsible as any for keeping the Bills off the field. Key defining moments included Will Allen's end zone interception on the fade route (thank you, Mr. Official), which absolutely sucked the life out of the Bills' comeback attempt, and Yeremiah Bell's game-sealing tackle of Marshawn Lynch.
As for Nate Jones, he fared decently. There was one play where he fell and was beaten badly, but Losman overthrew everybody by about 15 yards, so there was no harm. It has been three weeks and three nickel backs; let's see if this one sticks.
Overall Defense:
It was a great effort, obviously, in holding the Bills to three measly points, but the defense owes a lot to the offense's execution of the gameplan, which was equally important in keeping the Bills off the field. Still, stopping Marshawn Lynch and forcing a 10% third down conversion rate says a lot, as the defense certainly executed their game plan as well, making Losman look every bit as bad as he is. Let's hope that the pass rush picks up where they left off at the end of this one and Charlie Anderson is for real because, in that case, the Dolphins have a playoff defense to be reckoned with.
Special Teams:
Dan Carpenter must be paying somebody somewhere a lot of money. The leading Pro Bowl vote getter at kicker who won AFC Special Teams Player of the Month for November won AFC Special Teams Player of the Week this week for going 3-4 on field goals in a dome. I am very happy that we have a consistent rookie kicker, but the most impressive thing about him is his ability to win awards! Meanwhile, though he has executed most of his directional kickoffs well (it would be nice if you could put it into the end zone in a dome), he had two bad kickoffs against the Bills, one of which might have cost a touchdown had he not made the tackle himself. There must have been some poor special teams play in the AFC this week...
Fields continued exhibiting his weak leg, but he was bailed out by a good bounce once and a muff another time. I really wouldn't expect to see him around next year. The Dolphins coverage teams were good against the reputable Bills special teams. Again, however, the return game wasn't there. I'd really like to see Ginn take one to the house before the end of the season, and at this point I can't see any reason not to have both guys back on every punt return. The Dolphins didn't do it once and it cost them 20 yards on a punt that Bess couldn't field.
Coaching:
-Spanano finally threw the red flag out at the right time.
-Excellent game plan and well executed. Getting the tight ends involved is a key to this offense. Also, the Bronco-waggle play that Elway made famous was used a few times on Sunday and is a nice fit in this offense.
-The Dolphins made the interesting decision to decline a 2nd and 10 holding call on the Bills, bringing up 3rd down instead of 2nd and 20.
-I don't know if it was Chad or Henning that made the decision, but a draw on 3rd and 7 from around the 15 was a peculiar call, too.
Overall, the team played very well and executed a game plan which relied on our strengths. A very sound coaching job. Great win, and with our destiny and a first place tie, our next order of business is the resurgent 49ers at home.
Offensive Line:
Without Justin Smiley, you had to be nervous going into this one. Jake Long was the only strong offensive lineman still on his feet from Week 1. However, the reshuffled group really stepped up and played well in the big game. Long was his usual monstrous self, but the key was the unusually fine play from the interior linemen.
Samson Satele had one of his best games of the year and seemed to thrive as the main man in the middle. A big key for the Dolphins offense is when Satele starts comboing off to the second level, and he was able to do that effectively numerous times Sunday. After Al Johnson got all the reps in practice on Wednesday, either the rest or fear of losing his job led Satele to play an inspired game. If he can consistently play this well, even against big tackles, he will be around for a long time.
As for the guards, Alleman again stood out for his run blocking prowess. He is very strong and always seems to get a push. He needs some work in pass protection, but he could be a really solid player for us in the future and is another potential answer at center next year.
Ndukwe also played well, and Frye made the most of his opportunities, impressively filling in at both guard spots throughout the day. Carey, too, had his best game in quite some time.
Running Backs:
This time, Ronnie was our best back, but what really stood out was how good this position is as a unit. We have four guys who can really run with the ball, and it makes the Dolphins very difficult to defend.
Ronnie Brown had a fantastic day. He gained seven yards by himself on a second quarter play and looked great carrying the ball all day. He was patient as usual and elusive in the open field, making the most of his 16 carries. Ricky Williams also was an effective runner, looking very fast on the track which he knows so well. Unfortunately, his best run, where he showed great vision cutting back for a touchdown, was called back.
The biggest surprise, and one of the best finds of the year, has been Lou Polite. He had a great second effort on a third and one which led to the touchdown, and he also converted a fourth and one en route to a field goal. That's two huge plays instrumental in scoring ten points. As usual, he also blocked very well.
My only gripe with this unit continues to be how they are used. I think Henning could to a better job managing and maximizing carries for the R+R show, as our two best weapons continue to get lots of R+R on the sideline. While it is a difficult circumstance to navigate having two backs who both get better with more carries, and I give Henning lots of credit for his innovations this year, it has usually been pretty clear who the better back is by the end of one period. I believe that if you make it a point to get the ball to that back, not only will he get 20+ carries, but the other should also end with at least 10 as you will probably be moving the ball and building a lead if one of these stars gets going. Give it to whoever is feeling it, and watch the yards and carries pile up for both by the end of the game.
Quarterback:
Mr. Consistency only missed six time of his 29 attempts in this one, including a perfect second half. People are starting to talk about him as an MVP candidate if this team wins the division, and while I don't think he'll win, he is mounting a bit of an argument.
Regardless, this was another game where, to use a pitching analogy, Chad didn't have his best "stuff." His balls lacked velocity, yet he found a way to get it done again. He abused the deep middle of the Bills' secondary early, and stepped up and converted a few third downs as well. Highlights included his touchdown to Fasano and another sweet throw on a little wheel over Ronnie Brown's shoulder. Thanks in large part to Chad, the Dolphins are on pace for the fewest turnovers in a season in NFL history, and Pennington became just the third Miami Dolphin to pass for 3,000 yards in a season on Sunday. Thanks, Brett!
Wide Receivers:
Devone Bess is quickly starting to look like Wes Welker III, with an extra special emphasis on the adverb. Not only in the sense of his feet, which jitterbug him away from defenders before and after the numerous receptions that he makes, but it has only taken him three games of extended duty to become one of the most productive undrafted rookies in the league. Even more impressive than his feet may be his hands, which hauled in nine passes on Sunday, and his quarterback friendly nature. He is truly a pleasure to watch on a bubble screen, always making the first defender miss, and at one point fearlessly taking the ball back across the formation for a big gain. If the Dolphins can acquire a big time receiver next year, the Dolphins become downright scary to defend for any secondary with less than four top notch corners.
On the negative side, Ted Ginn was invisible. In the first series of the game, he missed a catchable third down slant, apparently out of fear of taking a hit, and his day was downhill from there. He even had a false start penalty at one point, something that should never happen to a wide receiver. How invisible was he? Even Ernest Wilford had more catches than him.
Tight Ends:
Luckily, along with Bess, the tight ends stepped up and picked up the slack for Teddy. As has been the case all year, this offense is at its best when the tight ends are catching passes, and on Sunday they made their presence felt. There were five catches between them, a modest figure, but it was sufficient as Fasano had his first big play in weeks on the touchdown and Martin had a big first down reception. The play action game needs to work to these guys, so let's hope that they stay involved the rest of the way. They certainly aren't adding much with their blocking.
Wildcat:
The Wildcat was no good on Sunday. The Bills were all over it, penetrating and creating lots of issues. The Dolphins haven't shown any ability to pass out of it in weeks, and teams are loading up to stop the run. Just like when we go empty, I am beginning to take issue with it, because it unnecessarily tells the defense what we are going to do.
However, as I will discuss in a separate column, I think the Dolphins offense has evolved past the Wildcat, making it largely obsolete. You'll have to wait for that column, but as for the use of the Wildcat for the rest of the season, I would only like to see it for two reasons: 1) To test to see how a defense will respond to it, and continue if we have immediate success; 2) If our offense isn't moving as a way of changing things up. In either case, please find a way to pass out of it. I almost wonder if the Dolphins are saving something up.
Overall Offense:
Though they only scored 16 points, the Dolphins played very well on offense and controlled the football. The O played a large part in dominating the time of possession by 15 minutes, and it was truly Dolphins football with the tight ends involved and mistake-free efficiency. Look for the aforementioned follow-up column which will go into depth on the strategic state of the Dolphins offense, specifically the running game.
Run Defense:
The run defense was instrumental in allowing the Dolphins to play their brand of football on Sunday. Marshawn Lynch is a talented back, but by bottling him up the Dolphins were able to put the game in JP Losman's hands, exactly where they wanted it. It took discipline and solid tackling, and the guys up front got it done to the tune of 13 carries for 31 yards.
Kendall Langford was one guy who stood out and is coming on strong at the end of his rookie season. He had his struggles, but he has pushed through that wall and is using his strength well lately. He also had two hurries during the game.
Other highlights included Jason Ferguson coming unblocked and making a stop in the backfield, our destruction of the Wildcat when Buffalo tried to turn the tables, and the continued domination of Matt Roth. One big reason the Patriots were successful against the Dolphins is because they went small and took Roth out of the game, but any team that tries to use their base against us has to run away from Roth, who manhandles and abuses opposing tight ends.
Pass Rush:
The pass rush could not seem to muster much for a lot of the game, as the Dolphins continued to struggle in that department, until they suddenly flipped a switch and everybody seemed to be getting to JP Losman late.
A lot of the early struggles had to do with lane discipline issues. For a team that has trouble finishing a lot of their pressures with sacks, this created a huge problem. Losman took off and scrambled very effectively for a lot of yardage. Thankfully, this was the most effective way the Bills ever really moved the ball, as the secondary bailed the pass rush out on the many occasions when Losman had time back there.
All the way until well into the fourth quarter, the Dolphins struggled to rush the passer, with the exception of one play by Charlie Anderson, who I was very happy to see have his coming out party. On a third down in the second quarter, Anderson forced Losman to fumble, only to have Losman pick it up and throw to Marshawn Lynch, who proceeded to drop the pass. Still, the Dolphins continued having issues rushing the passer, even when the Bills went with an empty backfield. The one thing I will say is that they at least started changing up the looks they were giving. I noticed some zone blitzing amongst the cleverness that confused Losman.
Finally, after more missed opportunities at sacks (Ferguson) and offsides (Porter), the Bills had moved into field goal range in the fourth quarter. The secondary had taken Miami so far, consistently getting the defense off the field, but the Bills were finally moving it until Charlie Anderson made his biggest impact play of the season. Again, with a speed move, he forced Losman to fumble, this time knocking the Bills out of field goal range and forcing the punt. He really was excellent Sunday, and if pass rushing continues, he and Matt Roth make an excellent combination at the outside linebacker spot across from Porter.
Speaking of Porter, as he and the rest of the pass rush finally woke up, he made a great move on a sack to force the Bills to punt from their own two yard line later in the quarter, and he finished the game by retaking the sack lead in the league with a sack/forced fumble. Vonnie Holliday also awoke to force a tripping penalty when he had a pressure. Everybody looked alive and got into Losman's head in the final stanza, a beautifully ugly site for the Buffalo offensive line. At that point the only issue was, where was it the whole game? Let's hope that the Dolphins rediscovered something.
Secondary:
The Dolphins mixed things up in coverage on Sunday very effectively, with the two biggest personnel changes being the move of Will Allen back to the outside in the nickel and Nate Jones becoming the nickel back instead of Jason Allen or Joey Thomas, who was inactive. The secondary again played great, the most instrumental unit in holding the offense without a touchdown for the second straight game. Losman looked confused all day, and even when he had time, he didn't stand a chance.
Lee Evans, the noted Dolphin-killer, was held to three catches, and that was the type of day it was for the Bills passing game. They went 1-10 on third down conversions, and the defensive backs were as responsible as any for keeping the Bills off the field. Key defining moments included Will Allen's end zone interception on the fade route (thank you, Mr. Official), which absolutely sucked the life out of the Bills' comeback attempt, and Yeremiah Bell's game-sealing tackle of Marshawn Lynch.
As for Nate Jones, he fared decently. There was one play where he fell and was beaten badly, but Losman overthrew everybody by about 15 yards, so there was no harm. It has been three weeks and three nickel backs; let's see if this one sticks.
Overall Defense:
It was a great effort, obviously, in holding the Bills to three measly points, but the defense owes a lot to the offense's execution of the gameplan, which was equally important in keeping the Bills off the field. Still, stopping Marshawn Lynch and forcing a 10% third down conversion rate says a lot, as the defense certainly executed their game plan as well, making Losman look every bit as bad as he is. Let's hope that the pass rush picks up where they left off at the end of this one and Charlie Anderson is for real because, in that case, the Dolphins have a playoff defense to be reckoned with.
Special Teams:
Dan Carpenter must be paying somebody somewhere a lot of money. The leading Pro Bowl vote getter at kicker who won AFC Special Teams Player of the Month for November won AFC Special Teams Player of the Week this week for going 3-4 on field goals in a dome. I am very happy that we have a consistent rookie kicker, but the most impressive thing about him is his ability to win awards! Meanwhile, though he has executed most of his directional kickoffs well (it would be nice if you could put it into the end zone in a dome), he had two bad kickoffs against the Bills, one of which might have cost a touchdown had he not made the tackle himself. There must have been some poor special teams play in the AFC this week...
Fields continued exhibiting his weak leg, but he was bailed out by a good bounce once and a muff another time. I really wouldn't expect to see him around next year. The Dolphins coverage teams were good against the reputable Bills special teams. Again, however, the return game wasn't there. I'd really like to see Ginn take one to the house before the end of the season, and at this point I can't see any reason not to have both guys back on every punt return. The Dolphins didn't do it once and it cost them 20 yards on a punt that Bess couldn't field.
Coaching:
-Spanano finally threw the red flag out at the right time.
-Excellent game plan and well executed. Getting the tight ends involved is a key to this offense. Also, the Bronco-waggle play that Elway made famous was used a few times on Sunday and is a nice fit in this offense.
-The Dolphins made the interesting decision to decline a 2nd and 10 holding call on the Bills, bringing up 3rd down instead of 2nd and 20.
-I don't know if it was Chad or Henning that made the decision, but a draw on 3rd and 7 from around the 15 was a peculiar call, too.
Overall, the team played very well and executed a game plan which relied on our strengths. A very sound coaching job. Great win, and with our destiny and a first place tie, our next order of business is the resurgent 49ers at home.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Fins/Bills: Pregame notes
-The Dolphins have a huge game against Buffalo today. They need to win this AFC East game to stay in line to play the Jets for the division title at the end of the month. As it stands, the Dolphins control their destiny in the division race. Let's keep it that way.
-A part of winning today will be getting back to playing Dolphins football. The Dolphins are still doing well in the turnover department, their 10 tied for the fewest through 12 games in league history, but penalties have become an issue. As Dan Henning pointed out, Miami has had as many penalties in the last two weeks as the rest of the season combined.
-Justin Smiley is done for the season, a terrible loss of our best lineman, a guy playing pro bowl caliber football. However, the Dolphins need to move on and keep finding a way.
The immediate solution figures to be that Ike will stay at right guard and Andy Alleman will become an every down player on the left side, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't hoping to finally see Shawn Murphy getting some playing time. Probably wishful thinking...
A guy who has insiders talking is Al Johnson, the recent signee who started 31 games for Sparano in Dallas and the coach calls "Brilliant." Johnson did practice all day Wednesday with the first group, but not at guard. He spent all day all day at center, indicating that the coaching staff might be acting on something that I noticed weeks ago, that Samson Satele is not strong enough at the point of attack to be our long term solution at center.
I would be surprised if Johnson played any center today, as it is hard to change that position over the course of the game due to the center-quarterback exchange. I believe, rather, that the idea of him practicing was to give the undersized and beat up Samson Satele a much needed extra day off and to immerse Johnson in the system and prepare him for possible action in the future, especially if he starts outperforming Satele on the practice field. It might be a stretch, but I could imagine Johnson starting at center in our final few games with the very quick Satele moving to guard. Time, and performance in practice, will tell.
Meanwhile, taking a peek ahead to next year, Satele needs to seriously beef up if he wants a place on this team. He is a talented guy, but Sparano is not going to put up with a weakling at one of the most important positions on offense. As for Johnson, he seems like a great fit from everything I hear about him, but I've got to wonder why, if he is so great, was he a free agent? It will be exciting to see how that one turns out.
-Weird news. Not only is Dan Carpenter leading all AFC kickers in Pro Bowl balloting, but he was also named AFC Special Teams Player of the Month for November. He has had a nice streak of field goals, but doesn't anybody consider that the Dolphins don't try any long kicks and Carpenter almost never reaches the end zone on kickoffs? I'll credit him for some solid directional kicking of late, but the only award I would give him is chip shot artist of the year.
-Even weirder news. Why was Jason Allen out of the game last week after being listed as probable? Foul play involved? Word out of Davie is that the coaching staff thinks that Joey Thomas might be better than Allen, and that Allen could've gone but the Dolphins thought they might've had a better player active in Thomas. Apparently his two early pass interferences made them think better of their decision: Thomas is inactive today. Something's a little fishy here (excuse the inexcusably awful pun)...
-A part of winning today will be getting back to playing Dolphins football. The Dolphins are still doing well in the turnover department, their 10 tied for the fewest through 12 games in league history, but penalties have become an issue. As Dan Henning pointed out, Miami has had as many penalties in the last two weeks as the rest of the season combined.
-Justin Smiley is done for the season, a terrible loss of our best lineman, a guy playing pro bowl caliber football. However, the Dolphins need to move on and keep finding a way.
The immediate solution figures to be that Ike will stay at right guard and Andy Alleman will become an every down player on the left side, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't hoping to finally see Shawn Murphy getting some playing time. Probably wishful thinking...
A guy who has insiders talking is Al Johnson, the recent signee who started 31 games for Sparano in Dallas and the coach calls "Brilliant." Johnson did practice all day Wednesday with the first group, but not at guard. He spent all day all day at center, indicating that the coaching staff might be acting on something that I noticed weeks ago, that Samson Satele is not strong enough at the point of attack to be our long term solution at center.
I would be surprised if Johnson played any center today, as it is hard to change that position over the course of the game due to the center-quarterback exchange. I believe, rather, that the idea of him practicing was to give the undersized and beat up Samson Satele a much needed extra day off and to immerse Johnson in the system and prepare him for possible action in the future, especially if he starts outperforming Satele on the practice field. It might be a stretch, but I could imagine Johnson starting at center in our final few games with the very quick Satele moving to guard. Time, and performance in practice, will tell.
Meanwhile, taking a peek ahead to next year, Satele needs to seriously beef up if he wants a place on this team. He is a talented guy, but Sparano is not going to put up with a weakling at one of the most important positions on offense. As for Johnson, he seems like a great fit from everything I hear about him, but I've got to wonder why, if he is so great, was he a free agent? It will be exciting to see how that one turns out.
-Weird news. Not only is Dan Carpenter leading all AFC kickers in Pro Bowl balloting, but he was also named AFC Special Teams Player of the Month for November. He has had a nice streak of field goals, but doesn't anybody consider that the Dolphins don't try any long kicks and Carpenter almost never reaches the end zone on kickoffs? I'll credit him for some solid directional kicking of late, but the only award I would give him is chip shot artist of the year.
-Even weirder news. Why was Jason Allen out of the game last week after being listed as probable? Foul play involved? Word out of Davie is that the coaching staff thinks that Joey Thomas might be better than Allen, and that Allen could've gone but the Dolphins thought they might've had a better player active in Thomas. Apparently his two early pass interferences made them think better of their decision: Thomas is inactive today. Something's a little fishy here (excuse the inexcusably awful pun)...
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Fins/Rams: Breakdown
Quarterbacks:
Pennington had a decent game at best. He had a few nice throws, even some when protection broke down, and didn’t make any real negative plays. By the same token, he didn’t do a whole lot to win the game either, and it was frustrating to see him only throw to Ginn and Bess, almost never the backs and tight ends. A nice back shoulder fade to London is worth mentioning, but the most interesting thing that Chad did all day was actually leave the field on a play when the Dolphins ran the Wildcat. Yes, the most interesting…that was the type of game that this was.
Running Backs:
The running game was a chaotic mess today, but I really don’t think you can blame the running backs for much of it. The Dolphins ran a lot of garbage, throwing everything they could think of at the Rams instead of simply running what we run well. Sometimes the plays were there, and sometimes they weren’t, but our running backs were always running hard.
It became apparent early that Ricky was going to be our best runner today, and he was great throughout. He had a nice would-have-been touchdown run if not for a penalty, among many terrific runs. For the last month, really, he has been our best back, but I was disappointed that it took until the fourth quarter to feature him more completely. At that point, of course, he hurt himself. Let’s hope that he’s okay and that this recent injury bug doesn’t continue.
Ronnie was also solid today, with a highlight reel spin on his touchdown run, and he also salvaged a broken trick play by completing a pass to David Martin (who proceeded to fumble). However, he did seem to spend a lot of time on the sideline in the second half, and I wasn’t sure if he was injured, being disciplined, or if (hopefully) it was just the coach’s decision, but he looked frustrated. I’m interested to hear what the story was with that.
Patrick Cobbs was quiet today, but a guy who got a few carries and made the most of them was Polite. He ran the ball very nicely, very hard, and was tough to tackle. That’s one more running back who can carry the football.
The backs played pretty well today, but I don’t think they were used properly, especially considering their lack of involvement in the passing game.
Wide Receivers:
Ginn and Bess both played well today. They were both very active, but unfortunately were the only targets in the passing game all day. With protection, Ginn is very difficult to defend, as his speed in the deep zone opens up comebacks, ins, and outs, along with the vertical. Bess had a nice effort in his game as the number two target, with one really nice catch but also a dropped touchdown. He also was the recipient on a pick play, sadly one of the Dolphins biggest plays of the day. As I mentioned, London had a nice play on a back shoulder fade, and Wilford was basically invisible.
Tight Ends:
Not a great effort from the tight ends today. I was expecting them to play a huge role in the offense after the injury to Camarillo, but to my surprise the Dolphins didn’t really increase the amount of double tight this week. Both Fasano and Martin were pretty invisible in the passing game, with just a reception each, but Martin fumbled his. Also, the only time I really noticed either in the running game was when Fasano got blown up on a pitch play to Ronnie while Miami was trying to run out the clock. Not a good day for these two.
Offensive Line:
With Smiley injured early in the game, the Dolphins suddenly had offensive line issues at all five positions. Long is also battling injury, right guard has been a revolving door, and Satele and Carey have had performance issues all year. Not a great place to start an offense from. Moreover, with Alleman now in the game on every series, it seemed logical for the Dolphins to run the ball a bit more, as he is a very strong run blocker but suspect in the passing game. The Dolphins did some, but not with much of a coherent method.
Jake Long was decent today, but his ankle did appear to be an issue as he got beat by Chris Long once early. Alleman was also good run blocking, as would be expected, but predictably struggled a bit to communicate and move in pass protection. His best play was an early run with Carey pulling behind him. Speaking of Carey, he was called for a second quarter facemask, but the Dolphins did recover and convert after first and 25. Moving back inside, Ike got caught on a weak, unnecessary hold to bring back Ricky’s touchdown, and his play was uninspiring on the whole. In the middle, Satele had an okay day, but he struggled to snap the ball twice in a row in the Wildcat, and more issues is not what the second year player needs.
Overall, I thought the Dolphins really just needed to simplify things and get a push, but there was chaos all day up front and it spread throughout the offense. Hopefully, Miami can get back to basics next week and push the Bills around because right now I would hardly call this an offense.
Defensive Line:
A poor, poor game up front. Not only was there the usual lack of a pass rush, but the Rams pushed Miami around in the running game as well. From the early part of the game and throughout, Stephen Jackson had room to run, and St. Louis was thereby able to control the pace of the game.
I really don't have much to say about any player individually, except that Merling was the only one who approached decent today. Everybody else who played was bad. There was no pass rush and poor run defense. Not a good job, and I'm actually much less confident in the long term prospects of this team up front after watching this game.
Linebackers:
The linebackers, the usual ringleaders in the hitting parade that is the Miami defense, were flat out soft today. If there is one thing the Dolphins defense needs to do to be successful, it is hit, and they just didn't do it today. All of the linebackers deserve a share of the blame in the run blocking woes, with Matt Roth having the best game of the bunch, and Joey Porter was completely neutralized by a half-speed Orlando Pace.
My best guess at why nobody on the defense came to hit today is that they had a bad week of practice. When you have a bad week of practice, you are unsure of where to go, and you play slow. The Dolphins played slow today, and without fire or passion. We cannot continue to play down to our opponents and expect to get better.
Credit Akin Ayodele for making a big play on defense. He came up with a huge pick, even though there was no pressure on Bulger, and though he doesn't get a lot of press, he is absolutely our best linebacker in pass defense.
Secondary:
The defensive backs were excellent today, putting last week's game behind them and getting back to the form they were playing at before. The outlook was ominous at first, with Pace picking up Will Allen's first blitz perfectly and Joey Thomas looking completely outmatched filling in for Jason Allen on two early PI calls. However, from that point forward they had excellent coverage with no real pass rush on Bulger, especially impressive because Miami blitzed a lot today. It's not often that you can blitz, give a quarterback time, and still shut him down. Credit the secondary along with the ineptitude of the Rams.
Interestingly, the only time the Dolphins did get pressure on Bulger was when Will Allen was getting in the backfield. He blitzed a lot today, much more than Miami can continue to afford to send him, but was effective for the most part. Additionally, Renaldo Hill had a big interception, and Goodman closed the day out with his pick. The secondary won this game.
Special Teams:
Coverage was good all day. Credit Patrick Cobbs, Nate Jones, and Courtney Bryan all with nice special teams tackles. Unfortunately, on the returning end Miami did nothing. Tasker, announcing the game, seemed to believe it was because Ginn has been playing offense which affects his ability to return. However, if you watch the game you can see that the Dolphins don't block anybody on kick returns. Ginn is fine.
As far as kicking went, Carpenter made all of his field goal attempts and actually set a rookie record for consecutive conversions, so kudos to him. Unfortunately, we seem to be having leg strength issues, however, as Brandon Fields averages a paltry 41.6 yards per punt. These two are not working wonders for us in field position.
Coaching:
I wasn't impressed with the coaching job today, and am starting to eat my words about the A+ coaching job that I thought Sparano and company were doing. The offense was all over the place today with no coherent strategy to put this awful team away, and the Dolphins overall didn't seem like they came ready to play.
It is the responsibility of the coaches to get the team up for every game, not just when they feel like it, and I'm worried about the effects of Miami playing down to their opponents. Any coach will tell you that the main goal is to improve every week. Especially with a young team like the Dolphins, who are trying to build something, it is imperative to always be looking to get better, never to be satisfied, even if you feel like you played pretty well last week. If you play down to opponents, you aren't focussing on improving like you should, and the end result will be that you don't realize your potential. You can't just decide to all of the sudden play great when you are in New York on December 28th. It needs to be a steady grind, working until you get there. It's something Sparano has preached and the Dolphins had done until the first Bills game, but since then it has been five lackluster, incomplete performances, and I worry about where they are headed. They need to get back on track.
Another issue that I have had is that Sparano is bad at challenging. He has not been good at it all year, and he missed another opportunity when Jackson appeared down short of the chains on a third and one in the second quarter. Whoever is in the booth for Miami needs to get better at that.
Finally, I am at last going to question the decision to move to a 40 front in passing situations. While I understand the theory with our personnel, isn't one of the great things about the 3-4 that you can go after the passer in countless different ways? The Dolphins' pass rush is very vanilla and simple to read, and in a very basic sense it seems odd to have an extra down lineman (it's much more than just Joey Porter and Charlie Anderson putting their hands on the ground) in passing situations. I'd like to see a bit more variety next year.
Notes:
-During one drive in the third quarter, Torry Holt perfectly exemplified why I have always hated him. On one play, he heard footsteps which led to a dropped pass on a completely catchable ball, and on another he committed offensive pass interference to force his team out of scoring range. I'd much rather have a Greg Camarillo on my team.
-Despite the ugly win, the Jets, Pats, and Bills all lost, so today ended up being a pretty good day for Dol-fans.
-Of all the day games today, only Tampa Bay won at home. This is the second week in a row that road teams have a winning record. So much for home field advantage in the NFL.
Pennington had a decent game at best. He had a few nice throws, even some when protection broke down, and didn’t make any real negative plays. By the same token, he didn’t do a whole lot to win the game either, and it was frustrating to see him only throw to Ginn and Bess, almost never the backs and tight ends. A nice back shoulder fade to London is worth mentioning, but the most interesting thing that Chad did all day was actually leave the field on a play when the Dolphins ran the Wildcat. Yes, the most interesting…that was the type of game that this was.
Running Backs:
The running game was a chaotic mess today, but I really don’t think you can blame the running backs for much of it. The Dolphins ran a lot of garbage, throwing everything they could think of at the Rams instead of simply running what we run well. Sometimes the plays were there, and sometimes they weren’t, but our running backs were always running hard.
It became apparent early that Ricky was going to be our best runner today, and he was great throughout. He had a nice would-have-been touchdown run if not for a penalty, among many terrific runs. For the last month, really, he has been our best back, but I was disappointed that it took until the fourth quarter to feature him more completely. At that point, of course, he hurt himself. Let’s hope that he’s okay and that this recent injury bug doesn’t continue.
Ronnie was also solid today, with a highlight reel spin on his touchdown run, and he also salvaged a broken trick play by completing a pass to David Martin (who proceeded to fumble). However, he did seem to spend a lot of time on the sideline in the second half, and I wasn’t sure if he was injured, being disciplined, or if (hopefully) it was just the coach’s decision, but he looked frustrated. I’m interested to hear what the story was with that.
Patrick Cobbs was quiet today, but a guy who got a few carries and made the most of them was Polite. He ran the ball very nicely, very hard, and was tough to tackle. That’s one more running back who can carry the football.
The backs played pretty well today, but I don’t think they were used properly, especially considering their lack of involvement in the passing game.
Wide Receivers:
Ginn and Bess both played well today. They were both very active, but unfortunately were the only targets in the passing game all day. With protection, Ginn is very difficult to defend, as his speed in the deep zone opens up comebacks, ins, and outs, along with the vertical. Bess had a nice effort in his game as the number two target, with one really nice catch but also a dropped touchdown. He also was the recipient on a pick play, sadly one of the Dolphins biggest plays of the day. As I mentioned, London had a nice play on a back shoulder fade, and Wilford was basically invisible.
Tight Ends:
Not a great effort from the tight ends today. I was expecting them to play a huge role in the offense after the injury to Camarillo, but to my surprise the Dolphins didn’t really increase the amount of double tight this week. Both Fasano and Martin were pretty invisible in the passing game, with just a reception each, but Martin fumbled his. Also, the only time I really noticed either in the running game was when Fasano got blown up on a pitch play to Ronnie while Miami was trying to run out the clock. Not a good day for these two.
Offensive Line:
With Smiley injured early in the game, the Dolphins suddenly had offensive line issues at all five positions. Long is also battling injury, right guard has been a revolving door, and Satele and Carey have had performance issues all year. Not a great place to start an offense from. Moreover, with Alleman now in the game on every series, it seemed logical for the Dolphins to run the ball a bit more, as he is a very strong run blocker but suspect in the passing game. The Dolphins did some, but not with much of a coherent method.
Jake Long was decent today, but his ankle did appear to be an issue as he got beat by Chris Long once early. Alleman was also good run blocking, as would be expected, but predictably struggled a bit to communicate and move in pass protection. His best play was an early run with Carey pulling behind him. Speaking of Carey, he was called for a second quarter facemask, but the Dolphins did recover and convert after first and 25. Moving back inside, Ike got caught on a weak, unnecessary hold to bring back Ricky’s touchdown, and his play was uninspiring on the whole. In the middle, Satele had an okay day, but he struggled to snap the ball twice in a row in the Wildcat, and more issues is not what the second year player needs.
Overall, I thought the Dolphins really just needed to simplify things and get a push, but there was chaos all day up front and it spread throughout the offense. Hopefully, Miami can get back to basics next week and push the Bills around because right now I would hardly call this an offense.
Defensive Line:
A poor, poor game up front. Not only was there the usual lack of a pass rush, but the Rams pushed Miami around in the running game as well. From the early part of the game and throughout, Stephen Jackson had room to run, and St. Louis was thereby able to control the pace of the game.
I really don't have much to say about any player individually, except that Merling was the only one who approached decent today. Everybody else who played was bad. There was no pass rush and poor run defense. Not a good job, and I'm actually much less confident in the long term prospects of this team up front after watching this game.
Linebackers:
The linebackers, the usual ringleaders in the hitting parade that is the Miami defense, were flat out soft today. If there is one thing the Dolphins defense needs to do to be successful, it is hit, and they just didn't do it today. All of the linebackers deserve a share of the blame in the run blocking woes, with Matt Roth having the best game of the bunch, and Joey Porter was completely neutralized by a half-speed Orlando Pace.
My best guess at why nobody on the defense came to hit today is that they had a bad week of practice. When you have a bad week of practice, you are unsure of where to go, and you play slow. The Dolphins played slow today, and without fire or passion. We cannot continue to play down to our opponents and expect to get better.
Credit Akin Ayodele for making a big play on defense. He came up with a huge pick, even though there was no pressure on Bulger, and though he doesn't get a lot of press, he is absolutely our best linebacker in pass defense.
Secondary:
The defensive backs were excellent today, putting last week's game behind them and getting back to the form they were playing at before. The outlook was ominous at first, with Pace picking up Will Allen's first blitz perfectly and Joey Thomas looking completely outmatched filling in for Jason Allen on two early PI calls. However, from that point forward they had excellent coverage with no real pass rush on Bulger, especially impressive because Miami blitzed a lot today. It's not often that you can blitz, give a quarterback time, and still shut him down. Credit the secondary along with the ineptitude of the Rams.
Interestingly, the only time the Dolphins did get pressure on Bulger was when Will Allen was getting in the backfield. He blitzed a lot today, much more than Miami can continue to afford to send him, but was effective for the most part. Additionally, Renaldo Hill had a big interception, and Goodman closed the day out with his pick. The secondary won this game.
Special Teams:
Coverage was good all day. Credit Patrick Cobbs, Nate Jones, and Courtney Bryan all with nice special teams tackles. Unfortunately, on the returning end Miami did nothing. Tasker, announcing the game, seemed to believe it was because Ginn has been playing offense which affects his ability to return. However, if you watch the game you can see that the Dolphins don't block anybody on kick returns. Ginn is fine.
As far as kicking went, Carpenter made all of his field goal attempts and actually set a rookie record for consecutive conversions, so kudos to him. Unfortunately, we seem to be having leg strength issues, however, as Brandon Fields averages a paltry 41.6 yards per punt. These two are not working wonders for us in field position.
Coaching:
I wasn't impressed with the coaching job today, and am starting to eat my words about the A+ coaching job that I thought Sparano and company were doing. The offense was all over the place today with no coherent strategy to put this awful team away, and the Dolphins overall didn't seem like they came ready to play.
It is the responsibility of the coaches to get the team up for every game, not just when they feel like it, and I'm worried about the effects of Miami playing down to their opponents. Any coach will tell you that the main goal is to improve every week. Especially with a young team like the Dolphins, who are trying to build something, it is imperative to always be looking to get better, never to be satisfied, even if you feel like you played pretty well last week. If you play down to opponents, you aren't focussing on improving like you should, and the end result will be that you don't realize your potential. You can't just decide to all of the sudden play great when you are in New York on December 28th. It needs to be a steady grind, working until you get there. It's something Sparano has preached and the Dolphins had done until the first Bills game, but since then it has been five lackluster, incomplete performances, and I worry about where they are headed. They need to get back on track.
Another issue that I have had is that Sparano is bad at challenging. He has not been good at it all year, and he missed another opportunity when Jackson appeared down short of the chains on a third and one in the second quarter. Whoever is in the booth for Miami needs to get better at that.
Finally, I am at last going to question the decision to move to a 40 front in passing situations. While I understand the theory with our personnel, isn't one of the great things about the 3-4 that you can go after the passer in countless different ways? The Dolphins' pass rush is very vanilla and simple to read, and in a very basic sense it seems odd to have an extra down lineman (it's much more than just Joey Porter and Charlie Anderson putting their hands on the ground) in passing situations. I'd like to see a bit more variety next year.
Notes:
-During one drive in the third quarter, Torry Holt perfectly exemplified why I have always hated him. On one play, he heard footsteps which led to a dropped pass on a completely catchable ball, and on another he committed offensive pass interference to force his team out of scoring range. I'd much rather have a Greg Camarillo on my team.
-Despite the ugly win, the Jets, Pats, and Bills all lost, so today ended up being a pretty good day for Dol-fans.
-Of all the day games today, only Tampa Bay won at home. This is the second week in a row that road teams have a winning record. So much for home field advantage in the NFL.
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