Dolphins Looking to Leave San Diego with a W

By Ronn Burner • on September 24, 2009

(0-2) Miami Dolphins at (1-1) San Diego Chargers (-6.5) 1:15 PST

WHEN MIAMI HAS THE BALL:
If the Dolphins even come close to their offensive output Monday night against the Colts they should be fine provided the drives end with 7 instead of settling for 3. This Chargers front 4 will be a lot harder to push around than the Colts were and you can be sure that San Diego will make the necessary Wildcat adjustments the Colts neglected to make thus putting the ball in Fins Offensive Coordinator Dan Henning’s court. The success Ronnie Brown, Ricky Williams and even Patrick Cobbs last week on the ground (61-239) including 12-107 out of the Wildcat formation should really open some passing lanes this week that Chad Pennington and the receiving corps must exploit. That said the Chargers are extremely talented in the Secondary and especially at corner where Ted Ginn and Rich Camarillo will think they’re driving around Quentin Jammer and Antonio Cromartie in the “Ride Along” program. TE Anthony Fasano is set to have a big day as the middle of the field and down the seams is probably where the Chargers are most vulnerable provided Miami is effectively running the ball. It also goes without saying but the Dolphins WR’s and I suppose we can include Ginn in that category have to contribute and at the very least pose enough of a threat to keep keep the secondary on their heels and not jumping routes and helping in run support. It’s key that Miami is successful on the ground to keep Shawn Merriman from pinning back his ears with missile lock on Pennington.

WHEN SAN DIEGO HAS THE BALL:
Unfortunately, San Diego is a horrible matchup for the Dolphins defense. LaDanian Tomlinson will almost certainly be out for this game and surprisingly that scares me more than him playing. The slippery Darren Sproles will be all over the field driving Dolphin defenders crazy and TE Antonio Gates has been relatively silent thus far leading one to believe that he’s due for a monster game. Phillip Rivers has a number of weapons to choose from so if Miami misses tackles and blow assignments like they did Monday they will get blown out of the stadium. In addition to those three another threat that cannot be taken lightly is emerging star WR Vincent Jackson and his 6’5” frame to go along with excellent strength, hands, route running and play making ability. The Chargers offense is no joke and it will take a herculean effort to contain them and the defense will have to force turnovers to keep the Chargers inevitable point total at a minimum.

KEY MATCH-UP:
Darren Sproles Vs. Dolphins Linebackers
The success of the Dolphins defense versus this potent Chargers offense rides squarely on how well they can contain Darren Sproles. He will be all over the field in every formation designed to catch Miami in a bad matchup where Sproles can get the ball in space and in man to man situations where either Channing Crowder, a banged up Akin Ayodele or Quentin Moses find themselves in the impossible task of covering him. It’s key that the Miami stuffs the run and contains Sproles and the constant barrage of screen plays, dumps, check offs and swing passes he will most certainly be receiveing. Bottom line: Miami must force someone else to beat them, not Darren Sproles.

WHAT WILL HAPPEN:
Each team is coming off a loss but the Chargers are in cruise control for the AFC West crown while the Dolphins are essentially playing a play off game considering that no team in NFL history has ever reached the Super Bowl after starting 0-3. Granted, the deck is stacked against the Dolphins having to make the west coast trip on a short week coming off one of the most demoralizing losses since the Dan Marino era but lost all the hoopla surrounding the fashion in which Miami lost is that they did, in fact, play an excellent game. I believe the Dolphins are well aware of the importance of this game and will match last week’s intensity and play an inspired game and get each of the two things they’ve lacked most, turnovers and a big play offensively.

Dolphins 30
Chargers 27

Dolphins Dominate to Move to 0-2. What?

By Ronn Burner • on September 22, 2009

My attitude right now is pure disgust and I would really like nothing more than to recap the Colts vs. Dolphins Monday Night game as simply “Whatever”. End of article. What more do you want me to say? The Dolphins executed their game plan to near perfection yet were embarrassed by the poor man’s Dan Marino, an unfair way I like to refer to Peyton Manning. Bottom line: The Dolphins did NOT make plays and they had numerous opportunities to do so and the Colts did with minimal opportunities hence the 27-23 loss.

In a record setting twelve seconds into their home opener on Monday Night Football the Miami Dolphins made not one but two critical errors and found themselves down to Peyton Manning the Indianapolis Colts 7-0. Kanye West doesn’t stun and silence crowds that fast. On the play, LB Akin Ayodele committed a cardinal sin against Manning and bit on a play action pass freeing up TE Dallas Clark up the seam where S Gibril Wilson contributed with the unforgiveable missed tackle at the Dolphins 40 that resulted in the 80-yard touchdown. Dolphins fans would have been better off flipping the channel to “Project Runway” at that point to avoid the most sickening loss Dolphin fans have had to endure since, ironically a Monday Night Football game back in 2000 versus the Jets. I know! I hate to bring it up but it’s the same exact disgusting feeling! Against the Jets, Miami blew a 30-7 4th quarter lead by allowing them to score 30 points in the final 13:07 to ultimately lose 40-37. Last night hurt. It is a very demoralizing loss for a team heading into a west coast trip, on a short week against a certain playoff team in the San Diego Chargers. Miami will have to go 10-4 the rest of the way just to be in the Wild Card hunt against the toughest schedule in the NFL. Another season that may be 7 days from being lost.

Lets just hope the men inside the locker room don’t share my “end of the world” overreaction and deem the season as pointless as a Courtney Love public service announcement. Thank god they won’t, they better not. After the smoke clears and the film sessions take place there are many positives to take away from this game. After all, it’s only one loss despite the fact that losing in this fashion is so demoralizing that it would be easier to go in the tank and essentially quit than it would to get back up, dust yourself off and stick it to each and every opponent for the remainder of the season. Luckily, Bill Parcells and Tony Sparano won’t tolerate anything less than 100% effort and let’s not lose sight of the fact that Miami absolutely dominated the Colts, which has to stand for something even in defeat.

Listen to these gaudy numbers Miami has to recognize as the recipe for success even though in this rare instance it wasn’t. Miami was 15-21 on 3rd down conversions, which is spectacular. Miami dominated Time of Possession 45:07 to 13:53, a record since they kept records on such things beginning in 1977. The Dolphins gashed the Colts defense by running the ball 61 times for 239 yards including numerous successful run out of the Wildcat formation. All many positives that mean something and if they get these numbers then 10-4 the rest of the way isn’t only possible but very likely, of course, getting those numbers again is the challenge.

The bad news is the Colts had scoring drives that lasted a whopping 12, 32 and 43 seconds. Manning had 13 completions for 303 yards while connecting on plays of 80, 48, 39, 24 and 20 yards while Miami’s biggest play was a 21 yarder to Ted Ginn. The Dolphins 2 minute drill was about as hard to watch as a Cher concert. So horribly frightening that you just couldn’t turn away. On the flip side of the ball there has to be some serious concerns about the Fins pass defense and it cannot be blamed on the rookies as Sean Smith played very well even though he had safety help to protect him. And yet the most disturbing thing that can be taken away from the game is despite Ted Ginn seemingly having one of his best days as a pro all I can take from it is he is not nor will ever be more than a marginal wide receiver and he made this evident, if I’m being kind, on three plays in particular. The play near the end of the first half where he short armed Chad Pennington strike in the back of the end zone like if he touched it he would be electrocuted, the 3rd down pass that he went down to his knees for that went right through his arms and of course the play at the end of the game that he flat out dropped. He’s just not special and I just can’t justify defending him any longer. I’m sorry, I’ve held out for as long as possible on passing judgment on his game but after failing when we needed him most there’s nothing more I can say on his behalf. Although his Head Coach feels differently than I do according to this puff of smoke he blew up Ginn’s but via coach speak, “That was a hard catch,” coach Sparano said. “I think Teddy … made the best effort he could with that football.” Either that puff was an exhale from a Bob Marley blunt or he was just flat out being blunt and quite literally saying that that really was the best effort Ginn is capable of. You can hardly blame Ginn for losing the game but unfortunately we can’t say he won the game either.

There’s always next week.

Burner’s Fearless Predictions - Week 2

By Ronn Burner • on September 21, 2009

Week 2 – Sunday, September 20, 2009

Time to bounce back after a brutal Week 1.

Best Bets denoted by asterisk (*)

*Oakland (0-1) @ Kansas City (0-1) -3.5
Darren McFadden and the surprising talented offense of the Raiders will go into Arrowhead trying to prove their stellar performance against the Chargers wasn’t a fluke. KC doesn’t have the defense to stop them or the offense to keep up with Brodie Croyle at quarterback.
Raiders 20-16

Raiders 13-10

Jamarcus Russell with a huge final drive to win late on the road. Very impressive even if it was against the hapless Chiefs. Hey, refreshing change from telling a story about the hapless Raiders.

*Houston (0-1) @ Tennessee (0-1) -6.5
The Titans look to bounce back at home after a heartbreaking loss to division rival Pittsburgh last week. If the Texans can’t get pumped up at home against a rookie quarterback than what are they going to do here? The Titan defense will be way too much for the Texans who have yet to score offensively this year.
Titans 27-13

Texans 34-31

Texans bounce back from awful home opener where their only points came on a pick 6. Titans blew two 2 touchdown leads behing a stellar performance from Chris Johnson. Matt Schaub played great and Andre Johnson is a beast but this raises serious questions about the Titans defense.

Arizona (0-1) @ Jacksonville (0-1) -3.5
Jacksonville played Indy close last week but the game was not near as close as the score and conversely the Cardinals played better than people think. I think the Cardinals offense comes back to life and get in the win column on the road.
Cardinals 24-23

Cardinals 31-17

Jack Del Rio and the Jags have to be disappointed starting 0-2 and the Cards have to be excited about the big road win after a horrible week 1 performance at home to the 49ers.

New England (1-0) @ nyj (1-0) +5.5
Thanks Kerry Rhodes for ticking off Tom Brady and Bill Belichek.
Patriots 37-20

nyj 16-9

It pains me to say this but the nyj defense looks scary good and they’re still just learning Rex Ryan’s aggressive blitz package. Fans have to be excited “Gang Green”. Converesely, the Patriots and Tom Brady held without a touchdown for the first time in forever have to feel lucky to not be 0-2 after eeking out a victory on Leotis McKelvin’s bonehead decision to return that kickoff he fumbled last week opening the door for Brady.

Minnesota (1-0) @ Detroit (0-1) +9.5
Adrian Pederson may have 200 yards and 4 TD’s here. Home dogs on home openers are scary, especially when they are 9 ½ point dogs but the combination of a rookie qb against this stout Viking defense and AP against the Lions front 4 spells blowout.
Vikings 27-13

Vikings 27-13

Not often can you call a score exactly but it happens. Detroit fought hard but in the end the Vikings running game and defense was just to much to overcome. Detroit will find wins this year while Minnesota and Brett Favre will be a tough victory for anyone.

New Orleans (1-0) @ Philadelphia (1-0) -1.5
Mostly because I hate Philly and want New Orleans to win I’ll take them. I really do think the Eagles without McNabb are in trouble and despite a very solid Eagles defense I just think Drew Brees is on a mission and in the zone.
Saints 31-24

Saints 48-22

Add three more TD’s to Drew Brees’ stats and another 48 to the point total in another convincing offensive show by the Saints. Philly was without Donovan McNabb but I’m not so sure the results would have been much different. Both good teams and almost certainly playoff teams where we just may get to find out.

*St. Louis (0-1) @ Washington (0-1) -9.5
Washington played pretty well against the Giants last week in a hard fought grudge match so they welcome the Rams for their home opener. Washington will dominate both sides of the ball and cruise.
Redskins 31-13

Redskins 9-7

I don’t understand the Redskins. Are they good? Are they bad? Three field goals in your home opener against the Rams after a tough division loss to the Giants is pretty telling. They did get the win but sweating one out against the Rams makes you think they won’t win a game this year that isn’t decided in the final minute.

Carolina (0-1) @ Atlanta (1-0) -6.5
Another case of one team playing over their head and the other team not showing up in their first game. Atlanta looked spectacular against Miami last week but then again, that was Miami. I think Jake Delhomme and Company find more success this week and keep it close.
Falcons 23-17

Falcons 28-20

Atlanta looks great in moving to 2-0 and the score is closer than the game really was with Carolina scoring a touchdown late and even having a chance in the final seconds before the Falcons picked off Jake Delhomme on 4th and goal. Carolina goes to Dallas who is rebounding from a tough loss to the Giants and is staring 0-3 right in the eye. Not good since 0-3 generally spells a season lost.

Cincinnati (0-1) @ Green Bay (1-0) -9.5
Lambeau is a tough place to play and the Bengals aren’t exactly a great road team but I get the feeling Carson Palmer comes out slinging and improves drastically on the abysmal performance last week where they lost on Brandon Stokely’s fluky last second score.
Packers 24-23

Packers 31-24

The Bengals go into Lambeau and light it up after struggling mightily offensively to the Broncos last week. The Packers struggled all day and found themselves playing catchup. Huge bounce back win for Cincinnati if they think they can compete for the division and shocking loss for the Packers to open at home against a team they have to feel they should have beaten handedly.

Tampa Bay (0-1) @ Buffalo (0-1) -4.5
The Bills bounce back after their heartbreaking loss to the Patriots last week. The Bucs just have two many holes and injuries to pose a threat right now.
Bills 24-13

Bills 33-20

The Bills offense shredded the Bucs on the ground with Fred Jackson while T.O. and Trent Edwards took care of the passing game. Buffalo should be 2-0 after blowing that game last week against the Patriots and now with the nyj taking out NE it appears the AFC East is anyone’s ballgame. Tampa Bay will struggle to win 4 games this year.

Seattle (1-0) @ San Francisco (1-0) -1.5
The 49ers have quietly won 6 of their last 8 regular season games dating to last year continuing with an impressive road win in Arizona last week. The Seahawks are a different team away from home and the 49ers start the season 2-0.
49ers 27-23

49ers 23-10

The San Francisco 49ers are 2-0 and look to be one of the bigger early season surprise teams in beating the Seahawks coming off an impressive victory of their own in shutting out the lowly Rams 28-0. Seattle played poorly on the road as usuall and couldn’t muster any offense while Frank Gore broke 2 huge touchdown runs of 79 and 80 yards which proved to be more than enough.

Cleveland (0-1) @ Denver (1-0) -3.5
Denver isn’t very good at all but will likely start 2-0 playing a Cleveland team with no identity on offense and a less than dominant defense. Cleveland doesn’t travel well and the Broncos will be riding high – Mile High – after their miracle win in Cincinnati.
Broncos 24-20

Broncos 27-6

The Broncos are 2-0 and have to be happy about their start but I still think 8-8 is the best they can hope for while the Browns will be lucky to find 4 wins on their schedule.

Pittsburgh (1-0) @ Chicago (0-1) +2.5
Two physical teams facing one another after losing their best defensive players already. Troy Polamalu tweaked his knee and Brian Urlacher dislocated his wrist and is lost for the year. This will be a tight ball control game going down to the wire but I’ll take Pittsburgh simply because Chicago’s offense look horrible and that Steelers defense is nasty.
Steelers 20-17

Bears 17-14

Pretty much the game we all expected basically decided by two 4th quarter missed field goals by Jeff Reed which ultimately cost the Steelers the win they should have had. Give the Bears and Jay Cutler credit though for scoring with 6:21 left to tie the score and the opportunity to take advantage of the Steelers uncharacteristic blunders.

Baltimore (1-0) @ San Diego (1-0) -3.5
Ladanian Tomlinson is out and Darren Sproles takes over against the vicious Ravens defense. If they can contain Sproles they have a great shot at the elusive cross country road win. Joe Flacco and the Ravens offense came to life last week and should be able to score enough to win.
Ravens 27-24

Ravens 31-26

There isn’t a more impressive team in the league right now than the Baltimore Ravens, Saints fans would have a case though. Joe Flacco and the Ravens offense looks unstoppable while the Ravens defense is it’s usual formidable self. The Chargers looked impressive as well behind huge days from Philip Rivers, Darren Sproles and Vincent Jackson. Expect to see these two matchup again in January.

NY Giants (1-0) @ Dallas (1-0) -2.5
Tony Romo looked amazing last week and this game will finally unveil the new Cowboys Stadium and their controversial score board. Everything is me want to pick the Cowboys but the Giants always seem to take care of business so I’ll go with the great defense and ball control offense .
Giants 27-21

Giants 33-31

The division nemesis Giants came to town and ruined Jerry Jones and the Cowboys home opener and unveiling of the revolutionary video monitor scoreboard. Eli Manning looks as calm and cool as any quarterback in the league and the Giants never seem to get rattled. Of course, four Cowboy turnovers aided in that and despite thrashing the Giants defense on the ground the Cowboys still couldn’t get the victory at home.

Monday, September 21
Indianapolis (1-0) @ Miami (0-1) +3.5
Peyton Manning must be licking his chops at the chance to play against 2 rookie corners as Sean Smith and Vontae Davis will platoon but with the loss of Anthony Gonzales the Dolphins may be able to rattle Manning and their high octane offense. If Miami gets their offense rolling they will be fine.
Dolphins 27-23

Colts 27-23

Whatever.

This Week ATS – 10-6
Season to date ATS – 16-16
This Week Best Bets – 1-2
STD Best Bets – 1-5

The Two-Headed Rookie Monster

By Ronn Burner • on September 18, 2009

We have all seen the two-headed monster before in one form or another in football. Mothers-in-law excluded. We’ve seen it work effectively at times and fail at others at quarterback, running back, wide receiver, tight end and even all over the defensive line but at cornerback? The ‘Ole Ball Coach’ Steve Spurrier at one time was known to rotate quarterbacks from series to series in both college and even at the NFL level. It’s become fairly common at both the collegiate and the professional level to use a two back system splitting carries. There was “Thunder and Lightning”, “Earth, Wind and Fire”, “Smash and Dash” and I’m sure many others that escape me at the moment. Heck I remember the days in high school and college when we ran our plays in through rotating wide receivers. All of those scenarios make perfect sense for different reasons. At running back it’s a great thing combining a speed scat back with a bruiser for the goal line and short yardage situations both saving wear and tear on the player and keeping the defense out of rhythm. At wide receiver it’s also probably a good thing because it allows for the opportunity to keep players fresh, to have an individual relay the play call efficiently and effectively and more importantly, it generally means you have talent and depth at the position to do it. Now at quarterback I would argue that it’s probably not a good thing. It’s just me but it’s the position to lead men, and by rotating them it gives the player himself a complex by being unsure and that is no way to lead men. I also think it means you’re probably not very good at the position and you’re trying to see if one guy can emerge as the clear better player. Not good at quarterback as it’s success rate would indicate. So what are we to make of our newly crowned two-headed rookie monster at cornerback with Sean Smith and Vontae Davis?

First of all, we need to think of a sick nickname for the two of them and it generally has to do with their skill set and size. Smith is much taller that Davis, he’s graceful, extremely fast for his size, he’s very athletic and as a former wide receiver he’s been know to make filthy one handed picks and he has a all the confidence in the world to go with his perma-grin. Davis is shorter but much more physical and in your face. His style is pesky and he love contact and the bump and run. He’s athletic and strong as an ox for his size, his cover skills in man to man are nasty and he definitely has no shortage in confidence himself. I’m thinking “Truth and Justice”.

Ok that was fun, but is this a good idea? Is it better to let one separate himself from the other by his play on the field or is better to put one at nickel until the chosen starter proves he is or is not an NFL caliber corner? For many reasons I hate it starting with Peyton Manning. Miami tried this last week with each corner getting over 30 plays rotating every two series to moderate success. In reality neither one got beat deep or made a mental error or drew a penalty or looked lost. They both looked like rookies that played about as well as you could hope for at the cornerback position at the highest level. No offense to 2nd year player Matt Ryan but he is no Peyton Manning. I fear the thought of Manning walking up to the line and licking his chops as he calls a play on 3rd and 9 that he knows is going to tie one of these youthful talents into a know resulting in moving the chains long enough to get them to bit for the inevitable home run that he will hit to Reggie Wayne. It’s just hard to imagine them not getting picked on all night. But that’s the short term and growing pains are inevitable and the only way these kids can get better is being out there and learning from their mistakes or just learning from playing. Selfishly, I want a Dolphins win Monday night but in the big picture what they will learn on Monday night can’t be quantified but could advance their young careers ions. And who says they have to struggle anyway? Maybe a true star will be born as what better opportunity to shine or fail than against one of the games best. Come 10:PM Monday night we may know who our next great corner will be.

Colts @ Dolphins Week 2 Preview

By Ronn Burner • on September 17, 2009

Week 2 – Preview

Indianapolis Colts (1-0) @ Miami Dolphins (0-1)

WHEN INDY HAS THE BALL:
It’s the home opener on Monday Night Football so one would think the fans would be as loud as possible to at least try and rattle Peyton Manning and the Colts high octane offense. Manning is the master of catching defenses in bad matchups with his audibles at the line. With WR Anthony Gonzales out of action you can expect Reggie Wayne and Dallas Clark to be the targets of probably 25-30 passes for sure so it’s vital that most of them fall incomplete. Miami was excellent at keeping Michael Turner at bay and should have excellent success stuffing the Colts running game which isn’t thought to be anywhere near that of the Falcons. Phillip Merling and Kendall Langford have each shown great improvement over the past year in both their run stopping and pass rushing abilities and we all know what Jason Taylor and Joey Porter like to do against passing teams. Manning is tough to sack but constant pressure on him has cause him to play poorly, relatively speaking, in the past. Similar to last week rookie Sean Smith and Vontae Davis will platoon ever couple series at Cornerback and you can bank on Manning testing them early and often. It’s imperative we get a pass rush on Manning to help the talented but inexperienced duo.

WHEN MIAMI HAS THE BALL:
First and foremost they need to hold onto it. Putting additional stress on the defense is no way to break into the win column against Peyton Manning. Quite the contrary, Miami needs to protect the football and move the chains keeping Mr. Manning on the sidelines and limiting his opportunities. Great idea in theory but unless the Dolphins offensive line vastly improves on last weeks performance they will have similar results. Jake long needs to slow down Dwight Freeney for starters or we’ll be seeing Chad Henne replace our injured Chad Pennington by halftime. Miami absolutely must establish themselves at the point of attack to run the football. It all starts at the line and getting Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams successfully running the ball. The last thing we need is the Colts pinning their ears back on 3rd and long. If that means unleashing the Wildcat numerous time than so-be it. Play calling was extremely conservative last week and Miami has to find a way to not only get the football into Ted Ginn’s hands but they need to stretch the field just to keep the Colts honest. Miami should have more success running the ball this week with improved play, it’s the home opener and the Colts being undersized which all should play into Miami being more aggressive offensively beginning with play calling and continuing with CP10’s willingness to throw it downfield giving his receives an opportunity to make plays. And oh by the way, Colts star safety Bob Sanders is out. Thank God!

KEY MATCHUPS:
Jake Long vs. Dwight Freeney
After last week Long has a chip on his shoulder to prove that his performance was an aberration and not the norm. He’ll be ready and he better be as Freeney is a whole level better than John Abraham was, which is saying a lot. If Long has success, the Dolphins will have success. If he doesn’t, Miami offense will make last weeks performance look like the ’84 Dolphins offense.

FEARLESS PREDICTION:
The Dolphins offense bounces back and come out throwing catching the Colts off balance resulting in open running lanes for Ronnie and Ricky to run through. The Dolphins defense doubles Reggie Wayne all day and nobody else i.e. newly signed Hank Baskett or Pierre Garcon steps up to fill Anthony Gonzales shoes. Behind the excitement of MNF and the home opener the Fins frustrate Manning and the Colts offense sputters.

Colts 23
Dolphins 27

Dolphins @ Falcons Week 1 Recap

By Ronn Burner • on September 16, 2009

Falcons 19
Dolphins 7

Miami turned the ball over 4 times after tying a league record last year with only 13 for the season. The offensive line was manhandled for 3 hours. The Falcons from four looked quicker, stronger, smarter, hungrier and more athletic. It really was embarrassing and two years in 1st overall selection Jake Long looked worse than he ever has, which is a horrible signing considering Dwight Feeney will be coming to town Monday night. Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams combined for 17 carries for 82 yards. Chad Pennington had pressure in his face all day including being sacked 4 times. Really not much to say other than Miami’s highly paid line was completely dominated. Ted Ginn was a non-factor again but it’s actually hard to blame him, he appeared to be wide open a few times with poorly thrown balls by both CP10 and Pat White on a Wildcat play that should have resulting in a 60 yard touchdown. How do you overthrow the fastest guy in the NFL by 10 yards? Miami never really posed a threat offensively due to the combination of play calling and Pennington’s unwillingness or inability to throw the ball downfield. This was truly one of the worst offensive performances I can remember from the Dolphins ever, and there have been some poor days.

The bright side of things, if there even were any, would be the defense that played fairly well for the majority of the game. Michael Turner only had 65 yards on 22 carries with his longest run being only 12 yards. Tony Gonzales was every bit the matchup problem we expected hauling in 5 grabs for 73 yards and a score. Atlanta really only had 281 yards which considering the minimal help the offense gave them is pretty good and Atlanta only converted on 6 of 15 3rd downs. Once again the defense stiffened in the red zone allowing only 1 touchdown in 4 opportunities. Rookies Sean Smith and Vontae Davis played very well all day not allowing the big play despite being picked on which says a lot moving forward. Miami didn’t force any turnovers though and they will need to in order to move to the next echelon.

At the end of the day it’s only one loss so it’s not time to panic entirely but there are clearly issues that need to be addressed in the film room and practice field and hopefully they will be but how many wrinkles can be ironed out before the Colts bring their high powered offense into town Monday night is the question. We shall see.

NFL Picks – Week 1

By Ronn Burner • on September 10, 2009

Football is finally here, which mean every Joe Schmoe around will make claims that make you sick. “I knew they were going to win by 20!” “What were you thinking taking those guys.” That guy just annoys the hell out of me so each week I will post a short thought or two on each game and post a prediction against the spread (ATS) and a final score. For no reason whatsoever other than just simply putting it out there and hoping to get some criticism as to why I’m such an idiot. My trick… it’s simple. Vegas begs us to bet one way and baits us with something that looks like an “easy” win or “lock” so when we bite they lick their chops and watch the other side win so they can add more amzaing Hotels to their sky line. I like talking lines and covers so here’s my thoughts. My favorite 3 games are in red with an asterisk (*) denoting so. I’ll tell you right now that two games jump out as “sucker” bets, Minnesota and Philadelphia. I’m not saying I know it all but to me that is Vegas telling us to pick them. I’ll take Cleveland and Carolina. Oh by the way, I don’t know nothing.

Week 1 – September 13, 2009

(Thur.) Tennessee @ Pittsburgh -5.5

No way the Champs lose their home opener, right? Heinz Field will be loud and going bonkers and the Steelers will be amped. Tennessee will keep it close and try to win the field position battle but it won’t be enough in this low scoring affair.

Steelers 20-16 (Steelers 13-10 OT)

Hines Ward. Whew.

Kansas City @ Baltimore -12.5
The Ravens are for real and will show everyone why. Their defense will dominate and this one won’t be close. The Chiefs will struggle to move the ball and score points. Ray Rice will have a huge day running the ball.
Ravens 31-13 (Ravens 38-24)

More shocking? Ravens gave up a lot of points. Ravens scored a lot of points.

ny jets @ Houston -4.5
A cold weather team, playing on the road in the ridiculous Houston heat, with a rookie quarterback starting his 1st game. I’ll take Houston. Not to mention that Matt Schaub and company should be vastly improved.
*Texans 24-17 (NYJ 24-7)

Mark Sanchez. Wow.

Dallas @ Tampa Bay +5.5
The Cowboys just have too many weapons offensively for the Bucs to contain. Tampa will try to eat clock and put together long drives. If they can do so and keep Tony Romo of the field and out of rhythm it should be closer than you might think.
Cowboys 24-20 (Cowboys 34-21)

Tony Romo looked great.

Philadelphia @ Carolina +1.5
I hate this line. It makes me feel like Vegas is begging you to take The Eagles. You know what that means? Bet Carolina! The Eagles will be a very good playoff team and Carolina has some defensive line issues to work out but I expect DeAngelo Williams to run wild.
Panthers 27-23 (Eagles 38-10)

Vegas is brilliant, I am stupid.

Detroit @ New Orleans -13.5
This has blowout written all over it. Making me think it won’t be but I just can’t take Detroit here on the road with a rookie QB. Despite the rookie, Matt Stafford I still think Detroit will be much better on both sides of the ball than expected. I see 3 maybe 4 wins but many competitive games. Just not this one.
Saints 34-20 (Saints 45-27)

Drew Brees. Oh my gawd.

Minnesota @ Cleveland +4.5
Cleveland can expect a barrage of Adrian Peterson early and often. The Vikings smothering defense will give Brady Quinn fits but the Browns are better than advertised and the Vikings can’t blow anybody out. I like the home dog to cover but still lose a close one.
Vikings 23-20 (Vikings 34-20)

AP is disgusting. 2000 yards is a lock if he stays healthy. 2300 yards is possible.

MIAMI @ atlanta -4.5
Miami will run all over the Falcons defense keeping Matt Ryan and that potent Falcons offense on the sideline. Atlanta should find some success through the air and Michael Turner is capable of taking over any game but I’m calling for the upset here. Take the moneyline. (Editors Note: Betting with heart here.)
Dolphins 27-20 (Falcons 19-7)

Either Atlanta is unbelievably good or Miami is unbelievably bad. Ugly game. Fins are soft. Atlanta crushed them.

Jacksonville @ Indianapolis -4.5
The Colts on their home turf are always tough but jack Del Rio always seems to get his guys to play Peyton Manning and the Colts tough. David Garrard is much better than he gets credit for and another reason this one will be closer than expected.
Colts 27-23 (Colts 14-12)

Pesky Jags always play Peyton and the Colts tough. Reggie Wayne dominated.

Denver @ Cincinnati -4.5
Call me crazy but I think the Bengals will be very good this year and should have no problem looking like it as they face the Broncos who I expect to be one of the leagues bottom feeders. The Cinci offense with a healthy Carson Palmer and focused Chad Ochocinco should be potent.
Bengals 27-13 (Broncos 12-7)

Brandon Stokley’s fluky miracle late Touchdown was the only watchable play. Bengals should be very disappointed.

St. Louis @ Seattle -8.5
Steven Jackson is great, unfortunately he is the Rams only legit player and that won’t be anywhere near enough against a much-improved Seahawks team. Matt Hasselback should have a field day against a horrible Rams defense.
Seahawks 30-13 (Seahawks 28-0)

Impressive win earning a shutout in the NFL even if it is the pathetic Rams.

Washington @ NY Giants -6.5
I just get the feeling that the Giants will be back to their Super Bowl form and the Redskins will take a step back from mediocrity to not good. Despite the division rivalry this just feels like a Giants easy win.
*Giants 23-10 (NYG 23-17)

Giants look very solid all the way around but that defense is ferocious.

San Francisco @ Arizona -6.5
Mike Singletary will get his troops to play hard and tough but Kurt Warner and that high-powered Cardinals offense will be just too much for the 49ers to deal with. Despite the improving Niners offense they really have more than Frank Gore, which will not be enough to keep up.
*Cardinals 27-13 (49ers 20-16)

Super Bowl hangover? Kurt Warner was harassed all day.

Chicago @ Green Bay -3.5
I don’t care what the situation is, when these two teams play each other and the line is over 3, TAKE THE POINTS. Bitter rivals and the addition of Jay Cutler, the emergence of Devin Hester at WR and Matt Forte a banafide elite back, I think the Bears can keep up with and score on a good Green Bay team.
Bears 27-24 (Packers 21-15)

Jay Cutler looked bad. Aaron Rodgers didn’t. Losing Urlacher for the year is unfortunate.

(MNF) Buffalo @ New England -10.5
The last time Tom Brady played football he threw for 50 touchdowns. The Patriots are back and although they may not set scoring records this year I don’t think they’re going to struggle. Buffalo is a mess and Fred Jackson is a solid stand in for suspended Marshawn Lynch but he’s not going to be enough and T.O. isn’t going to be the savior Bills fans are hoping for.
Patriots 34-20

Horseshoes and hand greneades. Just adds to the Patriots mystique and the Bills doldrums.

(Weird other MNF) San Diego @ Oakland +9.5
Oakland can’t possibly be as bad as advertised and I’ve never even taken a sip of the Chargers punch so despite the obvious expected blowout I’m going with the big time home dog here. The Chargers are dangerous offensively but the Raiders defense is pretty good actually and I think they have enough weapons to put points on the board this year behind Darren McFadden.
Chargers 27-20

Wow. A game that actually went as I envisioned it would. The Chargers are not as good and the Raiders are not as bad as advertised.

Week 1 Record ATS: 6-10
Overall Record ATS: 6-10

Week 1 Best Bets: 0-3

Dolphins vs. Falcons Preview

Week 1 – Dolphins vs. Falcons

This will mark the 11th meeting between these two franchises with Miami holding a decisive 7-3 advantage. That said, the Falcons currently have bragging rights by defeating the Dolphins 17-10 the last time these two faced one another way back in 2005. That was a long time ago and very few players remain for either side so you can pretty much throw that out the window.

WHEN ATLANTA HAS THE BALL:
Stop Michael Turner. Is that all? No, but if you can’t do that then the rest isn’t really going to matter is it? It’s no secret Atlanta will try to open up the passing game by pounding the run. If Turner runs downhill it’s going to be a very long day because, frankly, we’re just not explosive enough offensively to compete in a shootout, or are we? I’ll get to that in the “When Miami has the Ball” section. Miami will look to attack defensively with a stop-the-run first mentality that will require the front seven to keep Turner at bay, meaning averaging less than 4 yards per carry. If he exceeds that number early and forces FS Gibril Wilson and SS Yeremiah Bell to cheat up compiled with even a hesitation by the secondary on a play action and WR Roddy White or TE Tony Gonzales, yes that Tony Gonzales will be showing us their version of the “Dirty Bird”. God, I hope NT Jason Ferguson and DE’s Kendall Langford and Phillip Merling get a huge push upfront both in stuffing the run and collapsing the pocket putting added pressure on Atlanta’s young and talented QB, Matt Ryan. If they don’t the amount of stress put on our Corners will be immense, Will Allen is one thing but putting that kind of pressure on rookie Sean Smith in his first career game is begging for trouble regardless of how talented he is. Although, we may not have to worry about that kind of time if Jason Taylor and Joey Porter play even remotely close to the level Dolfans have grown accustomed to then they should be able to tell you what Ryan’s breath smells like.

WHEN MIAMI HAS THE BALL:
Here’s the good new: Atlanta cannot stop the run allowing 4.9 yards per carry last year. Matchup wise, Miami handedly has the advantage. The Dolphins offensive line is much larger and really should control the line of scrimmage. If they don’t, Miami gets blown out. Considering the line is finally healthy and with a 100% healthy Ronnie Brown and a fresh Ricky Williams, who looked great in the preseason, pounding that undersized Falcon front 7 Miami should move the chains all day with long time consuming drives. Obviously the ground attack should free the WR’s and TE Anthony Fasano downfield allowing for the ever efficient field general Chad Pennington to pick apart the Falcons secondary. This game will actually be a very good indicator as to how much better we have gotten offensively because there’s really no reason to believe that Atlanta can stop them. It wall also be essential to the rest of the season to get Teddy Ginn Jr. off early and often. It is of uberimportance that Ginn gains the confidence as soon as possible to firmly establish himself as the primary big play receiver Miami not only expects him to be but needs him to be. I think Ginn has a huge game because I’m quite certain Tony Sparano realizes how valuable it is, to not only GInn but the entire Dolphin offense, that he be successful. I expect Ginn to catch 7 balls for 100+ yards and a touchdown.

KEY MATCHUP:
Tony Gonzales vs. Miami’s secondary
The one x-factor that scares the bejesus out of me is future Hall of Famer Tony Gonzales. He’s so big and athletic that on 3rd and anything and in the red zone he will be a massive target that we must figure out how to stop. Stopping Turner is priority #1 but what good will that do if Gonzales shreds us?

HOW MUCH DO THE DOLPHINS WIN BY?:
I may as well call this section “Da Bears” because I don’t care if we’re playing the All-Madden team I still think we’re going to dominate! The worst thing I can do is predicting a Dolphins loss and they win. I couldn’t live myself in that scenario and I sort of have to live with myself so I will always be picking the Fins.

Dolphins 27
Falcons 20

NFL Picks – Week

By Ronn Burner • on September 10, 2009

Football is finally here, which mean every Joe Schmoe around will make claims that make you sick. “I knew they were going to win by 20!” “What were you thinking taking those guys.” That guy just annoys the hell out of me so each week I will post a short thought or two on each game and post a prediction against the spread (ATS) and a final score. For no reason whatsoever other than just simply putting it out there and hoping to get some criticism as to why I’m such an idiot. My trick… it’s simple. Vegas begs us to bet one way and baits us with something that looks like an “easy” win or “lock” so when we bite they lick their chops and watch the other side win so they can add more amzaing Hotels to their sky line. I like talking lines and covers so here’s my thoughts. My favorite 3 games are in red with an asterisk (*) denoting so. I’ll tell you right now that two games jump out as “sucker” bets, Minnesota and Philadelphia. I’m not saying I know it all but to me that is Vegas telling us to pick them. I’ll take Cleveland and Carolina. Oh by the way, I don’t know nothing.

Week 1 – September 13, 2009

(Thur.) Tennessee @ Pittsburgh -5.5
No way the Champs lose their home opener, right? Heinz Field will be loud and going bonkers and the Steelers will be amped. Tennessee will keep it close and try to win the field position battle but it won’t be enough in this low scoring affair.
Steelers 20-16

Kansas City @ Baltimore -12.5
The Ravens are for real and will show everyone why. Their defense will dominate and this one won’t be close. The Chiefs will struggle to move the ball and score points. Ray Rice will have a huge day running the ball.
Ravens 31-13

ny jets @ Houston -4.5
A cold weather team, playing on the road in the ridiculous Houston heat, with a rookie quarterback starting his 1st game. I’ll take Houston. Not to mention that Matt Schaub and company should be vastly improved.
*Texans 24-17

Dallas @ Tampa Bay +5.5
The Cowboys just have too many weapons offensively for the Bucs to contain. Tampa will try to eat clock and put together long drives. If they can do so and keep Tony Romo of the field and out of rhythm it should be closer than you might think.
Cowboys 24-20

Philadelphia @ Carolina +1.5
I hate this line. It makes me feel like Vegas is begging you to take The Eagles. You know what that means? Bet Carolina! The Eagles will be a very good playoff team and Carolina has some defensive line issues to work out but I expect DeAngelo Williams to run wild.
Panthers 27-23

Detroit @ New Orleans -13.5
This has blowout written all over it. Making me think it won’t be but I just can’t take Detroit here on the road with a rookie QB. Despite the rookie, Matt Stafford I still think Detroit will be much better on both sides of the ball than expected. I see 3 maybe 4 wins but many competitive games. Just not this one.
Saints 34-20

Minnesota @ Cleveland +4.5
Cleveland can expect a barrage of Adrian Peterson early and often. The Vikings smothering defense will give Brady Quinn fits but the Browns are better than advertised and the Vikings can’t blow anybody out. I like the home dog to cover but still lose a close one.
Vikings 23-20

MIAMI @ atlanta -4.5
Miami will run all over the Falcons defense keeping Matt Ryan and that potent Falcons offense on the sideline. Atlanta should find some success through the air and Michael Turner is capable of taking over any game but I’m calling for the upset here. Take the moneyline. (Editors Note: Betting with heart here.)
Dolphins 27-20

Jacksonville @ Indianapolis -4.5
The Colts on their home turf are always tough but jack Del Rio always seems to get his guys to play Peyton Manning and the Colts tough. David Garrard is much better than he gets credit for and another reason this one will be closer than expected.
Colts 27-23

Denver @ Cincinnati -4.5
Call me crazy but I think the Bengals will be very good this year and should have no problem looking like it as they face the Broncos who I expect to be one of the leagues bottom feeders. The Cinci offense with a healthy Carson Palmer and focused Chad Ochocinco should be potent.
Bengals 27-13

St. Louis @ Seattle -8.5
Steven Jackson is great, unfortunately he is the Rams only legit player and that won’t be anywhere near enough against a much-improved Seahawks team. Matt Hasselback should have a field day against a horrible Rams defense.
Seahawks 30-13

Washington @ NY Giants -6.5
I just get the feeling that the Giants will be back to their Super Bowl form and the Redskins will take a step back from mediocrity to not good. Despite the division rivalry this just feels like a Giants easy win.
*Giants 23-10

San Francisco @ Arizona -6.5
Mike Singletary will get his troops to play hard and tough but Kurt Warner and that high-powered Cardinals offense will be just too much for the 49ers to deal with. Despite the improving Niners offense they really have more than Frank Gore, which will not be enough to keep up.
*Cardinals 27-13

Chicago @ Green Bay -3.5
I don’t care what the situation is, when these two teams play each other and the line is over 3, TAKE THE POINTS. Bitter rivals and the addition of Jay Cutler, the emergence of Devin Hester at WR and Matt Forte a banafide elite back, I think the Bears can keep up with and score on a good Green Bay team.
Bears 27-24

(MNF) Buffalo @ New England -10.5
The last time Tom Brady played football he threw for 50 touchdowns. The Patriots are back and although they may not set scoring records this year I don’t think they’re going to struggle. Buffalo is a mess and Fred Jackson is a solid stand in for suspended Marshawn Lynch but he’s not going to be enough and T.O. isn’t going to be the savior Bills fans are hoping for.
Patriots 34-20

(Weird other MNF) San Diego @ Oakland +9.5
Oakland can’t possibly be as bad as advertised and I’ve never even taken a sip of the Chargers punch so despite the obvious expected blowout I’m going with the big time home dog here. The Chargers are dangerous offensively but the Raiders defense is pretty good actually and I think they have enough weapons to put points on the board this year behind Darren McFadden.
Chargers 27-20

Overall Record ATS: 0-0

Overall Record SU: 0-0

Overall Best Bets: 0-0

The Dolphins repeat as Division Champs!(?)

Why the Miami Dolphins can and will defend their current crown as AFC East Champions. Let’s stack this up using the simplest way to narrow any sum down to one single answer by beginning with the process of elimination. Four teams, one Champion. Sure the Bills added Terrell Owens and “they” added Mark Sanchez to bolster their respective offenses but if that doesn’t reek of sheer desperation than I don’t know what does. As far as matchups are concerned the Dolphins should have little trouble treating the Bills and “them” like the step-children they are. The Fins will absolutely dominate in the trenches on both sides of the ball against the Bills. I really don’t see how the Bills can put up points on our defense and I’m not even going into any notion that a rookie quarterback will lead his team to a Division title.

So let’s move on to the real debate here. Can the Dolphins hold off the Patriots? Well, let’s say they each win at home and obviously they’re both going to sweep the Bills and “them” putting them both at 5 wins right there. The Dolphins are returning everyone and adding good players thus not disturbing any homeostasis and momentum that they acquired throughout last season, the Patriot will be plugging in Tom Brady, who is recovering from major knee surgery, back into the lineup with obvious question marks with his health, timing and frame of mind not to mention the fact that the Patriots do not have a quality back that he can just turn and hand it to. Everything will be riding on how well Tom Brady can bounce back from a devastating knee injury. They go on the road to Indianapolis and New Orleans while the Dolphins get them at home and while they both face Tennessee, albeit a road game for the Fins, the Patriots are still forced to play the Ravens and Panthers while the Fins get cupcakes locally in Tampa bay and Jacksonville. Despite Miami boasting the toughest schedule in the NFL they have the luxury of getting the toughest games at home, something the Patriots wish they had.

The other key factor here is frame of mind. While the Patriots strut onto the field living on their laurels the Dolphins will be carrying a very large chip on their shoulder and frothing at the mouth to prove that last year was no joke and they are for real, especially against the division foes that don’t take Miami serious as AFC East Champs. The 2009 Miami Dolphins will be playing with something to prove and this time around they have confidence, belief and for the first time in many years… the talent.

2009 Miami Dolphins Season Preview

At this time last year most of us Dolfans were simply hoping to erase the memories and the horrible taste left in our mouths after the atrocious 1-15 season we barely endured. What we got was an amazingly dynamic season that not only brought us a new regime almost entirely, a new quarterback, a new formation and a new attitude but it also brought us an 11-5 record, a playoff birth and our first Division Championship since 2000. Yes, the Miami Dolphins, our Miami Dolphins are the defending AFC East Champions. It still doesn’t even sound right as I write it down now eight months later. It is a fact though, which means the Patriots, Bills and that other team will be circling Miami on their schedules… ok, I doubt they’re overly concerned but rest assured they’ll be ready this time around and more than happy to knock us off of what they would consider our “default” pedestal.

So here we are and for the first time in three years we will be heading into a season with the same GM, coaching staff, offensive and defensive schemes and maybe more importantly with swagger, attitude and confidence. The Dolphins will be healthier, more prepared, and with expectations that exceed just trying to not go winless but to defend their reigning crown as division Champs. Then who knows? Why can’t they win the Conference? Then what? Only one game left to play at that point, right? Anything can happen in one game. The ball bounces funny ways and all that. The point is, the Dolphins are no longer a pushover, an easy W on the opposition’s schedule, in fact, they are quite the contrary. If you win, you will have earned it. They will be a physical, hard-nosed team that will bring a smash mouth style from both sides of the ball and win, lose or draw the imposing of the Dolphins will be felt into the early parts of the following week. The momentum and results of last year will carry over and I assure you that every last man on the final 53 will wholeheartedly believe that they can win any game on their schedule. And for good reason, they can….. well, not in a row.

Now before you accuse me of being two sheets to the wind from drinking too much of the Bill Parcells and Tony Sporano punch let me set the record straight. I do not think the Dolphins will go 12-4, win the AFC East, march through the playoffs enroute to their 3rd Super Bowl title. I do, however, think they will be a very solid football team that should have no excuse for not competing for the division crown and at the very least a wild card birth. Most so-called experts expect nothing more than an 8-8 season and despite facing the Patriots twice and boasting the toughest schedule in the NFL I think a 9-7 season is reasonable and a lucky bounce here or there and now we’re looking at 10-6 and in most cases that’s a playoff birth.

Defensively, in 2008, the Fins were smack dab in the middle almost across the board ranking 15th in overall defense while only allowing 19.8 points per game, finishing ninth, which I’m sure they’d take again this year but will obviously be looking to improve upon it. The defensive line returns NT Jason Ferguson, who is more than capable at both stopping the run and creating a push up front with the help of DE’s Kendall Langford and Randy Starks, although Sporano would love for practice under achiever Phillip Merling to beat Starks out for that spot but he has been less than spectacular thus far in camp showing little signs of urgency. Channing Crowder looks to follow up his sensational year in the middle alongside the steady Akin Ayodele. OLB Joey Porter will be reunited with the last of the Dolphins to play with Dan Marino, Jason Taylor. Reportedly JT is looking like the JT of old and if Porter returns to the Porter of the first 10 games last year than they should be kissing the ear holes of opposing quarterbacks every 30 seconds.

Obviously, the secondary was not our strong suit last year but with the addition of JT and another year of perfecting the 3-4 the Dolphins should be improved up front from last season giving quarterbacks less time in the pocket resulting in taking some pressure of our secondary, which is vital considering Rookie Sean Smith (Utah) looks like the likely starter opposite Will Allen. With headhunter Gibril Wilson sitting in the middle and FS Yeremiah Bell re-signed and returning center field there is a lot of expectation and promise from this unit.

Other hopeful contributors on the defense include 1st Round draft pick, Vontae Davis (Illinois), who is likely to get a lot of playing time in both the Nickel and Dime packages. OLB Cameron Wake, the beast from up north in Canada that came into camp with huge buzz that we have yet to see fully unleashed in game action. At the very least he, pres-season stand out Quentin Moses and Charlie Anderson will be better than average rotating dance partners for Taylor and Porter with the idea of having 4 fresh pass rushers at all times.

Offensively, the Fins are by any other standard, still a mess. At the very least they are inconsistent with a lot of questions at every unit except the backfield where it looks like CP10, Ronnie Brown and FB Lousaka Polite are etched in stone with the occasional spell of Ricky Williams and Sporano favorite Patrick Cobbs, who benefited as much as anyone from the “Wildcat” formation. Chad Henne will have his time to be sure but that time is not now. Chad Pennington is the guy and rightfully so. With a revamped and healthy o-line I don’t think there isn’t any reason (ok, other than WR) to believe that we can’t improve on the 21.6 points per game and 21st overall offensive ranking.

The offensive line is anchored by Pro Bowl LT Jake Long who is as solid as Miami could have ever hoped for drafting him #2 overall in 2007, scary to think how great he could become after his dominating year last year and still but a baby. Next to him is returning starter Justin Smiley, who is now healthy. Free agent acquisition via the Raiders Jake Grove, and significant run blocking upgrade, will be snapping to CP10. Vernon Carey returns to RT and the surprisingly effective RG Donald Thomas is back healthy and having a great pre-season completes the line. High praise and even bigger expectations ride with this line, and more importantly as this unit goes, so goes the Dolphins.

The biggest mess sans Special Teams on the entire squad is the receiving core. At this point, we’re not even sure if Sporano is keeping 5 or 6 receivers. My guess is Ted Ginn, Davone Bess and Rich Camarillo are safely making the team and I expect Brian Hartline and Patrick Turner will also survive the cut. There’s a wrinkle if Camarillo is on the PUP (Physically Unable to Perform) list which would then allow Miami to keep 5 active WR’s and that would likely be Brandon London. We shall see, the bottom line is Ginn MUST step up and be a major contributor this year. Miami needs production, play making threats and consistency out of whoever is on the field or the offense will sputter all year long which equates to a bad season. Get open, catch the ball and make a play… if that doesn’t happen we are in for a long frustrating season.

Anthony Fasano will be the pass catching threat from the TE position but near the goal line David Martin and the strongest blocker of the group, 6’8” John Nalbone are great weapons.

Special Teams was a circus last year to put it nicely. They stunk, period, at covering kicks. That has to improve because frankly, they couldn’t possibly be as bad again this year. Brandon London launches booming punts but it’s a useless weapon when we can get down and cover them. Dan Carpenter, who may lose his job to Connor Barth though I doubt it, is a fine kicker with an above average leg but again, kickoff coverage is unacceptable and must improve.

Please, God, let the Fins block, run, catch and tackle their way to 10 wins… or a sweep of “them”. Thank you and Amen.

Ronn Burner

5 Preseason Observations – Good vs. Evil

Observations as I see it after 3 preseason games as a die hard Dolfan and eternal optimist by nature i.e. “Good” versus the unbiased opinions of a knowledgeable fan with a high football IQ based on 25 years of playing, coaching and watching it religiously i.e. reality, which in this case equates to “Evil”. Yeah, yeah, yeah, mega run-on sentence but it was needed for effect to look at this as objectively as a biased fan can, a complete oxy moron. (Insert joke here.)

Evil Observation #1: We stink!
If preseason is any indication, and it is, the Dolphins will be a whole lot closer to their 1-15 debacle of 2 years ago than they will to their 11-5 aberration of last year. I’m being serious here, the magic number for Miami is 6. Six wins would be a push and smack dab in the middle of each of those dynamically different seasons. The fact we are even having this conversation is making me nauseous. Here’s the facts: the offensive line is struggling opening lanes and we’re not running the ball near well enough, tackling has been atrocious, big plays on either side of the ball are rarer than DMX showing up for a court date, the secondary has more holes in it than “Back to the Future”. Oh yeah right, like his parents didn’t recognize him 20 years later? Other than Brian Hartline, a rookie no less, the receivers look more like witness protection program victims than offensive threats, even Barnum and Bailey make fun of our special teams and the goal posts have more swagger than the Dolphins!

Evil Observation #2: The Wide Receiving Corps is horrible!
I don’t want to get too bogged down with stats, mostly because I don’t have any, but all things being equal and starter vs. starter after the first 3 preseason games Miami’s top 3 wide receivers would be behind the Venus de Milo on the depth chart if it was on the roster. Corners must lick their chops when they line up opposite these beasts: Ted Ginn (3receptions, 45 yards, 0 touchdowns) is averaging 1 reception and15 yards per game! Davone Bess has 4 grabs, 30 yds and 0 TD’s and Greg Camarillo has 3 for 56 and 0 TD’s and one of those was a 52 yard busted play. Miami cannot and will not win, period, without more production from this unit.

Evil Observation #3: Even our receivers could get open against this secondary!
Admittedly the only preseason game I saw every play of was the 3rd game, which is widely viewed as the most important as the starters generally play well into the second half, and the Tampa receivers were running down the field wide open all day. In fact, if I wasn’t already convinced that Byron Leftwich was garbage I now have that confirmed because even John Beck would have thrown for 300 yards and 4 touchdowns and I’m not kidding. There were too many plays and blown coverage’s to even go into but just take my word for it, the corners were soft and the safeties were either out of position or missing tackles and yes, that includes but is not limited to Gibril Wilson. Oh and by the way, it’s not like Leftwich and the Buccaneers are reminiscent of Dan Marino and the ’84 Dolphins!

Evil Observation #4: We can’t tackle!
Please see DeAngelo Williams 25 yard touchdown scamper. Don’t tackle, don’t win. It’s really that simple. How do you think the players would feel if the organization “missed” handing out their paycheck? Not nearly as pissed as we will be as fans if this continues,

Evil Observation #5: Our entire special teams are a 3-ring circus!
There’s nothing more to add and I’m too lazy to back this claim with numbers and yet that’s still more effort than we get from any special teams unit we have. This should come as no surprise to anyone that has ever even heard of football. Side note: I do think we have a solid kicker with Dan Carpenter and booming punter with Brandon Fields, the problem is if we can’t cover the kicks what good are they? Sort of like having a sweet pair of Ferrari driving gloves and no car.

Positive “Spin” i.e. Delusions of Grandeur:
A.) Hey, we’re 3-0. Undefeated. Zero losses. First place. Only 1 touchdown allowed. What’s the problem?
B.) It is the preseason after all and at the end of the day it’s nothing more than a glorified scrimmage filled with lackluster performances from veterans who’ve made the team and frantically erratic play by those trying to. Despite the importance of “practice” and gelling and timing and all of that cohesive team jargon let’s face it, there’s a big difference between Megan Fox and a Megan fox blow up doll. It’s just hard to get up for it when it’s not the real thing. Hey, don’t get mad at me for pointing that out. Just saying. Hell, even the coaches are guilty of giving less than 100% by being more paranoid than a catholic schoolgirl at a Bob Marley concert and flat out refusing to reveal anything outside of the basic vanilla plays to avoid giving the competition a competitive advantage.

It’s not all bad though, defensively the Fins have only given up one touchdown this preseason, which was a nifty DeAngelo Williams scamper enabled by 4 missed tackles. Chad Pennington, or CP10 as I like to call him, has played as smart and efficient as ever and actually looks like he’s zipping the ball around a bit better than advertised. The offensive line always was going to need all the reps they could get in the preseason plugging in a healthy Donald Thomas and Justin Smiley along with FA acquisition from Oakland, Jake Grove added with Pro Bowl LT Jake Long and the ever improving RT Vernon Carey this should actually be one of our stronger units. Ricky Williams looks like Ricky of old actually, Ronnie Brown is a beast when there’s daylight and Patrick Cobbs is a versatile threat that will be utilized in every formation all over the field. Special teams is really just want to, end of story. The secondary has been a cause for major concern in the preseason but at the end of the day, only 1 touchdown allowed so who am I to question their methods.

The biggest question in my eyes is the receivers, if we don’t establish a clear-cut #1 go-to guy the entire corps will suffer and form an identity crisis. Take it from me, I played college ball and it wasn’t D-1 but football is football relatively speaking and on 1st and 10 I knew they weren’t going to call my number often but on 3rd and 5 I knew it was my time. Right now, only Brian Hartline seems to be the guy saying, “It’s my time. Hit me.” Maybe that’s all you need to know about these guys, a rookie came into camp to lead.