SB Nation - Jake Grove

Jets Flight Connections 121309

dvdvil — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 15:34:12 -0000

First of all, don't forget to check out "Jets 24/7" "Jets Flight Plan" on WCBS-TV New York at 11:30am.

Brian Schottenheimer explains why Kellen Clemens looked so bad against Buffalo.

Kellen is eager to start again at quarterback.

His coaches and teammates say they have total trust in the back-up.

Will Tampa Bay hurt our post-season push?

This article says bet on the Jets, while this one says bet on the Bucs.

With Robert Turner out and Alan Faneca recovering from illness, the Jets activated OT Ryan McKee from the practice squad.

Former Army HC and current Jets LB Coach Bob Sutton was at the Army-Navy game.

Buccaneers HC Raheem Morris and Jets Strength and Conditioning Coach Sal Alosi were teammates at Hofstra.

More connections after the jump.

Read about how well former Jets Jason Trusnik and David Bowens are doing with the Browns.

What's going wrong in New England is not Tom Brady's fault.

Maybe it's Adalius Thomas's fault, who will not play today.

Matt Moore will be the quarterback for the Panthers against the Patriots.

Do you remember when Carolina went to the Super Bowl? What if Kris Jenkins and the Panthers had won then?

The Dolphins will be playing without Jake Grove again, while the Jaguars will be without Mike Sims-Walker, John Henderson and Rashean Mathis.

Lastly, please keep voting for you favorite Jets to go to the Pro Bowl.

Here are some highlights of the last one, where we voted in seven Jets players:

New York Jets Run Defense vs. Carolina Panthers Run Offense

John B — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 13:15:40 -0000

by Patrick Semansky - AP

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Like the Jets, the Panthers own one of the best rushing attacks in the league. Unlike the Jets, they lean on two different backs instead of one. DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart might be the best tailback tandem in football. Williams has 982 yards, 7 touchdowns, and a 5.1 average. Had the Panthers not snatched him up in the 2006 Draft right before the Jets went on the clock, there's a chance the Jets may have grabbed him instead of Nick Mangold. Stewart has 509 yards, 6 touchdowns, and a 4.6 average. Williams is the complete package as a runner. Stewart only really lacks breakaway speed. Stewart has been battling an Achilles injury but participated in practice fully on Friday and should be ready to go.

The Panthers are a great run blocking team. Ryan Kalil fights with Nick Mangold and Miami's Jake Grove for the title of best run blocking center. Sione Pouha and Howard Green will have their hands full. David Harris and Bart Scott had better be comfortable working in traffic. The Jets have shown more four man fronts since the Kris Jenkins injury. I wouldn't be surprised to see that trend continue. Carolina will miss Jordan Gross on the left side. Travelle Wharton represents a major downgrade at left tackle. The rest of the Panthers line is full of solid blockers from Jeff Otah to Keydrick Vincent to MacKenzy Bernadeau.

Carolina also has an excellent lead blocking fullback, Brad Hoover, although they do like to run a lot of three receiver and double tight sets so Hoover, who is battling an ankle injury may not see much time. It's going to be really important for the secondary to assist in run support. Muhsin Muhammad in particular is an excellent blocking receiver. Lito Sheppard might be called on to get off a block and make a key tackle when the Panthers send Williams outside.

Web Rumblings: Buffalo Bills Links, 11/28

MattRichWarren — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 13:42:24 -0000

A look at AFC East O-line stability - AFC East Blog - ESPN
The Buffalo Bills will use their league-leading seventh different starting lineup Sunday against the Miami Dolphins. The Bills have used as many offensive line combinations as the Jets (1), Dolphins (2) and New England Patriots (3) combined.

Kelly's Call: A coach, a QB and a rebuttal
Jim Kelly clarifies his statements regarding California quarterbacks and Tim Tebow.

Fan Friday 11-27 – Inside The Bills
Chris Brown answers questions from fans on Brian Brohm, whether or not Jauron addressed the team after he was relieved of his duties, Trent Edwards' future, Mike Shanahan and other coaching candidates.

Dolphins Prep
Downtrodden Buffalo Bills will try to rise up against their biggest rival, the Miami Dolphins
"It's on a greater level than the other division teams ... Our guys are keyed up," Perry Fewell said.

Miami Dolphins prepare to face Terrell Owens for second time this year -- South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
"I mean, look at him, he's a physical freak," Dolphins rookie cornerback Sean Smith said. "There's not a lot of wide receivers out there 6-3 and built the way he is. He's built to last the whole year without slowing down at all."

Bills look to regain home field edge | WIVB.com
The Buffalo Bills have lost seven of their last eight games in Orchard Park, three of four this year. Rebuilding their home field advantage is an important step towards eventual playoff contention.

Final Word: AFC East - AFC East Blog - ESPN
- Ricky Williams should record his third straight 100-yard rushing game. - Bills receiver Terrell Owens might have fun against the Miami Dolphins' rookie cornerbacks.

Video: Williams will run over Bills - AFC East Blog - ESPN
AccuScore doesn't believe the Bills can cope withRicky Williams this weekend.

Bills notebook: Stroud likely to play Sunday : Buffalo Bills : The Buffalo News
The Bills position coaches had longer work days Friday and today to prepare for next week's game — on Thursday against the New York Jets.

Miami center not looking good – Inside The Bills
The Miami Dolphins are likely to be without their starting center. Jake Grove did not practice again on Friday and Miami head coach said Grove has been declared doubtful for Sunday’s game.

Sparano on weather factor – Inside The Bills
Dolphins head coach Tony Sparano isn’t worried about the weather that Buffalo might have in store for his team Sunday.

Team in Transition
Coaching carousel: Remember Mike Martz? | National Football Post
Mike Martz has the highest winning percentage among coaches who have won a Super Bowl.

GoErie.com: John Dudley - Bradford would be an acceptable answer to Bills' prayers
"If I'm the Bills, I take Bradford if I have the chance, and never look back," says Dudley.

Leftovers
BillBoard: More on DT Harvey
Perry Fewell talks about new DT Lonnie Harvey. He likes that the Bills offense can now practice against someone that big in a 3-4 look.

Bills players on a mission | BuffaloBills.com
Wide receiver Terrell Owens, safety Bryan Scott, cornerback Drayton Florence, linebacker Chris Draft and wide receiver CJ Hawthorne volunteered to serve more than 300 people a traditional turkey dinner with all the trimmings.

Sports on the Air: Bills fans continue to tune out : Buffalo Bills : The Buffalo News
The Bills' 18-15 loss to Jacksonville had a 26.9 rating on WIVB-TV, making it the season's lowest-rated Bills game.

Losman's Las Vegas team wins UFL title : Buffalo Bills : The Buffalo News
Losman completed 21 of 35 passes for 193 yards.

Dolphins vs Bills: Three Key Matchups

Matty I — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 05:15:08 -0000

More photos » by Lynne Sladky - AP

Good coverage. Good throw. Good dropped pass by Terrell Owens back in week four.

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It's been days now since the Dolphins knocked off the Panthers to get back to .500 but it feels like it's been much longer. But on Sunday, the Dolphins will finally get back on the field and head up to Buffalo to take on the division rival Bills. With the holiday approaching on Thursday, now is probably a good time to start looking ahead to Sunday's game.

So let's focus on three of the most important matchups:

Terrell Owens/Lee Evans vs Sean Smith/Vontae Davis
Sure, the Bills have obvious quarterback problems. But no matter who is under center, receivers like Terrell Owens and Lee Evans are always dangerous. Last week against Jacksonville, in fact, Owens had his best game as a member of the Bills - catching 9 balls for 197 yards and a touchdown. That 197 yard receiving performance was actually the second highest total for Owens since 2000. So don't sleep on him.

Back in week four, the Dolphins did a solid job on Owens and Evans - holding each to just 60 yards receiving. Of course, at that time, the Dolphins did still have Will Allen. And Allen was thrown at three times while covering either Evans or Owens, intercepting two of those passes with the third falling incomplete.

But Vontae Davis and Sean Smith didn't play badly themselves. Smith was thrown at 6 times while covering either Evans or Owens and he allowed 2 receptions for 39 yards. Davis wasn't as effective, allowing 2 completions to Evans for 60 yards on just two targets.

On Sunday, both of the rookies have got to play well and limit the number of big plays either of those two receivers - Buffalo's two biggest play-makers - make during the game.

Miami's interior offensive line/Lousaka Polite vs Paul Posluszny
While Buffalo's rush defense is pretty bad - 31st in the NFL allowing 165 yards per game on the ground - the Bills did manage to limit Maurice Jones-Drew last week to just 66 yards and just 2.6 yards per carry. How did they pull that off? From what I saw of the game, middle linebacker Paul Posluszny was just all over the place making plays - finishing the day with 11 solo tackles (his highest total of the season). And he now looks like he's back in game shape after missing about a month earlier this season due to injury (including the first meeting between these two teams).

Posluszny - when he's healthy - is a beast in the middle of Buffalo's defense. He does a great job recognizing plays and getting to the football. He isn't the fastest or the biggest guy around, but he has a nose for the football (a la Zach Thomas). And since returning from injury, Posluszny has looked like the budding star he is.

The Dolphins will obviously look to pound the rock against this bad rush defense. But to be effective, the Dolphins interior linemen - whether it's Jake Grove or Joe Berger at center - have got to do a better job than the Jaguars did last week at getting Posluszny blocked off. He does only measure in at 238 pounds. And we know that Miami's offensive line is big and nasty. They have to make sure they get through Buffalo's defensive line and get to the second level.

Of course, it's not only the linemen's jobs to do this. Fullback Lousaka Polite - a budding star at the fullback position, if you ask me - also will be asked at times to find #51 and get a hat on him. We've all seen just how tremendous of a run blocker Polite has become and he's coming off what was probably his best game as a Dolphin last week in Carolina. Hopefully we see the "Lousaka Monster" knock a few heads on Sunday - preferably Paul Posluszny. He's a difference maker in Buffalo's defense when he's on the field.

Miami's pass rush vs Buffalo's offensive line
Describing Buffalo's offensive line as bad would be an understatement. They have struggled all season long - including back in week 4 against the Dolphins when Miami sacked Trent Edwards six times. If you remember - and I'm sure you do - that game was Cameron Wake's coming out party, picking up 2.5 sacks. Jason Taylor also had 2.5 sacks. The Dolphins also pressured Edwards on at least 6 or 7 more drop backs.

We've also seen the Dolphins' pass rush really step up the past two games - tallying four sacks in each of their last two. It'll be interesting to see how the snaps get divided between all of Miami's pass-rushing outside linebackers (Joey Porter, Jason Taylor, Cameron Wake, Charlie Anderson). Whoever is out there, though, I anticipate the Dolphins putting consistent pressure on Ryan Fitzpatrick all game long.

Dolphins Mid-Season Review: Shifting expectations

Matty I — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 05:15:18 -0000

by Lynne Sladky - AP

Can this head coach/quarterback (Sparano/Henne) duo eventually do what the greatest head coach/quarterback (Shula/Marino) duo in team history couldn't do?

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We've officially hit the halfway point of the 2009 Miami Dolphins season and are now a season and a half into the Bill Parcells-Jeff Ireland-Tony Sparano era in Miami. Considering where we were when the "trifecta" took over, nobody should be disappointed about where this team is in terms of the long haul. With that said, of course, it's difficult to not be disappointed with Miami's current 3-5 record.

In this league, you are what your record says you are. That's generally true. But in the grand scheme of things, the Dolphins are much more than just an average run-of-the-mill 3-5 football team.

A shift in expectations

Entering the season, I was among the many who declared we wouldn't just be satisfied with an 8-8 or 9-7 season because of the "tougher schedule" the Dolphins faced in '09 as compared to '08. I wanted to be a playoff team once again and I honestly thought this team could pull it off. But lo and behold, wouldn't you know that it was indeed these "tough games" that have dug the Dolphins into a deep hole in the AFC playoff picture.

Now I'm not saying that I'm giving up on the playoffs in 2009. In fact, if the Dolphins take care of their next three games (against Tampa Bay, Carolina, and Buffalo) and they get a little help from New England's tougher opponents (@ Indianapolis and @ New Orleans), the Patriots could potentially be heading down to Miami on December 6 with a 7-4 record to face the 6-5 Dolphins. While those are a ton of "ifs" that must break in favor of Miami, it's not totally out of question.

With that said, my own personal expectations have shifted. I'm no longer as concerned with making the playoffs in 2009. If the Dolphins somehow pull it off and reach the postseason, that's terrific. But if they don't, that's fine too. Why? Because injuries and a lack of talent at critical positions have made me more concerned with developing this team for the long haul - not just for the immediate future.

The injuries to Chad Pennington and Will Allen, in particular, have changed what this season means to the Dolphins. I'd say that most fans would agree. But it's been these losses to teams like the Colts, Saints, and Patriots that have made me realize that this Dolphins team just isn't ready to really compete with their talent level. However, the strides that this franchise has made since the 2007 disaster are remarkable.

Integration of young players

Want to know why I'm not as distraught as some other Dolphin fans seem to be about this 3-5 season? It's because of how the Dolphins are setting themselves up for the future. The coaches are doing something that you don't see too often - they are trusting a number of rookies and young players. And the result is that we're seeing tangible reasons of why we should be excited for the future of this franchise.

First and foremost, there's Chad Henne. As you all know, I was squarely on the "start Chad Pennington" bandwagon all offseason long. While I hate to see what happened to CP - he deserves better but his body continually lets him down - letting Henne play and gain experience has been huge, and will continue to be huge, for this franchise. Ffor the first time in a long time, fans, coaches, and the front office can all be excited about the quarterback position. Folks, I really think we've found "our guy."

Has he been great? No. Has he been terrible? No. Has he shown flashes of greatness? Yes. Think back to just his second career start when Henne put together one of the best fourth quarters a young quarterback has put together in recent memory.

Does he have a lot to work on? Of course. His accuracy is shaky at times. He holds the ball too long sometimes. At times, he runs backwards when pressure is closing in - especially when he's pressured on those designed roll-outs.

At the same time, I've seen just as many positives. I've seen that strong rocket arm. I've seen some perfectly thrown balls. I've seen a toughness to hang in the pocket and deliver a pass with pressure bearing down on him. I've seen him get back up after taking a nasty shot in the pocker - like Sunday's "roughing the passer" hit by Patrick Chung. Most of all, I've seen the poise and mental toughness necessary to lead a team in hostile situations. Sure, against both the Saints and Patriots, Henne was unable to lead a game-winning or game-tying drive late in the fourth quarter. But both times, it wasn't because Henne failed. His teammates failed him.

There's a lot to like about Henne, that's for sure. But there are also other young players with a lot to like.

You got two rookie corners who are being trusted to start. And neither of them have played poorly. Both Sean Smith and Vontae Davis have had their ups and downs. But there have been more positives than negatives and they will only continue to get better. Over the long haul, the Dolphins are set with their starting cornerbacks.

The offensive line is also set for the foreseeable future. Only one starter, Jake Grove, is over 28 years old. And two, Jake Long and Donald Thomas, are only 24 and in just their second season. The way an offensive line gets better is by playing together for a long time, and that's what we're going to see in Miami over the next few seasons.

The defensive line also suddenly has a nice young core to build around. Kendall Langford, Phillip Merling, and Randy Starks all look like long-term contributors at defensive end for the Dolphins. And none of them are older than 25 years old (Starks). Tony McDaniel also looks like he could become a solid backup and he's only 24 himself.

The Dolphins also have other young contributors who could become major long-term factors. Chris Clemons and Tyrone Culver are two young safeties who will probably see more and more opportunities as the season goes on. Davone Bess and Brian Hartline are two young receivers who, ideally, would be very good complimentary receivers. Greg Camarillo is also relatively young and is looking more and more recovered from his knee surgery every week. I will continue to stand by my belief that Camarillo, once he's healthy, can be a starting #2 receiver in this league.

And let's not forget our favorite former CFL stand-out, pass rusher Cameron Wake. He's only 27 and has the potential to be a pass-rushing force for years to come. But he is still raw, which is probably why he hasn't seen the amount of snaps many would like him to see.

Clearly defined needs

One of the positives - if you can call it that - to come from Miami's 3-5 start has been how well defined this football team's needs have become. We all know what this team needs - some needs more pressing than others, of course.

Perhaps the most pressing need is at the wide receiver position. This offense will never be what it needs to be to get to that next level until they get a true "go-to" number one receiver. Opposing defenses have no reason to respect Miami's passing attack, allowing them to go all-out to stop the only real threat this offense has - their ground attack. But Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams will become less and less effective on the ground as teams continue to put eight, and sometimes even nine, in the box to shut them down. In all honesty, can you blame them? I'd do the same thing. None of these receivers would even scare me a little bit.

This need has been magnified even more the past few weeks, too. In their last two losses, the Dolphins have been within a touchdown and had possession of the ball with over three minutes left. But each time, the Dolphins failed to move the ball, thanks in large part to receivers who just can't make the plays necessary to win football games.

But there are other needs as well. The Dolphins need upgrades at both inside and outside linebacker. A play-making free safety is another obvious issue. And we saw on Sunday that Paul Soliai might not be anything better than a back-up nose tackle. He underwhelmed as a starter, replacing the injured and aging Jason Ferguson. So nose tackle is also a need.

See this team for what it is

As a fan, we all want to see our team win championships. Year in and year out, we all look through "aqua and orange colored glasses" and view our team as either championship caliber or playoff caliber. But let's be real - this team just isn't as talented as the league's elite teams. That's why it's so impressive that the Dolphins were able to play teams like the Colts, Saints, and Patriots and nearly knock them off. Is it frustrating to lose those games? Of course. But we need to see what these losses show.

The Dolphins played teams with superior talent and gave them all they can handle - with a number of rookies and second-year players being key contributors. That says a lot about where this team is.

It says a lot about this coaching staff. Say what you want about some of their questionable play-calling and their gameday decisions. But this staff knows how to prepare to play more talented football teams.

It also says a lot about the mental toughness of these players. Some young players will go into a shell and back down to the elite NFL teams. But not this group of guys. They battle. And they're only going to get better.

The future is bright, people. We just need to give this front office time to address those remaining needs and the young players on this team more time to mature. But we're clearly on the right path.

Dolphins vs Jets: Three Key Matchups

Matty I — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 04:33:56 -0000

More photos » by Bill Feig - AP

Time for Miami's rookie corners to step up and show what they got.

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Sure it's still hard to swallow what we all witnessed on Sunday. But like Jason Taylor said, "It's Jets week!" Nothing would cure all of us Dolphin fans more than a win over the Jets on Sunday in the Meadowlands. It's likely, barring some kind of playoff rematch, that this will be the final time the Dolphins play at the current Giants Stadium - with the new Meadowlands Stadium expected to open in 2010. We all have some good memories and some bad memories from games played in that building. Let's just hope we close it up with a positive one.

To do that, these three matchups will be critical.

Braylon Edwards/Jerricho Cotchery vs Sean Smith/Vontae Davis
Only two other NFL teams have even started one rookie cornerback this season. On Sunday, the Dolphins will start two rookie corners following Will Allen's season-ending ACL tear. And they will be asked to defend two veteran receivers who possess a lot of talent.

In their first meeting, Braylon Edwards - despite being a Jet for less than a week - had 5 catches for 64 yards and a touchdown. He also drew a huge pass interference call on Will Allen that gave the Jets a 1st & goal from the 1 yard line. But since then, Edwards only has 4 receptions for 54 yards. However, he's been targeted 11 times over the past two weeks - which results in 25% of Mark Sanchez's total pass attempts. Braylon is big and strong and is a matchup nightmare for many teams.

Of course, for the Dolphins, he's not exactly a matchup nightmare thanks to the size of rookie corner Sean Smith - who has been very good as a starter since day one. If I'm the Dolphins this week, I'm preparing Smith to shadow Braylon everywhere he goes. I know the coaches liked to stick with keeping Allen on one side and Smith on the other. But the Dolphins don't have that luxury anymore. Besides, Smith is athletic enough to handle both the left and right boundaries. It's time to throw the rookie into the fire and see how he responds.

Meanwhile, Vontae Davis will replace Allen in the starting lineup and make his first career start on Sunday. He's been up and down, but has progressed well. He'll be asked to cover either Jerricho Cotchery (if he plays) or David Clowney - who did post a 4-72 receiving line against the Dolphins in their first meeting. Davis is an aggressive corner and I hope to see him up on the line of scrimmage bumping whoever he is asked to cover.

Call me crazy, but in the long run, it might the best thing for the Dolphins to have to start both rookies from here on out. They're going to have their ups and downs for sure. But they're also going to learn a lot about the game and about themselves. This matchup should be a lot off fun to watch on Sunday.

Dolphins offensive line vs Jets front seven
Different week, same critical matchup. We know that the Dolphins can run the football. But last week against the Saints, it seemed like the Dolphins weren't exactly as committed as usual to running the football. On Sunday, it's time once again to ride those two horses and put the onus on those big guys up front to once again dominate the Jets defensive front.

In their first meeting, the Dolphins dominated the line of scrimmage all game long. They did an excellent job protecting Chad Henne and an even better job getting a push to help Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams find running lanes. The Dolphins ran for 151 yards in that game a few weeks ago. And now, the Jets are without nose tackle Kris Jenkins who was lost for the season. Taking his spot has been Sione Pouha, who is smaller and and weaker than Jenkins. Jake Grove did a very good job limiting the impact Jenkins had last time. He should be able to do even better against Pouha.

While I expect the Dolphins be get re-committed to the run on Sunday, Chad Henne will again be asked to make some plays and it'll be up to the big guys up front to give Henne time like they did in their last meeting. There's no doubt in my mind that Rex Ryan and NY's front seven were embarrassed by how they played last time - allowing Henne to feel little pressure for most of the game. So I have no doubt that Ryan will throw new pass-rushing wrinkles at Miami's offensive line. The Dolphins didn't do a great job of protecting Henne last week against the Saints, either. So this unit has got to step up and play like we all know they are capable of playing.

Dolphins defensive line vs Jets offensive line
Don't look now but the Dolphins are no longer have the number one rushing offense in the NFL. No - they are now number two, trailing (of all teams) the Jets. Back in week five, the Jets were able to find some running room on the ground - which most teams hadn't been able to do against Miami until that point. They ran for 138 yards and averaged 4.6 yards per carry.

Since then, the Jets have just gone crazy on the ground. Yes, it was against the Bills and Raiders. But still, back-to-back 300 yard rushing games is impressive. And despite Leon Washington's season-ending injury, the Jets still possess a formidable one-two punch of Thomas Jones and rookie Shonn Greene. Greene ran for 144 yards and two touchdowns last week against Oakland.

But the reason the Jets have been effective on the ground is their offensive line. It's very talented and has really started gelling well recently. There's something to say about a unit that has played together week after week. And did you know that the Jets offensive line currently holds the longest streak in the NFL of consecutive starts made by the same five offensive linemen?

To me, this means two things. One - Dolphin fans have a lot to be excited about because our own offensive line will only continue to get better as they get more comfortable with each other. And two - the Dolphins have got to play stout against the run and force Mark Sanchez to put the ball in the air.

Tale of two halves as Dolphins collapse in loss to Saints

Matty I — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 04:27:55 -0000

More photos » by Jeffrey M. Boan - AP

I think this photo says it all. Darren Sharper would catch this ball off of Ted Ginn's hands and return it for a touchdown.

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With less than two minutes to go in the first half, it seemed like the Miami Dolphins were on their way to one of their best wins in years, holding a 24-3 lead over the undefeated New Orleans Saints. Unfortunately, football games require a full 60 minutes. The Dolphins put together an outstanding 28 minutes - followed by about 32 minutes of complete disaster - which is what makes this game so hard to swallow.

Defensive breakdowns in second half
Even after that disappointing end to the first half - which we'll get to in a little - the Dolphins still held a 14 point lead at halftime. But Miami's defense collapsed in the second half, allowing the Saints to just march up and down the field on seemingly every possession.

There are a number of places you can lay some blame for this loss. But the defense certainly has to get a lot of blame. They played so well in the first half only to allow 23 points and 317 yards on just 38 plays. Worse yet, the Dolphins surrendered 285 yards of offense and 9.83 yards per play over the final 20 minutes of the game. So while a lot of you will point the finger at others - who do deserve some blame as well - don't let an outstanding defensive first half taint your view of how this defense performed. The final quarter and a half was just disgusting.

What exactly was the problem? Some of it was probably execution and players not being where they were supposed to. That could explain why Saint receivers were running wide open down the field for much of the second half. Missed tackles were also a problem - such as Gibril Wilson's whiff on Reggie Bush on a key 3rd down. There was a lack of pressure on Drew Brees in the fourth quarter as well, which is not good. We saw in the first half how much consistent pressure on Brees makes him uncomfortable.

But the biggest issue might be what we don't know and likely will never know: did the Dolphins coaching staff go into halftime anticipating the adjustment New Orleans would make in the second half? During our live game thread, somebody said at halftime how it would be important to see how the Dolphins react to the halftime adjustments the Saints make on offense. That's hitting the nail right on the head. We won't ever know for sure - especially without being able to see the film. But there were clearly issues in the second half. We didn't see nearly the amount of receivers running wide open - especially over the middle - in the first half as we saw in the second.

Questionable play-calling a factor
I generally try not to harp too much on in-game play-calling because we simply don't know as much as the guys on the sidelines making the decisions. But it's impossible to not question a number of decisions regarding play-calling on Sunday.

Some will point to the play-calling on Miami's final possession of the first half as bad. Some will say Miami's decision to try passing on a 1st & 10 at NO's 40 yard line with 1:51 left was a bad decision - made worse by the screen pass to Davone Bess on the next play that resulted in a fumble. But let's be fair. If the Dolphins run the ball three times and then try a long field goal, many fans would be complaining about how conservative the Dolphins were playing it. Instead, the Dolphins were clearly going for seven before the half - the right move when you're facing a potent offense like the one the Dolphins faced on Sunday. Hindsight is always 20/20, though, and that's why some will probably complain about Miami's decision not to just run the ball and get into position for a long field goal.

However, a couple of possessions certainly deserve some criticism. The Dolphins' second possession of the 3rd quarter - the one following the Darren Sharper pick six - was terrible. If you have the top rushing offense in the league, it might be a good idea to run the football after your young quarterback, making only his 3rd career start, threw a pick six to cut your lead from 14 to 7. He might be a bit gun-shy. It might be a good idea to use your best offensive players - Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams. But no - the Dolphins come out and go with three passes, resulting in a sack, a short completion, and an incompletion - a lovely little three and out.

The other possession that really bothers me was the one following Reggie Bush's touchdown to cut Miami's lead to 34-31. Again, the Dolphins should have attempted to get back to what they do best and run the football. Instead, the Dolphins go with three passes - all incompletions - and punt the football away. And they would never again have a possession where they weren't trailing.

Too many miscues
From missed tackles to blown coverages to penalties to dropped passes, the Dolphins made mistake after mistake to help aid the epic collapse on Sunday. You can't commit eight penalties - especially dumb penalties like personal fouls. Channing Crowder and Joey Porter each had one of those on Sunday. Porter, meanwhile, who is supposed to be a leader, left the locker room on Sunday without speaking with the media. Good leadership.

As far as drops go, there were a ton of them. Some of the bigger ones include Ted Ginn's drop on a beautifully placed ball on the first possession of the second half as well as Anthony Fasano's drop on a pass by Ronnie Brown. Ginn's drop resulted in an interception as Darren Sharper plucked the bobbled ball from the air and took it into the endzone. Fasano's drop would have been a 20+ yard gain and would have helped swing the momentum back a little.

But even after all those mistakes, the Dolphins still found themselves with the ball, needing a touchdown to win, and having 3:23 to accomplish that. But that drive had even more mistakes. On 2nd & 3, Ginn again dropped a pass - this time with nobody even bothering him. It would have been a first down plus a little extra. Luckily, Chad Henne connected with Greg Camarillo on the next play for a first down. But on the next play, Camarillo made the mistake of attempting to fumble the football out of bounds after a 7 yard reception. He was trying to get to the sideline to stop the clock, couldn't make it, and then then basically flung the ball towards the sideline as he fell - which is illegal and resulted in a penalty. After the game, Camarillo admitted that he was trying to do that and wouldn't do it differently now if he could. On the ensuing play, Ricky Williams dropped a pass in the flat that would have sent for a likely first down. And then on the very next play, Jake Grove was called for a false start - making a 3rd & 8 now a 3rd & 13.

That's not how you execute the two minute drill. And miscues like these cost the Dolphins a potential win over an unbeaten team on Sunday.

TURNING POINT OF THE GAME
The turning point of the game is pretty easy. The Dolphins had a 24-3 lead with less than two minutes to play in the 2nd quarter. That's when Brees and the Saints' offense got going, driving down the field and getting down to the one yard line in about a minute and a half - converting two third downs along the way. Then, following an official review, the Saints had the ball inside the one but were seemingly going to settle for a field goal before the half. That is, until Tony Sparano called an ill-advised timeout. That gave the Saints the time they needed to change their mind and go for the touchdown. The end result was Brees taking a QB sneak over the top and into the endzone for a touchdown.

Whether you want to call the turning point of the game the Davone Bess fumble that led to this possession, either of the 3rd down conversions by the Saints, or the timeout by Sparano - most probably agree that this possession was the turning point - and the beginning of a disgusting collapse.

QUICK HITS
Some more quick thoughts on this game:

Will Allen was lost for the season with a torn ACL. This is a big loss, but gives Vontae Davis and Sean Smith a great opportunity to both start and learn as much as possible on the fly.
Say what you want about Ted Ginn, the bottom line is we can't just get rid of him this year. Yes - he's far too inconsistent. But he's also the only deep threat this team has. Without him, opposing defenses have no reason to be worry about the long ball. If nothing else, he's still a necessary decoy until the Dolphins can find another deep threat. Also - wasn't it just last week many raved about him after making a huge play against the Jets?
I was disappointed with the offensive line today. They didn't play as well as they have in the run game and had issues protecting Chad Henne in the second half. Let's hope this was just a one-game issue.
Related the the OL problems, the Wildcat only gained 30 yards on 14 carries on Sunday.
I don't have a problem with Chad Henne's performance on Sunday. He hung tough in the pocket and did make some nice throws. But he also had his receivers drop at least five passes. He'll also learn a lot from this game once he goes back and watches the film. Now I'm anxious to see how he does in his first career road start next week against the Jets.
Jason Taylor - you still got it. I apologize.
I do love the safety blitz. Both Yeremiah Bell and Gibril Wilson seem to be very good blitzers. I hope to see more of that in the coming weeks.
Nathan Jones - who knew? He had his best game as a Dolphin. And now he will see even more snaps with the injury to Will Allen.

New York Jets Pass Defense vs. Oakland Raiders Pass Offense

John B — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 14:27:29 -0000

More photos » by Paul Sakuma - AP

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I'm not convinced the Raiders can throw the ball effectively on the Jets, and that's putting it nicely. JaMarcus Russell is only hitting 45.6 percent of his passes. He has 2 touchdowns against 6 interceptions. Russell is the posterboy for everything that's wrong with quarterback evaluation for the NFL Draft. Scouts saw that he's big, athletic, and has a big arm and automatically assumed he would become a great quarterback. Those attributes are accessories. Russell is not accurate, does not have sound mechanics, lacks instincts, and does not seem to handle adversity well. Say what you will about Mark Sanchez. Perhaps he ends up as a bust. Sanchez at least has these tools. Part of Russell's problem is the place he ended up. The Raiders didn't have the coaching to develop him or put a good team around him. In the end, their quarterback is a liability. The Jets are probably going to attack him.

The Raiders also lack weapons in the passing game. Their leading wide receiver, Louis Murphy, has 12 catches for 174 yards. First round pick Darrius Heyward-Bey has 2 receptions for 46 yards. Heyward-Bey shows what's wrong with receiver evaluation. Most experts thought Oakland took him way too early, but he still had a borderline first round grade. That was only because he has great straight line speed. Good hands? He doesn't have them. The ability to run routes well to shake defenders? Nope. The Jets have been getting great cornerback play. There's no reason for them to not attack Russell. Their corners can eat up these receivers.

The one weapon in the passing game the Raiders have is Zach Miller. He leads the club with 21 receptions and 354 yards by wide margins. This will be interesting because for once the Jets cannot use Darrelle Revis to take away the focal point of the opposing passing attack. Since he's the only weapon in the passing game, though, the Jets can scheme to take him away fairly easily.

Oakland has a patchwork offensive line at this point. Starting guards Robert Gallery and Cooper Carlisle are probably out. So is right tackle Cornell Green. Center Samson Satele is nothing special. The Dolphins let him walk to sign Jake Grove away from the Raiders. This is not what you want protecting Russell. Oakland will probably settle for Russell avoiding catastropic errors. Any plays in the passing game will be a bonus.

New York Jets Run Defense vs. Miami Dolphins Run Offense

John B — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:13:20 -0000

More photos » by Hans Deryk - AP

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Expect the Dolphins to pound the football tonight. They rank first in the league with 183.5 rushing yards per game. They gain 5.0 per carry on the ground. They don't want this game in the hands of a quarterback making his second start against an attacking defense. Ronnie Brown has 72 carries for 369 yards. Ricky Williams has 248 yards on 50 carries. That puts both parts of the two headed monster at or over 5 per rush.

Part of the success has been the exotic Wildcat formation the team imported from the University of Arkansas, where quarterbacks coach David Lee used to serve as offensive coordinator. Rex Ryan totally stuffed the Wildcat last year as defensive coordinator of the Ravens. He made a few tactical moves like moving up his safeties. Sure, that leaves the defense vulnerable to the pass, but the Dolphins don't want Ronnie Brown throwing the football often. The biggest thing is disciple, though. The Wildcat takes advantage of defenders overpursuing the ball and getting themselves out of position. The reason the Ravens so successfully stopped it was everybody stayed in their lanes. It's the sign of a well coached football team. Brown has to make a read. If defenders go hard at him, he hands it off to an outside runner. If they bite on a fake, he keeps it and runs inside.

The Jets on defense should be too disciplined to get out of position, and their front seven should hold its own against Miami's solid offensive line. I can guarantee you we will see a lot of Kerry Rhodes and Jim Leonhard in the box. The Dolphins aren't going to put it up. The Jets know it. The Dolphins don't care. It's going to come down to execution. Miami's center, Jake Grove, is good. He handled Kris Jenkins about as well as anybody did a year in the first three-quarters of the season a ago when he was with Oakland. Look for Rex Ryan to put Jenkins all over the line to create mismatches. If Jenkins goes against a weak link, Miami's going to have a tough time running it. If they can't run it, their offense isn't going to do anything.

Five Questions With The Phinsider

John B — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 12:15:10 -0000

To get ready for the Monday Night Showdown in Miami, Matty I of The Phinsider and I exchanged questions. Matty's blog is THE place to go for Dolphins information. How good is it? I check it every day even though it's about the team I hate most in football.

1. Chad Pennington has a unique skill set. There are things he does very well and others he doesn't do so well. A team really has to build its offense around his game. Were there any changes in the offense that really stuck out in Chad Henne's first start?

That's something a lot of Dolphin fans wondered themselves as last week's game approached. Many, in fact, were hoping to see some changes in the passing attack; changes that would better suit Chad Henne's arm strength. But much to the disappointment of some fans, those changes were non-existent.

It was clear the Dolphins wanted to run the ball as much as possible last week - and that came as no surprise. But when Henne was asked to put the ball in the air, 90% of those passes were of the short, 7-10 yard range. That frustrated some Dolphin fans - despite the win Miami came away with - because they were all instantly hoping to see Henne start firing some deep balls left and right. But that will come in time. Right now, it's more important to let Henne build some confidence. And these receivers are also more suited to the short passing game rather than a vertical passing attack.

2. The Dolphins used a pair of early Draft picks on corners and signed Gibril Wilson to upgrade the secondary. It doesn't look pretty on paper. Have the additions not worked out to this point, or are there mitigating factors?

I wouldn't say the additions haven't worked out. In fact, the two rookie corners have been very good. I'd even go so far as to call Sean Smith's play as exceptional through four games. He won the starting spot opposite Will Allen in camp and has never looked back. He is yet to get badly beaten. The only two times he has surrendered long completions, he was in perfect coverage. On one, the receiver just made an amazing catch. On the other, it was a "back shoulder" pass in which Smith just didn't get his head around quick enough - but he had perfect coverage and was step for step with Terrell Owens before Owens came back to the under-thrown ball. Smith has played so well, in fact, that teams are picking on Will Allen - the veteran - instead of Smith. That says a lot.

The main problem with Miami's pass defense has been stopping the opposing tight ends. Tony Gonzalez and Dallas Clark each had very big games against Miami. And Antonio Gates didn't have a big game, but made key plays when it mattered most. The main culprits? Gibril Wilson, Yeremiah Bell, Channing Crowder, and Akin Ayodele. Basically, the linebackers and safeties who have been asked to cover the tight ends and the backs out of the backfield have really struggled.

And making matters more frustrating has been Gibril Wilson's missed tackles. He's whiffed on a number of tackles that have resulted in big plays for the opposition. So it would be fair to say his addition hasn't worked out. But both rookie corners have played very well - and that gives us Dolphin fans hope in the long-term.

3. We had a friendly debate over the summer on receiver play between our respective teams. Jerricho Cotchery has made me look good. Chansi Stuckey and David Clowney? Not so much (and one of them just got traded). How has the Miami trio of Ted Ginn, Davone Bess, and Greg Camarillo been?

I'll admit - Jerricho Cotchery has played better than I thought he would. But it seems like I was pretty accurate about Stuckey and Clowney.

Regardless, the Dolphins' receivers have really been a disappointment. The main culprit? Ted Ginn. Entering his third year, many of us thought that this would be the year Ginn breaks out and becomes a consistent play-making receiver. He's been anything but. Ever since his week two drop of the potential game-winning touchdown against the Colts, Ginn has seemingly lost confidence and has been losing snaps on gamedays. Over the past two games, Ginn has been targeted nine times but has only one reception for four yards. He's only "officially" dropped two passes, but I can think of at least four off of the top of my head. In a nutshell, he's probably been the biggest disappointment on the offensive side of the football through these first four games.

Davone Bess has been his reliable self. He leads the team with 20 receptions and is catching 83% of the passes that come his way. He remains a very "quarterback friendly" receiver. The problem is that he doesn't have good size or great speed - great quickness, but not great speed - so he doesn't get down the field and make plays. He averages just 7.9 yards per catch. He has a ton of upside as a slot, possession receiver - that's for sure. But he's not going to make the big play to pick up chunks of yardage at a time.

Greg Camarillo has gotten off to a slow start as he continues to come back from his ACL injury. He only has 11 receptions, but he did look as good as he has all season last week with Chad Henne under center - catching 4 balls for 42 yards. But he's nowhere near where he was last year before he suffered that knee injury - leading the Dolphins in receiving and on pace for a 90 catch, 1000 yard season.

Also don't count out rookie Brian Hartline. He caught Henne's first TD pass last week and is seeing more and more snaps as weeks go by. He's a better run blocker than Ted Ginn and might have more reliable hands than Ginn (though Ginn had great hands the past two years before his struggles this year). He has also worked more with Henne in camp because they were both on the second team offense for a while. So those two may have more of a rapport than Henne has with the rest of the guys.

4. It looks like the Wildcat has been as effective as ever, but Rex Ryan seemed to handle it pretty well last season. Would it be a good guess the Dolphins have been holding a special wrinkle back for this game? There are two very mobile quarterbacks on the roster in Pat White and Tyler Thigpen.

While I wouldn't expect to see Thigpen active this week, there's a good chance Pat White could see some snaps. The Dolphins had been actively trying to work him into the offense in the first two weeks, but things changed once Pennington went down.

Regardless of if White is used or not, I do think we might see some extra wrinkles in the 'Wildcat' this week. I wouldn't be shocked to see a pass or two out of the formation - even from Ronnie Brown. But I also don't think we can discount the base plays out of the 'Wildcat' either.

Yes, the Ravens shut down the 'Wildcat' last season. There are two major differences, though. One - no matter what you try to convince me of, the Jets defense is not the Ravens defense. Personnel wise, the '08 Ravens are far more talented than the '09 Jets. And two - the Dolphins have improved their offensive line dramatically, which will help. In the playoffs last year, the Dolphins had two backup guards starting because Donald Thomas and Justin Smiley were lost for the season. And they had a center who is now a backup in Oakland - he couldn't even crack the Raiders' starting lineip, which says a lot. Now the Dolphins have a healthy Smiley and Thomas at guard and a center, Jake Grove, who has been very good in the running game. The Dolphins specifically brought Grove in to handle these big AFC East nose tackles, too, because they believe he can handle them. So don't discount the 'Wildcat' and the basic power running plays Miami likes to use.

5. Miami brought in center Jake Grove from Oakland. I don't think it's unfair to say facing Vince Wilfork and Kris Jenkins for a quarter of the season had something to do with that decision. How has he been? Do you think he's ready for the challenge?

Grove has played well. He got off to a rough start in Atlanta, but has improved every week since then. He's proven to be a big upgrade over the run-blocking of Samson Satele. While I think he can improve in his pass protection - and his communication with the line to make adjustments at the line of scrimmage - Grove has really proven his doubters (and I was one of them when they made the move) wrong. In fact, Pro Football Focus, using various metrics, has Grove ranked as the NFL's top center so far in this young season. So I guess that's a good thing.

But like you said above and I said earlier, the Dolphins definitely brought in Grove because they like how he handles those big, physical nose tackles. And in this division, you need to have a guy who can at least turn those those tackles a little to create space for your runner. And this game will be a major challenge. We'll definitely learn a lot about Grove on Monday night.