The Bears defense harassed Dolphins’ third-string quarterback, Tyler Thigpen, in Thursday’s shutout in Miami and improved to 7-3 on the season. Chicago swarmed Thigpen in the 16-0 victory in their first trip back to Miami since losing Superbowl 41. Julius Peppers led the defense with three of the six sacks, and Robbie Gould kicked three field goals to provide the majority of the offense. Chicago quarterback, Jay Cutler, completed 16-of-25 passes for 156 yards and was just impressive enough in the win. Matt Forte ran for 97 yards and finished the Bears’ scoring with a two yard touchdown plunge late in the third quarter. The Bears moved one-half game ahead of the Packers in the NFC North after winning their third straight contest. The Dolphins fell to 5-5 after a miserable home loss in which they did essentially nothing right and couldn’t catch any breaks.
Gould’s 46 yard field goal with 3:48 remaining in the opening quarter gave the visitors a 3-0 edge. Cameron Wake’s sack of Cutler forced the Bears to settle for three during the drive. The Chicago kicker planted a 24 yard field goal through the uprights midway through the second quarter to increase the Bears advantage to six. That was all the scoring in the first half. Chicago’s defense cracked down with tight coverage and Thigpen was ineffective in communicating with his receivers. The Dolphins running attack was non-existent against the league’s best team against the rush. Now their playoff chances are almost non-existent too. Miami failed to put up any points on the board for the second time in 40 seasons. For Chicago, it was the first shutout in four years.
Thigpen worked the ground with 27 rushing yards to lead all Dolphins, but the former Coastal Carolina player couldn’t keep the chains moving. Brian Hartline managed five receptions for 70 yards to lead all Miami receivers and Brandon Marshall caught three passes before leaving the game with an injury. Marshall was tagged for a taunting penalty after throwing the ball at Cutler when he was heading out of bounds. Cutler, Marshall’s former Denver teammate, pinpointed Johnny Knox as his favorite target on Thursday. Knox hauled in five receptions for 55 yards. The Bears scored twice after halftime on Gould’s third field goal and Forte’s scramble into the end zone. The Dolphins defense couldn’t get off the field as Chicago controlled the time of possession and was more efficient on third downs. Miami converted just one third down in eleven tries and Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown combined for 11 rushing yards. Cutler was intercepted by Benny Sapp and Charles Tillman recorded a pick for the Bears. The Dolphins finally got inside the Bears’ 35 yard line on the game’s final play, but for the most part was un-bearable to watch.
Parting Points: Congrats to Felix Hernandez and Roy Halladay on winning this year’s CY Young awards.
Hawaii is heading to the Mountain West Conference.
Notre Dame vs. Army at Yankee Stadium this Saturday.
“People who work together will win, whether it be against complex football defenses, or the problems of modern society.”- Vince Lombardi
Showing posts with label Miami Dolphins. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Miami Dolphins. Show all posts
Friday, November 19, 2010
Monday, September 27, 2010
Dolphins Dumped in Division Draw
The New York Jets joined the Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots atop the AFC East. New York finished off the Dolphins in a 31-23 week three victory Sunday night in Miami. Dustin Keller grabbed a pair of touchdowns and Braylon Edwards had 87 receiving yards to pave the way for the 2-1 Jets, who forced Miami out of first place. Edwards hauled in a 67 yard touchdown pass from Mark Sanchez to give New York the lead for good in the third quarter. Running back, Ladainian Tomlinson capped off the night with a one yard touchdown run with 1:55 remaining in the contest.
Chad Henne completed 26-of-44 passes for the Dolphins and had his best game of the season in Miami’s first loss. Henne spread the ball to seven different receivers and twice found the end zone for touchdowns. The Miami signal caller struggled through the first quarter against the Jets typically stout coverage in the red zone. He seemingly missed a touchdown when he overthrew former Ohio State wideout, Brian Hartline, on the game’s first drive. Former Dolphin, Jason Taylor, sacked Henne in the first quarter to damage the drive for Miami. Henne improved, going 9-of-10 through the air as the Dolphins got on the scoreboard late in the second quarter.
Sanchez was brilliant for the second week in a row for Gang Green. The USC alum tied a career-high with three touchdown passes and tossed for 256 yards in his third consecutive start without a pick. Sanchez hooked up with Keller on a 24 yard touchdown pass in the first quarter to put the Jets ahead 7-0. The Jets’ quarterback connected with Keller again in the second quarter on a 12 yard pass and 14-0 New York edge. The Dolphins answered with 17 straight points, including a three yard pass from Henne to Anthony Fasano and a Dan Carpenter 44 yard kick that cut the Jets’ lead to four points at the half. The Jets defense didn’t blitz Henne and the Dolphins’ offensive line protected the quarterback long enough for him to make plays.
Ricky Williams fumbled the football in the third quarter for Miami, but a replay challenged overturned the call and the Dolphins proceeded down the field to the end zone. Henne sparkled, converting three third downs before completing a 11 yard pass to Brandon Marshall. Marshall had his best game since arriving in Miami via Denver. The receiver led all players with 166 yards on ten receptions. With Miami clinging to a 17-14 advantage, the Jets launched a one-play drive midway through the third quarter to forge ahead. Sanchez hit his maligned receiver on an out route down the left sideline for his third touchdown of the game.
Carpenter footed a 20 yard field goal to end the third quarter scoring and pull Miami within a point of tying the game. After a Miami blocked punt, Jets’ placekicker, Nick Folk, planted a 30 yard field goal through the uprights with eight minutes remaining in the final stanza. The field goal exchanges continued with Carpenter’s third, a lengthy 50 yarder that again cut New York’s lead to one. But the defense from New York stopped Miami’s offense to fend off their last attempt. The Jets stopped the Dolphiins on four consecutive plays in the red zone, culminating with a Drew Coleman interception of Henne. Tomlinson pounded home the final touchdown of the night to seal the deal for Gang Green.
Parting Points: Song for Monday- “Green Grow the Rushes” by REM
Happy Birthday to Michael Jack Schmidt.
Chad Henne completed 26-of-44 passes for the Dolphins and had his best game of the season in Miami’s first loss. Henne spread the ball to seven different receivers and twice found the end zone for touchdowns. The Miami signal caller struggled through the first quarter against the Jets typically stout coverage in the red zone. He seemingly missed a touchdown when he overthrew former Ohio State wideout, Brian Hartline, on the game’s first drive. Former Dolphin, Jason Taylor, sacked Henne in the first quarter to damage the drive for Miami. Henne improved, going 9-of-10 through the air as the Dolphins got on the scoreboard late in the second quarter.
Sanchez was brilliant for the second week in a row for Gang Green. The USC alum tied a career-high with three touchdown passes and tossed for 256 yards in his third consecutive start without a pick. Sanchez hooked up with Keller on a 24 yard touchdown pass in the first quarter to put the Jets ahead 7-0. The Jets’ quarterback connected with Keller again in the second quarter on a 12 yard pass and 14-0 New York edge. The Dolphins answered with 17 straight points, including a three yard pass from Henne to Anthony Fasano and a Dan Carpenter 44 yard kick that cut the Jets’ lead to four points at the half. The Jets defense didn’t blitz Henne and the Dolphins’ offensive line protected the quarterback long enough for him to make plays.
Ricky Williams fumbled the football in the third quarter for Miami, but a replay challenged overturned the call and the Dolphins proceeded down the field to the end zone. Henne sparkled, converting three third downs before completing a 11 yard pass to Brandon Marshall. Marshall had his best game since arriving in Miami via Denver. The receiver led all players with 166 yards on ten receptions. With Miami clinging to a 17-14 advantage, the Jets launched a one-play drive midway through the third quarter to forge ahead. Sanchez hit his maligned receiver on an out route down the left sideline for his third touchdown of the game.
Carpenter footed a 20 yard field goal to end the third quarter scoring and pull Miami within a point of tying the game. After a Miami blocked punt, Jets’ placekicker, Nick Folk, planted a 30 yard field goal through the uprights with eight minutes remaining in the final stanza. The field goal exchanges continued with Carpenter’s third, a lengthy 50 yarder that again cut New York’s lead to one. But the defense from New York stopped Miami’s offense to fend off their last attempt. The Jets stopped the Dolphiins on four consecutive plays in the red zone, culminating with a Drew Coleman interception of Henne. Tomlinson pounded home the final touchdown of the night to seal the deal for Gang Green.
Parting Points: Song for Monday- “Green Grow the Rushes” by REM
Happy Birthday to Michael Jack Schmidt.
Friday, November 20, 2009
Chad Cools Clawless Carolina Cats
Ricky reliable replacement runner
The injury-riddled Miami Dolphins capped Carolina to climb back into the AFC playoff picture. The Fins fought off the Panthers in Charlotte 24-17 behind three Ricky Williams touchdowns. Running back Williams replaced the most important injured Dolphin, Ronnie Brown. The 32 year old was brilliant in leading Miami to their fourth win in six games. The desperate Dolphins sit at .500 with a 5-5 record after beginning the year 0-3. Williams, the 1998 Heisman Trophy winner, continued his NFL resurgence with a 119 yard rushing night and three touchdowns. He helped make a winner out of rookie quarterback, Chad Henne. Henne overcame injuries to his offensive line, including a missing center, to complete 17 of 29 passes for 172 yards. Henne outplayed the veteran Carolina quarterback in just his seventh career start.
The Dolphins’ first touchdown drive was set up by the wildcat formation. Henne launched a 14 yard pass to Williams to give the Fins a 7-3 lead. Williams scored from the one yard line with less than a minute remaining in the second quarter to increase Miami’s lead before the half. He got into the end zone ahead of Panthers linebacker, Jon Beason, for his second score of the evening. Carolina passer, Jake Delhomme, threw one interception and one touchdown in the loss. Delhomme struggled with completions despite passing for 227 yards through the air. He went just 19 for 42, thanks in part to a stingy Dolphins defense. Tony Sparano’s defense knocked down Delhomme passes and forced the Panthers to punt when it seemed like the home team might have a chance. All-Pro linebacker, Joey Porter, had seven tackles for the fine-tuned Fins. Porter swarmed the Panthers for two of the Dolphin’s three first-half sacks. Cornerback Nathan Jones ended a Carolina drive in the third quarter when he picked off Delhomme at the Miami four yard line. Delhomme is second in the NFL interceptions thrown. The Panthers didn’t score a touchdown until the final quarter. Steve Smith hauled in a spiral with five minutes left in the game to trim the Miami lead to three points. The Carolina receiver caught seven passes for 87 yards. The Panthers never got it back together. DeAngelo Williams compiled a 100-yard effort for crumbling and collapsing Carolina. But Delhomme’s offense got bogged down trying to implement a no-huddle offense. Williams put the game away in the fourth on a 46-yard scoring burst. His third touchdown of the game made it 24-14 Miami. Panthers’ kicker, John Kasey, legged his third field goal with 1:41 on the clock. Delhomme engineered one last drive to try for the tie. He succeeded in hooking up with Gary Barnidge for 29 and 17 yard passes and Panthers first downs. Delhomme passed incomplete to Dwayne Jarrett as time expired to send the Panthers home with a 4-6 record and crushing defeat. It’s going to take a lot to patch up the Panthers, who are pitifully falling apart at the seams.
Williams definitely showed he still has some juice left in his legs, but the Dolphins need to be more than a one-man, one-dimensional offense to be effective. In order to make the playoffs, Miami must utilized Davone Bess and Ted Ginn, Jr. Bess has six receptions Thursday night, including a diving grab in the first half. His grab in the final quarter set up Williams’ rushing touchdown. Ginn, Jr., the gifted former Ohio State receiver, collected four receptions for 32 yards. His Buckeye buddy, Brian Hartline, was the recipient of two for over 40 yards. I would like to see Henne use his receivers more often instead of averting them. The backfield is where the Fins thrive, but not every defense will play as loose as the Panthers did last night. The elite AFC teams will contain the rush, and Williams won’t always find holes to run effectively. Without critical offensive lineman, Henne has to be extra cautious. Miami’s undermanned offense will be overmatched against shredding defenses. Still, the Dolphins should shift the focus away from Williams and let Henne do his thing. It wouldn’t hurt to see what the former Michigan signal caller can do. If Henne show a third as much promise as the Fins’ ground attack, Miami will have one more way to win competitive contests. All this prattle about the wildcard is really unfounded in efficacy. If the formation were that useful, why have most NFL teams abandoned it?
Parting Points: Listening to the song “Whatcha Want” by the Beastie Boys
Tough loss for OSU basketball last night at MSG.
The injury-riddled Miami Dolphins capped Carolina to climb back into the AFC playoff picture. The Fins fought off the Panthers in Charlotte 24-17 behind three Ricky Williams touchdowns. Running back Williams replaced the most important injured Dolphin, Ronnie Brown. The 32 year old was brilliant in leading Miami to their fourth win in six games. The desperate Dolphins sit at .500 with a 5-5 record after beginning the year 0-3. Williams, the 1998 Heisman Trophy winner, continued his NFL resurgence with a 119 yard rushing night and three touchdowns. He helped make a winner out of rookie quarterback, Chad Henne. Henne overcame injuries to his offensive line, including a missing center, to complete 17 of 29 passes for 172 yards. Henne outplayed the veteran Carolina quarterback in just his seventh career start.
The Dolphins’ first touchdown drive was set up by the wildcat formation. Henne launched a 14 yard pass to Williams to give the Fins a 7-3 lead. Williams scored from the one yard line with less than a minute remaining in the second quarter to increase Miami’s lead before the half. He got into the end zone ahead of Panthers linebacker, Jon Beason, for his second score of the evening. Carolina passer, Jake Delhomme, threw one interception and one touchdown in the loss. Delhomme struggled with completions despite passing for 227 yards through the air. He went just 19 for 42, thanks in part to a stingy Dolphins defense. Tony Sparano’s defense knocked down Delhomme passes and forced the Panthers to punt when it seemed like the home team might have a chance. All-Pro linebacker, Joey Porter, had seven tackles for the fine-tuned Fins. Porter swarmed the Panthers for two of the Dolphin’s three first-half sacks. Cornerback Nathan Jones ended a Carolina drive in the third quarter when he picked off Delhomme at the Miami four yard line. Delhomme is second in the NFL interceptions thrown. The Panthers didn’t score a touchdown until the final quarter. Steve Smith hauled in a spiral with five minutes left in the game to trim the Miami lead to three points. The Carolina receiver caught seven passes for 87 yards. The Panthers never got it back together. DeAngelo Williams compiled a 100-yard effort for crumbling and collapsing Carolina. But Delhomme’s offense got bogged down trying to implement a no-huddle offense. Williams put the game away in the fourth on a 46-yard scoring burst. His third touchdown of the game made it 24-14 Miami. Panthers’ kicker, John Kasey, legged his third field goal with 1:41 on the clock. Delhomme engineered one last drive to try for the tie. He succeeded in hooking up with Gary Barnidge for 29 and 17 yard passes and Panthers first downs. Delhomme passed incomplete to Dwayne Jarrett as time expired to send the Panthers home with a 4-6 record and crushing defeat. It’s going to take a lot to patch up the Panthers, who are pitifully falling apart at the seams.
Williams definitely showed he still has some juice left in his legs, but the Dolphins need to be more than a one-man, one-dimensional offense to be effective. In order to make the playoffs, Miami must utilized Davone Bess and Ted Ginn, Jr. Bess has six receptions Thursday night, including a diving grab in the first half. His grab in the final quarter set up Williams’ rushing touchdown. Ginn, Jr., the gifted former Ohio State receiver, collected four receptions for 32 yards. His Buckeye buddy, Brian Hartline, was the recipient of two for over 40 yards. I would like to see Henne use his receivers more often instead of averting them. The backfield is where the Fins thrive, but not every defense will play as loose as the Panthers did last night. The elite AFC teams will contain the rush, and Williams won’t always find holes to run effectively. Without critical offensive lineman, Henne has to be extra cautious. Miami’s undermanned offense will be overmatched against shredding defenses. Still, the Dolphins should shift the focus away from Williams and let Henne do his thing. It wouldn’t hurt to see what the former Michigan signal caller can do. If Henne show a third as much promise as the Fins’ ground attack, Miami will have one more way to win competitive contests. All this prattle about the wildcard is really unfounded in efficacy. If the formation were that useful, why have most NFL teams abandoned it?
Parting Points: Listening to the song “Whatcha Want” by the Beastie Boys
Tough loss for OSU basketball last night at MSG.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Miami's Monday Melee
There is some incredible football being played in Miami. Unfortunately for fans of the Sunshine State, the best football is being produced at the University of Miami. While the college game is thriving down south, the professional home team is struggling to get their first win. The Dolphins dropped their second game in a row Monday, losing to the visiting Indianapolis Colts, 27-23. The road victory for the Colts was impressive considering Indianapolis held the ball for just 14 minutes and 53 seconds. The Colts’ time of possession was the lowest by any winning NFL team since 1977. Indy quarterback, Peyton Manning, staged another one of his numerous comebacks by hitting second year receiver, Pierre Garcon with 3:18 ticks remaining in the game. Manning spoiled the fun for the Miami home opener a night after his younger brother, Eli, rallied to beat the Dallas Cowboys in Texas.
Manning showed supreme confidence and created opportunities for the Colts late in the game. The veteran signal-caller gave his team a chance to win, finishing 14 for 23 and throwing over 300 yards in limited time. The 2-0 Colts scored promptly on their first possession amid an electric atmosphere in Land Shark Stadium. Manning found Dallas Clark wide open on a one-play 80 yard touchdown reception 12 seconds into Monday night’s melee. The Dolphins scored in first quarter on a Ronnie Brown 14 yard run to even the score at 7-7. Brown and Ricky Williams effectively executed the wildcat offense. Together, they rushed for 205 yards and two touchdowns. Williams craftily carried the ball 19 times. Miami outrushed the Colts and completed close to double the first downs, but was still unable to pull together a win. Fins quarterback, Chad Pennington, is prone to some inconsistent passing. The lopsided time of possession was not an advantage for Chad. Pennington did not have a touchdown pass, but was charged with one interception on 183 yards through the air. Miami’s leading receiver, Ted Ginn, Jr, dropped two vital passes in the endzone that could have made the difference last night. Pennington overthrew Ginn on the most important plays, but still managed to complete 11 passes to the former Ohio State receiver.
The Dolphins beating the Colts was imperative, but Manning is Mr. Clutch. Manning earned a record 119 wins with the Colts to break the team record for quarterback. Manning took only three snaps in the third quarter and his team held the ball only three times after halftime. Superbowl star, Adam Vinatieri, footed two field goals in the second quarter (43 and 48 yards) and Dan Carpenter ran for two touchdowns for Miami to keep the teams notched at 13 at the half. Neither team executed in the third quarter but Miami went ahead early in the fourth on a 13 play, 80 yard scoring drive. Brown squirted into the endzone on a three yard burst to give the Dolphins their third lead of the day, 20-13. University of Connecticut tailback, Donald Brown and the Colts responded with ten minutes left. Brown scored on a six yard run to tie the score for the fourth time of the night. The Dolphins fell short of finding the endzone and had to settle for three points on Dan Carpenter’s 45 yard field goal with just over three minutes left in regulation. Miami converted three third downs before the field goal, including a 21 yard pass to Ginn on 3rd and 7 at the Miami 45 yard line.
The stage was set for a Colts comeback as Carpenter kicked to the Colts’ Chad Simpson. Manning was on the field for only 4:47 of the second half when the Colts began their game-winning drive with 3:44 remaining. Reggie Wayne snagged a 15 yard pass on first down and Clark followed with a 17 yard reception to pit the Colts on the Miami 48 yard line. Manning threw an incompletion to Garcon on 1st and ten before he nailed him on the very next play for what would be the winning 48-yard touchdown. Pennington was intercepted on the final play of the game, and the Dolphins’ last ditch attempt to squeeze out a late win. It was another forgettable loss and miserable Monday in Miami as Manning motioned meticulously as an exhilarating one-man wrecking machine. The Dolphins may have had the ball more often, but it was the Colts from Indianapolis that were more efficient.
Parting points: Song of the day: “Nice to Know You” by Incubus
“Good health is the most important thing. More than success, more than money, more than power.”—Hyman Roth
Manning showed supreme confidence and created opportunities for the Colts late in the game. The veteran signal-caller gave his team a chance to win, finishing 14 for 23 and throwing over 300 yards in limited time. The 2-0 Colts scored promptly on their first possession amid an electric atmosphere in Land Shark Stadium. Manning found Dallas Clark wide open on a one-play 80 yard touchdown reception 12 seconds into Monday night’s melee. The Dolphins scored in first quarter on a Ronnie Brown 14 yard run to even the score at 7-7. Brown and Ricky Williams effectively executed the wildcat offense. Together, they rushed for 205 yards and two touchdowns. Williams craftily carried the ball 19 times. Miami outrushed the Colts and completed close to double the first downs, but was still unable to pull together a win. Fins quarterback, Chad Pennington, is prone to some inconsistent passing. The lopsided time of possession was not an advantage for Chad. Pennington did not have a touchdown pass, but was charged with one interception on 183 yards through the air. Miami’s leading receiver, Ted Ginn, Jr, dropped two vital passes in the endzone that could have made the difference last night. Pennington overthrew Ginn on the most important plays, but still managed to complete 11 passes to the former Ohio State receiver.
The Dolphins beating the Colts was imperative, but Manning is Mr. Clutch. Manning earned a record 119 wins with the Colts to break the team record for quarterback. Manning took only three snaps in the third quarter and his team held the ball only three times after halftime. Superbowl star, Adam Vinatieri, footed two field goals in the second quarter (43 and 48 yards) and Dan Carpenter ran for two touchdowns for Miami to keep the teams notched at 13 at the half. Neither team executed in the third quarter but Miami went ahead early in the fourth on a 13 play, 80 yard scoring drive. Brown squirted into the endzone on a three yard burst to give the Dolphins their third lead of the day, 20-13. University of Connecticut tailback, Donald Brown and the Colts responded with ten minutes left. Brown scored on a six yard run to tie the score for the fourth time of the night. The Dolphins fell short of finding the endzone and had to settle for three points on Dan Carpenter’s 45 yard field goal with just over three minutes left in regulation. Miami converted three third downs before the field goal, including a 21 yard pass to Ginn on 3rd and 7 at the Miami 45 yard line.
The stage was set for a Colts comeback as Carpenter kicked to the Colts’ Chad Simpson. Manning was on the field for only 4:47 of the second half when the Colts began their game-winning drive with 3:44 remaining. Reggie Wayne snagged a 15 yard pass on first down and Clark followed with a 17 yard reception to pit the Colts on the Miami 48 yard line. Manning threw an incompletion to Garcon on 1st and ten before he nailed him on the very next play for what would be the winning 48-yard touchdown. Pennington was intercepted on the final play of the game, and the Dolphins’ last ditch attempt to squeeze out a late win. It was another forgettable loss and miserable Monday in Miami as Manning motioned meticulously as an exhilarating one-man wrecking machine. The Dolphins may have had the ball more often, but it was the Colts from Indianapolis that were more efficient.
Parting points: Song of the day: “Nice to Know You” by Incubus
“Good health is the most important thing. More than success, more than money, more than power.”—Hyman Roth
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