2010 NFL Preview: Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins had one of the better turnarounds two years ago, from a 1-15 2007 to an 11-5 2008 season and claiming the AFC East championship. The reward? The NFL's toughest schedule in 2009. After stumbling to a 7-9 finish and missing the playoffs, the Dolphins made some deals, and hope to be back in playoff contention for 2010.
With Chad Henne back as the starter again, and grabbing valuable experience at the position, and with a couple of key acquisitions in the offseason in Brandon Marshall on offense and Karlos Dansby on defense, Tony Sparano and company have a fairly decent team. Can they compete with the revamped New York Jets and the perennial contending New England Patriots? Technorati goes inside the Miami Dolphins.
Recap:
- 2009 Record: 7-9 (3rd, AFC East, missed playoffs)
- Key Additions: WR Brandon Marshall (Denver Broncos), G Richie Incognito (Buffalo Bills), G Cory Procter (Dallas Cowboys), DE Charles Grant (New Orleans Saints), DE/DT Marques Douglas (New York Jets), ILB Karlos Dansby (Arizona Cardinals), ILB Tim Dobbins (San Diego Chargers).
- Key Departures: WR Ted Ginn Jr. (San Francisco 49ers), G Justin Smiley (Jacksonville Jaguars), NT Jason Ferguson (retirement), DE/OLB Joey Porter (Arizona Cardinals), DE/OLB Jason Taylor (New York Jets), ILB Akin Ayodele (Denver Broncos), ILB Reggie Torbor (Buffalo Bills), CB Nathan Jones (Denver Broncos), FS Gibril Wilson (Cincinnati Bengals).
Overview:
Offense: As stated above, Chad Henne is back at quarterback, and with a year under his belt playing the toughest schedule in the NFL last year, there is not a reason why he should be so much better. He has more help this season at receiver (see below), and he had a great final stretch where he completed 67 percent of his passes. What makes Henne valuable is his arm strength, which was something his mentor, Chad Pennington does not have especially after two shoulder injuries (and the same shoulder on top of that). While Pennington is still on the team, he's listed fourth on the team's depth chart, ahead of him is former Kansas City Chiefs starter Tyler Thigpen, and Pat White.
The Dolphins ran less of the wildcat formation last season, because of injuries to Ronnie Brown. Over the past three seasons, Brown has missed 16 games total. If he can stay healthy, expect Tony Sparano to use the wildcat formation a lot more. Ricky Williams has played very well for the team since returning to the NFL, but he also is reaching the age of 33, and has over 2,000 career carries, so one has to wonder how much more is left in his tank.
Continued on the next page
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