Dolphins News ...

[11/19/09] -- Dophins Beat Panthers 24-17
Ricky Williams carried the Dolphins to a 24-17 victory over the Panthers tonight with 3 touchdowns in another close game. It was another game where Miami built up a lead at halftime, but couldn't finish the Panthers in the second half. Fortunately, Miami's offense and defense made some key plays late in the game to seal the victory. Individually, Nathan Jones had a pick, Joey Porter came back from his game off and had 2 sacks, Chad Henne had another solid game and Devone Bess lead all receivers with 6 catches for 63 yards. But it was Ricky Williams' 119 yards rushing, 19 yards receiving and 3 touchdowns that produced all of Miami's touchdowns this week.

[11/19/09] -- Dophins Visit Carolina
The Dolphins take on the Carolina Panthers tonight in a battle of running games. The Dolphins' and Panthers' running games each average just about 156 yards per game, but both teams look like they will have injury problems that could effect those games this week. The Panthers will be without their starting left tackle and the Dolphins, of course, will be without Ronnie Brown, who was placed on Injured Reserve yesterday. The stats seem to favor Miami as the Panthers have a turnover ratio of -7 and the Dolphins have a much stronger run defense, but the Panthers still have Steve Smith, who is a big play wide receiver. For more information about this game, see the Phins.com News Wire.

[11/15/09] -- Dophins Win, But...
The Dolphins beat the Buccaneers 25-23 today on a field goal with 10 seconds left by Dan Carpenter. However, it was a frustrating and possibly very costly win as Ronnie Brown injured his ankle in the third quarter and missed the rest of the game. He had X-rays, but the extent of his injury is not known as of this writing.

This game played out just like most of the Dolphins' games this year. The Dolphins dominated the first half and jumped out to a 19-6 lead by halftime. However, the team wilted in the second half and allowed the Bucs to claw their way back to a 23-22 lead with just over a minute remaining. The Dolphins finally pulled out the game on a Chad Henne-lead 70 yard drive to set up the winning field goal, but they never should have been in that position. Henne himself threw a horrible interception into triple coverage late in the game that set up the Bucs' final touchdown and Ted Ginn had another forgettable day. However, the surprise of the day was new tight end Kory Sperry, who caught 3 important passes, including a touchdown in the 2nd quarter. Sperry was signed to the practice squad back in September after being cut by the Chargers and was activated today when Anthony Fasano didn't dress.

Curt's Comments: I was at the game today and despite the win, the Dolphins continue to show flaws that will eventually cost them the season if they aren't corrected soon. Their most serious problem is their inability to finish off opponents. I read today that the Dolphins' defense is last in the league in giving up 4th quarter points and while I haven't had time to check the truth of that statement, it certainly seems likely. If the Dolphins can't figure out a way to finish their games strongly, they are not going anywhere for the rest of the year.

[11/14/09] -- Buccaneers Come To Land Shark
The Dolphins face the Buccaneers in their latest "Must Win" game of the season. If the Dolphins beat the Bucs today and the Panthers on Thursday, they will still have a chance to make the playoffs. If, however, they lose on Sunday, their year is as good as over.

[11/06/09] -- Dolphins Go Leaf Peeping
The Dolphins are traveling to New England this weekend, but will not get much of a look at the fall foliage. They play the New England Patriots on Sunday in another test that the Dolphins must pass in order to be considered serious contenders in the AFC East. While the Patriots are the kind of team that has given the Dolphins fits this year, they are not invincible and Miami has given them a lot of trouble since Brady became their quarterback. This week, Phins.com columnist Chris Shashaty gives us his take on the game in his column Keys to Defeating the Patriots. And if that wasn't enough, Phins.com presents our weekly game preview Dolphins at Patriots.

[11/01/09] -- Ted Ginn and JT Ground Jets
It was a different venue and a very different game, but the same outcome - Miami beat the Jets 30-25 today, even though their offense only picked up 104 yards and 10 points. The other 20 points were provided by Ted Ginn, who returned two kickoffs over 100 yards each for touchdowns and a fumble return for a touchdown by Jason Taylor. Similar to the Dolphins when they played the Colts, the Jets did nearly everything they needed to do, but still could not come away with the victory. This week, despite giving up 22 points in the second half, the defense held at the end of the game when it mattered most. This game will serve as a giant boost for the Dolphins when they need it and will put the Jets on the skids.

Curt's Comments: I always enjoy beating the Jets, no matter how. But this week, I also feel good for Ted Ginn,Jr, who has taken a lot of abuse from a lot of people that he didn't deserve. Yes, Ted Ginn has had trouble catching passes this year and made crucial mistakes in very important games that the Dolphins lost. And today, he had zero pass receptions and is still not a viable number one receiver. But he can be a very important asset to the Dolphins if used properly and he was used properly today.

[10/30/09] -- Dolphins Travel To New Jersey
The Dolphins travel to New Jersey this weekend to take on the New York Jets in a rematch of the game that Miami won in the final seconds three weeks ago. Both teams will try to make some adjustments, although there is not a lot of differences between this game and the last game. And as Phins.com Columnist Chris Shashaty tells us in this week's column, the Dolphins must deliver this game in order to have a serious chance at the playoffs. But how can they do that? Phins.com tells you this week in our Dolphins at Jets Game Preview.

[10/25/09] -- Dolphins Choke on Brees
The Dolphins played two different games on Sunday. After completely dominating the Saints in every phase of the game and taking a 24-3 lead into the last part of the first half, the Dolphins started making mistake after mistake and squandered their lead, finally losing to New Orleans 46-34. It was as if someone let all the energy and enthusiasm out of the team just before halftime. The Saints fought hard and never gave up, but ultimately, it was not great work by the Saints, but the Dolphins' own poor execution and mistakes that lost this game. Last year, it looked as though the Dolphins had stopped being a team that beat themselves. This year, however, they seem to have resumed playing bad football against good opponents.

[10/23/09] -- Dolphins Host Saints
The best offense in the NFL visits Land Shark Stadium this Sunday as the Dolphins play host to the New Orleans Saints. The Dolphins' defense has their work cut out for them this weekend, but as we point out in this week's Phins.com Game Preview, the Dolphins can win this game if they continue their offensive explosion, avoid turnovers and limit the Saints' passing game.

[10/12/09] -- Henne and Wildcat Crash Jets!
Chad Henne and the Wildcat beat the Jets 31-27 tonight in a game that wasn't decided until there were just 6 seconds left in the 4th quarter when Ronnie Brown scored on a Wildcat run from the 2 yard line. But that final run was set up by a drive engineered by Chad Henne, who made every clutch throw that was needed in every conceivable situation. The offense had 3 touchdown drives in the 4th quarter, responding to every score by the Jets with a score of their own. The offensive line, in particular, dominated at the line of scrimmage, blowing open holes and keeping the Jets pass rush off of Chad Henne, who was not sacked.

The defense did not play as well as the offense, giving up several big plays, especially when trying to defend Braylon Edwards. They let the Jets rush for 138 yards at 4.6 yards per carry and gave up 2 touchdowns in the 4th quarter. They played tough, but didn't get enough pressure on Sanchez and had trouble with Washington's cutback runs. Overall, however, it was a great win for the Dolphins.

[10/09/09] -- Jets Land in Miami
The New York Jets come to Miami this weekend to face the Dolphins on Monday night. The Jets started strong this year, but have been slowing down and lost their first game last week on a pathetic performance by rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez. In contrast, the Dolphins started slowly, but came to life last week as they crushed the Bills. While you hate to say that any game this early in the year is a "must win" game, this is as close as it gets for the Dolphins. If they beat the Jets, they have two division wins and back in the hunt. If they lose to the Jets, they will be 1-4 and headed for a poor showing this year. To see how they can beat the Jets and put some life back into their playoff hunt, read this week's Dolphins vs Jets Game Preview

[10/06/09] -- New Dolphins CEO Mike Dee
Along with a new coach and a new staff, the Dolphins have hired a new CEO this year. Mike Dee has been working for the Boston Red Sox until this year, which has been one of the most successful teams in professional sports over the last 5 years. Despite his association with the Red Sox, Dee says he's been a fan of the Dolphins since 1985. Recently, Phins.com Columnist Chris Shashaty had the opportunity to interview Mike and his week, we publish that interview in our Phins.com exclusive Interview with new Dolphins' CEO Mike Dee.