OVERALL SUMMARY:
The Dolphins opened their preseason on Saturday night with a 13-10 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The game was the first for new head coach Jimmy Johnson and the first for a number of Dolphins players as well.
The Dolphins scored first in this game, driving 54 yards in 10 plays to give Joe Nedney his first chance as a Dolphin to kick a field goal and he had no problem nailing it. The key play on this drive came when Scott Miller caught a 24 yard pass from Dan Marino to move the ball down to the Tampa Bay 33 yard line. Following the field goal, the Dolphins lead 3-0.
The rest of the first half, however, the Dolphins couldn't score and didn't move the ball very well. They managed just 24 yards rushing for the half, while allowing the Bucs to move well and score 10 unanswered points. The half ended with the Bucs enjoying a 10-3 lead.
All was not terrible for the Dolphins, as Terrell Buckley snared the only interception of the game and ran it back 25 yards and new safety Shawn Wooden almost had another pick, but couldn't hold on to the ball. For the most part, however, the Dolphins were pretty sloppy in the first half.
In the second half, however, the tables were turned. The Dolphins began to move the ball well on the ground and Bernie Kosar managed to hit 10 of 14 passes and help the Dolphins move well down the field. The Dolphins scored their first TD of the game early in the 4th quarter, when Bernie Parmalee punched over from 1 yard out to tie the game at 10-10.
Then, the Dolphins got the best running performance of the game from Jerris McPhail, who busted loose on a couple of big runs to put the Dolphins into position to score the go-ahead field goal. At this point, Joe Nedney handled the pressure very well, when he was forced to kick twice because of a penalty. Nedney nailed both kicks, giving the Dolphins their final score and sealing a 13-10 victory.
Overall, I'd have to rate this game as disappointing, but not disastrous. The Dolphins didn't manage to get their running game going until the second half, but they finally did manage to get it in gear. Also, a number of players didn't get to play because of small, nagging injuries and that prevented them from getting in some needed work in game conditions.
INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCES:
On offense, Bernie Kosar played very well, completing 10 of 14 passes for 82 yards and probably putting himself back into the #2 position at quarterback behind Dan Marino. Kosar's competition, Dan McGwire, didn't fare as well, going 2 of 4 for only 8 yards.
Of the receivers, only Scott Miller stood out, catching 3 passes for 46 yards.
At the hotly contested running back spot, Irving Spikes was the starter, but could manage to get only 10 yards in 6 carries. Kirby didn't do much better, getting 14 yards in 6 tries. Bernie Parmalee did slightly better, managing 9 carries for 24 yards and the lone touchdown, but it was Jerris McPhail who stole the show, gaining 44 yards on 7 carries, a 6.3 yard/carry average.
On defense, Zach Thomas and Terrel Buckley each stood out in good ways, with Thomas leading the team in tackles with 8 and Buckley getting 3 tackles and the lone interception of the game.
Unfortunately, Daryl Gardener did not stand out, getting only one tackle and not much else, except injured, which he can ill-afford at this juncture.
On Special teams, both Joe Nedney and John Kidd looked very good kicking the ball. Nedney nailed all the kicks he attempted and John Kidd averaged a blistering 48.3 yards/punt.
INJURIES:
Shawn Wooden was knocked motionless during the game and was taken off on a stretcher, but X-Rays and an MRI have revealed that he just strained his neck and will be back at practice this week.
Daryl Gardener injured his knee during the game, but it also is not considered serious and he is listed as day-to-day.
Also injured during the game were RB Terry Kirby (hip), S Michael Stewart (heel) and LB O.J. Brigance (hip). None of these injuries is serious and all are listed as day-to-day.
Sitting out the game were C Cal Dixon (severe dehydration), DT Steve Emtman (hamstring), DT Norman Hand (triceps), O.J. McDuffie (hamstring), WR Charles Jordan (ankle) and DE Aaron Jones (hamstring).
WR Fred Barnett (knee) and DE Jeff Cross (back) are out indefinitely.
EYEWITNESS REPORTS:
I didn't see the game, but I do have the good fortune to have an eyewitness account from David Hennessy (davidhennessy@prodigy.com):
My Comments:Here's a report on the game for those who didn't get to see it. The Dolphins won by a score of 13-10. But despite the victory there were not as many bright spots as we'd like to see.
The first unit offense did not perform very well. The running game got nowhere with Spikes or Kirby. The offensive line didn't look good, either pass or run blocking. The tight end was again invisible in the first & 2nd team offense.
The first unit defense looked bad. The front seven did a horrible job against the run. They were being man-handled by Tampa Bay's O-line and run over by RB Gary Ellison (who??) and Leroy Thompson. The first unit secondary looked okay, but not great.
But generally this game is more about evaluating individuals. So here's a position-by-position look at how the players did:
QUARTERBACKS: Marino looked good, although he could have been a little more accurate on a play or two. McGwire worked with the 2nd team and did nothing special. Kosar played for extended time and looked very good in the shotgun and led the team to the game-tying score. He was usually choosing the right receiver, although he was a bit hesitant to throw it deep. His throws looked crisper than they have in a little while and he wasn't telegraphing his throws as much. Overall, he led the team well.
RUNNING BACKS: Spikes started and didn't gain much yardage. He looked pretty active and made a few decent runs, but he got hit behind the line a few times also. He was a at least running tough and would have done better if he'd gotten better blocking. Kirby played as the 2nd team running back and looked the way he usually does: good receiving and just a little too slow running. Parmalee had some decent runs, but it was against the 2nd and 3rd team defense. He scored the team's only touchdown. Jerris McPhail looks like a really good 3rd down back, so he'll challenge Kirby. He had some nice gains cathing the ball and was getting himself open. McPhail also looked extremely good running the ball. He was seeing the holes well, getting to them quickly, and showing some nice shifty moves. Don't discount him as a future starter. He was by far the best runner of the night. Expect him to get a lot more of a look earlier in the game next week.
Karim Abdul-Jabbar had only 2 carries and didn't break anything. He is clearly last on the depth chart, and its not just a message JJ is sending. Right now, he is the 5th back as far as talent. Of course, he may look better if his ankles get better.
WIDE RECEIVERS: Not a whole lot to talk about here. O.J. McDuffie and Charles Jordan didn't play due to injury. So Scott Miller started and was the only receiver who stood out. He caught a nice deep catch on a post pattern from Marino in the 1st quarter. He also made a tough catch from Kosar over the middle and held on to it despite getting decked. He's really impressed in camp and in games. I've noticed that in practice he's been running the post a lot from the inside slot position, like Clayton used to.
TIGHT ENDS: Kerry Cash played almost every down of the game but was absolutely invisible. JJ keeps calling Cash a good receiver, but he has not gotten open at all against the Redskins or Tampa Bay, but he looks great in practice. What's up?
OFFENSIVE LINE: Webb, Sims, Ruddy, Gray, and James Brown started. Gray & Ruddy looked pretty good both pass and run-blocking. Webb and Sims looked good pass blocking but didn't dominate run-blocking. James Brown has some trouble pass blocking. He needed help (from Gray or the RB) on many plays in which he couldn't handle the DE. But he seemed to improve as the game progressed.
Billy Milner played late in the game and looked pretty good, especially pass-blocking.
DEFENSIVE LINE: The starting defensive line was Stubbs, Bowens, Agee, and Gardner from left to right. Cross, Emtman, Hand, and A.Jones did not play due to injuries. The starting unit did a poor job. They did not stop the run and got no pressure on Dilfer. In the 2nd quarter, Stubbs looked ok on the pass rush, but got blocked out on a number of running plays. Bowens was pretty invisible, which is a concern from a player this defense needs to dominate. Gardener played almost every down in the game but he did nothing. He got no pressure at all, and he didn't do very well against the run either. Agee didn't get much pressure, except late int he game against the backups.
Trace Armstrong looked the best of the DL. He consistently got pressure against the 1st and 2nd team offense. He looked very good. He hit the QB a number of times. Hawthorne, Burton, and Mills did nothing to stand out. In fact, Hawthorne has disappointed so far in this camp by not collapsing the pocket at all.
LINEBACKERS: The starting LBs were good only in spots. Hollier was pretty solid. However Jack Del Rio was not moving very well at MLB against either the run or the pass. He did make one very good play, stuffing the RB behind the line on a 4th and inches play. Of the backups, Zach Thomas looked pretty good against the run, but not as much against the pass.
CORNERBACKS: Both Brown and Buckley looked alright. Buckley got beaten deep once but he was in pretty good position on the play. Brown was playing very good coverage, but Alvin Harper did grab a 7 yard TD pass in front of him on a slant, despite tight coverage. Buckley intercepted a ball to end the 2nd half.
As far as the backup CBs, Dorian Brew and Tim Jacobs showed some good things. They both broke up some passes. Calvin Jackson has been a dissappoinment so far in camp. He hasn't stood out in practice, in the scrimmages, or in this game.
SAFETIES: Shawn Wooden started at Free Safety but he sustained a serious neck injury trying to prevent Alvin Harper from getting into the end zone. He was taken off the field on a stretcher and airlifted to the hospital, but it looks like only a neck strain. If that's the case,he may be out a week or so.
Of the other safeties, they all looked average. They made some good tackles against the run, largely because the front 7 was missing them. Oliver stood out with a number of hard hits
Well, this analysis is already too long, but I do have a couple of things to add. I was disappointed in this game, because I had hoped, after all the reports during the week of the team manhandling the Bucs defensive line, that they would develop a running game.
Unfortunately, that didn't happen until late in the game. Personally, I know that it's important to develop a winning attitude, but I would rather have had a 13-10 loss with a lot more running game and some better defense. Still, it's early in the preseason and there are a lot more practices to go before the Dolphins have to play a real game.
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