OVERALL SUMMARY:

The Dolphins crushed the Arizona Cardinals 38-10 this evening in a game that featured almost total dominance by the Dolphins in every aspect of the game. The Dolphins blew away the Cardinals in the first half to take a 24-0 lead and after a brief lapse at the start of the second half that allowed the Cardinals to score 10 points, the Dolphins roared back and scored 14 more points to cruise to victory.

Even the special teams played very well this evening and it was special teams who gave the Dolphins their first scoring opportunity. After the opening kickoff, Miami went 3 and out on their first series, but stuffed the Cardinals on their first possesion and as the Cardinals were attempting to punt from their 40, Larry Izzo broke right through the center of the line and blocked the kick.

The Dolphins recovered that blocked kick at the Cards 24 and, helped by two pass interference calls, moved the ball down to the Arizona 1. After Abdul-Jabbar did his best Sammie Smith imitation by fumbling on the goal line, Marino recovered the ball, but Abdul-Jabbar redeemed himself on the very next play running it over behind the left side of the line for a 7-0 lead.

After the Dolphins stuffed the Cards again and forced them to go 3 and out, Marino started a long drive that stretched into the second quarter and ended with Karim Abdul-Jabbar getting another 3 yard touchdown run around the left side and opening up a 14-0 lead.

The Dolphins forced the Cards to go 3 and out again and after the punter Jeff Feagles shanked a short punt off his foot, the Dolphins were blessed with excellent field position that they quickly took advantage of with Marino hitting a wide open Lamar Thomas for a score and a 21-0 lead.

On the next series, Boomer Esiason (yes, he's in Arizona now) lead the Cards from their 20 to the Dolphin 45, but then attempted to throw deep into double coverage and was picked off by Terrell Buckley, who ran the ball back to the Dolphin 30.

After the interception, each team ran two ineffective series that ended in punts, but when Miami took over after a punt at their own 39 with less than a minute to play and a 21-0 lead, Marino hit Charles Jordan for a 43 yard gain that put the Dolphins in field goal range. Nedney took advantage of the positioning to hit a 36 yard field and give the Dolphins a 24-0 halftime lead.

In the first half, the Dolphins were not running the ball particularly effectively, only getting 47 yards on the ground, but Dan Marino is still the man and he carried the team when necessary. The defense didn't manage any sacks in the first half, but completely shut down the Cardinals running game and did manage to put some effective pressure on Esiason.

The second half opened with Kent Graham at quarterback for the Cardinals and he made the most of it, driving the team down the field with ease and getting the Cardinal's only TD on a quick pass to Cedric Smith, which cut the lead to 24-7. After the kickoff, Abdul-Jabbar fumbled on the Dolphins' first offensive play of the second half and the Cards recovered at the Dolphins 29, but the defense held and the Cardinals had to settle for a field goal and 24-10 score.

Miami roared right back after the field goal on the running of Irving Spikes. On the next drive, the Dolphins started at their own 22 and it took them 6 running plays and 2 passes to move the length of the field and score on a 1 yard leaping TD run by Irving Spikes. The key play of this drive was a 34 yard run by Spikes, during which he broke 6 tackles. On this drive, Abdul-Jabbar sprained his ankle again and sat out the rest of the game.

On the next series, Zach Thomas hit Leshon Johnson, knocked the ball loose and recovered the fumble. The Dolphins took this turnover and moved down to the Cardinals 5, where Marino hit OJ McDuffie on a quick out in the endzone for a touchdown and a 38-10 lead.

It was now early in the 4th quarter, and it was all over but the shouting. During the 4th quarter, Louis Oliver would kill one drive with an interception and Terrell Buckley would get another interception just before the two minute warning. Also, after his last TD to McDuffie, Marino would sit down and Bernie Kosar finished the game in his place.

Overall, it was a dominant show by the Dolphins in every phase of the game. On offense, the passing game allowed the Dolphins to get out quickly and take a commanding lead. Then, in the second half, the running game took over and helped the Dolphins seal their victory. The defense was dominating again, holding the Cardinals to 27 total yards rushing and holding the Cardinals starting tailback, Lelend McElroy to -5 yards on 6 attempts (yes, that's MINUS 5 yards).

The most dramatic improvement over last week was on special teams, where Nedney put all the kickoffs deep, with the exception of a squib kick to end the first half. The punt return coverage was also improved and the blocked punt was the play that sparked the initial Dolphins' scoring.

GOOD STUFF:

Almost everything about this game was good. On offense, the Dolphins passed and ran well. Marino looked as good as he's ever looked and spread the ball around well, with 10 receivers getting at least one catch, but no receiver caught more than 3 balls.

The running game was a little inconsistent in the first half, but came through in the third quarter and punctuated the fact that this was not going to be a team that would fold. Also, 3 of the Dolphins' 5 touchdowns were on running plays.

The defense was, once again, dominant. They allowed only 27 total rushing yards and got 4 turnovers in the game. They provided constant pressure on both Cardinal's quarterbacks, and even though they only got 2 sacks, they managed to force them to move out of the pocket regularly.

Special teams were effective, also, with Nedney putting 5 of 7 kickoffs into the endzone. Also, The kickoff coverage was much improved over last week, with the average kickoff return being about 23 yards, instead of last week's 43. And there was one blocked punt.

THINGS TO WORK ON:

Karim Adbul-Jabbar needs to work on his fumbles. He had two fumbles in this game and with the way that Spikes was running, that could easily cost him the starting job. He seems to be holding the ball correctly, he just needs to hold on tighter.

Also, Joe Nedney missed two short field goals. To be fair to Nedney, both these field goals were late in the game after the Dolphins were up 38-10 and he had made a more important one late in the first half, but he can't miss short field goals when the game is on the line.

The pass rush could be better. Stubbs and Armstrong need to be getting to the passer more consistently, especially with the way that Bowens, Emtman, Gardener and Burton are moving the middle of the pocket.

INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCES:

Zach Thomas had 10 solo tackles, 6 assists, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. This young man is amazing. The next most tackles on defense was by Singleton, who had 4.

Terrell Buckley had 4 tackles, 2 interceptions, 2 passes defensed and 1 forced fumble. He is clearly playing better than any other Dolphins' defensive back.

Louis Oliver had 4 tackles and an interception.

Karim Abdul-Jabbar had 16 carries for 41 yards (a 2.6 yard/carry average) and 2 rushing touchdowns, but fumbled twice - once at the goal line.

Irving Spikes had 11 carries for 79 yards (a 7.2 yard/carry average) and 1 rushing touchdown. His 34 yard run in the third quarter was a thing of beauty.

Lamar Thomas and OJ McDuffie each had 3 catches and a touchdown.

Charles Jordan finally got to show his stuff and while he only caught 2 passes for 51 yards, he was open deep a couple of times and Dan overthrew him. He'll be a big play guy in the future.

Aaron Jones and Shane Burton recorded the team's only sacks, but it was Steve Emtman, Trace Armstrong and Tim Bowens that got the most pressure in the backfield of the Cardinals.

Stanley Pritchett caught only one pass for 13 yards, but once again provided important blocking for the running game.

INJURIES:

Abdul-Jabbar twisted his ankle again in the third quarter and didn't return, but it's not thought to be serious. Calvin Jackson did play in this game and played fairly well.

My Comments:

This game couldn't have gone much better. It was a total domination in a way that has rarely been seen in Miami in the last 10 year or so. The Dolphins ran more than they passed, but still were able to pass effectively when they had to.

Even though it's only two games into the season, I think it's safe to say that Zach Thomas is the real deal. However, I'm not yet sold on Karim Abdul-Jabbar. His fumbles worried me because they reminded me of Sammie Smith, who was once a very talented runner, but couldn't hold on to the ball.

Related Info:

• Dolphins Endzone: From the Game
• ESPNet: Game Summary
• NFL Web Site: Game Book