2009 NFL Preview: Miami Dolphins
2009 NFL Previews, Football, NFL August 21st. 2009, 1:15pmMiami is the city of sun, fun, fabulousness, and, if you are Dan Le Batard, profuse sweating. The Dolphins are the enduring franchise in the city, and they could not have found two more fitting public faces to represent Miami’s flavor and diversity, Bill Parcells and Chad Pennington. Last Season: The Dolphins finished a sad 1-15 under Cam Cameron in 2007, but under new coach Tony Sparano rode the wildcat and an easy schedule to a fierce 10-game swing in 2008, largest in NFL history, to finish 11-5. Improbably, they beat both the castrated Patriots and the Brett Favre Express to win the AFC East. 
Ownership: When not having schools named after himself, Dolphins owner Stephen Ross enjoys surrounding himself with celebrities. He unveiled Gloria and Emilio Estefan and Marc Anthony as part owners, signed a business deal with Jimmy Buffett and hopes to bring in the Williams sisters. Expect a Whitlock column about how Serena would own her own team already if her trunk had less junk.
Coaching Consistency: Miami has had six head coaches since Don Shula was kindly asked not to return in 1995, four since Dave Wannstache resigned in November 2004. The changes slightly edge the number of times Joe Robbie/Pro Player/Dolphins/Dolphin/Land Shark Stadium has changed names.
Draft: Miami drafted two corners, Vontae Davis (Illinois) and Sean Smith (Utah) in the first two rounds. Davis has speed but not intangibles. Smith is 6’3” and physical to cover bigger wide receiver. The biggest question was Pat White in the second round. He is not good enough to play quarterback, running back or wide receiver, so the Dolphins will hope the possibility of him being any of the three will scare teams.
Free Agency: The Dolphins brought back Jason Taylor after his disappointing year-long sabbatical with the Washington Racists. Miami also signed former Giants and Raiders’ safety Gibril Wilson. Wilson is a big hitter and fast, but takes risk in coverage. Mini-camp performances left teams worried he may be beat over the top.
Offense: Not productive in traditional terms. The offensive line is not overwhelming. Neither is the Chad Pennington throwing to crappy wideouts. They will need to run some crazy formations to use Ginn and Pat White. Teams will expect it this year, so they will hope defenses guarding against it frees things for Ronnie Brown and the conventional fellows.
Defense: Pass rush will be a concern. The Dolphins were eighth in the NFL last year with 40 sacks, however 17.5 of them came from Joey Porter, who is 32. If the aging Porter and Taylor can’t get to the quarterback, their rookie corners could be exposed. New signing Cameron Wake had 39 sacks the past two seasons, but in the CFL.
Scheduling: The Dolphins start with difficulty: Atlanta, INDIANAPOLIS, San Diego. They also finish roughly: at NEW ENGLAND, Jacksonville, Tennessee, HOUSTON, PITTSBURGH. The tough division draws of the AFC North and the NFC South make this schedule far tougher than last season.
Fantasy: Ronnie Brown is a No. 2 running back. Stay away from everyone else including Ted Ginn. If he hasn’t translated his athleticism into a position after four years of high school, three years at Ohio State and two years in the pros it probably will not happen. How awesome would Dan Marino have been?
Prediction: The Dolphins were not as bad as the 1-15 finish in 2007. They weren’t as good as the 11-5 finish last year. The schedule is difficult. The Pats have Tom Brady back. Parcells teams are usually halfway decent. The over/under is 7.5 games. Let’s go 8-8.
NFC East: Dallas Cowboys Preview | Philadelphia Eagles Preview | New York Giants Preview | Washington Redskins Preview
FC North: Chicago Bears Preview | Detroit Lions Preview | Minnesota Vikings Preview | Green Bay Packers Preview
NFL South: Tampa Bay Bucs Preview | Atlanta Falcons Preview | New Orleans Saints Preview | Carolina Panthers Preview
NFL West: San Francisco 49ers Preview | St. Louis Rams Preview | Arizona Cardinals Preview | Seattle Seahawks Preview
AFC East: New England Patriots Preview | New York Jets Preview | Buffalo Bills Preview |
71 Responses to “2009 NFL Preview: Miami Dolphins”
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August 21st, 2009 at 1:18 PM
yea they were.
8-8? that’s being mighty optimistic. their OL is pretty average, their QB’s blow, WR’s aren’t anything special, no real defensive studs outside of an ancient joey porter…i really don’t see much on this team to get excited about.
and their coach sucks.
3-13.
August 21st, 2009 at 1:19 PM
Davis has speed but not intangibles
If they’re intangible, how can you tell he doesn’t have them.
August 21st, 2009 at 1:20 PM
The fact he’s dancing for a group of black children moves it from merely enjoyable to Greatest Thing Ever for the day.
August 21st, 2009 at 1:25 PM
you are what your record says you are.
/parcells’d
August 21st, 2009 at 1:28 PM
Chad Henne is gonna rape.
/Go Blue
August 21st, 2009 at 1:28 PM
That David Caruso endless one liners video is awesome. I like how 99% of the scenes end with him pausing for effect, but his sunglasses back on, and then unleashing the hammer. Followed by Roger Daltrey’s banshee scream. Those shows become more ridiculous by the day.
August 21st, 2009 at 1:28 PM
I was out the day we did these guys and somehow one of my writers had them at 10-6. Where’s my hickory stick?
I say 7-9. They still have a solid dual running attack that can win some games. The defense is about as tight as Aubrey O’Day though.
August 21st, 2009 at 1:31 PM
if history has taught us anything, it’s that he’ll be the one GETTING raped.
August 21st, 2009 at 1:37 PM
Too bad it turns out Vernon Gholston is fraud and sucks very badly. You have said this yourself.
August 21st, 2009 at 1:39 PM
if he can dominate both henne and long in college, why can’t he do it in the pros?
hell, the only tackles and sacks he gets all year might come in the two games against the dolphins.
August 21st, 2009 at 1:40 PM
Henne will be starting by midseason.
August 21st, 2009 at 1:43 PM
The biggest question was Pat White in the second round. He is not good enough to play quarterback, running back or wide receiver
I’ll think he’ll be pretty productive, and in a year or two he could be a good receiver. and since almost all WRs take a couple of years to hit their stride, i’m confused by your certainty that he’s bad.
August 21st, 2009 at 1:46 PM
curious to see why you think he’ll be good at a position nobody has ever seen him play.
August 21st, 2009 at 1:46 PM
There are too many Miami videos to choose from. Astounding that both Miami Vice and Will Smith did not make the list.
August 21st, 2009 at 1:48 PM
But who are they gonna draft in the 2010 draft?
August 21st, 2009 at 1:49 PM
curious to see why you think he’ll be good at a position nobody has ever seen him play.
i think that QBs that switch to WR have a good understanding of defenses, and end up able to find weak spots to get open. they say that getting open is the hardest thing for a receiver to do, and i think he’ll have a good jump on figuring that out.
August 21st, 2009 at 1:49 PM
Astounding that both Miami Vice and Will Smith did not make the list.
2 Live Crew?
August 21st, 2009 at 1:52 PM
that makes sense seeing as you’ve seen hines ward and randle-el make that transition smoothly.
but there’s two knocks against this…
1. matt jones…more athletic, bigger, faster…couldn’t do shit.
2. like jones, white is coming from a bullshit spread system that didn’t require you to read anything more than what the DE was going to do. that’s not really preparing to view defenses.
just my $.02
August 21st, 2009 at 1:53 PM
great, great video of ZT
what’s his sister up to these days?
August 21st, 2009 at 1:53 PM
Pennington 4 MVP with the rocket launcher attached to his right shoulder
August 21st, 2009 at 1:55 PM
1. matt jones…more athletic, bigger, faster…couldn’t do shit.
Pat White was much more productive than Matt Jones, and I’d guess a big part of that was a better understanding of how to read a D
August 21st, 2009 at 1:57 PM
fixed for accuracy
August 21st, 2009 at 1:57 PM
also, i’m not saying he couldn’t play QB, i just don’t think he’ll get a real chance to do so in Miami. i think Henne is good. and I’ve cursed the day that Penn State chose to recruit Morelli over Henne
August 21st, 2009 at 1:57 PM
rich rod’s offense doesn’t require you to read anything more than the DE (to see whether or not to handoff to the RB option). even when passing, it’s one read downfield, if the guy’s not open, you take off running.
that’s really my only knock against white. i wish him the best, just think he was a HUGE reach.
August 21st, 2009 at 1:58 PM
She still Married to Jason Taylor.
August 21st, 2009 at 1:59 PM
just think he was a HUGE reach.
he’s not even the biggest reach on the roster
/Ginn’d
August 21st, 2009 at 2:00 PM
ive seen a ton of henne…he was pretty damn good in college…unless he faced a pass rush in which he turned to a pile of shit.
morelli/henne…meh, you didn’t miss out on much. plus, if morelli never went to PSU, we never would’ve had this AWESOME picture.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:01 PM
true story.
tho ginn is actually halfway decent. suprising cuz i thought he’d be bustalicious.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:01 PM
god the Dolphins are boring. There is nothing worse then a Dolphins/Bills game on CBS and no game on Fox. If any team needed Vick it was the Dolphins. At least they would be watchable.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:01 PM
pat white was a horrible pick. did you see him trying to actually drop back? he couldn’t even do that right.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:01 PM
He had a shitty QB.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:02 PM
great, great video of ZT
what’s his sister up to these days?
I don’t know, byt JT is out and missing this week’s game to attend to a “family matter”. Maybe he got caught cheating again.
She is smoking hot
No team EVER had more luck on their side last year than the Fins. Luck into Pennington because of Favre, play an “away” game in Toronto in a dome against JP Loss-man and 35,000 Fins fans, play the Seahawks against Seneca Wallace, not a single major injury the entire year, no Brady, etc
7-9 at best
August 21st, 2009 at 2:03 PM
and their coach sucks.
you think Tony Sparano sucks? I disagree vehemently.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:04 PM
na, i just don’t like the guy. he did some good stuff last year.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:05 PM
and their coach sucks.
you think Tony Sparano sucks? I disagree vehemently.
agree. I like the guy. I would take him over the guy from Poltergeist the Bills have any day (self-ban on linking)
August 21st, 2009 at 2:05 PM
and their coach sucks
you think sparano is a finook? never got that vibe, but i guess that that i think about the mustache, it makes sense.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:06 PM
id say jauron looks more hellraiser than poltergeist.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:06 PM
I will guarantee you that Jerry Jones would have paid double his salary to have him back by week 2 of last year, coaching that O-line. They went from the best, to a bunch of fat retards without his guidance.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:09 PM
jerr-ah? overpay for someone? NEVER!!!
August 21st, 2009 at 2:11 PM
Agree. But have you seen the Ralph Wilson lookalike?
August 21st, 2009 at 2:13 PM
ralph wilson sure has aged since he starred in the christmas story.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:15 PM
Bow to the dollar you small market fans.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:18 PM
a dollar is only valuable if it’s spent wisely.
or some shit.
whatever…jerry is a moron.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:20 PM
Yeah, but his net worth is $1.5B. You kinda have to respect a man that has that much coin in the bank/assets.
He’s a Sooner so he can go to hell though.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:23 PM
i thought he was from arkansas.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:24 PM
yep, which makes him being so successful so baffling.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:28 PM
so stealing a bunch of money with shady business ethics and not winning a playoff game, despite spending more money than fort knox could hold, is successful?
cool. good to know.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:29 PM
in over a decade.
/forgot to type that.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:30 PM
dude has rings on those fingers. he hired a man, and that man got the job done. tough to argue with that.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:32 PM
not really seeing as it reinforces my point…no salary cap, he could just out-buy everyone. yea…that takes a lot of skill.
fuck jerrah.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:36 PM
Well maybe not Dan Snyder.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:36 PM
they built that team through the draft.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:38 PM
I stand corrected. Don’t know why I thought he was from OK. They technically the same, right?
August 21st, 2009 at 2:41 PM
and a healthy dose of free agents…haley comes to mind.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:43 PM
i wouldn’t mind seeing the NFL payrolls in 1992 and 1993.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:47 PM
me too…i can’t find anything tho.
August 21st, 2009 at 3:01 PM
that was a DEEP team. Jimmy Smith got cut. Darren Woodson sat. James Washington was a free agent, too
August 21st, 2009 at 3:02 PM
oh, and they found Novacek in the Cardinals garbage pile.
August 21st, 2009 at 3:05 PM
best OL in NFL history. without a doubt.
August 21st, 2009 at 3:10 PM
The Cowboys built that team by stealing the Vikings’ future with offering the remains of the football player that was Herschel Walker.
I think it was 8 draft picks, that were parlayed into 7 starters on those teams.
/Johnson and Co drafted amazingly well
August 21st, 2009 at 3:12 PM
best OL in NFL history. without a doubt.
and then they got Larry Allen. They were unbelievable with Gesek, Stepnoski, Gogan, Tuinei and Williams. Then they got better.
Those were the biggest holes any running back has ever run through.
August 21st, 2009 at 3:16 PM
which is why emmitt smith is the most overrated player in NFL history.
tuinei was an animal. scary, scary man…
August 21st, 2009 at 3:19 PM
and why barry sanders is the best.
August 21st, 2009 at 3:22 PM
Eric Dickerson was the best. Barry Sanders had way too many negative plays, but he was stuck in that stupid run and shoot.
Emmitt was great though. He didn’t waste time, he just ate up the field, and the clock. Running backs need to hit that hole, no matter how small it is (hi Reggie Bush!).
August 21st, 2009 at 3:23 PM
which is what makes barry even more impressive. he had to create because his line was atrocious his entire career.
August 21st, 2009 at 3:24 PM
tuinei was an animal. scary, scary man…
thank you, tom landry. That guy was a converted D lineman.
August 21st, 2009 at 3:27 PM
which is what makes barry even more impressive. he had to create because his line was atrocious his entire career.
line, scheme, everything. He was certainly a singular talent, and great in his own right, but sometimes you have to hit the hole, or your O Line is going to look like assholes.
August 21st, 2009 at 3:31 PM
he did hit the hole, then would wiggle out of it, and creat a 40 yard run. jeebus man, for all the negative yards he had, he avg 5 yards a carry for his career.
August 21st, 2009 at 3:37 PM
could you friggin imagine barry with his quick feet behind a line like the Giants have now? perfect zone blocking schemes set up with all those cutbacks. dear Lord.
August 21st, 2009 at 3:44 PM
instead, he got 7 man fronts, with no tight end on the roster, no fullback on the roster, 4 tiny WR’s. whast a putrid offense.
August 21st, 2009 at 3:47 PM
dear lord…that’d be awesome. snee leading him into a hole and taking out LB’s? AWESOME.