Dolphins squeak by lowly Titans

I'll take an ugly win over an impressive defeat any day. And it was surely an ugly win when the Dolphins got their first victory of the season, 13-10 over the 0-3 Titans. The offense still looked out of sync. Daunte Culpepper completed 17 of 26 passes for 168 yards, no touchdowns, and no interceptions, and he was sacked 5 times. The running game performed a little better, with Ronnie Brown leading the way, gaining 90 yards on 26 carries.

It was good to finally get the first win, but remember that this is a Titans team that had lost their previous six road games and was just blown out by San Diego, 40-7. Clearly, the Dolphins need to improve significantly if they hope to live up to preseason expectations.

Dolphins 0-2 after loss to Bills

This is the team that Sports Illustrated picked to win the Super Bowl??

The Dolphins lost to the Buffalo Bills, 16-6, making it 0-2 to start the 2006 season. How bad was it? The home crowd booed the Phins and chanted for Joey Harrington to replace Daunte Culpepper. The same Daunte Culpepper who was supposed to lead the team to the promised land.

Statistically, Culpepper didn't do that poorly, completing 23 of 32 passes for 250 yards, a touchdown, and an interception. However, a good portion of that (including the touchdown) was at the end when the game was already decided. Culpepper was also sacked 7 times and fumbled twice.

There's not much good to say about this game. At least the players knew they stunk, so hopefully this loss will wake them up and turn things around.

Dolphins lose opener to Steelers

The Dolphins didn't exactly start the 2006 on a high note, losing 28-17 to the Steelers even when the Steelers were missing their starting QB. The big play of the game was Heath Miller's 87 yard touchdown catch and run to give the Steelers a 21-17 lead. Replays showed he stepped out of bounds between the 1- and 2-yard lines, but either officials didn't see coach Saban's protest flag and/or he threw it too late. The Dolphins' last hopes ended a few minutes later when Daunte Culpepper did his Jay Fiedler/AJ Feeley impression by throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown.

I don't know who was at fault for the Miller non-overturn, but in my mind, that play wasn't the main reason the Dolphins lost. Who's to say Pittsburgh wouldn't have scored a touchdown from the 2-yard line anyway? What I want to know is why a tight end ran through the Dolphins defense for 87 yards?? He sure made the secondary look slow.

Culpepper didn't have a good game, completing 18 of 37 passes for 262 yards with 2 interceptions. The running game wasn't any better. Ronnie Brown gained only 30 yards on 15 carries, although he scored 2 touchdowns.

It's still early in the season, but the Dolphins need to fix their defense and find a running game if they hope to play in the postseason.

2006 season starts tonight

This is it! Tonight, we find out just how good the Dolphins are when they face the defending Super Bowl champs, albeit without their starting QB. Are the Dolphins really Super Bowl-worthy, as SI predicted, or was last season's 6-game win streak a mirage?

Personally, I think the Dolphins are playoff contenders, but I don't see them as being the best team in the AFC. All of the preseason hype is based on 2 words: Daunte Culpepper. I feel nervous knowing that the team's 2006 season is based on a QB coming back from major knee surgery. What if he gets hurt again?

With Ricky Williams suspended for the season, the running attack is weaker than it was last year. Say what you will about Ricky's flakiness, but the man can run the football. Also, the defense is pretty much at the level it was last year, except that anchors Zach Thomas and Jason Taylor are another year older.

Well, we won't know for sure until the games start. That's why they play them. At least it beats not having any football to watch!

Roster cuts

The Dolphins cut a number of players to get to the regular season limit of 53. Among the more surprising players cut were WR Marcus Vick, FB Fred Beasley, and RBs Kay Jay Harris and Gerald Riggs Jr. I thought Vick had a chance to make the team because teammates raved about him in the preseason and the coaches liked his versatility. As a new convert to the WR position, it would've been nice to keep him and wait for him to develop. He had the athletic ability but needed more experience. Beasley was brought in to improve the FB position, and although I didn't hear much from him (or any of the fullbacks) in the preseason, I didn't think the Dolphins had that many better FBs than Beasley. Cutting Harris and Riggs were surprising because it leaves the Dolphins with just two running backs to start the season. (The team just claimed Lee Suggs off waivers, but he still needs to pass his physical, something he failed to do earlier in the preseason.)

Dolphins win last preseason game

In their last preseason game, the Dolphins overwhelmed the St. Louis Rams, 29-9. The offense scored only one touchdown, however, on a Cleo Lemon pass to Marcus Vick. The remaining scoring consisted of an interception return by Deke Cooper and 5 Olindo Mare field goals. Lemon was impressive, playing for the majority of the game and completing 21 of 28 passes for 271 yards and a touchdown. The running game was again ineffective, gaining only 70 yards on 31 carries. The defense performed well, holding the Rams to 86 yards rushing and 62 net yards passing.