Turnovers doom Dolphins in season opener

Last season and during the preseason, Chad Pennington displayed his hallmark mistake-free play. That turned around in a hurry on Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons. The score, 19-7, wasn't indicative of how much Atlanta dominated Miami. Pennington got sacked four times, threw an interception, and coughed up a fumble. Add two Anthony Fasano fumbles, and there was no way the Dolphins could have won this game.

Statistically, the offense didn't look as bad (except for the FOUR turnovers, of course). Pennington completed 21 of 29 passes for 176 yards and a touchdown. Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams combined for 17 carries and 82 yards. However, the offensive line was manhandled most of the game, and the offense was never able to build any consistency.

Defensively, the front seven did a good job stopping the Atlanta running game. The defense also held QB Matt Ryan in check initially, but they were ultimately unable to contain him once he started hooking up with TE Tony Gonzalez.

The oddsmakers predicted that the Falcons would win Sunday, but I don't think they imagined how poorly the Dolphins would play. Miami needs to regroup and play more like they did last year if they want any hope of defending their division championship.