The Dolphins looked o.k. on offense but they had to be disappointed with their defensive performance on Saturday Night.  Trent Green completed 7 of 11 passes for 42 yards with 1 TD and 1 interception.  The interception was a game changing play as Cato June returned it 2 yards for a TD.  Cleo Lemon looked pretty sharp against the Bucs as he completed 8 of 12 passes for 77 yards and he also ran the ball 1 time for 17 yards.  Rookie John Beck was outstanding Saturday Night as he completed 11 of 22 passes for 162 yards with 2 TD passes.  The Dolphins’ running game didn’t get anything going against the Bucs’ defense.  Ronnie Brown (6 car, 18 yards) and Jesse Chatman (4 car, 9 yards, TD) both got their work in against the Bucs.  Lorenzo Booker only carried the football 1 time for 2 yards but he caught 6 passes for 41 yards.  WR P.K. Sam had a outstanding game with 2 grabs for 60 yards and a TD.

The Dolphins defense just couldn’t stop the Bucs’ offense and that is scary stuff.  The Bucs ran the ball 28 times for 133 yards (4.8 ypc) and they completed 19 of 37 passes for 201 yards.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=270825015

Rookie running back Roger Mauia from Hawaii has fractured a bone in his left wrist.  Mauia is a tough 6′0″, 270 pound running back who will have to wear a cast for 4-6 weeks but he plans on trying to play through it.  He has played in 2 pre-season games this season with the Dolphins and he has 4 carries for 9 yards (2.3 ypc) and he has caught 2 passes for 8 yards (4.0 avg).

It was apparent from the get go that the Dolphins wanted to work on their running game last night and it looked pretty good for the most part.  The QBs were just caretakers of the offense.   Trent Green was lustily booed last night in his return to Arrowhead Stadium but that didn’t effect his performance as he was 4 for 7 for 41 yards passing.  Cleo Lemon was throwing a lot of short passes when he entered the game as he was 8 for 11 for 52 yards.  John Beck looked pretty sharp again last night as he completed 5 of 6 passes for 52 yards.  Ronnie Brown had a surprisingly big workload last night as he carried the football 13 times for 57 yards (4.4 ypc) and he also caught a pass for 10 yards.  Jesse Chatman found it a little tougher against the Chiefs’ defense at least running the ball as he carried it 8 times for 19 yards (2.4 ypc) but he also added 5 catches for 43 yards.  Patrick Cobbs finished up with another solid effort as he carried the football 4 times for 27 yards (6.8 ypc) with a TD run and he also caught 2 passes for 9 yards.  So the Dolphins finished up the game last night with 34 carries for 126 yards (3.7 ypc) and they completed 17 of 24 passes for 121 yards.

The defense played pretty well last night until the backups came in and let Casey Printers move the football on them late.  Still the Dolphins had to be pleased with their overall performance on defense.  They were stingy against the run as the Chiefs finished with only 61 yards rushing on 27 carries (2.3 ypc).  But the Chiefs completed 17 of 26 passes for 224 yards so the Dolphins still have a little work to do before the regular season starts.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=270816012

 

New head coach Cam Cameron of the Dolphins likes to have the TE involved in his offense so it will be interesting to see which re-tread will get the most playing time.  My money is on David Martin as he appears to be the best receiver of the bunch because of his speed.   He played in 11 games (4 starts) last season for the Packers and he caught 21 passes for 198 yards (9.4 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  He has now played in 70 games (21 starts) in his NFL career and he has caught 87 passes for 766 yards (8.8 avg) with 9 TD grabs.

Justin Peelle has been a Dolphin for a little while but he’s a better blocker than receiver.  He played in 15 games (10 starts) last season for the Dolphins and he caught 16 passes for 113 yards (7.3 avg) with 1 TD grab.  He has now played in 77 games (29 starts) in his NFL career and he has caught 56 passes for 386 yards (6.9 avg) with 5 TD grabs.

Courtney Anderson appears to have some upside so he might be a guy to keep an eye on.  He played in 16 games (11 starts) for the lowly Raiders last season and he caught 25 passes for 285 yards (11.4 avg) with 2 TD grabs.   He has now played in 39 games (28 starts) in his NFL career and he has caught 62 passes for 763 yards (12.3 avg) with 6 TD grabs.

The Miami Dolphins had better hope that Ted Ginn Jr. or Derek Hagan is ready to step up and replace Wes Welker as the #3 WR this season or the Dolphins could have trouble moving the football thru the air.  Chris Chambers is starting to prove that he’s not a legit go to guy as the Dolphins completed less than 40% of the passes thrown his way last year.  Chambers played in 16 games (all starts) and he caught 59 passes for 677 yards (11.5 avg) with 4 TD grabs and he also carried the football 8 times for 95 yards (11.9 ypc).  Chambers has only really had one outstanding season for the Dolphins and he really has been a disappointment when all things are considered.  He has now played in 94 games (85 starts) and he has caught 374 passes for 5,273 yards (14.1 avg) with 43 TD grabs and he has carried the ball 40 times for 360 yards (9.0 ypc) in his NFL career.  The Dolphins need him to step up!

Marty Booker has been a decent #2 WR but he’s not a gamebreaker.  He played in 14 games (13 starts) last season for the Dolphins and he caught 55 passes for 747 yards (13.6 avg) with 6 TD grabs and he also carried the ball 3 times for 19 yards (6.3 ypc).  Booker is dependable and that’s why Trent Green will be looking his way a lot this season.  Booker has now played in 113 games (96 starts) in his NFL career and he has caught 459 passes for 5,755 yards (12.5 avg) with 33 TD grabs and he has carried the football 14 times for 19 yards (1.4 ypc).  Look for him to have another decent season.

Second year man Derek Hagan will likely get the first shot at replacing Wes Welker as the #3 WR for the Dolphins.  Hagan has a lot of the same skills that Welker had as he’s quick, tough and has good hands.  He played in all 16 games (0 starts) as a rookie last season and he caught 21 passes for 221 yards (10.5 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Look for him to at least double those numbers this season.

Ted Ginn Jr. is very fast.  The Dolphins will likely bring him along slowly in the offense because they don’t want to put a ton of pressure on him.  He will likely be used as the #4 WR as a rookie but he likely will return punts and kickoffs.  Still, the Dolphins don’t have a clear cut #1 WR on their roster so Ginn could move up the depth chart if he gets off to a fast start this season.

Az-Zahir Hakim was signed as a free agent after spending last season in San Diego with head coach Cam Cameron.  Hakim played in 6 games (0 starts) last season for the Chargers and he caught 17 passes for 147 yards (8.6 avg) and he also carried the ball 1 time for 1 yard and it was a TD.  Hakim has now played in 110 games (39 starts) in his NFL career and he has caught 316 passes for 4,191 yards (13.3 avg) with 28 TD grabs and he also has carried the football 31 times for 198 yards (6.4 ypc) with a TD run.  The Fins will be in trouble this season if Hakim is ever higher than #5 on the depth chart.