The Dolphins looked like a good football team again last Thursday Night in New Orleans.  Chad Pennington made a very brief appearance as he completed 2 of 4 passes for 27 yards.  Rookie QB Chad Henne was pretty effective in this game as he completed 16 of 20 passes for 137 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 interception.  John Beck finished up this game completing both of his pass attempts to 17 yards.  Ronnie Brown led the Dolphins in rushing in this game with 47 yards on 12 carries (3.9 ypc) with a TD run.  Rookie Lex Hilliard pitched in with 25 yards rushing on 9 tackles (2.8 ypc).  The Dolphins had possession of the football for 35:10 of the game which really helped them hold on in this game.  The Fins rushed for 102 yards on 36 carries (2.8 ypc) in this game and they completed 20 of 26 passes for 167 yards.

Linebacker Akin Ayodele and Reggie Torbor led the Dolphins on defense with 7 tackles apiece.  The Fins held the Saints to 74 yards rushing on 26 carries (2.8 ypc) and they also completed 10 of 23 passes for only 25 yards.  The Dolphins finished the preseason with a 3-1 record and they hope that they keep the momentum going into the regular season.

The Dolphins actually looked like a solid football team in this game as they played well in all three phases of the game.  Chad Pennington was effective completing 11 of 15 passes for 94 yards with a 17-yard TD pass to TE Anthony Fasano.  Pennington also carried the football 1 time for 13 yards.  Chad Henne had his worst game of the preseason as he completed 2 of 7 passes for 14 yards with a interception.  Rookie running back Jalen Permele was outstanding as he led the Fins’ in rushing with 88 yards on only 7 carries (12.6 ypc) and he had a 2-yard TD run.  Ricky Williams was also effective rushing for 47 yards on 12 carries (3.9 ypc).  Anthony Fasano had a solid game with 3 receptions for 30 yards (10.0 avg) with a TD grab.  Ted Ginn also had a good game as he caught 3 passes for 29 yards (9.7 avg) and he also returned a punt 59 yards for a TD.  The Dolphins finished up with 164 yards rushing on 31 carries (5.3 ypc) and they also completed 13 of 22 passes for 108 yards.

Cornerback Mike Lehan and safeties Renaldo Hill and Jason Allen each intercepted a pass in a dominating effort by the Dolphins’ defense.  Linebacker  Channing Crowder led the way for the Dolphins in this game with 5 tackles and a sack.  The Chiefs finished up with 90 yards rushing on 25 carries (3.6 ypc) and they also completed 16 of 33 passes for 99 yards.  The Dolphins need to build off of this impressive win.

The Dolphins have traded cornerback Travis Daniels to the Cleveland Browns for a late round pick in the 2009 NFL Draft.  Daniels played in 16 games (5 starts) for the Dolphins last season and he made 28 tackles, defensed 4 passes and had 1 interception.  Daniels never lived up to his potential in his three year career with the Dolphins so it made sense to take a draft pick for him.  Daniels played in 44 games (25 starts) in his NFL career and he made 125 tackles, defensed 18 passes and he picked off 3 passes.

The Dolphins actually looked like a decent football team Saturday Night in Jacksonville.  Chad Pennington got his first playing time with the Dolphins and he was sharp completing 5 of 6 passes for 55 yards.  He also carried the ball 2 times for 18 yards (9.0 ypc) against the Jags.  Rookie Chad Henne also was effective completing 17 of 26 passes for 133 yards.  Ricky Williams led the Dolphins in rushing against the Jags with 43 yards on 10 carries (4.3 ypc) including a 4-yard TD run.  Ted Ginn Jr. was the Dolphins’ leading receiver with 4 receptions for 58 yards (14.5 avg).  The Dolphins finished up with 123 yards rushing on 36 carries (3.4 ypc) on Saturday Night and they also completed 22 of 33 passes for 188 yards. 

Safety Yeremiah Bell and linebacker Channing Crowder led the way for the Dolphins with 5 tackles apiece.  The Dolphins held the Jaguars to only 42 yards rushing on 17 carries (2.5 ypc).  But, the Jaguars completed 21 of 39 passes for 253 yards so the Dolphins still have to work on pass defense.

The special teams were also solid for the Dolphins in this game as rookie kicker Dan Carpenter nailed 4 field goals (46, 44, 37 and 31 yards) and he was a big reason for this win.

The Dolphins hit rock bottom in 2007 going a stunningly putrid 1-15.  That effort got Cam Cameron fired after just one season on the job as he was replaced by Tony Sparano.  Sparano is a tough guy who coached under Bill Parcells in Dallas so it’s no wonder why he was hired.  Sparano was the offensive line coach/assistant head coach for the Cowboys from 2003-07 and he will try to bring his winning attitude with him to the Dolphins.  The Dolphins signed and drafted a bunch of physical players that will fit into a new smash mouth kind of team.  Still, this is going to take some time to rebuild the Dolphins who were the worst team in the NFL so patience will have to be a virtue both this season and in the near future in Miami.

In the latest move that makes no sense the Dolphins have cut Jay Feely.  All Feely did last season was make 21 of 23 field goals (91.3%) and all 26 of his extra point attempts.  True, he was having a hamstring issue in training camp but he’s a tried and true veteran.  The Dolphins will go with undrafted rookie Dan Carpenter out of Montana as the starting kicker.  Carpenter made 75 of 103 field goals (72.8%) in his career at Montana and he converted 182 of 188 extra points (96.8%).  He’s not nearly the automatic kicker that Feely was so this didn’t make much sense.

The Dolphins looked awful on offense last Saturday at home against the Bucs.  John Beck started this game and he was 5 of 9 for 45 yards.  Chad Henne followed him in the game and he completed 5 of 10 passes for 67 yards.  Veteran Josh McCown finished up by completing 5 of 8 passes for 35 yards.  Ricky Williams looked good running the football as he carried the ball 5 times for 31 yards (6.2 ypc).  Rookie Jalen Parmele also looked good carrying the ball 4 times for 18 yards (4.5 ypc) against the Bucs.  WR David Kircus led the way for the Dolphins in the passing game with 3 receptions for 39 yards (13.0 avg).    The Dolphins finished up this game with 64 yards rushing on 16 carries (4.0 ypc).  They also completed 15 of 27 passes for 134 yards as they only had the football for 23:49 of this game. 

Linebacker Reggie Torbor led a pretty good effort by the Fins’ defense with 8 tackles.  The Buccaneers finished up with 114 yards rushing on 33 carries (3.5 ypc) against the Dolphins Saturday Night.  They also completed 28 of 40 passes for 181 yards.  The Dolphins seemed to wear down on defense due to them being on the football field way too long.

The Dolphins have signed 32-year old QB Chad Pennington to a 2-year, $7.9 million dollar contract.  Pennington will likely be the starting QB for the Dolphins with either John Beck or Josh McCown losing a roster spot before the season starts.  Pennington became available after the Jets acquired Brett Favre in a trade with the Packers.  Pennington played in 9 games (8 starts) with the Jets last season and he completed 179 of 260 passes (68.8%) for 1,765 yards with 10 TD passes and 9 interceptions (86.1 QB Rating). He also carried the football 20 times for 32 yards (1.6 ypc) with 1 TD run last year.    Pennington’s lack of arm strength won’t likely hurt as much in the heat of Miami as it would in the cold conditions in New Jersey.  Pennington has now played in 69 games (61 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 1,259 of 1,919 passes (65.6%) for 13,738 yards with 82 TD passes and 55 interceptions (88.9 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 147 times for 396 yards (2.7 ypc) with 6 TD runs.  You can bet Pennington has the games with the Jets circled on his calendar already as he would like to prove that they made a big mistake in letting him go.