The Dolphins need more production out of the QBs in 2010 as they really missed Chad Pennington after he was injured.  The 33-year old Pennington played in 3 games for the Dolphins this season and he completed 51 of 74 passes (68.9%) for 413 yards with 1 TD pass and 2 INTs (76.0 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 3 times for 7 yards (2.3 ypc) this year.  Pennington has now played in 88 games in his NFL career and he has completed 1,631 of 2,469 passes (66.1%) for 17,804 yards with 102 TD passes and 64 INTs (90.1 QB Rating).  Pennington has carried the ball 180 times for 465 yards (2.6 ypc) with 7 TD runs in his career.  I think Pennington’s time is done in Miami because he already had a really weak arm before the surgery he underwent this year.

24-year old Chad Henne stepped in for Pennington and he was very up and down.  He played in 13 games for the Dolphins this season and he completed 274 of 451 passes (60.8%) for 2,878 yards with 12 TD passes and 14 INTs (75.2 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 16 times for 32 yards (2.0 ypc) with 1 TD run.  Henne has now played in 16 games in his NFL career and he has completed 281 of 463 passes (60.7%) for 2,945 yards with 12 TD passes and 14 INTs (75.2 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 16 times for 32 yards (2.0 ypc) with a TD run.  Henne definitely has the potential to be a good starting QB in the NFL so it will be interesting to see if he lives up to his ability as he will likely enter 2010 as the Fins’ starting QB.

25-year old Tyler Thigpen will likely slide into the #2 QB role for the Dolphins in 2010.  He played in 1 game for the Dolphins this season and he completed 4 of 8 passes (50%) for 83 yards with 1 TD pass and 2 INTs (87.0 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 1 time for 1 yard this season.  Thigpen has now played in 17 games in his NFL career and he has completed 236 of 434 passes (54.4%) for 2,732 yards with 19 TD passes and 15 INTs (73.8 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 64 times for 389 yards (6.1 ypc) with 3 TD runs in his career.  Thigpen should do a decent job as the back-up in the future but he would be too stretched out as a starter.

23-year old Pat White is not really anything more than a Wildcat Formation QB and that is it.  He played in 13 games for the Dolphins this season and he threw 5 incomplete passes.  He also carried the ball 21 times for 81 yards (3.9 ypc) this year.  I expect to see White playing a different position in the NFL as he is not really QB material.

The Dolphins played hard yesterday but they just fell short against the Steelers.  Chad Henne was solid in the first half of the game yesterday completing 16 of 20 passes for 140 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 INT.  But, he didn’t play the rest of the game due to a eye injury.  Pat White replaced Henne at QB and he carried the ball 5 times for 27 yards (5.4 ypc) and he threw two incomplete passing before leaving the field on a stretcher.  That left things up to Tyler Thigpen who came off the bench firing the football as he completed 4 of 8 passes for 83 yards with 1 TD pass and 2 costly interceptions.  Rickey Williams didn’t have his best game as he carried the ball 12 times for 31 yards (2.6 ypc) and he also caught 3 passes for 4 yards (1.3 avg).  Lex Hilliard pitched in with 1 carry for 9 yards and 1 catch for 11 yards that went for a TD.  WR Davone Bess led the way in the passing game for the Dolphins with 5 catches for 85 yards (17.0 avg) with a TD grab.  Brian Hartline pitched in with 2 catches for 34 yards and he also carried the ball 2 times for 20 yards (10.0 (ypc) with a TD.  The Dolphins finished up with 303 total yards on offense (99 rushing, 204 passing) in this game.

Safety Yeremiah Bell led a pretty poor overall effort by the D with 6 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 INT.  OLB Joey Porter pitched in with 2 tackles, 1 sack, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 QB hit and a fumble recovery.  The Steelers finished up with 403 total yards on offense (202 rushing, 201 passing) in this game.  The Dolphins finish the season with a 7-9 record.

Both of these teams need a win and a lot of help to make the playoffs.  With that in mind look for this game to be a slugfest.  The Dolphins will likely come out running the ball against a Steelers’ D that has gotten soft against the run lately.  Rickey Williams is a little gimpy but he will give it a go tomorrow.  The Steelers love to blitz but if Chad Henne has time to throw the ball he should be able to torch the Steelers who have not gotten a interception from their CBs all year long.  Henne spreads the ball around so there is no one the Steelers should really double.

The Dolphins will likely turn OLBs Jason Taylor and Joey Porter loose against the Steelers and Ben Roethlisberger tomorrow.  With what is at stake you know that Joey Porter will try to stick it to his old team who thought he was washed up a couple of years ago.  The Fins must blitz early and often to protect their rookie corners.  The Steelers will also be giving the rock to Rashard Mendenhall a lot tomorrow so the Fins will have a lot to worry about on defense.

PREDICTION:  STEELERS 21, DOLPHINS 20