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Sunday's game features two of the NFL's premier running backs in Edgerrin James and Ricky Williams
DOLPHINS AT CARDINALS
GAME FACTS
Date: Sunday, Sept. 14
Time: 4:15 p.m. ET
Site: University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Ariz.
TV: CBS
THE SERIES
Series Record: Dolphins lead 8-1
At Miami: Dolphins lead 4-1
At St. Louis (the Cardinals played in St. Louis before moving to Arizona in 1988): Dolphins lead 3-0
At Arizona: Dolphins lead 1-0
Last Meeting: 2004 at Miami; Cardinals 24, Dolphins 23
Series Highlight: On Thanksgiving Day 1977, Bob Griese - funny-looking eyeglasses and all - shredded the Cardinals secondary for six touchdown passes to lead a 55-14 rout by the Dolphins. The six touchdown passes set a franchise record that's since been tied by Dan Marino, but the 55 points remains the highest total in team history.
Series Lowlight: Josh McCown - the same Josh McCown who spent training camp with the Dolphins this summer - led Arizona on a game-winning 70-yard drive that ended with a 2-yard touchdown pass to Larry Fitzgerald as the Cardinals stunned the Dolphins, 24-23, in 2004. It ended up being the last Dolphins game for head coach Dave Wannstedt, who resigned two days later.
SCOUTING REPORT
Arizona's record: 1-0
Last game: Won at San Francisco, 23-13
The Arizona Offense: The Cardinals have been a pass-happy offense for several years now, and that only makes sense considering their starting wide receiver tandem of Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin just might be the best in the league. But second-year head coach Ken Whisenhunt came over from Pittsburgh, where running the ball always is a priority. So the plan with the Cardinals has been to try to achieve a little more balance. Edgerrin James rushed for 100 yards in the season-opening victory over the 49ers, although it did take him 26 carries to accomplish that. Make no mistake, though, the strength of this offense remains throwing the ball. Keeping Fitzgerald and Boldin in check will represent a major challenge for the Dolphins secondary, but a bigger key might be getting pressure on veteran quarterback Kurt Warner. While he's an accurate passer, Warner also has a habit of hanging on to the ball in the pocket and takes a lot of sacks as a result. The Dolphins had three sacks in the opener and should be able to match that total against Arizona.
The Arizona Defense: This was the area where the Cardinals focused a lot of their offseason efforts, including the selections of CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and DE Calais Campbell in the first two rounds of the draft. The addition of Rodgers-Cromartie was much needed because cornerback might be the biggest question mark on the Arizona defense. What the Cardinals do have are some quality pass rushers, led by defensive tackles Darnell Dockett and ends Travis LaBoy and Bertrand Berry. Arizona ranked ninth in the NFL in run defense in 2007, but was burned for a 41-yard touchdown by San Francisco's Frank Gore last Sunday. The Dolphins didn't have great success running the ball against the Jets in the opener, but figure to give Arizona a heavy dose of Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown.
The Arizona Special Teams: Former Michigan standout Steve Breaston is the Cardinals' punt and kickoff returner, and he's especially dangerous when it comes to punt returns. Kicker Neil Rackers was among the best in the league a few years back, but he hasn't been nearly as consistent since. For example, he missed a 35-yard attempt in the opener. The Cardinals also gave up a 44-yard kickoff return against the 49ers, a sign the Dolphins maybe will be able to break a long one.
LOOKING AHEAD
SEPT. 21 - DOLPHINS AT NEW ENGLAND
Following the game at Arizona, the Dolphins stay on the road for a division battle against the New England Patriots. The big question in New England following the opener was how well they could do without Tom Brady. His replacement, Matt Cassel, saw very little action in his first four seasons in the league but threw passes in three games against the Dolphins, going 13-for-25 for 180 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. And Cassel still has Randy Moss and Wes Welker to throw to.
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