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Chad Henne
MIDSEASON REPORT: OFFENSE
With the Dolphins having reached the halfway mark of the 2009 season, we examine the highlights and lowlights of the first eight games. In this installment, we focus on the offense. Thursday we'll look at the defense and special teams.
By ALAIN POUPART
Dolphin Digest Associate Editor
The Dolphins offense may not be the most talented in the NFL, but it clearly ranks near the top when it comes to creativity.
Whether it be the Wildcat or the "WildPat," the Dolphins have done a good job of keeping opponents on their toes and also of maximizing their personnel. The Dolphins had a run of four consecutive games with at least 30 points, and that matched a franchise record. The special teams and defense contributed heavily to the 30-point outburst at the Meadowlands, but the offense was responsible for the other three.
THE BIG STORY: Without question, it was the season-ending injury to quarterback Chad Pennington in the Week 3 loss at San Diego. Pennington was off to a sluggish start after his tremendous 2008 performance, but his veteran presence always was comforting nonetheless. His injury put second-year quarterback Chad Henne into the starting lineup, and while he's shown promise, it's debatable the Dolphins are getting the same kind of production at the position.
BIGGEST SURPRISE: That the Indianapolis Colts would be converting more than 50 percent of their third-down opportunities really isn't surprising considering they have Peyton Manning at quarterback, and two stud receivers in Reggie Wayne and Dallas Clark. But it's remarkable that the only other team in the league with a 50 percent success rate on third downs is Miami. The Dolphins come in at 50.8, and their success is a testament to a running game that's left them in third-and-short situations more often than not and also helped them convert on third-and-1 18 of 19 times.
BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT: The obvious here would be to point to the much-maligned Ted Ginn Jr., but the problems in the receiving corps go beyond that. The biggest disappointment on offense, really, has been the lack of big plays. In the first eight games, the Dolphins had only six plays of 30 yards or more, compared to 16 for their opponents. We only have to look back at the games against the Colts and Patriots to find two examples of the Dolphins putting together long, methodical drives, only to watch their opponent answer right back with a long touchdown.
BEST GAME: It's tempting to go with the Colts game when the Dolphins held the ball for more than 45 minutes, but their best overall performance on offense in the first half of the season came in another Monday night game, the 31-27 victory over the Jets. As was the case with the Indy game, the Dolphins ran the ball very well against the Jets, but they also made key plays in the passing game at crunch time. The game-winning touchdown drive, which culminated in Ronnie Brown's game-winning run from the Wildcat formation, was the best of the season.
BEST PLAY: As much criticism as he's taken, Ginn did have the Dolphins' most memorable plays in the first half of the season. Everyone knows about the kickoff returns at the Meadowlands, but his 53-yard touchdown catch in the first Jets game was major, too. It was impressive enough that Ginn finally caught a deep ball, but even more so considering he beat - and easily - Jets Pro Bowl cornerback Darrelle Revis on the play.
FIRST-HALF MVP: Because he gets his hands on the ball so much, the temptation would be to go with Ronnie Brown. But the truth is the Dolphins' most effective and consistent offensive player has been his backfield partner, Ricky Williams. Williams is averaging a very impressive 5.4 yards per carry and he has four of the Dolphins' eight longest offensive plays, capped by his 68-yard touchdown run against the Saints.
SECOND-HALF FORECAST: The Dolphins have come close to beating a lot of good teams this season, and the difference in most of the games has been their inability to strike quickly. The Dolphins don't have a receiver like a Randy Moss or a Reggie Wayne or even a Marques Colston, so what they need is more consistency in catching the ball. The Wildcat was shut down in the last three games, and that's clearly a concern for an offense that currently doesn't have the weapons to move the ball consistently using more conventional methods. Clearly, Brown and Williams should continue to be the focal points of the offense, but the Dolphins also need more production out of the passing game if they hope to make a run at the playoffs.
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