The Dolphins’ Defense had a rough game.  The Colts ran up 516 yards in total offense to include 433 yards in passing.  Rookie Andrew Luck completed 30 of 48 passes (62.5%) for 9.0 yards per attempt with 2 TDs, no INTs, and one sack for a 105.6 passer rating.  The front seven held the Colts to less than 100 yards rushing, but the DBs and LBs were torched in the passing game.  One telling stat was that the Colts converted 13 of 19 third down attempts for a first down.

The Dolphins’ Offense kept the game close.  Ryan Tannehill completed 22 of 38 passes (57.9%) for 290 yards (7.6 yards per attempt) with 1 TDs, no INTs, no fumbles, and two sacks for a 90.9 passer rating.  Brian Hartline was targeted 12 times and caught 8 passes for 107 yards (13.4 yards per catch).  Devone Bess was targeted 9 times and caught 6 passes for 67 yards (11.2 yards per catch).  Five other Dolphins caught either one or two passes with Charles Clay catching the TD.  The running game only generated 84 yards.  However, the Dolphins only tried to run 18 times (a respectable 4.7 yards per attempt and one exciting TD run).  Daniel Thomas carried the ball six times for 37 yards (6.2 yards per attempt).  Reggie Bush carried the ball ten times for 41 yards (4.1 yards per attempt).

Overall, the game was very exciting.  Down by 3, the Dolphins had the ball (1st and 10) at midfield with 50 seconds left to go.  But, they failed to even move the ball into field goal position.  Mostly, I thought the Dolphins played a good game.  However, they were still a few moments that left me screaming at the TV:

Here are my Week 9 C’MON MANs.

1).  The top one has to go to the Dolphins’ DBs.  Andrew Luck set a rookie record passing for 433 yards — believe it or not, he had 273 yards in the first half.  Colts’ WRs Avery, Hilton and Wayne caught 5, 6, and 7 passes for 108, 107, and 78 yards, respectively.  That is 293 total yards and 16.3 yards per catch just by the WRs.  The Dolphins’ CBs have to do a better job.  Nolan Carroll, Jimmy Wilson, and especially Sean Smith … C’MON MAN!

In a matter related to the CBs, what infuriated me was the way the Carroll, Wilson, and Smith played well off of the Colts’ WRs in third down situations.  This helped the Colts’ convert 13 of 19 third down attempts.  Earlier in the season, the Dolphins seemed to be more successful in press coverage against more established WRs.  However, they seemed to get away from press coverage in the Rams and Colts games which lead to success by the opponents on third downs.  It would be great if the Dolphins got back to press coverage — obviously, the soft coverage is not working.  Kevin Coyle … C’MON MAN!

In another matter related to the CBs, what really infuriated me was the way the Dolphins’ CBs failed to get their heads around to look for the ball — several receptions zoomed right over their heads into the waiting arms of Colts.  This has been an ongoing problem.  On two plays, Smith could have had interceptions, but he looked over the wrong shoulder.  This is an issue of technique that needs to be addressed.  Kevin Coyle … C’MON MAN!

2).  Speaking of ongoing problems, the Dolphins’ LBs had another tough day covering the Colts’ TEs.  The Colts were without their #1 TE Coby Fleener.  Colts’ #2 TE Dwayne Allen was targeted seven times and caught six of those passes for 75 yards — that is a 12.5 yards per catch average.  As stated in my bye week article, prior to the Jets game, six opposing TEs averaged 14.9 yards per reception and a bunch of first downs.  Against the Jets, the LBs gave up 67 yards on seven receptions to TE Dustin Keller including three first downs and a TD.  The remainder of the season will not get any easier with the Seahawks’ Miller, the 49ers’ Davis, and the Patriots’ Grontkowski and Hernandez (twice).  The Dolphins’ LBs have really got to step up their play in coverage — this is starting to get serious.  Karlos Dansby, Kevin Burnett, and Koa Misi … C’MON MAN!

3).  Did anyone else notice that the Dolphins’ QB Ryan Tannehill seemed to focus almost exclusively on passing to the outside?  There was an absence of passes down the middle of the field — especially deep down the middle.  The Colts’ DBs were so heavily focused on Hartline and Bess, who were operating outside the hash marks, one would have thought the TEs would have had success up the seam.  Yet, Dolphins’ TEs Fasano and Clay only caught one pass each — both were outside the right hash mark.  The Dolphins need to hit the middle seam more often.  This may be more of a play calling issue because I don’t remember any TE routes down the middle at all.  Mike Sherman … Joe Philbin … C’MON MAN!

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The Dolphins have another big game this week against the Titans in Sun Life Stadium.  If they can pull out victory at home, they will be a game above the .500 mark and still be in the playoff hunt.  I hope the supporters in South Florida fill up Sun Life Stadium to cheer the Dolphins to a victory.  So, come out – support the Dolphins!  Dolphans … C’MON MAN!

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What do you think? Do you have your own C’MON MAN you’d like to give out for the Colts game?

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The Dolphins’ defense held the Jets to only one field goal and one 4th quarter TD.  They sacked Jets’ QB Mark Sanchez four times and picked him off once.  But, it was the special teams which shined.  Jimmy Wilson blocked a Jets’ punt which was recovered by Olivier Vernon for a TD.  Vernon blocked a critical Jets’ field goal at the end of the 1st half.  Marcus Thigpen returned two kickoffs for 78 yards and two punts for 26 yards.  And, Dan Carpenter actually surprised the Jets with an on-sides kick in the first quarter that was recovered by Jason Trusnik.

Dolphins’ QB Ryan Tannehill had a rough day getting injured on a 1st quarter sack.  But, Matt Moore came into the game in relief completing 11 of 19 passes (57.9%) for 131 yards (6.9 yards per attempt) with one TD, zero INTs, and one sack for a 96.6 passer rating.  Reggie Bush carried the ball 14 times for 59 yards (4.2 yards per attempt) and Daniel Thomas added 42 yards on 15 carries.  Davone Bess and Brian Hartline each caught four passes with Jabar Gaffney and Marlin Moore adding one pass reception each.  It was not an explosion of offense, but it was efficient and victorious.

This was a very lopsided game that actually became a little boring in the second half.  It was that dominant by the Dolphins.  However, there were still times during the game that left me screaming at the TV:

Here are my Week 8 C’MON MANs:

1). The top one … AGAIN … and on the list for 4 out of 7 weeks … is the Dolphins’ inability to convert in short yardage situations.  Particularly, the play calling has to be questioned … again.  Case in point, the Dolphins had a 1st and goal to go on the Jets’ two yard line at the start of the 2nd quarter.  They handed off the ball to Daniel Thomas, who rushed to the RIGHT for a one yard loss.  Another case in point, with 13:48 left in the game, the Dolphins had a 3rd down and one yard to go on their own 37 yard line.  Thomas was handed the ball deep in the Dolphins’ backfield and was tackled for a one yard loss trying to run to the RIGHT.  I have been screaming about the short yardage hand-offs to Reggie Bush and Thomas running to the right behind Jerry and Martin.  I have been hoping for short hand-offs to Javorski Lane and having him run thru the gaps on either side of Richie Incognito on the left side of the offensive line.  In fact, the Dolphins rushed 8 times during the Jets’ game in these gaps and gained 62 yards and scored a TD.  Oh, how I only wish they would just hand it to the BIG GUY in short yardage running left.  Hey Joe Philbin … C’MON MAN!

In a related running game matter,  Bush has had great success this season running north & south by one cutting thru holes created by the offensive line.  However, when he tries to stop and reverse field heading east & west, his success has been poor.  Case in point, with 11:43 left in the 3rd quarter, the Dolphins had a 1st and 10 on the Jets 40 yard line.  Bush rushed up a clogged middle and then tried to bounce it to the outside.  The result was a 2 yard loss.  Reggie … C’MON MAN!

2). As stated in my bye week article, the Dolphins’ LBs need to do a better job at covering opponents TEs.  Prior to the Jets game, six opposing TEs averaged 14.9 yards per reception and a bunch of first downs.  Against the Jets’ Dustin Keller, the LBs gave up 67 yards on seven receptions including three first downs and a TD.  The remainder of the season will not get any easier with the Seahawks’ Miller, the 49ers’ Davis, and the Patriots’ Grontkowski and Hernandez (twice).  The Dolphins’ LBs have got to step up their play in coverage.  Karlos Dansby, Kevin Burnett, and Koa Misi … C’MON MAN!

3).  The Jets gained 105 yards rushing the football 21 times.  One-third of this yardage was gained on one run of 36 yards by Shonn Greene.  Where were the Dolphins’ LBs and Safeties on this run that got significant chunk yards?  The Dolphins gave up five runs of 11 yards or more against the Rams in Week 6.  The Dophins’ defensive line does a great job stuffing the run at the line of scrimmage.  But, the LBs and Safeties have to do better when an opposing RB breaks past the line.  Karlos Dansby, Kevin Burnett, Koa Misi, Chris Clemons, and Reshad Jones … C’MON MAN!

4).  As stated in my bye week article, the Dolphins’ punt returner Marcus Thigpen had to do a better job in fair catching short punts.  As stated in the intro, Thigpen had two decent punt returns in the Jets game.  But, he let another hit the ground.  Marcus … C’MON MAN!

5).  As stated in the intro, the Dolphins’ special teams shined to include a surprise 1st quarter on-sides kick recovery.  That was the good news.  The bad news was the Dolphins’ offense went three and out to include the sack which injured Tannehill.  When the special teams come up with a big play, the offense needs to capitalize.  Where is the killer instinct?  Offense … C’MON MAN!

6).  The last one is unrelated to the Dolphins game against the Jets.  Anybody get to see the Steelers game against the Redskins.  The Steelers were in throw back uniforms — the ugliest ones I have ever seen — black and yellow horizontal striped shirts and socks.  The numbers on the shirts looked like they were cut out from grocery paper bags, marked with a Sharpee, and taped on with electrical tape.  The players looked like bumble bees who had broken out of a prison bee hive.  Hey Steelers … C’MON MAN!

The Dolphins have a big game this week against the Colts in Indy.  If they pull out another road victory, they will be tied with the Pats for first place in the AFC East midway thru the 2012 NFL Season.  GO PHINS!

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What do you think?  Do you have your own C’MON MAN you’d like to give out for the Jets game?

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As a fan, it is my hope that the Dolphins use the bye week to correct recurring issues … recurring areas of weakness.  And, I believe that Head Coach Joe Philbin will do that very thing.  I am confident he sees the same things that we all see … and more.  The corrections will be timely with a critical divisional game at the New York J-E-S-T-S in the eighth week of the NFL Season.

In this article, I decided take a look at a few of those recurring …

1).  THIRD OPTION AT WR … The prospects for the 2012 Miami Dolphins’ WR Corps looked bleak at the start of the season.  They had Devone Bess … and … that was about it.  Brian Hartline had missed almost the entire preseason with injuries.  And, nobody else seemed to step up.  Well, Bess has performed up to expectations.  Hartline has recovered nicely from injuries and has been huge.  But, there has been not much else at WR.  Legedu Nannee and Anthony Armstrong have been busts.  None of the rookies have stepped up.  And, the jury is still out on Marlin Moore.  On October 3rd, the Dolphins acquired free agent Jabar Gaffney, who had a good 2011 season with the Redskins.  But, he got injured during the 2012 preseason with the Patriots and was cut.  Gaffney has not been active for any game with the Dolphins to date.  It has been reported that he is “learning” the up tempo offense, particularly the hand signals.  Really?  You mean to tell me a 10+ year vet needs 25 days to learn hand signals.  Heck, the average Joe could probably learn sign language in that amount of time — especially, if his profession depended on it.  If hand signals are the problem, maybe the Dolphins should have hired Rosetta Stone to create software to assist in the “learning”.  There has to be more to this story.  Bottom line, the Dolphins need to find a third WR to put more pressure on opposing defenses and as insurance in case of injury to Bess or Hartline.  Let’s hope Gaffney has learned the playbook along with the hand signals and can put up some numbers like last year.

2).  CONVERTING SHORT YARDAGE … The 2012 Miami Dolphins have had a tough time making good in short yardage situations.  They are a far cry from the 2010 and 2011 performances of near perfect Lou Polite.  I believe that the 2012 Dolphins have the weapons to succeed, just as in the past.  It is the play calling that has been suspect.  Plays that include using Reggie Bush and Daniel Thomas running behind John Jerry and Jonathan Martin in short yardage have been almost a total failure.  For that matter, plays using Bush and Thomas running behind Richie Incognito and Jake Long have not fared that well either.  I hope that Philbin and Sherman will work on using Javorski Lane running quick hitters in the gaps on either side of Incognito.  I say, get up to the line quickly, line up Lane two yards behind the QB, and hand it to the BIG GUY … let it be strength on strength … dare the opponents to stop you.

3).  COVERING OPPONENTS’ TEs … The 2012 Miami Dolphins have had a tough time covering TEs.  The Texans’ Daniels caught 4 passes for 87 yards.  The Raiders’ Myers caught 6 passes for 86 yards.  The Cards’ Housler and King caught 4 passes for 70 yards.  The Bengals’ Gresham caught 5 passes for 60 yards.  And, the Rams’ Kendricks caught 4 passes for 40 yards.  This is an whopping average of 14.9 yards per reception and a lot of first downs from opposing TEs.  The remainder of the season will not get any easier with the Jets’ Keller, the 49ers’ Davis, the Seahawks’ Miller, and the Patriots’ dynamic duo of Grontkowski and Hernandez, twice.  The Dolphins’ LBs and have got to step up their play in coverage.

4).  FAIR CATCHING PUNTS … The Miami Dolphins’ #1 punt returner Marcus Thigpen has had somewhat a tough time fair catching punts.  As a punter in college, I have some experience to share here.  The ideal punt for distance looks much like a long pass by a QB.  It has a tight spiral with nose up in the upward trajectory of the punt “turning-over” to a nose down in the downward trajectory.  This is actually the easiest for a returner to catch — it is just like catching a long pass from a QB.  However, some punts result in “tail draggers”.  This kind of punt has characteristically less spin, slight wobble, and does not “turn over” — the nose of the ball remains up during the entire trajectory due to an aft center of pressure — it is very much similar to a stalling aircraft.  These punts are more difficult to catch because they tend to drop out of the sky from their peak altitude falling short of their anticipated distance — they drop like a rock.  If the returner lets the ball hit the ground, the ball bounces forward often for serious extra yardage … or … worse yet, the ball could hit a blocking teammate in the back possibly resulting in a turnover, just like what happened to the Dolphins in the Bengals’ game.   Thus, the objective of the returner is to not let the “tail dragger” hit the ground.  Thigpen has not been successful at identifying a punt which “tail drags” versus one which “turns over”.  This has to be determined during the punts’ upward trajectory.  He has to do a better job which comes with practice and experience.  Hopefully, the bye week will give him the opportunity to work on this by catching numerous Brandon Fields’ punts.  But, you cannot tire out the leg of your Pro Bowl Punter.  Thus, I hope he also works on it with “tail dragging” passes from QB Pat Devlin — like, after practice when Reggie Bush is working out by himself.  It is very important to minimize net punt yardage and prevent costly turnovers — run up field and fair catch the “tail draggers”.

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What do you think?  Do you have your own C’MON MAN you’d like to give out for the bye week?

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