Miami Dolphins need to find offensive line answers quickly
By Brian Miller
The Miami Dolphins will play their first game of the season on Sunday against the Ravens but it isn’t expected to be pretty.
When the Miami Dolphins take the field on Sunday they are hoping that the new schemes and changes will favor them. The offensive line, however, may have something to say about that.
Miami’s offensive line, for now, looks bad. Putrid bad. Making it worse is the fact that while Laremy Tunsil is now gone to Houston, the Dolphins have tried to piece together something serviceable. We found out Sunday if they will be average or worse than we thought.
The Dolphins offensive line is considerably different than it was in pre-season game four.
At left tackle, Laremy Tusnsil is gone. Starting in his place is Julien Davenport who wasn’t on the team in preseason week four.
The left guard stays the same with Michael Dieter and the center remains intact with Daniel Kilgore.
The right guard will be held by rookie Shaq Calhoun. Calhoun played throughout camp and preseason but it was clear if we would make the roster initially let alone start. Behind him is fellow rookie Isaiah Prince.
The right tackle will be handled by Jesse Davis who spent time at both guards and tackle on the right side. Davis, Kilgore, and Dieter have the most experience with the Miami Dolphins as starters on the line.
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Miami is hoping to emulate what the Patriots offense does. A quick passing game that reduces the need for stellar line play. They need to be good but they don’t need to be great. The question is can they be average? There are a lot of unknowns here but there is good news.
The Dolphins are going to likely stick with this group and rotate players when needed. This group is young and if they can develop, big if, they could anchor the trench for the offense for years. How long they play together though is a question.
Behind them are other young linemen. If the starters don’t play well, it would not be a surprise to see another take their place in a week or two. Isaiah Prince, Evan Boehm, Danny Isidora, are all players that are currently set as the second team and frankly, that second-team unit may be close to equal in terms of production.
While fans will be watching the play of Ryan Fitzpatrick and the wide receiver/running back groups, the offensive line will dictate the failure and success of the team on Sunday. If they can’t hold their own against a good defense, it will be a long day. It will be interesting to see what the game plan is for Chad O’Shea.