Mile High Fin
Pro Bowler
Here's some excerpts from a preview of the game I thought you might like to see. It is from Fanball.com:
When the Dolphins have the ball:
Really, who didn’t expect the Dolphins to kick the crap out of the Broncos in week one? Why wouldn’t Gus Frerotte look like the next Dan Marino, going 24-of-36 for 275 yards and two touchdowns? And who among us didn’t just assume that Marty Booker would go off for 100 yards and a 60-yard touchdown, despite averaging less than 40 yards per game and scoring once all of last year? In the bizarro world that is the NFL’s week one, we’ve learned to expect the unexpected, but the Dolphins complete and utter domination of the Broncos was simply unfathomable. Can they do it again against a Jets team that is reeling after it laid a huge egg against the Chiefs in Week one? Our magic eight ball says “don’t count on it,†and we tend to agree. Last year’s staring quarterback in two matchups with Gang Green was none other than Jay Fiedler, now the backup in New York. Fiedler averaged 212 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions in two games against the Jets a year ago. Forgive us for being skeptical, but we’d be shocked if Frerotte was able to surpass those digits.
On the ground, Ronnie Brown is starting to feel comfortable in the Dolphins offense after an ill-advised holdout robbed him of most of training camp. His effectiveness was limited in week one, but it’s clear that the Dolphins have no other good options and he did get 22 carries against the Broncos, so it would surprise us if he didn’t see at least 20 touches again this week. The Jets allowed 195 yards rushing to Priest Holmes and Larry Johnson in week one, but the Chiefs also have a competent offensive line, a claim the Fish can’t make. The Jets had the fifth-best rushing defense in the league a year ago and gave up just three rushing touchdowns at home in 2004, so your luck is probably better predicting the coin flip than it is expecting Brown to find paydirt.
When the Jets have the ball:
Where do we start? Chad Pennington can’t throw. Laveranues Coles can’t catch. The offensive line can’t block, and Curtis Martin can’t run. Oh, and last year’s fifth-ranked run defense allowed almost 200 yards on the ground. Other than that, things went great for the Jets in week one. Now, in a suddenly topsy-turvy AFC East, they face a critical battle with the Dolphins, an offensive juggernaut that racked up 34 points on what was supposed to be a solid Broncos’ defense. The last time these two teams met in the Meadowlands, Chad Pennington had a healthy shoulder and threw for less than 200 yards, but did rack up three touchdown strikes en route to a 41-14 thrashing. After they jumped out to a big lead, Curtis Martin and LaMont Jordan each ran for 115 yards and a score. Judging by Pennington’s weak arm last week, the game plan should once again be to pound the ball on the ground. A defense with two rookie starters showed no signs of struggling to master new coach Nick Saban’s schemes a week ago, but we’re not buying everything we saw in game one. Still, since the Aquatic Mammals have kept Chad to an average of less than 200 yards in his last three appearances against them, and since Pennington looked like he couldn’t hit the water if he fell out of a boat in week one, don’t expect much this week.
In an ideal world, McCareins should have success against a team he grabbed one of his four touchdown receptions against in 2004, and Coles should have ample opportunity to work over rookie corner Travis Daniels, but those who saw the week one disaster know the Jets are operating in anything but an ideal world right now. We simply can’t believe that the Jets’ ground game is as bad as it showed against Kansas City, nor can we believe the Dolphins’ run defense is as good as it showed against the Broncos. The Jets simply abused the Dolphins on the ground a year ago, and they should stick to that game plan in an attempt to right the ship this year. The Jets led the NFL in home rushing a year ago, piling up over 170 yards per game in their eight tilts in the Big Apple. Combine that with the fact that Miami ranked 29th in the NFL by allowing over 152 yards per game on the road, and you’ve got yourself a recipe for a huge bounceback game from C-Mart. Call it 125 yards and, since the Fish allowed a rushing touchdown in all but two of their road matchups last season, at least one touchdown.
When the Dolphins have the ball:
Really, who didn’t expect the Dolphins to kick the crap out of the Broncos in week one? Why wouldn’t Gus Frerotte look like the next Dan Marino, going 24-of-36 for 275 yards and two touchdowns? And who among us didn’t just assume that Marty Booker would go off for 100 yards and a 60-yard touchdown, despite averaging less than 40 yards per game and scoring once all of last year? In the bizarro world that is the NFL’s week one, we’ve learned to expect the unexpected, but the Dolphins complete and utter domination of the Broncos was simply unfathomable. Can they do it again against a Jets team that is reeling after it laid a huge egg against the Chiefs in Week one? Our magic eight ball says “don’t count on it,†and we tend to agree. Last year’s staring quarterback in two matchups with Gang Green was none other than Jay Fiedler, now the backup in New York. Fiedler averaged 212 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions in two games against the Jets a year ago. Forgive us for being skeptical, but we’d be shocked if Frerotte was able to surpass those digits.
On the ground, Ronnie Brown is starting to feel comfortable in the Dolphins offense after an ill-advised holdout robbed him of most of training camp. His effectiveness was limited in week one, but it’s clear that the Dolphins have no other good options and he did get 22 carries against the Broncos, so it would surprise us if he didn’t see at least 20 touches again this week. The Jets allowed 195 yards rushing to Priest Holmes and Larry Johnson in week one, but the Chiefs also have a competent offensive line, a claim the Fish can’t make. The Jets had the fifth-best rushing defense in the league a year ago and gave up just three rushing touchdowns at home in 2004, so your luck is probably better predicting the coin flip than it is expecting Brown to find paydirt.
When the Jets have the ball:
Where do we start? Chad Pennington can’t throw. Laveranues Coles can’t catch. The offensive line can’t block, and Curtis Martin can’t run. Oh, and last year’s fifth-ranked run defense allowed almost 200 yards on the ground. Other than that, things went great for the Jets in week one. Now, in a suddenly topsy-turvy AFC East, they face a critical battle with the Dolphins, an offensive juggernaut that racked up 34 points on what was supposed to be a solid Broncos’ defense. The last time these two teams met in the Meadowlands, Chad Pennington had a healthy shoulder and threw for less than 200 yards, but did rack up three touchdown strikes en route to a 41-14 thrashing. After they jumped out to a big lead, Curtis Martin and LaMont Jordan each ran for 115 yards and a score. Judging by Pennington’s weak arm last week, the game plan should once again be to pound the ball on the ground. A defense with two rookie starters showed no signs of struggling to master new coach Nick Saban’s schemes a week ago, but we’re not buying everything we saw in game one. Still, since the Aquatic Mammals have kept Chad to an average of less than 200 yards in his last three appearances against them, and since Pennington looked like he couldn’t hit the water if he fell out of a boat in week one, don’t expect much this week.
In an ideal world, McCareins should have success against a team he grabbed one of his four touchdown receptions against in 2004, and Coles should have ample opportunity to work over rookie corner Travis Daniels, but those who saw the week one disaster know the Jets are operating in anything but an ideal world right now. We simply can’t believe that the Jets’ ground game is as bad as it showed against Kansas City, nor can we believe the Dolphins’ run defense is as good as it showed against the Broncos. The Jets simply abused the Dolphins on the ground a year ago, and they should stick to that game plan in an attempt to right the ship this year. The Jets led the NFL in home rushing a year ago, piling up over 170 yards per game in their eight tilts in the Big Apple. Combine that with the fact that Miami ranked 29th in the NFL by allowing over 152 yards per game on the road, and you’ve got yourself a recipe for a huge bounceback game from C-Mart. Call it 125 yards and, since the Fish allowed a rushing touchdown in all but two of their road matchups last season, at least one touchdown.
