The Miami Dolphins Defense Is Quietly One Of The Best In The NFL

You may not realize it, but the Miami Dolphins defense is ranked as one of the top defenses in the NFL. They have allowed the 10th lowest amount of points, 6th lowest total yards per game, and 4th lowest passing yards per game. Their record doesn't really reflect the tremendous amount of talent on Miami's defense, but they are still one of the best.

The number that the Dolphins defense should be most proud of is the 4th lowest passing yards per game. They have only allowed 201.4 passing yards per game this season, and they have been able to do so with a very young secondary.

The Miami Dolphins haven't done so well stopping the passing game thanks to just one or two players. While players like Vontae Davis and Yeremiah Bell have been able to dominate, they haven't had to do it alone. Nine different Dolphins have gotten an interception this season, and that isn't counting Jason Allen who plays for the Texans now.

Miami's secondary still has its moments where they make mental mistakes and allow a big gain, but I have noticed those mistakes have significantly decreased as this season has progressed. This defense will only get better with time, too. The average age of the Dolphins starting cornerbacks and safeties is 25.5 years old. If you don't include 32-year old Yeremiah Bell, then their average age is just 23.3 years old.

We have a very talented and young secondary that, with the exception of Yeremiah Bell, has a long and promising future ahead of them with the Miami Dolphins.

The Dolphins run defense has also been pretty good. The Dolphins have allowed the 14th lowest rushing yards per game, and that is including games against the likes of Adrian Peterson and Chris Johnson.

Mike Nolan has really put together a talented defense, and we should all be very thankful that the Dolphins hired him as the defensive coordinator. He turned a very bad defense into a top-tier passing defense in just one offseason, and that is not easy to do.

I would also like to put a little shout-out to Cameron Wake, who is really taking the NFL by storm with his ability to get to the quarterback. He has 10.5 sacks and is has the second most sacks in the NFL. He is just one sack behind first place Clay Matthews, and he has the more sacks than any other player in the NFC. It's hard to imagine that last year Wake didn't even play that frequently when he is able to do so much when he is on the field.

Thanks for reading, and I look forward to hearing your responses.

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Brandon Marshall Returns To Practice, But Does He Actually Hurt The Miami Dolphins Passing Offense?





Don't Give Up On Marshall Yet

Brandon Marshall (hamstring) returned to practice on Wednesday and is expected to play this Sunday against the Browns.

Marshall has not produced nearly as much as many Miami Dolphins fans had hoped he would this season, but I would argue that his low scoring numbers are mainly the fault of Dan Henning. He has gotten a lot of receptions and yards, but has only been able to reach the end zone once this season. He has also had two dumb penalties for delay of game and taunting, and his frustration is becoming more and more evident as the season progresses.

What I want to know is does he actually help the Miami Dolphins more than he hurts them?

My answer is yes, he does help a lot more than he hurts.

While the Dolphins were able to have one of their best overall passing games with Chad Henne at quarterback last Sunday and without Brandon Marshall, that doesn't mean Marshall is the problem. Miami was able to do so well partly because the Raiders don't really have a good passing defense, and (more importantly) Dan Henning was finally willing to change up his play calling.

I am firmly convinced that Brandon Marshall's inability to score touchdowns is 100% Dan Henning's fault. Henning focused the Dolphins entire offensive strategy on getting Brandon Marshall the ball. That may not sound like a bad idea because Marshall is such a play maker, but focusing entirely on just getting one player the ball makes the offense way too predictable and makes Marshall almost useless because defense start to put double and triple coverage on him.

If the Dolphins want to be able to use Marshall effectively and get him more touchdowns they needed to learn how to spread the ball around a little more. They needed to become more like the Saints passing offense. Drew Brees spreads the ball out to so many different receivers that defenses have a hard time stopping him.

The Dolphins showed me a little bit last week when Chad Henne was able to get the ball to a lot of different receivers. Seven different players caught at least one pass against the Raiders, and the two receivers with the most receptions and yards for Miami (Davone Bess and Brian Hartline) didn't even catch a passing touchdown. That tells you how much the Dolphins were able to spread the ball around. That may not be a good sign for fantasy football owners, but that shouldn't matter. What matters is the Miami Dolphins winning games.

I think last Sunday's game was exactly what the Dolphins needed. Dan Henning saw what the offense was able to do by spreading the ball around without Brandon Marshall. Imagine how well they can do if they continue to spread it out with him in the game. He won't see as much double coverage, and he probably won't see any triple coverage at all because there will be other receivers that pose as a legitimate threat to defenses.

Pair all of the receiving threats with the Dolphins talented running backs, and you have a lot of playmakers that are finally being put to good use. Dan Henning needed a good game like this to see what the offense is capable of if he uses all of its playmakers.

I have a good feeling about Brandon Marshall's future with the Miami Dolphins. Dan Henning should know how to use him correctly now, and I am hoping he will be able to.

Thanks for reading, and please feel free to leave a comment with your thoughts on Marshall. We are paying him a lot of money, and I am interested to see opinions from Dolphins fans about his performance so far.

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I Need You: Vote For Your Miami Dolphins To Make The Pro Bowl

The Miami Dolphins players need your help to get into the Pro Bowl.

Pro Bowl voting has been open for a little while, and it is important that you take a couple minutes out of your time to vote for them. Just click on the link below and put your favorite Dolphins in the Pro Bowl:

http://www.nfl.com/probowl/ballot?icampaign=PB_topheader

You can vote as many times as you would like, and you don't have to vote for every position. You can also just vote for Dolphins players by clicking the drop down arrow next to "All Teams" and selecting Miami Dolphins.

I do not know who the leaders are in each position, but we need to make sure players like Vontae Davis and Lousaka Polite make it in even though they aren't household names yet.

Don't even bother leaving a comment, just go to the link above and vote for every Dolphins player at least three times. We will have a bigger impact than you think.

Thanks for reading, now get to it.

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