Trio of Dolphins wideouts struggling to prove their worth

By Hugo Guzman  |   Wednesday, October 01, 2008  |  Comments( 4 )

Miami Dolphins
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Heading into the 2008 NFL season, three wide receivers were looked upon as the face of Miami’s revamped passing attack. Ernest Wilford was the supposed proven veteran who would bring stability along with a dose of big-bodied presence in red-zone situations. Derek Hagan was the third-year pro coming off an impressive preseason effort and seemingly poised to have a breakout campaign. Ted Ginn Jr. was the speedy home run hitter who was being weaned off return duties in order to focus his game-breaking ability at the wide receiver position.

Sadly, none of these projections are even remotely close to the reality that faces the trio entering the team's Week 5 meeting with the San Diego Chargers. For the season, Wilford, Hagan and Ginn have combined for just 12 receptions, 141 yards and zero touchdowns.

Just how bad is that? Consider for a moment that there are 53 players leaguewide who have amassed more receptions than what this threesome has mustered collectively, and that figure includes eight tight ends and notably pedestrian types like Minnesota’s Bobby Wade. Granted, the Dolphins are fielding one of the league’s most conservative passing attacks, having totaled a paltry 61 aerial attempts (including running back Ronnie Brown’s TD toss against the Patriots), but it's still clear to even the most casual observers that these receivers simply aren’t getting it done on Sundays.

For his part, Ginn has at least been lively recently, snagging five catches for 49 yards in New England. However, both Wilford and Hagan have been completely invisible. As a matter of fact, both have taken a back seat to youngsters Greg Camarillo and Davone Bess.

It appears that Bess has more or less locked up the slot position, even though he has been only mildly effective (just four grabs for 25 yards). And as for Camarillo, who has 11 catches for 146 yards, he's probably established himself as a starter by now.

Things have gotten so bad for Wilford that even general manager Jeff Ireland has voiced displeasure over the free-agent acquisition's performance thus far. Hagan might have it even worse, because his lackluster play hasn’t elicited similar criticism, which would suggest that not much was expected in the first place.

Fortunately, there are still 13 weeks of regular-season football left, and all three players should get plenty of opportunities to turn their seasons around.

Sad as it sounds, with the tight end corps and Camarillo ascending the way they have early in the season, Miami’s front office and its fan base will probably settle for having just one of three make a significant leap forward.

Hopefully for the Dolphins, it will be Ginn, the former No. 9 overall pick in the draft.
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About Hugo Guzman

Co-founder of RealFootball365.com. Born in Argentina, of Dominican descent, living in Hoboken, but from Miami through and ...
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