Dude, where’s my job?

By Joe Mayes  |   Wednesday, October 01, 2008  |  Comments( 4 )

Miami Dolphins
Got something to say?

Log In above and share your thoughts on this topic with other fans!

Apparently Ricky Williams not getting high is international news. Reports came from all over the United States and Canada this week that Williams, the former starting running back for the Miami Dolphins, successfully avoided the call of marijuana’s siren’s song during the team’s bye week.

Yes, “former starting running back."

Williams will not be the starter when the Dolphins (1-2) take on the San Diego Chargers (2-2) this Sunday in Miami. Both teams are coming off big wins and looking to keep their early season momentum going as the 2008 NFL campaign begins its second quarter.

But Williams did not lose his starting job thanks to another violation of the league’s substance abuse policy. He didn’t even lose it because of poor performance. Williams is averaging 4.1 yards per carry so far this season, good enough to rank ahead of such elite runners as Willie Parker, Brian Westbrook, Fred Taylor, Reggie Bush and even San Diego’s Superman, LaDainian Tomlinson.

Williams lost his job because teammate Ronnie Brown went positively berserk in the Dolphins' first win of the season, scoring four touchdowns, throwing for another, solving world hunger and single-handedly devising a solution to the worldwide financial situation during a 38-13 win triumph in New England.

Of course, both Brown and Williams will see plenty of action and both will have to perform well for the Dolphins to mount a serious threat to a San Diego squad that has won its last two games after losing the first two by a total of three points (26-24 to Carolina and the Ed Hochuli-assisted 39-38 defeat in Denver).

After two season-opening losses during which the team averaged only 20.5 rushing attempts, the Dolphins ran the ball -- and ran it well -- in their pounding of the defending AFC champion Patriots. The Dolphins rushed 36 times for 216 yards, with Brown (17 for 113) and Williams (16 for 98) accounting for nearly all of the carries and yards.

The Chargers' defense, one of the team’s strengths in 2007, has been unimpressive this year, allowing 28 points per game. The Bolts are particularly average against the run, giving up 4.5 yards per carry.

San Diego’s pass defense is even less effective, surrendering an NFL-worst 276.3 yards per contest so far in 2008. Charger cornerbacks Antonio Cromartie and Antoine Cason have combined for three of the team’s five interceptions, good for third in the league. However, this same duo is largely responsible for allowing a league-worst nine touchdown passes on the year.

But despite San Diego’s shaky pass defense and Dolphins quarterback Chad Pennington’s impressive 64 percent completion rate (he also has 589 yards, two touchdowns and just one pick), don’t expect Miami to turn pass-happy only two weeks after unveiling its new “RonnieCat” offense. The game will be won on the ground, with Williams backing up the Dolphins' hero from two weeks ago.

Besides, Pennington isn’t even the top-rated quarterback on the team. Instead, it's you-know-who -- Brown -- and his 158.3 rating. (He's 1 for 1 with a 19-yard touchdown toss.)

How is Williams supposed to compete with that?

When the Chargers have the ball, they will rely on Tomlinson and fifth-year quarterback Phillip Rivers. Despite a slow start, Tomlinson is seeking his eighth consecutive 1,000-yard rushing season to open his career and Rivers is the second-rated passer in the pros (109.8), trailing only the Jets’ Brett Favre and his 110.8 rating.

But the Dolphins' defense is coming together and while Joey Porter’s comments before the Patriots game were probably bulletin-board material for the Pats, they also seemed to ignite a spark among Miami's defenders.

After saying in July that Porter could be the Man if he showed he was the “Joey of old,” former Pro Bowl defensive end/linebacker Kim Bokamper now says Porter is getting closer to being the face of the Dolphins' defense.

“I like Joey,” Bokamper said of Porter. “I think he’s responding well to this coaching staff. Talking to the coaches, they say that he’s been a factor in a lot of other plays even though he didn’t necessarily make the tackle.”

But the Dolphins' defense is more than a re-energized Porter. Safety Yeremiah Bell and linebacker Channing Crowder lead the team in tackles (24 and 23, respectively), and a defensive line that is young at the ends and anchored in the middle by veteran Jason Ferguson is making its mark as well.

Bokamper spoke highly of the pair of rookie defensive linemen and the new anchor of the D-line.

“I love the young guys [Kendall] Langford and [Phillip] Merling, along with Jason Ferguson," he said.

The Dolphins' front seven is largely responsible for leading a defense that ranks sixth in the NFL (and fourth in the AFC) against the run, allowing just 3.3 yards per carry.

So, while the off-week headlines were filled with reports of what Williams didn’t do, it’s what the rest of the Dolphins actually do that will be in the news next week. They'll pull out more variations of the "Wildcat" offense against the Chargers, and look for the team to pound the ball behind the young but rapidly gelling O-line. Moreover, the Dolphins' defense will continue to get better.

But Williams will not start at running back against the Chargers. He’s lost his job, you see -- to a superhero with powers Williams couldn’t have imagined, even back in the day.

Prediction: Dolphins, 27-21.
Got something to say?

Log In above and share your thoughts on this topic with other fans! (4)

About Joe Mayes

Joe Mayes is an award-winning writer with credits ranging from national sports columns to local newspapers and commercial and technical writing. Joe is the host of "The Morning Wrap," a morning drive-time sports talk radio show on WTKE-FM in Northwest ...
read more
Article Tools Share!   |  RSS  |  Bleacher Report About Bleacher Report