Miami’s ground game is the road back to playoffs

By Adam Best  |   Thursday, August 23, 2007  |  Comments( 14 )

Miami Dolphins
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Ask what positions are the most important ones in the National Football League and the typical answers include quarterback, offensive tackle, defensive end and cornerback. While those positions are significant, running back and linebacker shouldn't be omitted.

Just look at the stud running backs who helped lead their respective teams to the playoffs a season ago -- Brian Westbrook, Deuce McAllister, Joseph Addai, LaDainian Tomlinson and Larry Johnson, among many more. All but one of the 12 teams that made the 2006 postseason had a standout featured back. The lone team without a star tailback, the New York Jets, very effectively used a backfield platoon.

Additionally, all four of the '06 conference finalists -- the Chicago Bears, Indianapolis Colts, New England Patriots and New Orleans Saints -- boasted two stud RBs.

While the Miami Dolphins obviously have the linebacker position on lock -- Channing Crowder, Joey Porter and Zach Thomas form a fearsome trio -- success at the running back isn't a guarantee.

Ronnie Brown has looked great this preseason, warranting the praise that has been sent his way and the first- and second-round consideration he has received from fantasy football players. With head coach Cam Cameron calling the plays, Brown might be poised for a Pro Bowl season.

He'll need help, though, because one player alone cannot produce a dominant rushing attack.

Defensively, the Dolphins can give a huge assist to the team's ground game. The front seven will have to corral opposing running games, which it has the talent to do. The secondary just needs to limit the big plays it gives up. The linebackers will need to perform at the high level they're capable of. If those three things happen, the offense will have more plays and more time to score, with less pressure to do so, allowing a ground attack to materialize.

Offensively, the Dolphins' line will have to compete for four quarters in order to run the ball successfully. Hopefully for them, rookie center Samson Satele and the other new pickups will add some fire to a unit that has sorely lacked that trait in the past. Quarterback Trent Green will have to avoid throwing interceptions, something he hasn't always been able to accomplish in the past. The tight ends and wide receivers must do a better job of both holding onto the ball and moving the chains on third downs. Again, you can't establish the run if you don't have possession of the ball.

Also, another Dolphins running back will have to step up and help Brown shoulder the load -- likely either Jesse Chatman or Lorenzo Booker. If last year's playoffs taught us anything, it's that RB platoons are the wave of the future in the NFL, and it's also difficult for even a superstar back to will his team into the Super Bowl. After all, Tomlinson, Johnson and the Rams' Steven Jackson -- the three backs who are widely regarded as tops in the league -- watched the Super Bowl on a television screen.

If Cameron and the Dolphins can put everything together and forge a consistent ground game, the playoffs could be a possibility either this year or next. If not, Miami's fans might have to keep enduring this playoff drought for years to come.

Get original Miami Dolphins coverage at RealFootball365.com
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