Coy playcalling not enough to overcome Dolphins’ misfires

By Hugo Guzman  |   Monday, September 10, 2007  |  Comments( 12 )

Miami Dolphins
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For a moment on Sunday, it felt as if the Miami Dolphins had finally turned the page on what has been a thoroughly lackluster era of football recently.

When new head coach Cam Cameron decided to go for the touchdown with only four seconds left in the first half against the Washington Redskins, calling a nifty pass play that rolled Trent Green out to the right, where he eventually connected with tight end Justin Peelle for the score, it seemed as if Miami's much-maligned offense was finally on its way up.

Unfortunately, though, games aren't won on a single play and a franchise's fortunes don't turn so quickly or so easily.

Some will point to a Dolphin defense that failed to stop the Redskins' rushing attack in overtime, allowing Washington to pound its way into field goal position on a nine-play drive in which quarterback Jason Campbell had to throw the ball only twice. But that would be a bit shortsighted.

Miscues and lack of execution are what prevented the Dolphins from stealing a road victory in D.C.

Eight penalties, a half-dozen dropped passes, and a costly fumble truly sabotaged Miami on Sunday. And the numbers only tell half the story. It seemed as if each penalty, each drop, was made at the most inopportune moments, short-circuiting drives and keeping points off the board.

The most costly sequence occurred in late in the fourth quarter with the Dolphins trailing 13-10. After a Redskins pass interference penalty set the Dolphins up with a first-and-goal on the 8-yard line, a holding penalty followed by an intentional grounding call backed the Dolphins up to the 28. Fortunately, Miami was able to convert the field goal and send the game into overtime, but the fact remains that those dual miscues took away the opportunity to score a potentially game-winning touchdown in the waning minutes of regulation.

Good teams simply don't do that.

In terms of the positives, beyond Cameron's gutsy decision at the end of the half, there were several other reasons for Dolphin fans to keep their heads up.

Despite all the miscues, one thing was quite clear: Trent Green is by far the most talented quarterback Miami has possessed since Dan Marino. Green completed over 60 percent of his passes and threw for 219 yards to go along with a touchdown and no interceptions. Granted, his errant throw right into the hands of Redskins cornerback Fred Smoot would have made him the goat of the afternoon had Smoot not dropped the ball, but for the most part, Green was accurate, poised, and fairly elusive.

If the Dolphins can mount some semblance of a running game and the receivers can hold onto the ball on a more consistent basis, Miami looks as if it could mount quite a formidable attack.

But based on Sunday's performance, that might be asking for a bit much.

Get more on the Miami Dolphins at RealFootball365.com
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About Hugo Guzman

Trying to bring an objective approach to NFL analysis.
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