Carolina Panthers at Miami Dolphins Preview

By Jason Kirk | Saturday, September 24, 2005 | ( 0 )

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The Carolina Panthers will visit Dolphins Stadium to take on the Miami Dolphins on Sunday in what could be a very defensive minded game. The Panthers are hoping they won't suffer a let-down game after beating the New England Patriots last week 27-17. The Miami Dolphins, on the other hand, will be looking to overcome an emotional 17-7 loss last week to the New York Jets.

After putting in a sub-par performance in the opening game against the New Orleans Saints, Carolina's defense rebounded with a tremendous effort against the defending champs last Sunday. The Panthers forced the Patriots into turning the ball over three times. Two of those miscues were by quarterback Tom Brady, who threw an interception and lost a fumble, which allowed Carolina to score a touchdown and seal the victory. Despite the loss of defensive tackle Kris Jenkins, who suffered a season-ending knee injury against the Saints, the run-defense shut down Corey Dillon and limited the Patriots rushing attack to 39 total yards. Dillon finished the game with a meager 36 yards on 14 carries. The Carolina Panthers hope to continue that dominance on Sunday when they face a Dolphins' rushing offense that is ranked #12 in the league, averaging 108.5 yards-per-game.

On offense, Carolina Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme will need to improve on his erratic performance last week. Against the Patriots, Delhomme struggled most of the day, finishing the game 11-of-26 for 156 yards and no touchdowns. He also threw an interception to linebacker Mike Vrabel, who returned the ball 24 yards for a touchdown. Delhomme, who seemed to get more frustrated as the game went on, got into a heated exchange with Panthers' safety Mike Minter as the two passed on the field, and then got into a confrontation with head coach John Fox. Despite the ineffectiveness of the passing game, the Panthers turned to running back Stephen Davis. Davis, playing in his second game since undergoing microfracture surgery on his right knee, ran for 77 yards on 25 carries and scored three touchdowns. In two games this season, Davis has rushed for 158 yards on 38 attempts, a 4.2 yard average, and four touchdowns.

The Miami Dolphins once again struggled with penalties last week. The Dolphins committed 10 penalties for 88 yards. In two games, Miami has been penalized 21 times for 157 yards. Although not all the penalties were on the offense, those types of mental mistakes have been extremely frustrating, prompting head coach Nick Saban to continue to mix up the starting rotation, especially on the offensive line. Against the Jets, Saban switched starting right tackle Vernon Carey with Stockar McDougle in the third quarter and later inserted Carey at left tackle for Damion McIntosh. With costly penalties and an ineffective running game, the Dolphins were forced to rely on the arm of quarterback Gus Frerotte. Frerotte threw the ball 43 times completing 20 of them for 177 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

With running back Ricky Williams serving a four-game suspension, Miami has turned to rookie Ronnie Brown to carry the load. In two games Brown, the second overall pick in April's draft, has rushed for only 92 yards on 34 carries, a measly 2.7 average, and no touchdowns. Against the Jets he was held to 35 yards on 12 carries as the Dolphins managed just 66 yards on the ground. Brown, who has been blasted by fans the past week, still has the support of Saban and will make his third consecutive start against the Panthers. With Williams still out for the next two games, the Dolphins need Brown to be more productive, especially against Carolina's strong run-stopping defense.

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