Catching up with EVERYTHING Miami Dolphins

It's crunch time here on the island of Nantucket, so I apologize for my lack of posts as of late.  Guess thats why they call it preseason, huh?

Anyway, it's also quickly becoming crunch time for the Miami Dolphins, as the opening kickoff from Cleveland is just a mere FOUR weeks away.  So far the Fins have showed us some good things, and some, well, alarming things.

Here are my thoughts:

• Ryan Tannehill impressed me on Friday night, and here's why.  The kid bounced back.  After a poor showing against Dallas, and a lackluster start to the game in Jacksonville, Tannehill rallied the troops towards the end of the first quarter to put a TD on the board.  He bought time for himself on more than one occasion, made a big time throw to Dustin Keller over the middle of the field (something he struggled with last year), and then found Keller a couple plays later in the back of the end zone.  Final stats?  5-9, 75 yards, and a TD.  Spin it however you want, but he bounced back.

• The offensive line continues to terrify, not only myself, but also the young QB as well, and it was evident Friday night.  Tannehill knows he's got a shaky line protecting him, and it's forcing him to rush the pass, not be able go through all of his reads, and, most importantly, not be able to look Mike Wallace's way.  Jonathan Martin had a solid night, as did Mike Pouncey, Richie Incognito, and Tyson Clabo, but Josh Samuda struggled BIG TIME, and was replaced by Nate Garner at RG.  This competition is WIDE OPEN right now, and the Fins need to figure it out soon, or somebody (you can guess who) won't make it 16 games this year.

• Running back is another competition that remains open.  Lamar Miller wasn't great the other night, and Daniel Thomas has had a consistently good camp. I'm not nearly as confident in Miller winning the starting spot as I was three weeks ago, and am becoming increasingly intrigued in the Thomas/Miller battle.  Another guy to watch is Jonas Gray.  The kid has also looked good all through camp, and is knee deep in a battle with Mike Gillislee for that third RB position.

• WR Richard Matthews returned to camp today after missing the last two weeks with an injury, and he looked good.  The second year man lost some valuable time in trying to earn a roster spot, but with a good showing Saturday night he could vault himself right back in the discussion.  Right now WR Marvin McNutt, Juluis Pruitt, and Chad Bumphis are also competing for the final two WR spots.

• Caleb Sturgis is HOT on Dan Carpenter's trail right now.  Not good.

• Defensively, the Miami Dolphins can run with the best of them.  This unit is absolutely loaded right now, especially the defensive line.  LB's Dannell Ellerbe and Philip Wheeler had solid showings on Friday, as did rookie CB Will Davis, who had an INT.  Davis is quickly turning into somebody to keep an eye on for that starting CB spot opposite Brent Grimes.  The big thing right now for Davis is consistency.  Can he continue to shine?  We'll see.

• Speaking of Grimes.  Haven't heard much out of him, have you?  That's because nobody has thrown his way yet.  If the Dolphins ever had a shutdown CB, it's Grimes.  Guy is a stud.

• Quick note.  Dion Jordan did not practice today for reasons not disclosed to the public.  Could he be doing some rehab still?  Probably, but we'll monitor the situation going forward.

• Speaking of practice today, it was a pretty boring session down in Davie.  A lot of special teams work.  Ho hum.

Back to the island life.

Go Fins!