2007 NFL Preview: Miami Dolphins

Looking At 2006 In The Rear View Mirror

The Miami Dolphins were supposed to be a darkhorse in the AFC, they were supposed to give the New England Patriots a run for their money, and they were supposed to have their most talented starting quarterback since Dan Marino.

Well, "ifs" and "buts" are apparently not candies and nuts.

After an offseason of injury watch that had Daunte Culpepper in a race with Carson Palmer for amount of knee rehab updates, Culpepper ended up winning.

Unfortunately, while Palmer got on the field and got past his problems, Culpepper was immobile and still hampered, and was shutdown for the season.

You have to give some credit to the Dolphins' front office, who traded a second-round pick for him and then a year later, simply cut ties with him. They should also cut ties with the medical staff who suggested that his knee would be fine.

But the Dolphins had a backup plan: they traded a sixth-round pick for Joey Harrington.

That makes two quarterbacks the Dolphins traded for and then released within a year. You can also throw in the Marcus Vick experiment, but I digress.

Harrington became the default starter and although he was better than he was in Detroit, it was clear that he couldn't get comfortable in the offense. Part of the problem is not having a full offseason with the team. The other issue was that his confidence was still low.

On defense, the Dolphins had all the constituents of a playoff team. Their front seven was terrorizing opponents and not only did Zach Thomas and Jason Taylor avoid slowing down, they sped up. Taylor was the Defensive Player of the Year.

The old defensive line didn't break down, as expected, and helped the Dolphins implement one of the top 3-4 outfits.

The secondary benefited from the strong play upfront. They didn't force many turnovers, but corners Will Allen and Travis Daniels provided solid coverage. First-round pick Jason Allen had a terrible rookie season.

The Dolphins had a league-low 8 interceptions and only five of those picks came from defensive backs.

The defense carried a big burden as the offense simply couldn't keep up.

Harrington was inconsistent, which meant defenders crept closer to the line to crowd Ronnie Brown. With an average offensive line in front of him, Brown wasn't able to flourish as many had expected in his second season.

And neither was Chris Chambers or Randy McMichael, who also experienced subpar seasons because of spotty quarterback play.

Without Culpepper and with Harrington proving to be nothing more than a backup, the once-lofty expectations for the Dolphins dwindled in 2006.

A Year Too Early With That Dark Horse Prediction?

So we know what happened to the Dolphins last year, when they flopped at the quarterback position and flopped in the win column.

But now the Dolphins may have secured the position.

Veteran Trent Green definitely isn't the Pro Bowler he once was, but he could still potentially be the best signal caller this team has had in years. Once again, like Culpepper, there are injury concerns. But Green is a savvy veteran, one that could awaken the sleepy production from all of the offensive weapons.

Let's be honest for a second. Chris Chambers is definitely not Steve Smith or Marvin Harrison, but he has played pretty well considering he's had to work with the likes of Jay Fiedler and A.J. Feeley. Marty Booker, who starts opposite him, is also fairly steady. With a good quarterback, this tandem should approach 2,000 yards receiving.

If the passing threat is present, look for Ronnie Brown to take off. He's already proven to be a solid running back while opposing defenses have stacked the line of scrimmage. In the past decade, only LaDainian Tomlinson, Larry Johnson, Ricky Williams, and Jamal Lewis (in his prime) could deal with those kind of settings. Brown is only in his third year and will benefit greatly if Green can simply keep defenses honest. With Ted Ginn, Jr., the Dolphins have enough weapons to make this a more formidable offense than the Dolphins' fans have seen in recent years.

The only question remains is how will the line perform? The whole front five is under construction and there will be very little continuity here. They will have five new starters.

Vernon Carey, a solid right tackle, is shifting to the left side. L.J. Shelton will take over Carey's former spot. There will be a rookie starter at center and possibly another at right guard, where this is a fierce competition going on. This is a pretty big red flag (uncertainty on offensive line) considering they will be protecting a 37-year-old quarterback who just finished recovering from a serious concussion.

The Dolphins' offensive line coach, Hudson Houck, is one of the best in the business. He's made them overachieve for the past couple of seasons and has his work cut out for him this season.

One area where this team shouldn't have too many concerns is the defensive front seven. A strength last year, it figures to be even stronger this year. They will be a bit younger as Matt Roth is ready to step in for veteran Kevin Carter and rookie Paul Soliai can spell Keith Traylor and keep him fresh.

But with Roth stepping into the starting lineup, there isn't much depth on the ends.

The Dolphins' big free agent catch was linebacker Joey Porter, who complements Jason Taylor on the outside when they get into the 3-4. Assuming he's healthy, Porter will have a big year and will do his best to prove Pittsburgh wrong for letting him go. Although the Dolphins ranked third in sacks last season (47), they only had 5.5 from their true linebackers (not including Taylor) and Porter will help boost that stat.

The Dolphins' secondary is much weaker than the front lines, but since they get help upfront, they can get by with average players. Travis Daniels is fully healthy and Will Allen is solid. They might not pick a lot of passes, but they cover well, which also leads to sacks when quarterbacks can't find anyone open. The third corner spot will be up to Michael Lehan and probably Andre Goodman, when shoulder problems stop hindering him.

At safety, Renaldo Hill is solid while Yeremiah Bell is a quiet playmaker. He's still a very young player who might prove to be the long-term solution at the position if he posts a similar season as in 2006.

The offensive line is a juggling act and they don't exactly have the luxury of protecting an ironman like Brett Favre, but if this unit can gel, the Dolphins won't be far behind the New York Jets in the battle for second place.

So They Didn't Draft Brady Quinn...

Obviously, whatever turned the Dolphins away from Quinn also deterred a number of other teams, so don't fret so much about that.

The other reason you shouldn't be so down is because the quarterback that they did draft, second-round pick John Beck, looks pretty damn good so far.

Throwing Quinn behind this line in a new offensive scheme probably would have resulted in a mess. At least with the Green/Beck situation, Green can quickly grasp the offense, since he is already familiar with it, and hand over the reigns to Beck either later this year or next year when the team is in better shape.

Ginn, Jr. is a playmaker and will contribute more this season than Quinn would have. When you factor all of the weapons already present (Chambers, Booker, and Brown), Ginn, Jr. figures to be more of a threat from the slot or the outside with other teams forced to focus attention everywhere else.

Biggest Weakness: Offensive Line — Believe it or not, if they sort this out (and Hudson Houck is more than capable of doing so), the Dolphins can be a nine-win team.

Offensive X-Factor: Trent Green — There is plenty for him to work with, he just actually has to perform like a capable quarterback — something the Dolphins haven't had in a while.

Defensive X-Factor: Defensive Line — This unit was very dominant last year, but now is short on depth. If they stay healthy, the Dolphins' front seven will be even better than last year.

Fantasy Market: Buy Low

While his yardage totals have been low, Chris Chambers has 33 touchdowns grabs in the last four seasons. He has been playing with average quarterbacks and even though Trent Green is nothing special, he's much better than Chambers has seen in a while. Expecting 10 touchdowns and 1,000 yards receiving isn't outrageous for Chambers.

"Vegas" Dave Golokhov hosts "THE Fantasy Show" on Hardcore Sports Radio, channel 186 on Sirius Satellite Radio. Catch the HSR live fantasy football draft on August 25th starting 12:00 PM ET. Send media requests, thoughts, love letters, or hate mail to [email protected].