Thoughts on the Dolphins

[Flash7]

Miami isn't stellar on offense. They produce more run yards per game than we do, but only becuase they are committed to the run more than we are. They run the ball a lot more than we do. We actually produce a higher yards per attempt. Their run D is very good, but we don't primarily rely on the run. If we pick our spots right, we can still be successful running the ball.

Miami averages 222 passing yards per game, which isn't great. But with the way Hassleback, and Sanchez were able to throw against our defense, I'm worried. I think that we definitely need to put way more pressure on the QB. We just haven't been able to do that lately. I'd love for the defense to take this as a "statement" game. Everyone is talking about how good the Dolphin's defense is and how bad Indy's defense is. Let's show them that we can play D too.

[gbrads_rants]

We have to get pressure on the QB, because without Davis our corners cannot cover right now. Otherwise, I can see this being a long game, because passing success will most likely open up their run game which is pretty good from what I've been able to see.

Miami's greatest strength is their O-Line...they're awesome...the front 7 needs to be prepared and ready for a very physical game.

[No 1 Manning Fan]

Miami's greatest strength is their O-Line...they're awesome...the front 7 needs to be prepared and ready for a very physical game.

Unfortunately, I think the Dolphins probably have the edge in physical game versus our Defensive front 7.

[BlueFin]

Don't be deceived by Miami's passing yardage allowed, they have given up the yardage they have because you can't run on them, so teams in catch up mode run the passing yards up....the important numbers are points allowed...and Miami's defense is 3rd in the league in that category...so don't count on scoring 31 on the Dolphins.

Miami has one of the best front 7's in football, they stop the run and pressure the passer...they are 6th in the league in sacks and 3 of the teams ahead of them have played an extra game.

So, again, can they protect Luck and can they score points through the air? If not..they are in trouble.

[Captain Americolt]

Don't be deceived by Miami's passing yardage allowed, they have given up the yardage they have because you can't run on them, so teams in catch up mode run the passing yards up....the important numbers are points allowed...and Miami's defense is 3rd in the league in that category...so don't count on scoring 31 on the Dolphins.

Miami has one of the best front 7's in football, they stop the run and pressure the passer...they are 6th in the league in sacks and 3 of the teams ahead of them have played an extra game.

So, again, can they protect Luck and can they score points through the air? If not..they are in trouble.

Well we finally got all our starters along the offensive line that past 3 weeks. They continue to gel and get better each week. Had 155 rushing yards a week ago. 170-something this last game. I don't expect it to increase against Miami's front 7 at all. But they should keep your D honest. and Luck isn't your average rookie QB. I got a feeling we will protect him enough to make this a good game.

[Mustang82]

Miami is and has always been my favorite team. The Colts have always been a favorite also with living here in Indy and not being able to watch the Phins regularly I grew fond of the Colts as well.

That being said the Dolphins are not a force to be messed with when it comes to run defense. If Luck can air it out, not a problem since he is averaging close if not over 300 yards passing at home? Anywho, Miami is a team who can pass and make big plays while running the ball down your throat when given the opportunity. Miami has been doing wonders with their defense which take pressure off the offense allowing for things to happen. I mean none of our receivers are big name guys: Hartline, Bess (one of the best slots in the league but highly underated), Fasano, etc..Hartline had a 250 yard receiving game this season already. Not going to happen everygame but it shows not to give him much room. Bush can run for days if given the option and will do so in the blink of an eye. I expect him to have close to if not over 100 yards in this game.

The Dolphins and Colts game is one I have waited forever it seems like to hit Indy. And honestly it should be one of the best games this season I think. A battle royale between two teams trying to rebuild and structure their future around their newly prospered QBs.

I'm hoping Tannehill is able to play but some of you may have seen that Moore is more than capable of a backup QB. Either way it will be a good game. I always cheer for the Colts but when they play my Fish 'tis treason to do so lol. So with that being said I hope the better team (Dolphins, cough....cough....lol) win. Should be fun to watch!

[rtl1334]

Hello all - Dolphins fan here. One point I'd like to make regarding the Fins that hasn't been raised is their use of the no huddle. I've never seen a rookie QB as adept at running the no huddle as Tannehill has shown to be. Bear this in mind when you consider personnel match-ups. Further Tannehill has proven excellent at making pre-snap adjustments and setting protections. Against Zona he passed for 326 yards against the blitz.

I'm not up for predicting a winner in this one as historically this would be a let down game for the Fins. We're just hoping the tide has shifted.

[Stephen]

if the colts win it will prob be i a low scoring defensive game something like 17 to 14 but if the dolphins win it will prob be 35 to 14

[teganslaw]

Tannehill is starting? I've heard that he wasn't injured that badly, but it was a possibility Moore would start.

I never expected that this game would have such large implications for either team. Playoff talk already? Both the Colts and Dolphins have exact records 4-3, have beaten a division rival and are in second place in their divisions.

I'm not going to predict a winner, just expect this to be one heck of a game. I would be upset if it were blacked out, but they are televising it.

[Jburton]

The phins run D looks great just by rank. But it will always look good if you hold 2 of the worst rushing teams to around 25 yards. Most of the rest of the games have been right around the colts normal rush average.

As long as the colts D can hold Bush to his normal yards of around 60 other then one big game vs oakland. The colts have to watch out for Thomas and Miller having a big game. It seems some times the colts let a second or third rb have a break out game on them. Like in the jets game with McKnight with 3 carries for 71 yds.

Both teams seem to be about evenly matched. I think if the colts can keep turnovers even and not give up another 250+ rushing yard game to an east team should be able to come out with the win.

[krunk]

Don't be deceived by Miami's passing yardage allowed, they have given up the yardage they have because you can't run on them, so teams in catch up mode run the passing yards up....the important numbers are points allowed...and Miami's defense is 3rd in the league in that category...so don't count on scoring 31 on the Dolphins.

Miami has one of the best front 7's in football, they stop the run and pressure the passer...they are 6th in the league in sacks and 3 of the teams ahead of them have played an extra game.

So, again, can they protect Luck and can they score points through the air? If not..they are in trouble.

Seems like a fair thing to say, but I'm not sure I buy that.

The only one of your rushing defense stats I respect is the performance against Arian Foster. 26 attempts for 79 yards

The performance against Darren McFadden is questionable because the Raiders abandoned the run game early due to

the score. Mcfaddens numbers were 11 rushes for 22 yards. Not enough attempts.

In the Rams game Daryl Richardson averaged 7 yards a carry with 11 rushes for 76 yards. Steven Jackson almost averaged 5 yards a carry with 12 rushes for 52 yards respectively. Not only that but Bradford threw for 315 yards aned was 26/39

It's hard to call your run D dominant when the rest of the opponents were:

Benjarvis Green Ellis

Shonn Greene. In the second Dolphins vs. Jets game even Shonn Greene averaged 5 yards a carry

Ryan Willams

None of the above are exactly what you would call rushing attacks that leave you shaking in your boots. To me this is an area that leaves one to question what the current statistics are. Much like the Colts being about the 7th ranked pass defense. Everyone knows we are not that stout against the pass as those statistics state.

You can say what you want about what happened to our D against the Jets, but we had several starters missing on the D line in that game, plus guys were missing tackles like crazy. I don't believe the Jets could do that to us twice. Greene looked good against us but overall he's an average back in my opinion. He's solid but not one of the best in the league by far.

I don't think there is enough there to say we should fear your run D.

[SilentHill]

The Jets killed us and the Dolphins killed the Jets. Not too difficult to figure this one out. Hope I am wrong and home field advantage gives us the edge we need. If Mathis is back that will be a big boost.

I love these analogies. GB destroyed Houston, and we beat GB, so it's not too difficult to figure out right?

[Phinsfan93]

Seems like a fair thing to say, but I'm not sure I buy that.

The only one of your rushing defense stats I respect is the performance against Arian Foster. 26 attempts for 79 yards

The performance against Darren McFadden is questionable because the Raiders abandoned the run game early due to

the score. Mcfaddens numbers were 11 rushes for 22 yards. Not enough attempts.

In the Rams game Daryl Richardson averaged 7 yards a carry with 11 rushes for 76 yards. Steven Jackson almost averaged 5 yards a carry with 12 rushes for 52 yards respectively. Not only that but Bradford threw for 315 yards aned was 26/39

It's hard to call your run D dominant when the rest of the opponents were:

Benjarvis Green Ellis

Shonn Greene. In the second Dolphins vs. Jets game even Shonn Greene averaged 5 yards a carry

Ryan Willams

None of the above are exactly what you would call rushing attacks that leave you shaking in your boots. To me this is an area that leaves one to question what the current statistics are. Much like the Colts being about the 7th ranked pass defense. Everyone knows we are not that stout against the pass as those statistics state.

You can say what you want about what happened to our D against the Jets, but we had several starters missing on the D line in that game, plus guys were missing tackles like crazy. I don't believe the Jets could do that to us twice. Greene looked good against us but overall he's an average back in my opinion. He's solid but not one of the best in the league by far.

I don't think there is enough there to say we should fear your run D.

Dolphins fan here. Every team says that they shouldn't fear the run D and are surprised when their run game doesn't work. Daryl Richardson and Steven Jackson had good games because they supposedly figured out how to take advantage of the Dolphins' run D, run to the outside. They did this several times and it worked until the Dolphins fixed it in the second half allowing them to rush for only 20 yards. The Jets tried to use the same formula but it failed. Take away Greene's 36 yard run when the Dolphins already had the game wrapped up and 14 for 41 yards isn't all that good. No offense to the Colts' RBs but you're talking as if they are better than the ones Miami has faced. Dolphins' run D isn't a fluke, it's been ranked in the top 10 for the past 3 years now; 7th in 2010, 3rd in 2011, and 3rd in 2012.

[krunk]

Dolphins fan here. Every team says that they shouldn't fear the run D and are surprised when their run game doesn't work. Daryl Richardson and Steven Jackson had good games because they supposedly figured out how to take advantage of the Dolphins' run D, run to the outside. They did this several times and it worked until the Dolphins fixed it in the second half allowing them to rush for only 20 yards. The Jets tried to use the same formula but it failed. Take away Greene's 36 yard run when the Dolphins already had the game wrapped up and 14 for 41 yards isn't all that good. No offense to the Colts' RBs but you're talking as if they are better than the ones Miami has faced. Dolphins' run D isn't a fluke, it's been ranked in the top 10 for the past 3 years now; 7th in 2010, 3rd in 2011, and 3rd in 2012.

I didn't mention anything in regards to what I think the Colts will do in the run game. That is an assumption you made.

My comments are stating facts that have happened against your team in the run game this year. You can quote facts from previous years, but so can the Ravens and we all know they are not doing what they have done in the past. The current facts say that you are not as dominant as your talk. I don't see anything in the statistics to make me think that we should say "running is definitely not in our best interest". Passing is the Colts strong suit, but we are able to run sometimes when we need to as well. We would like to have a great deal of it, but just getting it going at the right times works enough for us.

You can talk about what you did to the Rams running game in the second half, but you still have to explain why Bradford lit you up in the passing game. To me there are opportunities against your D. It's not a defense I look at and say "Boy what are we going to do"

I'm not saying the Dolphins have a sorry defense, I'm saying you are hyping them a bit more than they deserve.

[krunk]

Dolphins fan here. Every team says that they shouldn't fear the run D and are surprised when their run game doesn't work. Daryl Richardson and Steven Jackson had good games because they supposedly figured out how to take advantage of the Dolphins' run D, run to the outside. They did this several times and it worked until the Dolphins fixed it in the second half allowing them to rush for only 20 yards. The Jets tried to use the same formula but it failed. Take away Greene's 36 yard run when the Dolphins already had the game wrapped up and 14 for 41 yards isn't all that good. No offense to the Colts' RBs but you're talking as if they are better than the ones Miami has faced. Dolphins' run D isn't a fluke, it's been ranked in the top 10 for the past 3 years now; 7th in 2010, 3rd in 2011, and 3rd in 2012.

You mean most of the mediocre teams you have played so far?

[Phinsfan93]

I didn't mention anything in regards to what I think the Colts will do in the run game. That is an assumption you made.

My comments are stating facts that have happened against your team in the run game this year. You can quote facts from previous years, but so can the Ravens and we all know they are not doing what they have done in the past. The current facts say that you are not as dominant as your talk. I don't see anything in the statistics to make me think that we should say "running is definitely not in our best interest". Passing is the Colts strong suit, but we are able to run sometimes when we need to as well. We would like to have a great deal of it, but just getting it going at the right times works enough for us.

You can talk about what you did to the Rams running game in the second half, but you still have to explain why Bradford lit you up in the passing game. To me there are opportunities against your D. It's not a defense I look at and say "Boy what are we going to do"

The Ravens are missing several key players on the defensive side of the ball, of course they're not doing what they've done in the past. I'm just speaking as a fan on my team's physicality on both sides of the ball with the defensive line being their strong suit. The Dolphins have been missing their #2 and most experienced CB Richard Marshall for the past 4 games with second and third year players Nolan Carroll and Jimmy Wilson filling in so Bradford was just taking advantage of them.

[krunk]

The Ravens are missing several key players on the defensive side of the ball, of course they're not doing what they've done in the past. I'm just speaking as a fan on my team's physicality on both sides of the ball with the defensive line being their strong suit. The Dolphins have been missing their #2 and most experienced CB Richard Marshall for the past 4 games with second and third year players Nolan Carroll and Jimmy Wilson filling in so Bradford was just taking advantage of them.

Even when the Ravens had them, they were not doing as well as the past. I don't care about what the dolphins have done in the past. I'm not concerned with that. I'm not saying they are a bad defense at all, but I just don't see enough from what you've done this year to conclude we will not be able to run. We are not a team that needs to gash you(although we would like to) for 100 plus yards. We just need enough to hit you with the playaction and what ever else we want to set up in the passing game. We are like some of the Patriots teams of the past in our scheme. We are able to use the passing game as a running game if we need to. I will say we have been running the ball a lot better as of late.

[Phinsfan93]

Even when the Ravens had them, they were not doing as well as the past. I don't care about what the dolphins have done in the past. I'm not concerned with that. I'm not saying they are a bad defense at all, but I just don't see enough from what you've done this year to conclude we will not be able to run. We are not a team that needs to gash you(although we would like to) for 100 plus yards. We just need enough to hit you with the playaction and what ever else we want to set up in the passing game.

Seeing is believing. Stats won't give you an idea of what the run D is capable of. The thing is that if you don't gash the D, playaction won't be there. The point is your offensive line vs Miami's D-Line is a mismatch. Expect Cameron Wake to be all over Luck in this game.

[krunk]

Seeing is believing. Stats won't give you an idea of what the run D is capable of. The thing is that if you don't gash the D, playaction won't be there. The point is your offensive line vs Miami's D-Line is a mismatch. Expect Cameron Wake to be all over Luck in this game.

I'm no more scared of Wake than I was of Jared Allen, or Clay Matthews. We won both games!

[Stephen]

I can see luck juking out wake now lol

[Coltsfanman1953]

I can see luck juking out wake now lol

Hopefully Luck will leave Cameron in his wake.