Dolphins very much alive in playoff race after dominating Jets 23-3
What I liked (cont’d)
– Charles Clay and Mike Wallace – Clay continues to impress. He creates mismatches for the defense and has been much more consistent lately, catching the football. He caught 7 passes for 80 yards on Sunday. Wallace caught the short and medium range passes on Sunday and turned one short pass into a touchdown. He finished the day with 7 catches for 82 yards and a TD. I especially liked Wallace mocking Santonio Holmes ‘flying jet’ TD celebration.
– Dolphins Defense – When you force 3 turnovers and hold an opponent to only 3 points, you’ve done your job as a defense. The rush defense is still a bit of a concern, but the Dolphins simply dominated the Jets. Dannell Ellerbe and Brent Grimes picked off passes. By the way, can we start talking about a contract extension with Grimes yet? The guy is playing as well as any CB in the league right now.
– Olivier Vernon – The former ‘U’ standout is having quite a season. He picked up 2.5 sacks on Sunday and is clearly developing before our eyes. Yes, he’s benefiting from playing opposite Cameron Wake, but the guy has 10 sacks on the season now. With OV and Wake, you have to wonder what the long term plan is for Dion Jordan?
– Lamar Miller – Without Daniel Thomas available, the Dolphins used Miller like a workhorse. Miller answered the call rushing 22 times for 72 yards. While those stats aren’t gaudy, keep in mind that the Jets have a very good rush defense and the Dolphins offensive line has been….well…you know. Miller showed his explosiveness on a few plays and limited the negative plays.
– Offensive Line – We’ve been tough on this group all year. BUT, with the return of Mike Pouncey, the Dolphins line did a great job on Sunday. Tannehill was only sacked once and the running game put up 125 yards against one of the best run defenses in the league. Kudos to the offensive line.
– Coaching – While there were still some things that this coaching staff did in this game that drove me crazy, I liked the gameplan and the ability to create mismatches. I still have a lot of doubts, but on Sunday, the coaching staff did a good job. (continued on page 3, CLICK HERE)