Nobody would have guessed ahead of Sunday’s game that the Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots would be involved in a shoot out, if anything perhaps a close, low scoring game. Instead, Dolphin fans were treated to a back and forth shoot out Sunday that eventually saw the Dolphins fall short on fire power, losing to the Patriots 48-28.

The first 3 1/2 quarters of Sunday’s game were perhaps the most exciting quarters of football witnessed in Miami in recent memory. The game saw 6 lead changes by the middle of the 3rd quarter as the teams traded blows in an offensive onslaught. New England scored first on a 30 yd field goal in the 1st quarter to make it 3-0 and from there it was one lead change after another. Miami would go ahead 7-3 on a Chad Pennington TD pass to Greg Camarillo, but the Patriots would answer later with an 8 yd TD run from Matt Cassel to go ahead 10-7.

Pennington would answer with a TD scramble of his own to put Miami back in front 14-10, but just before the half Randy Moss caught a 25 yd TD pass from Cassel to take the lead at halftime 17-14. The back and forth would continue though as Miami answered right away in the 2nd half with another Pennington TD pass, this time to Casey Cramer to go up 21-17. Back to back New England touchdowns in the 3rd quarter though would bring an end to the lead changes, as the Patriots went up 31-21.

Miami would make one more run at the Patriots early in the 4th quarter when Pennington threw his 3rd TD pass of the day, this time to Ricky Williams, to close the gap to 31-28. From there however it was all Patriots as they would go on to score a TD, FG, and TD to win by a final score of 48-28.

The loss hurts the Dolphins playoff chances as they fall to 3rd in the AFC East. Barring a collapse of the New York Jets, the Dolphins have little to no chance of winning the division and it is even difficult to see how the Dolphins could climb into the Wild Card race at this point. That being said, the Dolphins have nothing to be ashamed of. The Patriots, like it or not Dolphin fans, are simply more talented than the Dolphins. Too much has changed since the last time these two teams have met. Matt Cassel almost has Patriot fans saying “Tom who?” and their defense is resurgent.

The Dolphins made a good showing of themselves and no matter how the team finishes the rest of the season, they should see nothing but positives out of the 2008 campaign. They went from 1 win last season, to 6 already this season and still have a chance to finish with a winning record. Given the lack of talent at some key positions on this team (WR!), they are proving they can compete nonetheless. Hold your heads high Dolphins, you’re doing just fine.

Baltimore Raven’s head coach John Harbaugh is new to the NFL head coaching gig, so maybe a pass is warranted on this occassion. In an attempt to defend his offensive coordinator, former Dolphins head coach Cam Cameron, Harbaugh told a local radio reporter that Cameron “was an effective coach down in Miami last year, even though the results weren’t what people were hoping for. He did a great job there with what he had to work with.” Is he serious? Do you really consider 1-15 a good job?!

Miami Dolphins’ players have been told by team management to refrain from making any negative comments regarding this statement and/or former coach Cam Cameron. That doesn’t extend to anyone else though and retaliation is warranted in this case. Every player left on that team (who was with the team last year) should be personally offended and I hope they read this quote, or better yet listen to it, multiple times before Sunday’s game. Cam Cameron may not have had an established QB like Chad Pennington last year, but he had an offense that included Ronnie Brown (albeit for half the season) and Chris Chambers. Cameron had plenty of tools to win more than 1 game. This year’s Dolphins have no better offensive attack than last years, but Sparano is able to get the most out of the players he has.

I for one believe the blame should lay with Cam Cameron, he was not only less than effective as a head coach during games but was also terrible at controlling his team off the field. The Dolphins’ locker room last season was a mess and Cameron was never able to establish himself as the leader of MEN. Perhaps like USC coach Pete Carroll, Cameron is not capable of leading men. Maybe the next time Cameron wants to be a head coach in charge of an organization on the field, he should go with work kids in the NCAA ranks.

Make no mistake, Cam Cameron did NOT do a good job last year. He was unable to control his players and establish himself as the head of the team as coach. True, Cameron didn’t have a whole ton of help. No real QB existed last season, Ronnie Brown went down injured, Chris Chambers was traded, and the OL was a mess, but he only won 1 game. Cameron was incapable of adjusting his schemes to the players he had. The Dolphins welcome Baltimore to Miami this weekend and new coach Tony Sparano and his players should show the Ravens just what they are capable of doing to opponents.

This time last year, the Dolphins were sellers when the NFL Trade Deadline came around. WR Chris Chambers was sent packing in what proved to be just the start of a purge that would see several veteran faces in Miami depart. This year however, the Dolphins could be buyers at the trade deadline, but who could they be trading for?

The Kansas City Chiefs are openly shopping Tony Gonzalez and the Detroit Lions are shopping several players. The Dolphins should quickly get involved in talks with both teams to try and get a new face in Miami. Tony Gonzalez has asked to be traded to a contender, and though the Dolphins had the longest odds at the start of the season to make the playoffs (not to mention the Super Bowl), the Dolphins aren’t out of anything yet. Lets not get carried away, I’m not guaranteeing any playoff run. That being said, the AFC East is wide open and it is not impossible the Dolphins could make the playoffs. Tony Gonzalez would be a priceless addition and would provide another option in that crazy single wing attack the Dolphins are becoming fond of.

Then there are the Detroit Lions, who are shopping several players. The Lions are done already this season sitting at 0-5. Roy Williams has commented to Detroit media he might like to leave and though the Lions have said he isn’t on the trading block, they would probably part with him given the right offer. Williams too would be a fantastic addition. Whether or not Tony Sparano and Bill Parcells admit to it, the WR corps for the Dolphins stinks, STINKS. Roy Williams is a big body, fast receiver that would immediately legitimize the Dolphins pass offense. Williams would not only be another option for the crazy single wing, but would allow the Dolphins to be much more effective with a standard offensive set as well.

At 2-3 I’m not going to call the Dolphins a playoff lock, but they do stand a chance to make the playoffs. What is the harm in making a trade for one of these guys to see if you can make waves the rest of the season. At worst, you have these quality players coming back next year to form an offense with. This should be a no brainer, DO IT!

The Miami Dolphins took the 16th pick and Nick Saban upgraded by selecting CB Jason Allen out of University of Tennessee. The guy is coming off a hip injury and can either play safety or cornerback. Nick Saban loves height and athleticism. This kid has both, I just think they could’ve gotten someone on defense in the 3rd round.

The selection to me was a little off key. I felt there was too much offensive talent this high in the draft such as WR’S Santonio Holmes [OSU] and Chad Jackson [UF]. 3 Strong RB that could spell Ronnie Brown: Joseph Addai [LSU], Laurence Maroney [Minn.], and DeAngelo Williams [Memphis].

In the 3rd round Nick Saban went for Offense selecting WR Derek Hagan [ASU] a 3time all Pac ten team player. He was a great receiver and made some big catches for this team. He might be the deep threat the Dolphins were looking for, however I think this 3rd round pick will be a bust. One of those journeyman who gave all they had in college. Again I felt they missed the key on this pick. OL Eric Winston was on the board 4 spots before they selected I think he was a potential 1st rounder who slipped they shouldve moved up and solidified another Offensive Line Player.

I give the 16th pick a C- I don’t think he will be a starter and when you draft that high you must draft a starter.
I give the 82nd pick a C+ The guy can catch , just dont think hes a deep threat. Again not a starter.

In order for the Miami Dolphins to have success on the road they will have to throw the ball and convert 3rd downs. Look for Gus Frerotte to try and get Chris Chambers off early with the deep ball. Also the running game if some success early should open up passing lanes to Randy McMicheal. They need to score points and score early to put the doubt in Tampa Bay Buccaneers minds. Also Special Teams play has been a huge dissappointment up till today. If the Miami Dolphins gonna have a shot they need good field position. Wes Welker needs to step up and make some plays. No stupid penalties. Miami set a record last week for 18 penalties. No dumb ones today. Nick good coaching and the Dolphins walk away with a huge victory today~!!!!!!