Dolphins Team Report
INSIDE SLANT
Chad Henne(notes) has thrown nine interceptions the past five weeks—and at least one in each game—after throwing just three his first seven weeks as a starter.
So it’s no surprise when he admits one of the primary areas in which he must improve this offseason is throwing touch passes.
“A guy like me who likes to shoot the ball in there all the time,” he says, “you realize you have to step back and understand that instead of ‘windows,’ you’ve really got to get it over. Because there are more throws over linebackers and safeties, and that is what I’m learning and that’s where my game needs to improve.”
No one would expect him to have mastered everything a dozen games into his career as an NFL starter. Yet, it’s still jarring whenever Henne sails a pass three feet over the head of a running back in the flat or rifles one a bit too hard on a short crossing route.
Even the second New England game, Henne’s signature win to this point, included several such moments, including a pair of miscues on swing passes to fullback Lousaka Polite(notes). Another time Henne blasted Davone Bess’s(notes) fingers with a bullet from close range.
At least Henne recognizes he has a little bit of an issue in this department. So does the coaching staff, which is why Henne spends extra time each practice working with quarterbacks coach David Lee on the mechanics of the touch pass.
“Like anybody in the league, when you get back there, there’s a sense of urgency to get the ball out and you want to throw it hard,” Dolphins offensive coordinator Dan Henning says. “You’ve got to learn how to throw it hard but with a little arc and a little pace.”
Henning compares it to the second serve in tennis.
“You want to hit the first one hard because you want to get the guy to miss, but the second one you want to make sure you get it in the service court,” Henning says. “That’s what he needs to do.”
• It surprised absolutely no one when Dolphins coach Tony Sparano confirmed on Wednesday that inside linebacker Channing Crowder(notes) is out for the season with a right foot injury.
However, just because the news was expected doesn’t mean it lessens the blow.
Crowder, who saw a specialist Tuesday, was placed on injured reserve and is still trying to determine whether surgery will be required.
“Right now there are still some more tests that are going on,” Sparano said. “Certainly some swelling and all those things they’ve got to work through.”
The Dolphins haven’t replaced Crowder on the active roster yet, but signing rookie J.D. Folsom(notes) from the practice squad is the leading option. Folsom, a seventh-round pick out of Weber State, played one game this year, Nov. 8 at New England, making a solo tackle on the opening kickoff.
Veteran outside linebacker Charlie Anderson(notes) moved inside during drills at Wednesday’s practice.
Akin Ayodele(notes) will replace Crowder as the primary signal-caller on defense, with veteran backup Reggie Torbor(notes) likely to make his third start in Crowder’s place Sunday against Pittsburgh.
With Crowder going down two plays into Sunday’s loss to the Texans, it means he will essentially miss a quarter of the season. The former University of Florida star also sat out two mid-season division road games (Jets and Patriots) with a shoulder injury.
Officially, Crowder will have missed nine games over the past three seasons after going the distance his first two years.
Crowder signed a three-year extension last spring. He made $1.5 million this season and is due to earn salaries of $2.1 million next year and $2.5 million in 2011.
Crowder finishes the season with 51 tackles, currently fifth on the team but a large drop from the 96.5 tackles he averaged his first four years in the league. He also had his first professional interception Dec. 6 to seal a win over the Patriots.
Series History: 20th regular-season meeting. Steelers lead series 10-9. Pittsburgh has won the last three meetings. Miami holds a 2-1 postseason edge, which includes a 45-28 victory in the AFC Championship Game at the end of the 1984 season.
NOTES, QUOTES
—Coming off shoulder and ankle surgeries, offensive guard Justin Smiley(notes) “had a tremendous road to recovery,” Sparano said of the players’ choice for the Ed Block Courage Award.
“At one point his leg’s in a cast, his arm’s in a sling,” Sparano said. “He was really through the wringer at that point. I can remember looking out on the field (this offseason) and seeing the guy running when everybody else was gone.”
• Vontae Davis(notes) was still beaming Wednesday over the announced Pro Bowl selections. San Francisco’s Vernon Davis(notes), older brother of the Dolphins’ rookie cornerback, was chosen as the starting tight end for the NFC. It will be the first Pro Bowl trip for the older Davis, who had been considered a disappointment through his first three seasons but enjoyed a breakthrough in 2009.
“I love my brother with all my heart and I’m very proud of him,” Vontae Davis said. “That was his goal, to get to the Pro Bowl. I say he deserves it.”
• Left tackle Jake Long(notes) was the Dolphins’ only Pro Bowl choice. This marks the second time in as many years that Long was selected, although as a rookie he was an alternate. That first selection bumped up the total value of Long’s contract by several million dollars. It’s believed this selection will do something similar.
• The Dolphins have faced 10 of the 13 AFC skill-position picks for the Pro Bowl this season. The only players they missed are RB Ray Rice(notes) and FB Le’Ron McClain(notes), both of the Ravens, and Denver WR Brandon Marshall(notes).
• The Dolphins’ rushing production dropped 13.4 percent on a per-carry basis in the 4 1/2 games Jake Grove(notes) missed. The running game averaged 4.63 yards per carry up to the point of Grove’s injury at Carolina, and that figure dropped to 4.01 YPC during his absence (152 carries for 609 yards).
Quote To Note: “I eat good. No, I don’t eat good. I eat lousy, but it’s fun.”—Dolphins coach Tony Sparano on how he tries to avoid burnout.
By The Numbers: 2—Years in which the Dolphins have been shut out in Pro Bowl picks (1980 and 1997). This is the second time in three years they have had just one player selected. Jason Taylor(notes) was named but did not play in 2007.
STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL
Center Jake Grove was able to get into Sunday’s game for about 20 plays, according to Tony Sparano.
“You could see a little bit of inactivity there, in that he just hadn’t played,” the Dolphins coach said. “I thought he went out there and competed hard. It was good to get him back into the mix.”
Grove, who is down to wearing a small amount of tape on that sprained left ankle, said Monday he is hoping to start against Pittsburgh but he was still working with the second-team line during drills Wednesday.
Player Notes
• OL Nate Garner(notes) worked some at left tackle during Thursday’s practice. That could be an indicator Pro Bowl LT Jake Long is hurting, or it could just be a sign the Dolphins want Garner to go for the cycle, having played everywhere else on the line this season, including tight end as the tackle eligible.
• P Britton Colquitt(notes) was signed off the Dolphins’ practice squad and added to the Broncos’ active roster. Colquitt was brought in last week to push incumbent punter Brandon Fields(notes).
• OLB Quentin Moses(notes) could get more opportunities Sunday with Charlie Anderson moving inside. Moses, the third-year linebacker, registered the Dolphins’ only sack of Houston’s Matt Schaub(notes) last week. It was Moses’ first sack since Nov. 26, 2007 at Pittsburgh.
• FB Lousaka Polite, passed over for Baltimore’s Le’Ron McClain in Pro Bowl voting for the AFC’s lone fullback slot, is 15 for 15 in converting third- or fourth-and-1 this year. Since joining the Dolphins he is 26 for 27 in those situations.
• DE Randy Starks(notes) could make his first Pro Bowl if the Colts make the Super Bowl. Two of the AFC’s three defensive end selections are from the Colts: Dwight Freeney(notes) and Robert Mathis(notes).
Game Plan: After asking first-year starter Chad Henne to throw nearly 46 times a game the past four weeks—with a high of 55 attempts in last week’s loss to Houston—the Dolphins will face a Steelers team with a stiff pass rush and the league’s third-ranked rushing defense.
The Steelers rank 16th against the pass. With their offensive line still banged up, look for the Dolphins to continue to try to move the ball through the air.
Matchups To Watch: OLB Joey Porter(notes) vs. Steelers offensive line. Porter, for all his troubles this season, still leads the Dolphins with eight sacks. He spent his first eight seasons with the Steelers and will be highly motivated to show them they made a mistake in cutting him loose after the 2006 season. Porter will be working against a Steelers line that has allowed 47 sacks, second only to Green Bay.
Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger(notes) vs. Dolphins FS Gibril Wilson(notes). Nobody uses the pump fake better than Big Ben, who moves the best safeties out of their zone areas with the underrated weapon. And Wilson, who last week dropped his latest attempt at his first interception as a Dolphin, is definitely no longer one of the best at his position, if in fact he ever was.
Injury Impact:
• RB Ricky Williams(notes) was the only status change to the Dolphins’ injury report. After practicing fully on Wednesday with a shoulder injury suffered Sunday, Williams was downgraded to limited practice on Thursday.
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