The long wait for football finally came to an end on Saturday as the Dolphins took the field against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Weather conditions were horrible for most of the first quarter, and although the rain would eventually stop, the “damage” to the field had already been done, especially near one of the end zones where the Marlins diamond turned into a slippery mud pit which would affect players on both sides for the duration of the game.

After being down 0-7, the Dolphins, led by Thigpen, managed to turn the score around and delivered a 10-7 victory. Despite the win, Saturday’s game wasn’t an easy one, and we saw the weaknesses in certain areas of our game get exposed. As the game went on we did start to see improvements, but I’m not sure how much of it had to do with the adjustments being made as opposed to the fact that we were playing against all of Tampa’s backups. It is worth mentioning though that even if it was due to the latter, that would still prove to be a positive thing; we were after all also playing with our backups and they showed we have good quality players adding depth to the roster.

Overall, the defense proved once again to be dominant on the field compared to the offense, but by far, the one area that needs the most work is special teams. I was not pleased with the special teams’ performance at all. Our kick and punt returns didn’t produce significant gain and we were unable to stop the opposing team when it was their time to return. We need to get a lot better at both of these! By the start of the season I would like to see the special teams improve significantly so they can be the ones giving the offense a good starting position and not leaving the defense in precarious situations as opposed to it being the other way around.

When it comes to the offense, it wasn’t all bad, in reality most of what I saw was good. The running game was very strong with Ronnie leading the way and Ricky making an impression. I was also very impressed by Hilliard who had a chance to show more of what he can do in light of Cobbs’ absence. Not only was Hilliard getting yardage out of rushing plays, but he made a pretty impressive catch as well.

The offensive line was also key during these rushing plays; they were holding the line strong and creating holes for the RBs to get through. It is in the passing plays that they continue to struggle. The QBs are being attacked, and even though there were no sacks in this game, they are feeling the pressure. Henne who is normally very poised in the pocket seemed to be rushing the whole game, even at times when there was no one near him and I feel as though this might have to do with a lack of trust in the offensive line when it comes to keeping him safe, then again it could be due to the fact that no one wants to get injured during the preseason. Whatever the reason might be he needs to find a way to take the time to look down the field before making the pass.

While Henne was on the field, there were a lot of incomplete passes being thrown and although a couple of them were clearly miss-thrown, the majority of them were actually dropped. Marshall dropped both passes during the game and while I’m not happy about it, I think the comparisons that are being thrown around between him and Ginn are extremely farfetched. I am not worried about Marshall at all; this was the first preseason game and honestly I rather him get his one or two bad games out of his system during the preseason. I’m not very worried about Hartline either, both of these guys will step it up as the start of the season gets closer.

Despite all these dropped passes, there were a couple of guys who managed to impress. Fasano made himself very visible during the game and the way he was being used indicates that he might have a season more closely resembling his ‘08 season this year, something I’d very happy to see. At the same time, Pat Turner and Marlon Moore, both put on a pretty good show and made their presence known. Both of these guys are looking to secure that fifth WR spot in the roster, and will continue to be monitored for consistency from this point on.

Something else that was worrisome when watching the offense on the field was their inability as a whole to hold on to the wet ball. Playing in a state where afternoon showers are the norm, we need to be able to handle a wet ball better. This too has sparked some debate about whether training in the bubble proves to be a disadvantage because it takes away some of the home field advantage by not having the players play out in the conditions. I personally think the bubble is very advantageous, we don’t need to put the players in danger and force them to play in inclement weather let’s just get some wet balls when running drills. I’m sure Sparano will be taking care of this very soon, out of all the things to work on this should be the easiest fix. I’m sure he’ll have something to say about the penalties as well.

The defense had a strong showing during this game, and I was very impressed with how far we’ve come along with the changes and how the new guys have adapted. The defensive line was holding strong and our ability to stop the run has improved, but the thing that impressed me the most was the secondary. Our corners were by far the most impressive unit this past game. Sean Smith, who had been struggling in camp was doing exceptionally well in coverage and even managed to complete his first interception. Davis and Jason Allen were also working well in coverage and managed to break big plays without drawing flags. Even Hobbs managed to make his presence known out there; he was doing a great job of putting pressure on the receivers.

The free safety position which was our biggest worry going into the season didn’t seem to be a problem at all either. Clemmons, although not extremely noticeable got the job done and proved he wasn’t a liability like Wilson was last season. Reshad Jones and Nate Ness on the other hand made big plays. On one of the drives were Tampa Bay was in the red zone and looking to score they were the ones responsible for stopping the passing attempts, and on the following drive, even though the Bucs managed to complete the pass, Ness stays on the play and batted the ball out of the receivers hand forcing another turnover. That last play was the play of the game for me.

Some other players on defense that stood out for me were Channing Crowder who had a few good stops, and Paul Soliai who was virtually a wall for the duration of the game, but so many players did well out there that it is very difficult to single out who was the best, and that’s always a good thing.

The thing that impressed me the most from the defense was their ability to force turnovers. I see these guys all taking a more aggressive approach and I like the results. The best quality the Saints defense had last year was their ability to force turnovers, if we can get the turnovers and the offense can turn them into points, we will become the team to beat, so I like the fact that we have at least one half of the equation close to being solved.

The only thing I saw from the defense that I didn’t like was their inability to get to the QB. What bothered me wasn’t the fact that they weren’t creating as much pressure as I’d like or that they didn’t get sacks, it was the fact that on more than one occasion the QBs ran the ball and gained significant yards because no one would get to them, so I look forward to this getting worked on prior to the next game.

All in all, I believe this first game was a good one. Seeing the players out there in action against another team gives us a better feel for what we need to work on, and gives us an opportunity to take notice of some of the things we have improved on. We will start to see things coming together in the next couple of weeks, and by the start of the season, we should be in a much better position than were we are now.