FanPost

Observations from Scrimmage


It was good to get out to dolphin stadium last night. There are big expectations for this team evident by the 22,000 + turn out. There were old, young, and even a couple of pats fans??? Apparently, they were with their families who were phin fans. As practice started I realized I should of grabbed a flyer that had player numbers with their names on it but I didn't want to make everyone get up to let me out from the middle of the row. Therefor this review will not have too many names of new players.

Offensive line:

Our offensive line needs to get it together. Especially the left side. I'm to the point now where this is starting to get concerning. I knew they weren't really good but I didn't know how bad it still is. The QB's rarely had time to set their feet. Pressure was getting there and getting there fast all night. Only one deep pass was attempted all night (Moore) and he had defenders all around him. I know we have a strong front seven but so do other teams. T-Hill had three touchdowns and two for sure were borderline sacks with the defenders pulling up to avoid contact with the QB. Offensive line is a must watch during preseason games. This is our Achilles Heel.

WR:

I quickly realized Wallace and Hartline weren't playing. Hartline did come in for once and it resulted in a incompleted pass. That T-Hill pass was off due to pressure. The rest of the starters had a lot of trouble creating separation. On one play Gibson was WIDE OPEN due to a busted coverage in the endzone and let it fall trough his hands. He HAS to bring those in. The backups WR were doing slightly better against the backup secondary but there was nothing eye catching.

TE:

Dustin Keller is a breath of fresh air after writing about the oline on WR's. He had a touchdown in which he used his size to break a tackle and speed to get to the endzone. He looked like the only bully on the offense. Clay had a couple nice plays including a TD. He has a knack for getting open for big plays. However, he needs to get better at catching the football. I have too many memories of him juggling the football including one play last night. Egnew dropped a TD and looked sloppy.

QB:

It was hard to judge them with how much they were under pressure. Delvin was the only one to get in a groove before ending the practice with a INT. There were about three int's left on the field but I do not remember if any of them belonged to Tannehill. However, no INT's from Tannehill for four practices is a great sign.

RB:

Mike Gillislle looked like the best back that day. He was fast and made something from nothing a couple of times. Fans around me were happy with his performance saying they hope he gets playing time. Miller was invisible, except for a touchdown and Thomas ran with power.

DLine:

WOW

Line backers:

Starting LB's were doing a good job in coverage and coming up in the run support. One thing to note was that I believe all goal line work resulted in touchdowns. Dansby and Burnett were stout at shooting the gap and forcing a 3 and out here. Can our new guys do the same?

Secondary:

They were shut down most of the night. There was the one broken play to Gibson but other than that I am confident that they will be much improved over last year. The only real negative thing to say is that there were a few (2-3) INT's left on the field. I believe this is an underrated unit.

Special teams.

I wish we knew what we have in Sturgis. Carpenter is good inside of 45 yards but outside of that is a crapshoot. If we had to go with Carpenter this year I would not attempt long field goals If I were Philbin. Thigpen looked great in the return game but he did have one hit him in the face mask.

Overall:

I was extremely happy to see how our D performed as a whole. They will carry this team. The offense needs the line to get their act together or it will be a long season.

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of The Phinsider's writers or editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of The Phinsider writers or editors.