Dolphins Gab

TaylorMade-adidas Golf Company, a subsidiary of the adidas Group, has introduced a new line of hats and visors, which features the primary colors and logos of all 32 NFL teams. Golfers across the country can now fly the colors of their favorite teams on the golf course (not on Sundays of course).

Fans can choose from all 32 NFL teams at on-course and off-course retail locations, in addition to select sporting goods retailers. If you are a displaced fan and don’t think you will be able to find your favorite team locally, go to www.taylormadegolfgear.com for a complete selection.

Each hat and visor will feature an NFL team’s logo blazoned on the left panel. The team’s name will also be stitched onto the left corner of the hat/visor. The TaylorMade logo will appear in 3D embroidery on the front panel of the hat.

The hats will be available at retail at a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $27.99.

The Miami Dolphins yesterday announced that they have placed versatile offensive lineman Nate Garner on the injured reserve list, which means his season has ended before it got a chance to get started.

Garner would not have started this year for the Fish, but he still would have served as a quality backup, and would have saw the field often, such as last year, when he alternated with Donald Thomas at the right guard position.

With the absence of Garner for the season, the Fins will most likely be looking to the waiver wire for quality depth. The teams backup offensive line has looked atrocious at times, especially at the tackle spots, where Andrew Gardner doesn’t seem to have a clue. Lydon Murtha appears to be making strides though, and could take Garner’s role.

The question still lies though. Do the Fins have good enough depth on the line, that if someone, heavem forbid, were to suffer an injury, that someone would be able to step in right away and not be a liability? Right now the answer for me is no, and for the coaching staff it should be no as well. The only option for them were to start Jake Grove at center, and more Joe Berger over to guard, where he is also experienced in that field.

The Dolphins have some serious questions to answer on the line right now, with the whole unit not performing nearly as good as advertised. Someone needs to step up and get things rolling, before the Dolphins find themselves in a 0-3 hole again, like they did last year.

Tony Sparano says that he just may throw the starters out there for a bit on Thursday when the Fins take on the Cowboys:

Miami Dolphins coach Tony Sparano was not happy with his team after a 16-6 loss to the Falcons. Quarterback Chad Henne went 10-of-22 for 123 yards and an interception. The Dolphins gained only 241 yards. To that end, Sparano said Monday that his starters might play against the Cowboys on Thursday night. “My approach is that we didn’t play very well the other night,” Sparano said. “So, I have to do what is in the best interest of my football team to get my football team ready to play against the Buffalo Bills [on opening day]. So, whatever it takes on Thursday night is what I’ll do. In other words, I have no real governor right now on how long people are playing. They just better be ready to play.”

After suffering an undisclosed injury, Miami Dolphins inside linebacker Channing Crowder will be sent to get a second opinion on this injury.

Crowder hasmissed 13 days of practice so far because of this injury, and has only played in one quarters worth of pre-season games.

What we’ve done is we’ve just sent him for another opinion right now, coach Tony Sparano said Monday afternoon. He’s not out here today. I don’t really want to get into what, who, how or any of those things, but that’s what we’ve done right now. So we’ll see.

Sparano also would not rule anything out about what the inury may be.

I’m not going to rule anything out for you, Sparano said. You guys got to do some work.

As of right now, I, like Sparano himself, am not concerned with the injury, but it does concern me that Crowder is being sent for a second opinion, and it does concern me that the Dolphins have gone through so many injury issues already and the season did not even start yet!

Haynos Injury Waived:

The Dolphins have also waived backup tight end Joey Haynos, and agreed on an injury settlement for the 6′8 veteran.

Haynos was no guarantee to make the roster anyway, and Haynos is the eighth player to either be cut, or waived, which means that their roster is down to 75, which had to be the max for a roster come August 31st, tomorrow. The Dolphins now do not necessarily have to cut anyone tomorrow, but that does not mean that they will not.

Feinga Out For 3 Weeks:

Another Fins player who has suffered an injury that could cost him a roster spot is offensive lineman Rey Feinga. Feinga was diagnosed with a broken finger which he suffered during the Jacksonville game. Feinga is expected to be injury/waived, and holds the possibility of being placed on the practice squad once he is healthy.

CBS Sports reports that the Dolphins may have a change at D with Ikaika Alama-Francis replacing rookie Koa Misi as the SLB.

The Miami defense might change at SLB with Ikaika Alama-Francis replacing rookie Koa Misi, who has had trouble holding the corner on run plays. Alama-Francis worked with the first team Sunday. The rookie Misi was expected to have a chance to play right away but looks like he hasn’t been able to handle starting duty.

The Miami Dolphins suffered an ugly loss to the Atlanta Falcons last night, and the only feeling and thoughts that went through my head were that of complete disgust and embarrassment. The whole first team failed to move the ball the whole first half, or make anything happen on either offense or defense to suggest that the starting units as a whole made strides from last year. They were completely dominated, plain and simple. The Falcons were the better team, and despite the score, 16-6 suggesting otherwise, this game was not that close, and could have been a lot worse if Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan was more accurate last night. But even though I am disappointed, I do have some quick thoughts to share before I watch the replay on my DVR.

• Vontae Davis was the lone bright spot on the team last night. He registered 7 tackles, one forced fumble, and three pass deflections on the night, and he did not even play the full game! Davis made his presence felt in both the run and pass defense. He was in single coverage most of the night, against Roddy White, and dominated. Granted, there were some plays where White or one of the other Falcons receivers broke loose, or caught a pass in front of Davis, but with Davis being on an island, you have to take the rare mishaps with the multiple highlights and plays he gave the Fins defense last night. Davis was described by some members of the media as one of the most improved payers on the team this year, and he showed why he has garnered that praise last night.
• The Dolphins are committing way too many penalties right now in the pre-season. Yes, this is the pre-season, and the team has yet to form that chemistry within the whole offense or defense. But the team is committing stupid penalties that just come down to mental mistake, which is the one thing that this coaching staff will not tolerate. If this continues during the season, one has to question the coaching staff and why these mental mistakes keep happening.
• The ground game was nothing last night. In fact, this is the third straight game where our rushing attack was invisible. Our team is built around the run. All of the players on the starting offensive squad are reknowned for their run blocking, or their mean streak. So you can see my concern when our one main strength has not been effective during the pre-season. The biggest gains on the ground last night for the Fins came out of the Wildcat, something that I thought we would not need to use as much with our run offense being so reliable without it.

The Dolphins have a lot of work to do yet before Week 1, and even though they play the struggling Buffalo Bills, as the team can remember from last year, if you sleep on the Bills, they’ll make you pay. The Fins need to make things happen, and straighten out whatever they need to straighten out, before Week 1, or it could be a long season again for a team that has big expectations facing them.

The Dolphins already added a huge playmaker in wide out Brandon Marshall this past offseason, could they possibly add another one?

Dan McLellan, the CBSSports.com RapidReporter for the Chargers, tweeted earlier today the following about the Dolphins possible interest in unhappy Charger WR Vincent Jackson.

Rumors out of Miami – Dolphins have interest in Vincent Jackson. Will A.J. Smith bite?

What a blockbuster that would be if the Dolphins could make some moves to land Jackson to team up with Marshall. Right now Brian Hartline is on the depth chart opposite Marshall, but he only had 31 grabs for 506 yards and three TD’s last season.

Compare that to Jackson’s 68 catches for 1167 yards and 9 TD’s, and you could have the best 1-2 punch in the AFC in pass catchers if the Dolphins can get a deal done.

Now the big question – could they pull a deal for Jackson off?

The Dolphins are happy with the pickup they made on Wednesday of CB CB Benny Sapp, as they feel he will give the team some depth in the teams secondary.

“I think you get a guy that has some position flexibility. I think that he’s played corner and started games at corner in this league,” said coach Tony Sparano. “Played a large number of plays last season. Played in some playoff games and also plays inside in the nickel. So, I think he has a little bit of position flex (flexibility) that way and special teams player as well.”

Sapp will come in behind starters Sean Smith and Vontae Davis along with Will Allen, Nolan Carroll and Kevin Hobbs.

The Miami Dolphins front office was rather busy today clearing roster space and acquiring another veteran cornerback.

While getting Benny Sapp from the Minnesota Vikings, the Dolphins did have to give up reliable receiver Greg Camarillo.

Camarillo is most famously known for his game winning reception back in 2007 that gave the Dolphins their first, and lone win of the season. The reception came against the Baltimore Ravens, and the Fins finished 1-15 that year.

While we knew what Camarillo could do, and while he came up in the clutch numerous times, we already had Davone Bess, and Brian Hartline, who are younger, and faster than Camarillo, and bring to the table pretty much the same package that Camarillo does.

Camarillo will be missed, but with Tony Sparano unsure of veteran corner Will Allen’s return from arthroscopic knee surgery, it was crucial for the team to bring in an experienced nickel corner after rookie Nolan Carroll gave up a touchdown in the second pre-season game last Saturday against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Sapp was targeted a lot last year, getting thrown at 57 times, and allowing 40 catches. Quarterbacks possess a 103 QB rating when throwing into Sapp’s coverage.

The trade of Camarillo now opens up a chance for Patrick Turner and/or Marlon Moore to step up and capture the 4th and 5th receiver slots.

To make further space on the roster for young players trying to find their niche, the Dolphins have also terminated the contract of guard Randy Thomas.

With Richie Incognito and John Jerry all but capturing the starting guard jobs, and Donald Thomas being the main backup, as well as Nate Garner once he recovers from his foot injury, there simply was no room for Thomas on the team any longer.

The Dolphins will look to step up their game, and find the answers to all of their remaining questions Friday night against the Atlanta Falcons in the third pre-season game of the season. The starting units are expected to play past the first series in the third quarter.

Buffalo Wild Wings is one of the best places to hang out and enjoy games and have some awesome wings and food. Well, if you have a fantasy draft coming up (and who doesn’t?), then you are going to want to get to your local BWW for their NEW fantasy football league and site!

Here is the link to their new fantasy site – http://ff.buffalowildwings.com/, now you may be asking ‘why do I want to do my draft at BWW?’

Simple.

Boasting countless big-screens and free Wi-Fi in most locations, BWW is offering guests the chance to host their fantasy football drafts in their local area restaurant. Each group of eight or more players who reserve a draft party will receive a free draft kit, including $100 in gift cards for free food during a future visit, a championship pennant for the league winner, draft board, player stickers, and an assortment of useful BWW branded merchandise.

It’s a great way to not have to clutter someone’s house for a whole day, and also a great reason to get out, have some awesome food, and get ready for the NFL season.

BWW’s Fantasy Football League is also ready to rock for the second year in a row. The League will again be commissioned by NFL Live’s Trey Wingo, and a number of new experts will join some of last year’s players to provide avid fans with real-time sit/start advice, player and injury news and good old fashion trash-talking throughout the fantasy football season.

Don’t delay, check out the site today, and reserve your spot at your local BWW for your fantasy draft to get ready for the NFL season!

Today we will give away a FREE BWW XL Shirt! Email the answer to the trivia question below to matt@nflgridirongab.com and we will pick a winner and announce it Monday.

Here’s the question -

What Player was on the receiving end of former Dolphins QB Dan Marino’s first NFL Touchdown pass?

Good Luck!