The Miami Dolphins Game Discussion: Get Pumped!

by Dave the Falconer on Sep 9, 2009 8:00 AM EDT in Falcons News Comment 26 comments

In case I've forgotten to mention this, Jamaal Fudge was cut in the wake of Brian Williams' signing. That resolved, we can all go back to our dreary lives.

This here thread is sort of a bridge, albeit one made of paper and string, between the present and questions with The Phinsider, great content from co-blogger tlozwarlock and my own usual pre-game ramblings. No pressure, tloz.

For those of you who haven't joined the discussion-type threads here before, this basically serves as a clearinghouse to talk about anything even remotely related to the Miami Dolphins game. Do you think Matt Ryan is going to torch the team's young secondary? Are you planning on heading to the game and looking to meet up with other fans for tailgating? Did you really, really enjoy Flipper? Then you're welcome here.

I'll get things rolling by mentioning that I think this is going to be a high-scoring game, and I'm going to break my only rule about terrible predictions and call for something like a 31-27 Falcons win. The biggest threat in this game will be from a balanced Dolphins offense, with at least four quality receivers who could create matchup problems in our secondary, and the Falcons will similarly attempt to bludgeon Miami with Michael Turner and a healthy dose of Matty Snowballs. There will be no survivors.

Go to it, all!

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Yeah!

Football that means something. Yeah!

In Dimitroff we trust

by Bonhoffer on Sep 9, 2009 8:04 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I'm worried about their LBs

Porter and J Taylor on either side… could be tough running on them. Hope I’m wrong

by nathan rothschild on Sep 9, 2009 9:10 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I actually think

run defense is going to be one of our strengths this season…

this will be a good test that I think the Falcons will come out on top of.

know what you believe in and why you believe in it

by MentallyMIA on Sep 9, 2009 9:41 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Porter and Taylor are pass rushers, and are ok but not great againt the run....

If we get Turner going early, our play action and hold them enough for Ryan to have a good day. They will keep their safeties deep because on Gonzales and White, so I expect we will get Turner going early…

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Elayne Boosler

by NaGaNole on Sep 9, 2009 10:39 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

yeah

I will be there. I will be at CNN center before the game for a cold beer. May retire the bartkowski and don the new tony gonzo jersey. a game day decision. I think we win this game, how or by how much I do not know but I am confident in our offense and special teams.

Life is a garden. Dig it!

by Hardcore Falcon on Sep 9, 2009 10:39 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Wait, what? WR matchup problems?

Most likely to see:
Davone Bess – listed 5’10" and he’s really like 5’8"
Greg Camarillo – listed 6’1"
Ted Ginn (lolcatz) – listed 5’11" and I doubt that
Patrick Turner – listed 6’5"

Least likely to see:
Brian Hartline – 6’2"
Brennan Marion – 6’0"

The only potential WR mathcup problem I see is Turner, and I’m not sure we will see a lot of him, unless Miami finally got smart and is only allowing Ginn to return kicks and punts. Our corners are all as tall or taller, and they are all just as fast as these guys, so I’m not sure there are any matchup problems.

That is, unless of course, you mean the matchup problem will occur when our guys are out of position constantly. If so, then yeah, many matchup problems.

"This is America, if we can’t self-righteously look down on others and blame them for our faults, the commies win."-----Cormican on Bleeding Green Nation w/r/t fans overreacting to the Eagles signing of Michael Vick

by Jesse28 on Sep 9, 2009 11:09 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Prepare to see a lot of Cover D.

The B Van has some tricks up his sleeve yet.

You have opinions. Share them.

by tlozwarlock on Sep 9, 2009 11:11 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah

I’m not overly worried about our secondary….yet. IMO Miami poses no threat from their WR’s. I like Turner and Bess, but on paper, their proposed starters do not matchup well with our proposed starting secondary. Our guys have the size and speed to keep things straight.

by Jesse28 on Sep 9, 2009 11:16 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Bold uninformed prediction: ATL 34, MIA 21

Not-so-bold, informed prediction: ATL 28, MIA 24

You have opinions. Share them.

by tlozwarlock on Sep 9, 2009 11:13 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

My turn

Bold & cocky: 42-17 ATL
Reality based: 30-24 ATL

I have a feeling this game is going to be a little sloppy early on, but we will see everything start clicking by the end of the first half and our offense will rip through the second half. I think Miami will try to run early, find that it isn’t working then resort to passing and will keep the game closer than we want. The pass defense will be key to ATL winning this one.

by Jesse28 on Sep 9, 2009 11:21 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Unless we just

Roll on out of the starting gate and hang 21 points on Miami before they can get their bearings. I don’t expect that to happen but with as many weapons as we have on offense, it’s a possibility.

You have opinions. Share them.

by tlozwarlock on Sep 9, 2009 11:23 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

you need 3rd and outs, turnovers, or holding their offense to field goals

to create those kind of leads.

I expect to see the Falcons score early (hopefully first – since that worked so well last season), but my informed self realizes that our defense is going to be responsible for the game staying close as our offense compensates.

I bet our defense gets stronger as the game progresses and we come out on top in the end.

Let’s hope Weems doesn’t choke on punt returns. A few turnovers is more than enough to cost us this game if our defense continues their trend from last season of not being able to get turnovers.

know what you believe in and why you believe in it

by MentallyMIA on Sep 9, 2009 12:24 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

D Will Gain Confidence

After being beat up a little in the beginning. The Wildcat will barely be present but Brown and Williams will run for a fair amount of yardage but the D will bend but not break more than twice. Matty to Gonzo at least once for six and Jerious will be used a few times as the second back in the backfield with The Burner.
Then after we win 27-17 I will collect dinner from my friend on our bet. Sunday can’t come soon enough!

by utahfalcon on Sep 9, 2009 12:04 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

well,

i’m not an expert on the Dolphins (as teams go, they are one of those teams I know less about than others since we hardly ever play them and they aren’t on primetime that much), but I don’t see our offense having a particularly hard time hanging enough points on them to win.

this entire game (as could be the case with many games this year) comes down to how our D performs, and at this point i think we’d all have to agree that this is a HUGE unknown.

nothing our D does on Sunday would shock me – i wouldn’t be shocked if they came out and looked great, i wouldn’t be shocked if they came out and looked horrible, and i wouldn’t be shocked if they started the game horrible and ended up great. the preseason created too much confusion for me to know what to think of our D. add to that the new players we now have in the secondary, having Abraham playing the entire game, the first unit getting a chance to actually play 4 quarters, the question of whether we actually unleashed all the formations of our D or held some things back, and probably 10 other things i’m not thinking of…. and it all adds up to a very mysterious unit. i get why people are pessimistic about them, but i think there are also reasons to have hope that they’ll end up being a solid unit. anyone who says they know for sure one way or the other though is not being entirely honest with themselves.

having said all that though, i do have a lot of confidence in our defense against the run. they consistently looked good in the preseason and if there’s one thing on that side of the ball to be encouraged about, it’s the rush defense

i think we win this game, but have no idea what the score will be. i could easily see the Falcons scoring in the 30’s though.

by cheshire falcon on Sep 9, 2009 1:24 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

not even hayden panettiere can save these phins

by gritzblitz on Sep 9, 2009 3:39 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I'd like to see her try

lmao =)

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by finsxfactor on Sep 9, 2009 3:54 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Save Chad Pennington...save the world!

by Dave the Falconer on Sep 9, 2009 4:18 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I will be there as well, I am pumped up.

Big key for me on this one is 3rd down. We need to sustain drives and ball control, and as we saw in the preseason our defense HAS to get 3rd down stops consistently or we are in serious trouble. I think we are evenly matched so I think the key will be our offense’s ability to sustain drives (get those short yardage situations and convert with Burner, was an issue last year at times) and our ability to get them into 3rd downs and hold strong (BIG problem from last year and in the preseason, this is issue number one in my book).

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by BVaz on Sep 9, 2009 5:52 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Greetings to you Falcons fans!

I love the insights of this board, and tip my hat to Dave and the warlock. I am a lifelong Lions fan and also pull for both the Falcons and Panthers because of where I live now(I know you probably consider this a sin, even though I tilt more to the Falcons).
That said, I am probably overly optimistic about the Falcons this season. I have a healthy respect for Miami, but feel that this matchup give the D one of their best opportunities of the season to play within their limitations and be sucessful. Pennington does not turn the ball over alot, but also doesn’t stretch the coverage as much either. I am making a wild prediction of 30-20 unless the Wildcat leaves our coaching staff wondering why they have never seen it before or Abraham is unable to play much/any.
Ryan should be able to serve up some Dolphin soup with a very balanced and effective offense. I will admit to an unhealthy crush on Ryan, and would bet I am not alone in that here.

by King of Pain on Sep 9, 2009 9:15 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Matt Ryan is going to cure cancer

know what you believe in and why you believe in it

by MentallyMIA on Sep 9, 2009 10:02 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

And destroy Cancer, the mythical giant crab

by Dave the Falconer on Sep 9, 2009 10:07 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Where to watch in Charlotte?

Not related to just this game… Does anyone know a good restaurant or bar to watch games at in Charlotte NC? Fortunately for my co-workers but not so much for me, I’m obviously in a Panthers viewing zone. I know this game is on CBS, but I don’t think they’ve officially released the ‘Teams TBD’ yet.

So, if anyone can tell me where I can definitely watch this game and most others throughout the year in Charlotte, I’d really appreciate it!

I’m thinking 24-20 Dirty Birds.

by NCFalconFan on Sep 10, 2009 6:27 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

this is a question you might find an answer to at catscratchreader.com

it’s the panthers SBN website

good group of people over there. After a little harrasing for being a Falcons fan in Panther’s territory, I’m sure they’d be glad to help.

know what you believe in and why you believe in it

by MentallyMIA on Sep 10, 2009 12:55 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Phin fan here

This should be a great test for both teams. Yes miami is very young at the CB pos. but they r very good young players. Should be a close game. The thing am worried most about for my phins is Roth wont be playing for Miami for 6 weeks. He was originaly going to start at Jason Taylors spot because he is a monster at stopping the run. So im very intrested seeing how Taylor and Porter is at stopping runs till we get Roth back. I know alot of u will disagree but think phins will win because both teams have good O but i think miami has the beter D.

by Raiden on Sep 10, 2009 2:45 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

This game will be fun to watch

It definitely could be a shootout. I see the Dolphins having a tough time against the run this year, which is bad news when you’re opening up against Michael Turner. But the Falcons secondary isn’t going to scare anyone. And that’s going to create problems for us, though I don’t see it in the passing game. I

‘m more worried about keeping containment in the front seven, especially if BVG is forced to dial up a few blitzes, which could result in Ronnie Brown making noise in the passing game and out of the wildcat. I’ll also be extremely interested in seeing just how Pat White is used by Miami this year.

The best thing I can say for the Falcons’ D is that this is one group of receivers that doesn’t scare me too much. Not that I expect our secondary to shut it down-Dolphin’ probably will have a decent passing game Sunday-but I don’t see our guys being lit up like I’m afraid will happen against Carolina, New England, Chicago, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Dallas, and Buffalo.

by Bronn on Sep 10, 2009 8:46 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

CBs

For those u dont know miami got 2 rookies this season draft Davis, and sean Smith. Smith won the job as a starter though u mat see him srugle a bit early I really think he will turn out to be one of the best CBs in the nfl wach
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azsBUSVEyQE

by Raiden on Sep 10, 2009 2:56 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs