1) That Yeremiah Bell leads the team in tackles with 30. He's living up to my "Bob Saunders Jr." monicker. 2) That Joey Porter is tied for third in the league in sacks with 5.5 in 4 games. I guess he's not a washed up shell of his former self as some have suggested. 3) That the defense is holding opposing offenses to a 36% third-down conversion percentage. That's good for 11th in the league. 4) That the offense has converted 4 of 5 fourth-down conversion attempts. That's good for third in the NFL. 5) That the defense has accumulated 12 sacks in 4 games. That's good for 9th in the NFL. And what's make this even more impressive is the fact that 6 of the teams ahead of them have played 5 games. 6) That the Dolphins rank in the top 10 in both total offense and total defense.
Interesting stats, Hugo. I hope Bell can stay healthy, and become the consistent force at safety that a lot of us thought he could be. He's played very well so far. Also, it's pretty early in the season... however, us being ranked in the top 10 in total offense and defense is impressive. I didn't realize that. Our guys have played very well the past two games... I think we can 'officially' take the paper bags off now.
I'd also bet that D Martin and A Fasano are in the top 7 of Te duos in the league right now, I'd think D Mart is averaging close to 15ypc Not bad for cast a off and a flop...
Any word on how Martin came out of that shot from Cromartie? That could be huge if they continue that 4th quarter domination this season especially if the offense can find a gear to score some "put away" points.
I think Sparano mentioned that he's sore in his PC today, but that's about it from the injury side. We'll be another scratch on the injury report this week. After seeing Ronnie, Ricky, Bell, and Lehan all recover from their injuries and playing this well, I can only point to the off-season conditioning truly helping. Let's keep this up!
I think this is absolutely one of the best things that has happened this year, the conditioning of the team. They are stronger, faster, seem to be playing with more energy.....all good things, that produce good results. It will also help later in the year as well.
I have to wonder what happened to Martin in the offseason, though. I was sure he was going to get cut. I was wrong, and I'm glad I was. Martin is actually becoming a fantasy option.
Very good points, Hugo... Most everyone agrees that if Bell is healthy, he's one of the better safeties in the league...can he stay healthy is the question.... Porter picked up his play about mid season last year and has maintained that level. Putting him back into his familiar position in the D was a bonus that has paid dividends for us. It's good to see him playing well... I think that the thing that his going under the radar about this team is the overall defensive play. The Wildcat has deferred attention from the D and that's fine with me. One other thing that has made a significant difference in this team that is also 'under the radar' is the effect that CP has had on the rest of the offense...it's amazing to me that I don't think I've see any posts that have bad-mouthed CP, even in the first two weeks...
Remember what Parcells said about cutting the injury list way down? He had a plan before Sparano and Ireland even arrived and it seems to be working pretty well, (knock on wood). No country club training camp this year! Over the years I have heard a lot of bad things said about Chad Pennington on this board and the other one I wont mention. Its amazing how much he has improved since joining the Dolphins. -
I can only speak for me Hondo, but I have always been a fan of Penny. I hated it that he went to the Jets. It was very difficult to BE a fan when he was playing for the jets.. the team I hate above all others, so now, now that he has arrived here with gas in the tank still, it is easy to root for him.
