I don’t think that Dolphins fans envisioned that the season would be hanging by a thread ten games in. Even those analyst that weren’t giving the Dolphins much of a chance to sneak into the playoffs, at least thought they would probably be right in the thick of things right up until the last couple weeks. But here we are. Ten games into the 2010 season, and this Dolphins team can’t realistically afford to lose another game.

You could easily use the excuse that the injuries the Dolphins suffered these past couple weeks are just too much to overcome, pack it up, and say “we’ll get em’ next year,” but only the Dolphins are to blame for letting their season become vulnerable to the injury bug. If they hadn’t missed so many opportunities at home early on in the season, more specifically the Jets and Patriots’ games in Weeks 3 and 4, they might have been able to withstand all the adversity that has hit the health of this team.

But as it is, the Dolphins are left with one option: run the table, finish 11-5, and get a little bit of help in order to squeeze into the playoffs in the loaded AFC. Because unfortunately for the Dolphins, most of the league’s elite teams just so happen to reside in the conference.

Even If they do actually pull this off and finish out the season 6-0, it’s going to take the 8-2 Jets or 8-2 Patriots to finish at least 3-3 and hope the Dolphins get the edge in the tie-breaker or the 7-3 Steelers or 7-3 Ravens finishing 3-3 (remember both have already beaten Miami). And that’s also assuming that one of the 5-5 teams from the AFC West or 6-4 teams from the AFC South don’t snag that last wild card spot.

So as you can see, even if it doesn’t officially eliminate them mathematically, one loss is all it’s going to take to end the Dolphins’ playoff hopes.

Is running the table even possible for these injury depleted, uninspired Dolphins, though? If you have asked me a few weeks ago if these final six games were all winnable, I would have responded “absolutely.”

No, these games won’t be as easy as they once appeared on paper, as teams like the Raiders and Browns have played very well in stretches, and other teams like the Bills and Lions are suddenly very dangerous offensively, but they were still lining up to be games in which the Dolphins would have likely been the favorite in.

Of course, I’m leaving out the oh-so -important divisional road games against the Jets and Pats. Games which were very winnable a couple weeks ago, but now seem like complete long shots.

The injuries at the quarterback position and along the offensive line are obviously the main reason for such of drastic change of circumstances. With the banged up offensive line, the Dolphins went from a poor running team, to arguably the worst running team in the league.

There isn’t a team in the NFL that the Dolphins can run on right now if Thursday night was a sign of things to come. Even the healthy version of this year’s O-line didn’t create much push and didn’t pull well enough to get to the second level of the defense, but whatever we saw line up across from the Bears on Thursday night left us all completely void of any hope for this offense.

The strength of the Dolphins’ offensive line has been their ability to protect the quarterback. But giving up six sacks to a team who recorded fewer sacks per play than any team in the league entering Week 11 is more than a cause for concern; it’s a cause for panic.

If this offense can’t run the football, or give the quarterback sufficient time to throw to a slow group of receivers, we are going to see a few more of those lackluster zero to one score offensive performances before it’s all said and done.

 Although, Tyler Thipgen gives this offense some mobility, which in theory should offset some of this O-line’s sudden protection issues, he just takes too many risks and just doesn’t have the arm strength to bail out his poor decision making.

That’s why fans should be hoping that Chad Henne is healthy enough to start against the Raiders on Sunday. In my opinion, his struggles have been overblown. You would like his touchdowns to be higher than his interceptions, but the guy hasn’t done so bad considering he’s been leading a one-dimensional offense for weeks and is the victim of poor play-calling more often than not.

If you are looking for any reason at all to believe this team is capable of pulling off a miracle playoff run, look no further than this defense. The Dolphins have very quietly emerged as the sixth best total defense in football, led by the league’s fifth best pass defense. The running game continues to leak some thanks to poor tackling and over-pursuit, but they certainly have the pieces to bring it together.

This defense is young and continues to get better and better each and every week. But if this team wants to make the playoffs, Mike Nolan’s unit is likely going to need to grow up overnight. They are still a long way from becoming a dominate defense. They are good defense, yes, but they’ve yet to play complete football or showcase the ability to take over games.

It’s going to take some forced turnovers and maybe a few returns for scores for this team to create the fire power they need to put enough points on the board.

But then again, when your playing the “if” game this early into the second-half of the season, it’s probably already too late. Whether it be the blown opportunities within the division on prime time, the blown call against the Steelers, or the recent plague of injuries, 2010 is quickly becoming the season that could have been.

After an extremely difficult extended weekend that saw the Dolphins get pushed around by the Bears on Thursday night and the Jets and Patriots pull out tightly contested victories yesterday, the team was back to work earlier today.

Just as the short week last week served as a disadvantage to the banged up Dolphins, this week will be beneficial to their preparations, as they have a couple extra days of practice time to get ready for their cross-country trip to Oakland.

These practices have extra intrigue when you have a team as injury depleted as the Dolphins are. Surely enough, today’s practice reports shed a little light into the health of this football team.

To start off on a positive note, Chad Henne was back out there practicing today after being sidelined all last week with an unspecified knee injury. Tyler Thigpen shouldn’t be judged by one game behind nonexistent protection, but if this team has any shot at running the table, you have to believe Chad Henne needs to be under center.

Unfortunately, Henne’s go to threat, Brandon Marshall, wasn’t able to go as he recovers from that hamstring injury he suffered near the end of the first-half on Thursday night. With no Marshall and no running game, this offense isn’t capable of much, but thank goodness there is still a full week left of recovery time for Brandon to get healthy.

As for that revolving door of an offensive line, the Dolphins apparently aren’t ready to shut down Jake Long just yet. Long continues to work as the starting left tackle after reports circled around the web over the weekend that the Dolphins were entertaining the idea of putting Jake on IR. They even went as far as to work out Tony Ugoh and Levi Jones, but eventually decided to only bring in depth at center.

With Joe Berger missing last week and Cory Procter blowing out his knee against the Bears, the Dolphins decided to sign veteran center Eric Ghiaciuc, who started 42 games for the Cincinnati Bengals from 2005-2008.

On the defensive side of the ball, Phillip Merling saw his first practice action of the season. Merling was originally thought to be out for the year when he tore his Achilles’ tendon shortly before training camp, but has recovered quicker than expected, and can be activated any time before the end of the month. 

With Sunday’s win over the Titans still fresh in our minds, it doesn’t seem real that tomorrow is game day already. Considering all the players that got dinged up on Sunday, the short week couldn’t have come at a worse time for this football team. Thankfully, though, the Dolphins injury situation isn’t nearly as bleak as it once looked. Cameron Wake turned out to be just fine, Chad Henne hasn’t even been ruled out for tomorrow night’s game, and Jake Long will reportedly try to play through that shoulder injury.

Even at full strength, the Dolphins would still likely have their hands full against this tough 6-3 Chicago Bears team. Some may argue that the Bears aren’t quite as good as their record suggest, but their defense is good enough to play with anybody and could cause fits for an offense starting a third string quarterback. It won’t be easy, but back-to-back wins over playoff caliber teams would be just the spark the Dolphins need to make a serious playoff run down the stretch of the season. Let’s take a look at the matchups.

Dolphins running game (19th) vs. Bears run defense (2nd)
After watching the Dolphins’ inept running game against the Titans on Sunday, I think it’s finally official that this offense is now pass-first and are mediocre, if not bad at running the football. Kind of a shame when you think about how the Dolphins are essentially wasting what is likely Ronnie and Ricky’s last season together. Yes, the Dolphins did get Ricky going on a few outside runs out of the Wildcat, but their inability to run the football out of base formations will surely put a lot of pressure on Tyler Thigpen.

And I haven’t even mentioned that the Bears have the league’s second best run defense, yet. Having held opponents to a mere 3.5 yards per carry, only the Pittsburgh Steelers have been stouter against the run. That will undoubtedly lead to more wildcat this week, especially after finally seeing it succeed a couple times against the Titans. If I was Dan Henning, I would also try to switch up the running style a little bit. The Dolphins tried to go heavy with only one wide receiver on several plays against the Titans, in an attempt to run the football right down their throats. But their offensive line just isn’t creating enough push for a power running game to work. Why not try to run the ball out of three and four wide receiver sets to see if a little more space is all Ricky and Ronnie need to get going again?
Edge: Bears

Bears running game (23rd) vs. Dolphins run defense (16th)
Even after seeing Chris Johnson go over the century mark last week, I still think this Dolphins’ run defense is better than their ranking suggest. Chris Johnson is just a tough matchup for this defense. They don’t contain the edge particularly well and often get caught over pursuing, which isn’t a good formula for a speedster like Johnson.

But the Bears’ offense on the other hand, is having their fair share of troubles getting their ground attack going. Matt Forte and Chester Taylor are a good one-two punch in theory, but the Bears’ blocking woes are the main reason why both average well short of the four yards per carry benchmark. With that said, I would be very disappointed if the Dolphins’ front seven doesn’t make significant strides against the run tomorrow night, and force the Bears to be one-dimensional offensively.
Edge: Dolphins

Dolphins passing game (13th) vs. Bears pass defense (15th)
For the second straight week, the Dolphins enter the game with a new starter at quarterback. Tyler Thigpen’s 64-yard, 1 touchdown performance against the Titans on Sunday has fans buzzing and the organization comparing him to Tony Romo. Personally, I think it’s a little premature to make those types of comparisons, even if Mr. Romo is one of the most overrated quarterbacks in football.

One thing I would bank on, though, is this guy making plays. He’s an athletic gun-slinger, who can make things happen with his arm or his legs. He isn’t necessarily going to put up great stats on the ground, but he’s going to keep plays alive and utilize his ability to throw the football on the run. What we didn’t see on Sunday, though, was the mistakes. And don’t kid yourself, if Thigpen sticks around as the starter long enough he’s going to make a few. He’s a gambler, and eventually that’s going to cost him and this offense. If he makes enough plays, though, and continues to give this offense the spark they desperately needed, we will just have to take the good with the bad.

Thankfully, all indications are pointing to Jake Long getting the start. The Bears have only registered 13 sacks on the season, but I think it’s safe to say Julius Peppers would abuse Lydon Murtha. Overall, if the Dolphins want to move the football consistently against this tough Bears defense, they’re going to need a great game from Thigpen. A tall order for a guy making his first start in two years, but a great opportunity for a player who’s eager to prove that he’s starting material.
Edge: Push

Bears passing game (21st) vs. Dolphins pass defense (6th)
What has been the Achilles’ heel of this football team in years past, has quietly become their strength this season. The Dolphins are pressuring the quarterback well, and are covering better and better each week. Vontae Davis has hit a couple bumps in the road the past couple games, but he’s clearly showed signs of an emerging young corner. Sean Smith has played very well since taking over Jason Allen’s staring spot in Cincinnati, and now has the veteran Al Harris to split snaps with.

Speaking of Al Harris, what a pleasant surprise he was last week. Nobody even really expected him to play, let alone get the opportunity to cover Randy Moss. It will be interesting to see how the Dolphins rotate their corners tomorrow night, but Al Harris definitely gives this secondary solid depth and a much needed veteran presence.

At free safety, Reshad Jones is scheduled to make his first career start. The kid did a great job last week getting his first sack and interception, but I have the feeling the Dolphins are going to miss Chris Clemons’ speed against the Bears’ fast receivers.

One thing they won’t miss is Cameron Wake’s ability to get after the quarterback. After giving us a little bit of an injury scare against the Titans, Wake is now all set to tee-off against the Jay Cutler. The Bears have conceded a league-high 34 sacks, and shouldn’t fare too well against Wake or Mike Nolan’s exotic blitz packages.
Edge: Dolphins

Special-teams
Even if the Dolphins outplay the Bears offensively and defensively, the outcome of tomorrow night’s game may be decided on how well the Dolphins can cover kicks and punts. The Dolphins have improved a bit covering kickoffs the past few weeks, but continue to do a sub-par job of covering punts.

Well, Devin Hester has already returned two punts for touchdowns this season, and is virtually a missed lane assignment or tackle away from taking one the distance. Throw in Daniel Manning’s 62-yard and Johnny Knox’s 42-yard kickoff returns, and the Bears clearly have the league’s most dangerous return game. The Dolphins need to avoid the big letdown in the kicking game more than ever tomorrow night. It may just make the difference between a win and a loss.
Edge: Bears 



Miami

Out: FS Chris Clemons (hamstring), C Joe Berger (knee)

Doubtful:QB Chad Henne (knee)

Questionable: T Jake Long (shoulder), WR Roberto Wallace (knee), S Tyrone Culver (ankle)

Probable: SS Yeremiah Bell (toe), ILB Channing Crowder (ribs), ILB Karlos Dansby (elbow), ILB Tim Dobbins (ankle), T Vernon Carey (knee)

Chicago

Out: LB Pisa Tinoisamoa (knee)

Probable:CB Zackary Bowman (foot), WR Devin Hester (shoulder), WR Johnny Knox (ankle) 

I'm a little disappointed to see Chris Clemons out of the lineup as I think he gives this secondary much needed range against a speedy Bears' receiving core. Based on what we saw last week, though, Reshad Jones gives this defense the play-making ability Clemons just doesn't seem to have.

Chad Henne being listed as doubtful is an encouraging sign considering most thought he would miss the rest of the season a couple days ago. It would be nice if Tyler Thigpen can live up to the Tony Romo comparisons that are being thrown out there, but just in case he struggles, it looks like Henne could return in a couple weeks.

I know Jake Long is listed as questionable, but I have a hard time believing he won't be out there tomorrow night. It's going to be painful to play through, but Jake Long is the type of hard-nosed guy that can pull it off. Let's just hope he doesn't do any permanent damage to that shoulder by putting off surgery.

I usually get this post up on Thursday or Friday, but because of the short week, we had to get everything done ahead of schedule this time around. With that said, please welcome in Brett from Midway Illustrated, Bloguin's Chicago Bears blog. They didn't have any questions for me to answer, but be sure to head over there for everything Bears related here in these next few days leading up to the game.

Phins Phocus: I've heard people say that the Bears aren't as good as their 6-3 record suggest. Do you feel like they are a contender or a pretender?

MI: The Bears on defense are a contender, they have a championship caliber defense of the highest order. In the years after the 2006 Super Bowl appearance the Bears' defense had gotten worse and worse....but now it's back up to a level that could lead the Bears to a playoff run.

Problem is the Bears' offense isn't quite up to the same level and all of that has to do with the lack of success by the offensive line. The offensive line is the weak link to this team right now and unless that continues to change like it has over the last two weeks the Bears could struggle to win games the rest of the season.

Phins Phocus: How improved has Jay Cutler been in his second season with the Bears? Does he now have sufficient weapons to work with in order to emerge as an elite quarterback?

MI: Cutler is and always be a risk taker of the highest order and will make crazy throws because he trusts his arm to get the job done. He's made better decisions overall but still hasn't reached his full potential because of the lack of balance on offense. It all goes back to the O-Line.

Phins Phocus: The Bears have always been perceived as a tough-nosed running team, but currently rank 22nd in rushing offense. What has contributed most to their struggles on the ground?

MI: The theme of the season is the offensive line, there have been five different starting combinations since the season started, the one that's currently in place over the last two games has performed the best of any starting unit on the season. Matt Forte and Chester Taylor are a dangerous duo and if they get good blocking they could really start to put up some major rushing yards.

Phins Phocus: If you were the Dolphins' offensive coordinator how exactly would you go about moving the football on this stout Bears' defense?

MI: With the Bears' one gap attack I'm going to do everything in my power to utilize the Wild cat offense and get the Bears out of their gaps. Everything I can do to use the Bears' speed against them is how I would attack them. That means establishing the run via the Wildcat then trying to find a way to pass out of it.

Phins Phocus: Who do you see winning Thursday night and why? Final Score?

MI: With the way the Bears' defense is playing right now I see a defensive struggle between both teams. The defense should be up to the task in slowing down the Dolphins because they have been playing at an extremely high level pretty consistently this season. If the Dolphins can get a lot of pressure on Cutler and stuff up the run then the Bears will struggle to score points.

The next question is can the Dolphins slow down the Bears' dangerous return game. If not the Bears could definitely put themselves in position to score points that way.