Ethan J. Skolnick of the Sun-Sentinel is reporting that a source close to the team has confirmed that the Dolphins plan to put Will Allen on injured reserve, effectively ending his 2010 season.

This is arguably the worse news yet to hit Miami from the injury front. Although the Dolphins have two promising corners in Vontae Davis and Sean Smith, Smith had a rough training camp and preseason, and a healthy Allen could have pushed him for some snaps in the base defense.

What is sure to take a huge blow is the nickel package. Allen, without a doubt, would have been the nickel corner, but now the newly acquired Benny Sapp or rookie Nolan Carroll will handle those duties. Both struggled somewhat in the preseason.

Carroll reportedly had a fantastic camp, but was picked on a bit by the opposition's slot receivers in the four exhibition games. Sapp on the other hand, was a little better, but still conceded a few receptions in the final two preseason games after he was brought over from Minnesota for Greg Camarillo. Both are pretty big dropoffs from a healthy Will Allen, though.

Expect the Dolphins to announce a new addition from the waiver wire very soon. The new opening could be used for more corner depth, but a tight end or guard would also fill a need.

When initial reports began to trickle out about Patrick Turner getting the boot in favor of Roberto Wallace and Marlon Moore, I thought my 53-man roster prediction from yesterday was in pretty good shape. It didn't take long for the Dolphins to disagree with me though.

They decided to only keep three true guards by releasing Donald Thomas, who started 12 games last season. Despite bringing in Pat McQuistan in a trade yesterday, Lydon Murtha wasn't let go, which suggest McQuistan will also be looked at as a guard, much like Nate Garner's hybrid role, but don't be surprised if the Dolphins look to add a tackle through the waiver wire.

Quentin Moses prevented his roster bubble from bursting once again, beating out special-teams contributor Erik Walden. But there's no doubt, today's biggest surprise was the release of David Martin, and John Nalbone making the team as the No. 2 tight end.

No, Martin didn't do a whole lot in the preseason, but his past had most Dolphins related writers thinking he was a lock to make the team. It's hard to believe the coaches and front office acutally think Nalbone is ready to step in and get extensive playing time, which would happen considering how many two tight end sets the Dolphins use.

That's why my initial reaction to this is either the Dolphins plan to pick up another tight end through the waiver wire, acquire one through a trade, they have decided to run more three receiver sets, thus abandoning tight two end formations as their bread and butter, or they are planning to resign Martin after Week 1 to avoid paying him guaranteed money. I guess all we can do is stay tuned.

Without further ado, please welcome your 2010 Miami Dolphins! A full list of today's cuts can be seen below the 53-man roster.

OFFENSE (24)

QB: Chad Henne, Chad Pennington, Tyler Thigpen
RB: Ronnie Brown, Ricky Williams, Patick Cobbs, Lex Hilliard
FB: Lousaka Polite
TE: Anthony Fasano, John Nalbone
WR: Brandon Marshall, Brian Hartline, Davone Bess, Roberto Wallace, Marlon Moore
OT: Jake Long, Vernon Carey, Lydon Murtha, Pat McQuistan
OG: John Jerry, Richie Incognito, Cory Procter
C: Jake Grove, Joe Berger

DEFENSE (26)

DE: Kendall Langford, Jared Odrick, Marques Douglas, Tony McDaniel, Charles Grant
NT: Randy Starks, Paul Soliai
OLB: Cameron Wake, Koa Misi, Ikaika Alama-Francis, Charlie Anderson, Quentin Moses
ILB: Karlos Dansby, Channing Crowder, Tim Dobbins, Micah Johnson
CB: Vontae Davis, Sean Smith, Will Allen, Nolan Carroll, Jason Allen, Benny Sapp
S: Yeremiah Bell, Chris Clemons, Tyrone Culver, Reshad Jones

SPECIAL TEAMS (3)

K: Dan Carpenter
P: Brandon Fields
LS: John Denney

Contracts Terminated
TE David Martin
NT Montavious Stanely

Waived
QB Pat White
CB Ross Weaver
OLB Erik Walden
WR Patrick Turner
OG Donald Thomas
ILB Austin Spitler
WR Julius Pruitt
CB Nate Ness
OLB Chris McCoy
FB Rolly Lumbala
CB Kevin Hobbs
C Andrew Hartline
OT Andrew Gardner
ILB J.D. Folsom
OG Ray Feinga
DE Lionel Dotson
DE Ryan Baker
S Jonathon Amaya

Besides Jake Long apparently avoiding a catastrophic season ending injury, positives were once again hard to come by last night. Chad Henne and the first-team offense put together another lackluster performance, but this time around it wasn't even against a respectable starting defense. Nope, the Dolphins were spared DaMarcus Ware, Anthony Spencer, Jay Ratliff and the rest of the Cowboy's defense. The result? Three points, a three and out, two sacks, and a Chad Henne fumble.

Defensively, a missed tackle by Jason Allen and Sean Smith getting burned on a long touchdown made sure spirits remained low for the entire game. The Cowboys may have dropped the Dolphins to 2-2 on the preseason, but when the clock struck zero, the win-loss column simultaneously reset. Nothing that happened over the past four weeks will carry over to the regular season, outside of injuries of course. History suggest the preseason is not the least bit indicative of what to expect in the regular season. And with this final preseason post, let's put a forgettable exhibition season behind us, and officially turn our attention to the Buffalo Bills and the kickoff of a regular season fans have been impatiently waiting for since last January.

Offense

Starters: We know the negatives. Chad Henne wasn't exactly efficient out there against a backup secondary, the pass protection was suspect at best, and three possessions produced only three points and a turnover. I don't think we need to hammer the starters any more than they have been already. Is that kind of effort going to cut it in the regular season? Absolutely not. But that wasn't the regular season, and until we see these struggles manifest themselves in an actual game, let's hold off on all the panic, quarterback competition talk, and everything else frustrated fans say out of impulse and emotion. On the bright side, we finally saw a little life out of the running game when Ricky broke off that 42 yard run, and we saw Davone Bess pick up where he left off last year as Chad Henne's crutch on third down.

GRADE: D

Backups: Chad Pennington led a nice little scoring drive to give the Dolphins the lead in the second quarter, looking like his normal, efficient self. Later, Tyler Thigpen really got the passing game going in the fourth-quarter, connecting on two touchdown passes, one to Marlon Moore and the other to Roberto Wallace. Moore likely locked up his spot on the team, while Wallace surely is making Patrick Turner sweat it out until the final cuts are made. The running game wasn't much of a factor, but Hilliard and Cobbs only carried the ball a combined six times.

GRADE: B

Defense

Starters: Outside of those two disastrous plays where Jason Allen missed a tackle that resulted in long third down conversion and where Sean Smith was beat for a long touchdown, the unit was pretty solid. That's still two bad plays, though. And both still came against a backup offense led by a third-string quarterback. And we all know it only takes one bad play to lose in this league. I hate to make excuses for anybody, but I can't help but think Sean Smith had a really bad break. The coverage wasn't perfect, but it was good enough to break up that pass if it was thrown a foot shorter, to the left, or to the right. I will say he needs to judge the ball in the air a little better, and go for the deflection and not the pick when the ball is out of both his hands' reach. But while I'm worried about Smith's play this preseason, I was much more concerned about the double move Roddy White put on him last week, than last night's touchdown. In another attempt to try and keep things as positive as possible, the run defense continues to look pretty solid. Tashard Choice is the Cowboy's third back, but he arguably has starting potential, and the Dolphins held him to one yard on four carries. Also, the pass rush looked a little better. Most notably Cameron Wake was man-handling Dallas' reserve line, getting in for his only sack of the preseason and causing a couple other hurried throws.

GRADE: C-

Backups: The Boys got their ground attack going in the second-half, as Donaldson and Miller combined for 75 rushing yards, and in the clutch, the Dolphins couldn't stop McGee and the passing game. With the Dolphins expected to keep 10 defensive backs, you would think we would have saw a little desperation from players like Nate Ness and Kevin Hobbs. Instead, the Cowboys really had their way with the Dolphins secondary on their way to a 16 point second-half that culminated with a game winning field goal as time expired.

GRADE: D+

Special-Teams: The coverage units continue to improve more and more every week. There was one 33 yard kick return that was a block or two away from going for big yardage, but other than that, the Dolphins held the Cowboys to less than 20 yards a kick return. There was also a punt return that looked promising for the Cowboys, but a close-line tackle put an end to the play in a hurry. Nolan Carroll has yet to break off a huge return, but his 20 yard average last night was good enough to probably allow him to keep the job over Patrick Cobbs. Carpenter connected on a 28 yard field goal, and Brandon Fields averaged 40 yards on four punts.

GRADE: B

The opportunities are over, those roster fringe players have made their case to be on this football team, and by tomorrow, we will know who exactly the 53 men are who will represent the 2010 Miami Dolphins. For the entirely of the preseason, this post has been about who is currently leading the various roster bubble competitions.

Now, going by strictly what I have seen in four preseason games, I'm ready to make my 53-man roster prediction. Feel free to use the comments section to disagree with my pics and share which positions you think I got wrong.

Quarterback: Chad Henne, Chad Pennington, Tyler Thigpen
If Pat White wasn't a former second-round pick, I think this would be one of the more obvious positions on the entire team. Still though, there's no room for Pat White on the 53 even if he did give us a reason to think he can play quarterback in the NFL.
Cuts: Pat White

Running Back: Ronnie Brown, Ricky Williams, Patrick Cobbs, Lex Hilliard
With Ronnie being injury prone and Ricky being 33 years old, it would be surprising if the Dolphins let one of their backs go.
Cuts: none

Fullback: Lousaka Polite
He's a lock to make the team thanks to last year's dominate performance as a lead blocker and short yardage converter. Let's just hope he can return to form by next Sunday.
Cuts: Rolly Lumbala

Tight End: Anthony Fasano, David Martin
Nalbone helped his cause with a big 30-yard reception last night, and the Dolphins likely want to keep three tight ends with as many two tight end sets that they use. But Nalbone hasn't done enough to lock down that third tight end job, and the Dolphins could use the extra roster spot to make up for keeping a sixth cornerback.  
Cuts: John Nalbone

Wide Receiver: Brandon Marshall, Brian Hartline, Davone Bess, Marlon Moore, Roberto Wallace
I flip flopped with this one all day. First things first, I now feel that Marlon Moore is lock to make the team, and probably wouldn't have been cut even if he didn't go off for 31 yards and a score in Dallas. Before last night's game, I would have said Turner edges out Wallace because so much has been invested in Turner and he hasn't been bad this preseason, just outplayed. But Wallace's 3 receptions for 59 yards and a touchdown just gave the Dolphins a whole lot to think about between now and tomorrow's cut-down deadline. If it was me, I would keep who I think has the potential to be the better player, regardless of who was taken where in the draft. Right now, I believe that is Roberto Wallace. He's got the size this regime covets (6'4, 225 pounds), and is much further along than Turner was this time last year as a rookie.
Cuts: Julius Pruitt, Patrick Turner

Offensive Tackles: Jake Long, Vernon Carey, Pat McQuistan
Seeing Long getting his knee looked at last night was enough of a scare to go out and trade for Pat McQuistan earlier this evening. While, McQuistan has limited potential, it's probably safe to say the front office believes he is more capable of filling in if Long or Carey were to get seriously hurt.
Cuts: Andrew Gardner, Lydon Murtha

Offensive Guards: John Jerry, Richie Incognito, Donald Thomas, Cory Procter
The guy who benefits the most from Nate Garner going to the IR is Cory Procter. He was realistically on the outside looking in before Garner was shelved for the season, but is now suddenly the favorite to land the ninth and final offensive line opening.
Cuts: Ray Feinga

Center: Jake Grove, Joe Berger
At this point, it's anyone's guess as to who is going to win the starting job. We do, however, know that both will probably make this team. That is assuming the Dolphins don't cut Grove because of his price tag and durability concerns.
Cuts: Andrew Hartline

Defensive End: Kendall Langford, Jared Odrick, Marques Douglas, Tony McDaniel, Charles Grant
This was likely already decided heading into last night's game. The Dolphins will only keep two nose tackles, so the defensive line could use five defensive ends. McDaniel has been pretty stout against the run this preseason, and Charles Grant has created some value for himself rushing the passer.
Cuts: Ryan Baker, Lionel Dotson

Nose Tackle: Randy Starks, Paul Soliai
Perhaps one of the most pleasant surprises of the preseason has been the play of Starks and Soliai. Soliai was average at best last year, and we didn’t really know what to expect from Randy Starks, who made the switch over from defensive end. Both were close to dominate in four games, and the only success teams had at running the football came at the expense of the outside linebackers not containing the edge.
Cuts: Montavious Stanley

Outside Linebacker: Cameron Wake, Koa Misi, Ikaika Alama-Francis, Charlie Anderson, Erik Walden
The first four are pretty much a lock to make the squad, but I see Walden squeezing on the 53-man roster because of his solid special teams play. If Quentin Moses wasn't currently dealing with a hamstring injury, this may have been a different story.
Cuts: Quentin Moses, Chris McCoy

Inside Linebacker: Karlos Dansby, Channing Crowder, Tim Dobbins, Micah Johnson
With Crowder's status still up in the air, it is necessary for the Dolphins to keep four inside linebackers. Even if he was fine, though, Micah Johnson's emergence would have probably sealed the deal anyway. Quite a feat considering he went undrafted, was thought to be too slow for the NFL, and was cut in June by the Giants.
Cuts: J.D. Folsom, Austin Spitler

Cornerback: Vontae Davis, Sean Smith, Will Allen, Nolan Carroll, Jason Allen, Benny Sapp
Uncertainty behind Will Allen's knee will likely force the Dolphins to uncharacteristically keep six corners. Despite Nate Ness' one good quarter, I think it's fairly obvious who those six corners will be. Nolan Carroll has shown enough potential on defense and special-teams, and Jason Allen and Benny Sapp are already proven special-teams contributors.
Cuts: Nate Ness, Kevin Hobbs, Ross Weaver

Safety: Yeremiah Bell, Chris Clemons, Tyrone Culver, Reshad Jones
If there was going to be a roster spot battle here, it was going to come down to Jones vs. Amaya. Amaya had a solid spring and even picked off a pass in the preseason, but Jones' stellar special-teams play and his upside at safety will likely win out in the end.
Cuts: Jonathan Amaya

Special-Teams: Dan Carpenter (K), Brandon Fields (P), John Denney (LS) 
Nothing to see here. Carpener, Fields, and Denney all signed extensions this offseason, and could remain in Miami for years to come.
Cuts: none

The Parcells regime has done it again, acquiring yet another Dallas Cowboy by trading for offensive tackle Pat McQuistan. Terms of the deal have not been announced, but the Dolphins probably had to give up a late round draft pick-likely a seventh, possibly a sixth.

McQuistan was drafted by the Parcells regime in the seventh round of the 2006 draft. Although he never started a game in Dallas, the 6'6, 319 pound Weber State product has flashed a little versatility over the years, having lined up at both tackle spots and left guard.

Before you link the reasoning behind this to Jake Long apparently hurting his leg/knee last night, it's pretty obvious McQuistan is being brought in to replace Nate Garner, who went on the IR earlier in the week. More than anything, Long going down likely served a wake up call. The Dolphins simply don't trust Lydon Murtha or Andrew Gardner, who's roster spots are now in serious jeopardy, if Long or Carey were to go down for an extended period of time.

UPDATE: The Dolphins and Cowboys will swap sixth round picks if the Dolphins end up picking higher in the draft. If Miami has a better season than the Dallas, they essentially just got McQuistan for free.