Per @JasonColeYahoo on @560WQAM , Dolphins are potentially negotiating a deal for Chiefs WR Dwayne Bowe. Bowe a former Pro Bowl WR would be a huge upgrade for the Dolphins WR group. Bowe is a native Floridian who has mentioned before on the Joe Rose show that he would love to come back home and play, he is an alum of Norland High School.

Bowe is an unrestricted free agent. It is unsure of Bowe’s price tag for a trade however it is widely thought that Bowe is seeking big money in the offseason and it seems unlikely the Chiefs will meet his demands. The Chiefs in a transition year with early struggles could look at the Dolphins plethora of draft picks as well as Dolphins back up Matt Moore who had his best season under Chiefs OC Brian Daboll.

Big is a WR with great size and speed who has big play ability. Bowe would be the number #1 WR that Steven Ross admitted the Dolphins were searching for. Bowe would also open up the field for the Dolphins offense potentially moving Davone Bess back to the slot where he strives.

Bowe would bring a big target and huge help to rookie Ryan Tannehill who would be able to develop with a significantly upgrade group of WR’s.

This rumor is still in the very early stages. We should hear more shortly about this rumor. There is some speculation already to this rumor.

UPDATE : RT @JasonColeYahoo: Just to clarify something: I'm NOT reporting the KC and Miami are talking trade over Bowe. Not yet, at least. 

RT @BenVolinPBP A team source says the #Dolphins are NOT currently in trade talks with the #Chiefs for Dwayne Bowe 

It's bending, but not breaking. It's bringing Dolfans on the verge of cardiac arrest reaching for Bayer. It's forcing turnovers without recovery, or only to be thrilled about a recovery and have the refs second look take it all away.

The Dolphins defense this season has unleashed a flurry of sacks on the quarterback, pressures, hurries, and set out to control the line of scrimmage.

Run on the Dolphins ...they double dog dare you. Loaded with Randy Starks, Paul Soliai, Big Amigo Tony Mc Daniel,
Jared Odrick and Cam Wake the Dolphins are becoming this years version of the no-name defense. We all no that Cam Wake leading the team in sacks is no surprise, but the biggest emerging star is little known former University of Miami DE Olivier Vernon with 2.5 sacks, 13 tackles, and 2 forced fumbles!

Sure the Dolphins are stout up front, but their best play by far is coming from linebackers like Burnett and Karlos Dansby who sink back into coverage like hidden submarines and making good decisions getting their hands on footballs to tip them away.

In the offseason, the Dolphins ran a vanilla version of their scheme lacking pressure, looking slow to stop the run, and got burned down the field.

When the first game came around versus Houston, they showed they can hang around getting some three and outs and red zone stops.

The defense rose to the occasion in week 3 versus the Jets when the first turnovers were forced via interception from Richard Marshall and Chris Clemons (a safety that seems to never make big plays nor stay on the field).  

The following week, the Dolphins defense hung tough and cleaned up the offenses 3 turnovers and got two interceptions from Sean Smith.

Finally, the Dolphins made plays as a defense forcing fumbles and sealing victory by a Reshad Jones interception in Cincinnati.  

Last week, the Dolphins did not get a defensive takeaway, but their legs chasing down receivers on two big throws by the Rams Sam Bradford kept the Rams out of the end zone until the 4th quarter.

Again...the Dolphins are tops against the run, run in the redzone, and wreaking havoc on quarterbacks ranked 4th in sacks, the Dolphins D is making their fan base proud.

Lets see what the next two weeks of rest do to this unit who continues to take that blue collar-lunch pail-hardhat approach and make plays and have fun killing the opponent sealing victories.

Maybe Ireland got in right when he hired Joe Philbin and Kevin Coyle and drafted and signed these little known players a few years back...and got rid of leaders like Yeremiah Bell and play makers like Vontae Davis.

Yes, these no-names are taking over and soon everyone in the NFL will take notice! 

500 %, while some fans will complain that this team could be 5-1 at the bye the fact is that they are not. There is still plenty to be happy about with the Dolphins 3-3 record. The Dolphins are starting to come together, the defense is playing at a very high level, and Ryan Tannehill’s passer rating has now gone up in t 3 consecutive games and the Dolphins are coming off back to back wins against teams with winning records.

That’s not the only positive news, the Dolphins are also currently in a 4 way tie for first place of the AFC East, while the Dolphins are currently behind the Jets because of their divisional lost, the Phins will get a chance to get a Revis and Holmesless Jets team after the bye to even up the series.

Things are off to an encouraging start in Miami for sure but there is still a significant amount of work to do in Miami this bye week.

Find the mojo that has disappeared in the running game

The Dolphins started the season as one of the best running teams in the NFL; the running game was a great friend to rookie QB Ryan Tannehill and took a lot of pressure off the kid. The running game also opens up play action something that Tannehill has had early success with. Reggie Bush has been pretty banged up of late; the rest should do Reggie well.

I have faith the Dolphins should be able to clean up their running game, however they will need to clean up their offensive line play, especially John Jerry’s whose play has dropped a little.

Somehow finding a 3^rd option

While I admit some Dolphins fans including myself are probably holding out too much hope for Jabar Gaffney the fact is the Phins need a 3^rd option in the passing game for Ryan Tannehill. While Fasano has been doing what he does best, he is merely a safety blanket and doesn’t really stretch the field. Brian Hartline has had his struggles against elite CB and the Dolphins have gotten very little from their WR3. Hopefully Tannehill can work with the guys and help develop a better relationship with a 3^rd guy out there

Rest up

 

Reggie isn’t the only banged up Dolphins, despite the strong play from the secondary and defense as of late the Dolphins could use Richard Marshall back in the lineup. The Dolphins are projecting him to be back for the Jets game.

Find a way to keep Olivier Vernon hot

Olivier Vernon had somewhat of a breakout game against the Rams with 2 sacks and creating pressure at important parts of the game, hopefully that game will help his confidence and create a little bit of a more consistent pass rush. A little help on the other side of Cam Wake could go a long way for this Dolphins team.

Dan Carpenter getting his act together

Dan Carpenter isn’t going anyways, partly because of his contract and partly because of his successful kicking career prior to this season. Carpenter has a lot of work to do to build himself up to the kicker he use to be. If the Dolphins are going to make any type of playoff push they will need Carpenter to hit important kicks no matter the distance.

Continue to let Ryan Tannehill roll out

Tannehill has been great on the run and worked very well when rolling out. It seems his vision excel’s the second he is sent on a roll out. The Dolphins need to continue to work with Tannehill’s strengths.

On a day that Jason Taylor and Zach Thomas were inducted to the Dolphins ring of honour it would figured the Dolphins hold on to win an ugly game with a defensive stand.  Ryan Tannehill played another solid game in which he had a 112 QB rating the highest of his career but it was the defense which was the real star of this ugly win.

Despite giving up 462 yards to a pretty average St Louis defense this bend but don't break unit was able to hold St Louis to a measly 14 point. St Louis had their opportunities but 3 missed field goals ended up really costing, which is a feeling the Dolphins fans know all too well.

The Dolphins were completely outplayed in the 1st half yet got out to a 10-6 lead, the inability to finish drives kept the Dolphins in the game and despite the fact Ryan Tannehill didn't have any help from his run game today he was able to make the proper adjustments at the line and lead his team down the field.

Tannehill was poised again and while he wasn't spectacular he was able to manages the offense and seem to always make sure to hit the open receivers which included a deep ball to Marlon Moore. The Dolphins run game couldn't get anything going and Brian Hartline was all but invisible and didn't even find himself on the stat sheet.

A nice surprise from this game was Olivier Vernon who had 2 huge sacks which both were momentum changing plays. Vernon offered the first resembles of a pass rush outside Cam Wake who continued his dominance with a sack and another what should have been strip sack but was ruled an incomplete pass due to the tuck rule.

It is important to note while the Dolphins won a sloppy game where they got a break with the St Louis rookie kicker missing 3 kicks, there were a couple of missed calls by the refs that didn't go the Dolphins way including what should have been a fumble by Chris Givens instead called an incomplete pass keeping the balls with the Rams.

The unsung hero of the game is Dolphins punter Brandon Fields who continued to be an all pro out there smashing the ball every time it hit his foot. Fields deserves to be recognized more and is a real weapon and field position changer for the Dolphins.

 

With the win the Dolphins now head into the bye week 3-3 and in a tie for 1st place in the division. The arrow certainly seems to be pointing up in Miami.

Reggie Bush who has been banged up and not himself the past couple of weeks can definitely use the rest and hopefully Jabar Gaffney can find himself a spot in the lineup as the much needed third option for the Dolphins passing game.

It was ugly but a win is a win !

This Sunday, the Miami Dolphins take on the St. Louis Rams in what will prove to be a good match up for both teams.  However, the St. Louis Rams have started to turn some heads with quality victories over the Redskins, Cardinals, and Seahawks.  The Rams feature a tough defense anchored by their always up to no good Safety in Cortland Finnegan and incredible play by Robert Quinn, 7 sacks and stalwart stops against the run by Chris Long.  All in all, the Rams are tough, but certainly have their weaknesses.

For this post, I took the time to ask Derek Pease an excellent analyst of his team the St. Louis Rams on RamsHerd.com, a Bloguin blog.  We asked Derek the following about his team's glaring issues as well as a look into the future with Sam Bradford and if he is the franchise QB in St. Louis.  Derek said the following in our conversation:

1). After watching film, the Rams appear to have consistency issues in the red zone with their receivers. Sam Bradford under duress steps off of is back foot to throw, what do you attribute this alarming trend of interceptions to? 

Some I attribute to BQS or Battered Quarterback Syndrome. But in reality Sam has a bad habit of locking on to a receiver and needs to be much quicker at going through his reads and progressions and then getting rid of the ball. Too often he gives the defense an extra second or two, to close the gap.

2. ) The Miami Dolphins have 6 takeaway interceptions in the past three games.   How do the Rams plan on attacking the Dolphins suddenly opportunistic secondary with a possibility that the Dolphins will bring pressure at the line?

Without Bradford’s safety net playing in Danny Amendola, look for a heavy dose of Steven Jackson and the TE Lance Kendricks.  Kendricks is a viable option, when he catches the ball, and can create a lot of separation in the open field. If he shows early that his hands are “on” look for Sam to target him a lot on quick reads. Also I ouwld truly anticipate Jackson and 7^th rounder Daryl Richardson getting a lot of touches to keep the Defense honest and help save Sam from some big hits.

3. ) Without Danny Amendola who will the Rams look to for big plays down the field?

It is again Brandon Gibson’s turn to shine. He has the ability to make the deep play, but so often has disappointed with key drops when given the chance.

4. ) As far as the running game, how do the Rams plan on executing a game plan that features a balance to run v. pass since Steven Jackson has been on the outs with Jeff Fisher?

Look for around 10 carries to go to Daryl Jackson. He is the lightning to Jackson’s Thunder. Fisher will use Jackson to wear down the d-line which he excels at and open holes late for Richardson. This will also help Sam set up the play-action which could come in handy.

5. ) We've seen a little over one season of Bradford, in your opinion is he the answer at QB, or is USC alum Coach Jeff Fisher patiently waiting on USC QB Matt Barkley as a guy for the future in next years draft?

I still believe in Sam, however I can’t speak for Fisher and Snead and Fisher plays everything pretty close to the vest. That being said with as awful as this O-line is I can’t see the Rams spending either of their 2 first rounders on a QB next year. But with 11 games left to play a lot can change.

6. ) The Dolphins and Rams represent two teams with new coaches: What does Fisher bring to the game as far as his coaching style and why are his players responding?

The first thing he brings is a toughness and respect that neither Spags nor Linehan commanded. He is not afraid to go for it, which we have seen with the fake FG and having a rookie kicker take 60 yard FG attempts and make them. Spags never gave off that attitude and the players have responded to Fisher that way.


While this game will be played in the hot South Florida humid air, suffocating and cramping the legs of all opposing players in the 3rd and 4th quarter, we thank Derek and his availability to get his take on the Rams versus Dolphins matchup and certainly wish him and everyone at RamsHerd a pleasant Sunday!

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