Each week, as a way of bringing out the best in the Miami Dolphins, I plan on featuring a player the fans can be proud about.

This week, Jared Odrick is the guy that captures my attention and I have big expectations for not only in Houston later today, but throughout the season.

With size compared to almost like a Jason Seymour standing 6'5" 302 lbs, Odrick is a beast for any offensive line pushing from any defensive line position.  

While, Odrick missed much of his first season with a broken fibula in practice, his first game versus the Buffalo Bills showed some promise contributing right away with a tackle.However, with his season cut short, Odrick was automatically labeled a bust and injury prone in the eyes of most Dolfans.  

However, last season with a clean bill of health and more comfort within the defense, Odrick flourished in the Mike Nolan coached defense with a share of sacks out of the DE position.
Odrick recorded 6 sacks, 22 tackles, and 1 forced fumble.  Not to mention an awesome sack dance that brought us all back to our childhoods with the Pee Wee Herman Tequila scene dance.

Last season Odrick came up big providing support in the areas of pass rush and stopping the run.

One particular reason for his dominance was the isolation of Cam Wake who was double teamed frequently and allowed Odrick a gap to make plays.

This season, if Jared Odrick can make plays on the new 4-3 defensive scheme employed by Dolphins defensive coach Kevin Coyle, then Dolfans will hear Odrick's name for good reasons: sacks and tackles.

Despite the terrible start the Dolphins defense has had this preseason, it's now time for the players on the defense to show the physical side that this defense has been known for.  Going into his third season,

Odrick needs to show he can be that guy that will be consistent and be a leader of this defense.

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Happy Dolphins Sunday! 

MIAMI DOLPHINS @ HOUSTON TEXANS

Current Line: Texans -12
Time: 1 pm Eastern
Location: Reliant Stadium. Houston, Texas

On Sunday, the Miami Dolphins will kickoff the 2012 regular season against a potent Super Bowl contender; the Houston Texans. The game will officially mark the start of a new era in South Beach with a new head coach in Joe Philbin and a rookie quarterback in Ryan Tannehill. Miami couldn't have been matched up with a tougher opponent to begin the campaign as the Texans will be out to prove that they could have won their first franchise title a year ago if it wasn't for an injury to QB Matt Schaub. Last season the Dolphins finished with a forgettable 6-10 record however they were a very respectable 9-7 against the spread. On the other hand, Houston wrapped up the regular season with a 10-6 record, falling to the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Divisional round but were an impressive 11-5 against the spread. 

Dolphins Defense vs Texans Offence

Houston has one of the most dynamic offences in the NFL with elite players at the skill positions. Houston is led by signal caller Matt Schaub. While Schaub isn't in the same company as quarterbacks such as Rodgers, Brady and Brees, he is one of the most reliable and accurate passers in the game. Miami's defense will have its hands full with the Texans running back duo of Arian Foster and Ben Tate. Foster burst out onto the scene in 2010 when he rushed for 1,161 yards and added 16 touchdowns. He followed that up with a stellar 1,224 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns last year. Although Foster will take the majority of the carries, Ben Tate will see his share of work. In 2011 Tate was handed the ball 175 times for a total of 942 yards. If Miami somehow manages to stop the Texans run game they must find a way to contain one of the top wide recievers in the league; Andre Johnson. Sean Smith will be given the task of covering Johnson which promises to be an interesting matchup. One of their few weakness can be found in the offensive line where the Texans will start an unproven 2011 seventh round pick.

Without a doubt the Dolphins defense is one of the most underrated units in the league. Miami's defensive front was ranked in the top 10 last year and have been hovering around that position for several years now. Miami's defense which features one of the NFL's best pass rushers in Cameron Wake and Karlos Dansby who should thrive in the 4-3 formation, will benefit from the fact that they are returning their entire front seven. 
 
EDGE: Texans

Dolphins Offence vs Texans Defense


Ryan Tannehill's first NFL start comes against one of the leagues top defenses, featuring an overwhelming pass rush and a talented secondary. While Jake Long will certainly be able to hold the fort, rookie Jonathan Martin is bound to get beat by the Texans linebackers throughout the course of the game. Altough the Dolphins no longer have to game plan for Mario Williams when playing the Texans, Miami will now deal with the likes of Brian Cushing and J.J Watt. 

In order for the Dolphins to record their first win against Houston in franchise history they must exploit a weakness in the Texans defense up the middle of the field. As a result, running backs Reggie Bush and Daniel Thomas will see a ton of touches both in the air and out of the backfield. Miami will also utilize many short passes to their most reliable recievers Davone Bess, Anthony Fasono and the now healthy Brian Hartline who will provide a signficant boost to the Dolphins offence. Bush has high expectations for himself in 2012 with a goal of being the league's leading rusher. One thing is for sure, Bush will definitely recieve plenty of opportunities on Sunday.

EDGE: Texans

Special Teams

The Dolphins kicker and punter combo is arguably second in the league to only the Oakland Raiders. Dan Carpenter and Brandon Fields have been nothing short of brilliant in their careers for Miami. Carpenter has proven to be an incredibly reliable kicker and his abilty to bail out the Dolphins offence has not gone unnoticed. Fields' contributions have been significant as well seeing as he provides the Dolphins defense with the best chances to succeed by giving the opposition poor field position. Both teams have solid kick returners in Marcus Thigpen (Dolphins) and Trindon Holliday (Texans).

EDGE: Dolphins

While I don't expect the Dolphins to leave Houston with a massive upset win, I do believe they will cover the spread and keep the game relatively close.

PREDICTION: Texans 26 Dolphins 16

Follow us on twitter @Phins_Phocus for coverage and analysis during the game. Phins Up!  

Two days left until Dolphins football ! Here is a nice picture to help you enjoy your weekend ! Phins Up ! 

 

TGIF! It’s a football Friday and the first Dolphins game of the season is only 2 days away. Things are getting exciting as the Dolphins should have only one thing on their minds right now and that’s pulling off the huge upset against the Texans, although I wouldn’t hold my breath.

Yesterday I took a poll, and 20-13 voted they thought a Win is more important than a strong week 1 Tannehill performance. Tannehill will have all eyes on him Sunday as he is the first Dolphins rookie to get the week 1 start in 13 years.

That being said Ryan Tannehill isn’t going to be the only player on the field this Sunday and there are several other factors that will be big factors in determining the outcome of the game.

Below are 5 things that will be huge factor in the Dolphins first showdown of the season.


1) Dolphins defense ability to tackling 

Whether it’s been the cornerbacks (Sean Smith) or linebackers missing tackles in previous seasons or this preseason the Dolphins won’t have much wiggle room week 1 facing the best one- two running back duo in the league. Foster perhaps the league’s best back, joined with the talented Ben Tate can hurt you in the run game and even more so in the screen game and the Phins D have to put these elusive backs on the ground upon the first opportunity.

The Phins have no slack, if these two backs hurt them then it will open up the play action pass and things could start getting ugly. The run D in Miami has been an asset and they will need to come up huge this week if they want to have any chance at winning this week.



2) Ryan Tannehill needs a little help from his friends

After receiving praise all week from Texans head coach Gary Kubiack, NFL’s Greg Cosell and ESPN’s Ron Jaworski, Tannehill simply won’t be able to do it alone this week. All the “weapons” will need to be playing their best this week. Whether its new comer Anthony Armstrong or Brian Hartline returning from injury, every bit of help Tannehill can get the Dolphins need to take advantage.

Drops can’t be in the forecast, as the Dolphins are going to need long drives to keep the heavy fire powered Texans offense off the field

3) The offense line starting to gel

The Texans are now without Mario Williams yes; BUT J.J Watt has the makings of being one of the best pass rushers in the league so the Dolphins will get no break. Jake Long and John Jerry both scheduled to play this week won’t have any time to rest up as they are given the test of maybe the league’s best defense right away.  The pass rush will be fierce as I expect Wade Phillips to give the rookie QB all he can handle right out of the gates. The O-Line needs to be Tannehill’s best friend this week if they want to keep the kid alive and well for his model wife.

4) Joe Philbin’s game preparation

While there were certainly aspect of Joe Philbin’s coaching style that have been impressive and on display this offseason and on Hard Knocks, his preparation for game day is something that been lacking. The Dolphins came out pretty soft 3 out of the 4 games and never seemed fully prepared going into their games. While obviously the Dolphins ran vanilla defense and offenses for the preseason, Joe Philbin must out coach and out prepare Gary Kubiack this week, to provide an advantage for this underdog Phins team.

5) Dolphins invisible pass rush against the weak right side of the Texans offensive line

The Dolphins know they will get a solid effort and production from Cam Wake but Jarred Odrick and the young OLB’s will have to provide a solid pass rush to make sure Schaub doesn’t have time to connect with Andre Johnson who year in and year out has burned the Dolphins. A great pass rush can go a long way, and the Dolphins are going to need more than 1 guy to step up this week.

Dolphins football is almost here! PhinsUp!

It’s just Christmas morning today, or maybe even better, today NFL football is back! Opening day, a day filled with excitement around the league. A day where 31 teams are still hopeful their team can win the big game and become the next super bowl champion.

I of course say 31 because here in negative Miami most fans have the Dolphins as a 5-11 team or worse and hope is a hard thing to find. That being said there is still excitement over rookie Ryan Tannehill and the small glimmer of hope maybe this team will surprise us all and pull it together.

That being said today is the day where people start revealing their super bowl picks, so here at Phins Phocus we thought we would do the same.

@PhinsDaniel – Daniel Eliesen –

 

Green Bay over Pittsburg

I went chalk with Green Bay taking the most popular team but I think Aaron Rogers is the best player in the NFL right now and has a sour taste in his mouth that will lead him back to glory and a 2^nd Super bowl championship. Let’s not forget the Packers only lost 1 game last year.  I am not into picking the Texans just because my gut says they won’t be able to get over the hump,  I hate the Patriots more than anything so refuse to put them back there. So by process of elimination I took the best run organization in pro sports perhaps. Big Ben is a winner and has the weapons to bring the Steelers back to the big game.

Super Bowl rematch with the same results.

@DolfanDaniel

Ravens over 49ers

@DolphinMick

Pats over Eagles