QUARTERBACK
C | Chad Henne was hurt by the three drops (two by Anthony Fasano and one by Brian Hartline) but the interception,
which he threw right into a defender's hands, hurt more. Henne managed the game Sunday. That was good enough to
beat a struggling Bengals team.
RUNNING BACK
C | Consider this a good-news, bad-news area because Ricky Williams seemed to make the most of his nine carries for
47 yards. His rushing TD was the first for Miami since the first week of the season. But on the other side, Brown
didn't seem to get a lot of room and didn't seem to show a lot of explosion.
RECEIVERS/TIGHT ENDS
C | Davone Bess, playing well for weeks, earned his first start of the season ahead of Brian Hartline. Bess led the
team with a team-leading seven catches. Hartline responded with a better day, catching five passes for 53 yards and
turning an end around into a 30-yard gain, but he had the one drop.
OFFENSIVE LINE
A | Rookie John Jerry returned as the starting right guard, which will ultimately be good news for an offensive
line looking to become more cohesive. The front was outstanding in pass protection, allowing Henne to scan the
field and come back again. The group also did fine work in showing off its mobility, breaking Hartline loose on his
end around.
DEFENSIVE LINE
C+ | The unit was a victim of its quick instincts early in the game as Bengals runners gained good yardage with
cutbacks. But there was an adjustment that stopped the leakage in the second half. Kendall Langford was the most
active of the linemen, collecting four tackles.
LINEBACKERS
C+ | Cameron Wake didn't get a sack, but he was typically active with two quarterback hurries. Karlos Dansby was
the most impressive linebacker on the field. He had eight tackles and a pass defensed. Koa Misi had perhaps his
least productive game. The linebackers did let a couple of runs leak out in the second half.
SECONDARY
B | Chris Clemons should have come up with at least one interception and instead let the ball bounce off his hands
and into the grasp of Terrell Owens, who turned it into a TD. Jason Allen was again headed for a tough outing,
giving up a couple of completions, including a touchdown in the first quarter, but he was benched and Sean Smith
played the rest of the game. Benny Sapp led the team in tackles, and he also had good pressure on a blitz and had a
tackle for loss.
SPECIAL TEAMS
B | Bess had a punt hit off him, and the Bengals recovered around midfield. Miami limited the Bengals to only 19.5
yards on six kick returns, and Dan Carpenter had five field goals for the second week in a row.
COACHING
B | Mike Nolan obviously did something right following Cincinnati's opening possession because his unit that was in
retreat during that first try answered magnificently in practically every drive afterward. Dan Henning continues to
find imaginative ways to kill drives with the Wildcat.
OVERALL
B+ | The Dolphins made up a game in the AFC East standings on the New York Jets and are now undefeated on the road.
Imagine how they would do if they could win at Sun Life Stadium?
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