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| BAL at IND | CAR at TB | CHI at ATL | CIN at NYJ | DAL at ARI | DET at MIN | GB at SEA | JAX at DEN |
| MIA at HOU | NE at SD | NYG at CLE | OAK at NO | PHI at SF | STL at WAS | ||
Week 6 Game Recap: Miami Dolphins 28, Houston Texans 29
What you need to know
| Miami Dolphins |
Yes, Chad Pennington was very effective but his overall numbers are the result of two big plays. The Dolphins chipped away at the Texans defense with short passes and by running the ball often. While efficient and even balanced, this offense is not geared around the quarterback.
Running backs Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams split the rushing load 50-50. Both ran well -- and each got red zone carries (seven and five yard TD runs, respectively), but neither really shone. Rookie RB Patrick Cobbs, on the other hand, had two receptions for long touchdowns. One was a very creative looking flea flicker by Pennington (that began with a direct snap to a RB, then a handoff, then an apparent reverse to Pennington, who then threw to a wide open Cobbs for a 53 yard TD.
Greg Camarillo was the go to guy when the Dolphins were playing from behind. But when they were ahead, the WR corps was almost entirely ignored. Ted Ginn had one catch for negative yardage.
The Dolphins utilized their Wildcat offense often, and stymied the Texans with a flea flicker early on. When using this formation, which usually has a RB lined up to receive the shotgun snap, the Dolphins relied heavily on their trio of running backs -- even on passing plays. When they switched to more conventional formations in the second half, the wide receivers and tight ends became more involved.
| Houston Texans |
QB Matt Schaub started off badly with two early interceptions. He then got to work toward redeeming himself. The result was a nice day numbers wise, culminating in a clutch draw play for a score on fourth and goal with the game on the line and the clock running down.
The rushing duties were split between Steve Slaton and Ahman Green, with Slaton getting about two thirds of the work. Green was inserted in some important situations, however, so it appears that the coaching staff likes what they see, but are limiting his carries in order to keep him healthy.
Andre Johnson showed his 'A' game. With the exception of a fumble that was recovered by the Dolphins in the end zone, he could do no wrong. Schaub targeted him in nearly every situation and Johnson responded with a superstar caliber game.
With Andre Johnson stealing all the attention of the Dolphins secondary, TE Owen Daniels and WR Kevin Walter were able to put up respectable numbers as well. Their opportunities were limited but when Schaub found them, they excelled.
What you ought to know
| QB Chad Pennington, Pass: 19 - 25 - 284 - 2 TD / 1 INT |
Pennington had a huge day, but a good chunk of his yardage came on two big plays, both to RB Patrick Cobbs. One was a trick play that ended up as a 53 yard TD, and the other was a simple screen pass that Cobbs took 80 yards for the score. Beyond that, Pennington was incredibly efficient but unspectacular.
| RB Ronnie Brown, Rush: 13 - 50 - 1, Rec: 3 - 43 - 0 (3 targets) |
Brown and fellow running back Ricky Williams combined for a lot of short gains, often coming short of a first down on third and short. Brown scored a big TD late in the game and was effective as a pass catcher on all three targets. He was used often in the Wildcat offense, usually taking the direct snap.
| RB Ricky Williams, Rush: 11 - 46 - 1, Rec: 2 - 4 - 0 (2 targets) |
Williams shared carries equally with Ronnie Brown. He was given the ball for a five yard TD run, caught the ball well when called on, and was an effective pass blocker.
| RB Patrick Cobbs, Rec: 3 - 138 - 2 (3 targets) |
Cobbs was the beneficiary of a wild looking flea flicker play that utterly confused the Texans defense, which led to his first reception TD. The second was on a nifty little screen play that looked harmless at first, but he got loose and took it 80 yards to the end zone. Cobbs had no carries on the day.
| WR Greg Camarillo, Rec: 4 - 49 - 0 (6 targets) |
Camarillo looked great on his first catch of the day, a 33 yard catch and run in the third quarter. The play began a scoring drive in which the Dolphins did not use their Wildcat offense at all. He was Pennington's go to guy late in the game, but earlier, when the team was ahead, he and the other wideouts were virtually ignored.
| WR Ted Ginn, Rec: 1 - -1 - 0 (2 targets) |
Ginn was the intended receiver on a deep pass in the first half, his only target until the second half, when he also was thrown to only once, this time for negative yards.
| WR Davone Bess, Rec: 1 - 10 - 0 (1 targets) |
Bess made a token appearance late in the game. He caught his only target for a first down.
| TE David Martin, Rec: 3 - 31 - 0 (3 targets) |
Martin caught the ball each time he was targeted. Pennington did not appear to favor one tight end over the other.
| TE Anthony Fasano, Rec: 1 - 12 - 0 (4 targets) |
As with the Dolphins wideouts, Fasano seemed to be used more only when the team was playing from behind. His lone catch was an important one, extending the Dolphins' final scoring drive.
| PK Dan Carpenter 0 - 0 FG, 4 - 4 XP, 4 points |
Carpenter was good on all four PAT attempts, but had no field goal opportunities.
| MIA Rush Defense |
The Houston running game was held in check. The defense stopped them a number of times for gains of less than a yard.
| MIA Pass Defense |
The Dolphins keyed on Andre Johnson, with mixed results. He did burn them eventually, but also, both interceptions came from throws targeting him. The pass rush was effective, with Joey Porter often in Schaub's face.
| QB Matt Schaub, Pass: 22 - 42 - 379 - 1 TD / 2 INT, Rush: 4 - 15 - 1 |
Schaub had a rough start, throwing two early -- and costly -- interceptions. Both were off of throws to Andre Johnson, who he got in synch with eventually. Schaub-to-Johnson became the routine, but Schaub was also able to spread the ball around when Johnson was covered. Schaub showed up in the clutch engineering the game winning drive finishing it off with a QB keeper from the 4 yard line with three seconds left on the clock.
| RB Steve Slaton, Rush: 15 - 58 - 0, Rec: 1 - 3 - 0 (1 targets) |
Slaton looked to be sharing carries evenly with Ahman Green, but ended up with a bigger share as the game went on. He was able to break a couple of medium runs (15 & 22 yards) but was also stuffed quite a few times by a tenacious Miami defense.
| RB Ahman Green, Rush: 8 - 41 - 0, Rec: 1 - 2 - 0 (2 targets) |
Green was used often, but rarely stayed in for long durations. He was particularly effective in the second half (3 rushes for 22 yards) but again, did not see the field enough to make any real impact.
| WR Andre Johnson, Rec: 10 - 178 - 1 (18 targets) |
Johnson's number of targets is a little high as he was credited on three pass attempts that did not make it to him (tipped or out of bounds). Add to that the two poorly thrown balls that became interceptions and what you have is a pretty impressive ten of 13 targets caught. He came up big in every situation, and especially excelled after the catch. The only flaw in his game was a lost fumble on the Miami four yard line.
| WR Kevin Walter, Rec: 4 - 98 - 0 (7 targets) |
Walter was able to get wide open on a few occasions, and Schaub promptly got him the ball. He made a huge catch in the final minute for a 30 yard gain, in which he took the ball to the Miami 11 yard line and was also able to run out of bounds to stop the clock.
| WR Andre Davis, Rec: 2 - 28 - 0 (7 targets) |
Schaub had no problem looking to Andre Davis, even in heavy traffic. But Davis was unable to capitalize on most throws. With a couple of better bounces, he could easily have had the same line as Kevin Walter or Owen Daniels.
| WR Jacoby Jones |
Jacoby Jones warrants mention for his 70 yard punt return in the second quarter. After the TD he hopped up into the awaiting arms of the fans in the end zone, where his mother was sitting!
| TE Owen Daniels, Rec: 4 - 70 - 0 (5 targets) |
Daniels use as a receiving threat was a bit of a secret weapon for the Texans. He was used effectively early on (60 yards in the first half) then safely put away until they needed him again, in this case a clutch first down catch on a late scoring drive.
| PK Kris Brown 3 - 3 FG, 2 - 2 XP, 11 points |
Brown booted 27, 33, and 42 yard field goals successfully. He has not yet missed an attempt this season.
| HOU Rush Defense |
They really held the Dolphins rushing attack in check. Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams were limited to short gains the entire game.
| HOU Pass Defense |
The pass rush was especially effective, with Mario Williams leading the way. Despite the score -- and the two Miami receiving touchdowns -- the defense played well. Two big scoring plays by Miami showed that they are somewhat inconsistent, but overall, they did an excellent job. In fact, Miami did not convert a third down until the fourth quarter.
