Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Dolphins vs. Ravens
With most starting linemen injured, Gase says, ‘We’ll figure it out’
Miami’s offense will be tested tonight.
The Miami Dolphins are down to just one healthy starter on their offensive line, the unit which has struggled the most this season.
Left tackle Laremy Tunsil and center Mike Pouncey are both nursing knee injuries. Right tackle Ja’Wuan James injured his hand last Sunday, and Anthony Steen, the starting left guard, won’t play because of a foot injury.
That leaves right guard Jermon Bushrod as the only healthy player on the offensive line, and means Jesse Davis will likely make his first NFL start Thursday night at 8:25 p.m. when the Dolphins play the Baltimore Ravens.
And if those injury issues weren’t concerning enough, Miami will be facing one of the NFL’s most physical, and aggressive defenses.
When asked about just one of the numerous offensive line issues facing the Dolphins, head coach Adam Gase flatly said, “We’ll figure out a way to move the ball.”
If the Dolphins weren’t coming off a game in which their quarterbacks were constantly harassed by one of the worst pass-rushing teams in the NFL, and the starter, Jay Cutler, was driven into the ground so hard his ribs cracked, Gase’s “we’ll figure it out” comment might be easier to digest.
Miami’s offensive line has struggled for
most of this season, and those struggles are the one constant to explain why the offense is ranked 32nd (last in the NFL) in total yards per game, and 31st in points per game.
The Dolphins’ offense is fueled by the rushing attack. But Gase’s team has only rushed for 100 or more yards three times this season, and the Dolphins are averaging 81.7 rushing yards per game, which ranks Miami 29th in the NFL.
The last time the Dolphins, who averaged 4.7 rushing yards per attempt in 2016, averaged fewer than 3.8 yards per carry in a season was 2010 when a backfield led by Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams averaged 3.7 yards per attempt on 445 carries for that 7-9 team.
Gase labeled Miami’s offensive line “inconsistent,” but kept his tone optimistic.
“Sometimes we’re losing straight one-on-ones. Sometimes we’re not passing off some kind of interior stunt,” Gase explained.
“We are holding onto the ball a little bit and we need to be good at what we’re doing and we lose there. Other times, we’re nice and clean but the ball is coming out quick and we’ve got everything passed off. … And some of it’s been we just physically got beat or we’ve had a mental mistake. I think the longer we go, the better we’re going to get. I do like that group up front. They’ve shown a lot here, especially the last two weeks, especially the fight, the finish, the strain. They’re trying to do all of the things we’re asking them to do.”
Offensive coordinator Clyde Christensen came close to openly criticizing Tunsil and James, who are two first-round picks, and hasn’t shied away from saying the Dolphins need more consistent play from their tackles.
“At times, they are special,” Christensen said. “At times, the right tackle is as good in the run game as any right tackle in the league. [James] is an aggressive guy. He’s very good in the run game. Probably just the consistency, we just keep working on getting the consistency.”
Christensen wants Miami to get to the point where they don’t worry about the tackles anymore, and acknowledged that’s not the case. Two of the three sacks Miami allowed against the New York Jets on Sunday were produced by a four-man rush.
The offense will be going up against a Ravens defense that’s 18th in total defense, seventh in pass defense and 13th in scoring defense.
With Steen out, the biggest question is whether the Dolphins’ offensive line will be comfortable playing together?
“It’s tough [with] different guys that have to play that might’ve not been playing the whole time, or this guy is playing next to this guy now and he doesn’t really know,” James said. “It’s our job to get it done, wherever they put everybody.”