Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Passing game still in need of vital element
DAVIE — Every skill player in the Miami Dolphins offense serves a purpose.
Kenny Stills spaces the field by consistently taking a safety with him since teams fear getting beat with a deep reception.
Jakeem Grant’s speed makes him a threat every time he touches the football.
Slot receiver Danny Amendola has a track record for being quarterback-friendly, creating separation from defensive backs and finding holes in zones.
Albert Wilson is a run-aftercatch specialist who works out of the backfield at times.
DeVante Parker’s the big, physical receiver who can work versus press coverage running a slant, an out route or a comeback. He’s the receiver who can high-point the football to bring down a difficult catch.
At least that’s the role he’s supposed to play. The problem is the Dolphins offense hasn’t had him on the field long enough, or often enough to benefit from his skill set, and everyone involved with the offense is forced to overcome his absence.
“You’re missing that bigger body and that’s what he brings. A bigger body with speed that goes a good job getting off press [coverage],” offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains said of Parker, who has caught two passes for 40 yards in the one game he played this season. “Sometimes when you don’t create as much separation, your length allows you to get open.”
Parker’s missed four of Miami’s five games this season because
of a broken finger and a right quadriceps injury that has kept him from playing the last two weeks.
While the Dolphins’ 2015 first-round pick has been practicing with the team for the past two weeks there is no telling when the soreness, which hinders his speed and ability to cut, will subside. And until it does he’s likely going to remain sidelined on game day.
When asked what the toughest part of this season been, Parker said “not being out there, obviously.”
“I’m taking it one day at a time and work my way back in there,” said Parker, who has missed 10 of the 54 regular-season and postseason games he’s been on the roster for because of foot, quadriceps, ankle, back and a hand injuries.
Throughout his career, Parker has contributed 141 receptions for 1,948 yards (averaging 13.8 per catch), and has scored eight touchdowns in the 44 games he’s played, which includes 25 starts.
The Dolphins offense ranks 28th in points scored per game (19.8), 28th in passing yards per game (192.2) and 30th in yards per game (288.2). No matter how well the team’s defense and special teams are performing, it’s hard to survive that kind of anemic output on offense.
This week’s focus is finding a way to become more consistent on offense, and coach Adam Gase’s team must do it against a Chicago Bears defense that ranks third in yards and points allowed, and first in sacks per pass play.
Stills disputes the theory that teams are pressing Miami’s receivers more than normal because of the unit’s size limitations.
“I think the defenses are playing their style of ball and trying to get to the quarterback and put pressure on Ryan [Tannehill] and trying to get the ball out of his hands quick,” Stills said. “Teams aren’t doing anything different than what we’re seeing on film.”
Stills is referring to how Miami’s opponents play other teams in previous weeks.
According to Gase, Grant and Wilson, who have been primarily used to replace Parker, were open on some of the critical plays that contributed to Miami’s fourth-quarter collapse against the Bengals, a game where Tannehill’s two turnovers produced 14 points from Cincinnati’s defense.
“Are there times where we need to take some better releases or do something different? Yeah. But I think for the majority of the time, we are shaking free,” Gase said. “It’s just we’ve got to be a little bit on the same page [with the] front, quarterback, receivers [and] everybody. We need to have success at the same time.”