A tale of two halves

Some may argue that the Saints are the best team in football right now. Yesterday for pretty much the entire first half the Dolphins made them look like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, arguably the worst team in football right now. At the end of the half the Fins were ahead 24-10. But one half does not a football game make.

One sign of a great team is the adjustments it makes at halftime to try to right the ship. The Saints did this and had an answer for every Dolphin move in the second half. They made the correct adjustments and the Dolphins made crucial mental as well as physical mistakes to ensure that the Saints won. Witness Joey Porter's 15 yard stupid personal foul which helped the Saints move down the field at a critical juncture, or Camarillo's boneheaded illegal forward pass for which there was absolutely no necessity and which caused a penalty and loss of down to stop the Dolphins momentum. The Saints won the second half 26-10 and thus the game.

In short, the Dolphins need more discipline and poise in the second half of games. Also, the coaching staff has gone back to the insertion of Pat White at inopportune times which completely breaks the rhythm and momentum of an already choppy offense, considering the adoption of the wildcat as a weekly standard.

The Dolphins lost 46-34 and to add insult to injury lost cornerback Will Allen for the season with an ACL injury. The Fins are now 2-4 and looking at a long stretch of difficult games ahead. Ouch!