The Dolphins have released their first official depth chart of the regular season and it’s consistent with the preseason version, with one exception. At right guard, free agent acquisition Shelley Smith is listed as the starter ahead of Dallas Thomas. The move isn’t surprising, however, considering that Smith replaced Thomas in the starting lineup for the all-important third preseason game, the 25-20 victory against the Dallas Cowboys. Of note, Lamar Miller remains listed as the starter at running back despite newcomer Knowshon Moreno looking impressive in his one preseason appearance, the game against Dallas when he rushed for 64 yards on only 10 carries in his one half of action. Either way, it’s fair to expect both Miller and Moreno to get considerable playing time at running back. Samson Satele is listed as the first-team center ahead of Mike Pouncey, but that’s because Pouncey — who is coming off his first Pro Bowl appearance — spent the entire preseason on the sidelines while recovering from offseason hip surgery. All told, the Dolphins are set to have five new starters along the offensive line for the season opener, which would be a first in franchise history and the first time it’s happened in the NFL since 2004. The San Diego Chargers had five new starters on the offensive line that year and they went on to win the AFCWest title. Along with Smith and Satele, the starting offensive line also includes left tackle Branden Albert, left guard Daryn Colledge and right tackle Ja’Wuan James. With that group starting together, the Dolphins gained 490 total yards in the preseason game against Dallas. On defense, perhaps the most interesting nugget is the fact that the Dolphins continue to list Randy Starks and Jared Odrick as co-starters at one of the two defensive tackle spots. Starks and Odrick were listed as co-starters throughout the preseason, and the same thing held true throughout the 2013 season. Odrick ended up starting three games at defensive tackle last season, while Starks got 14 starts, one of them alongside Odrick when since-departed Paul Soliai was inactive. Free agent acquisition Earl Mitchell is listed as the starter at the other defensive tackle spot. As expected, rookie second-round pick Jarvis Landry is now listed as the first-team punt and kickoff returner after Marcus Thigpen, who handled both roles the past two seasons, was released in the cutdown to 53 players. Rookie running backs Damien Williams and Orleans Darkwa are listed second and third, respectively, on kickoff returns; Rishard Matthews and Brent Grimes are listed second and third on punt returns. While Williams and Darkwa both returned kickoffs in the preseason — Williams had three returns for 82 yards, Darkwa had one for 29 — Landry is the only player still on the roster who returned a punt this preseason. Depending on whether Odrick or Starks starts against the Patriots on Sunday, the Dolphins will have either 11 or 12 new opening-day starters from the group that faced the Cleveland Browns in 2013. It should be noted, however, that the Dolphins opened that game on offense with three tight ends — Charles Clay, Dion Sims and Michael Egnew. Along with Clay and Sims, the 2013 opening-day starters listed as first-team players on the new depth chart are wide receiver Mike Wallace; quarterback Ryan Tannehill; Miller; defensive ends Cameron Wake and Olivier Vernon; Odrick; linebackers Philip Wheeler, Dannell Ellerbe and Koa Misi; and Grimes.
Posted on: Tue, 02 Sep 2014 17:08:30 +0000
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