Few Dolphins will feel safe before Aug. 30

[DolFan619]

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/football/pro/dolphins/sfl-flspdol18sbaug18,0,4708693.story

Few Dolphins will feel safe before Aug. 30

By Harvey Fialkov
South Florida Sun-Sentinel

August 18, 2008

While the tape of the Dolphins' well-balanced 19-14 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Saturday night contains mostly positive moments, the keen eyes of coach Tony Sparano, General Manager Jeff Ireland and Vice President of Football Operations Bill Parcells will certainly notice small mistakes made by fringe players that could spell the difference between a hefty paycheck or the unemployment line.

Because the Dolphins have 44 new players, including 22 rookies, most of the players in the locker room may be on edge as the roster is pared from the current 74 to the final 53 by Aug. 30.

"I feel like everybody is on the bubble," said running back Patrick Cobbs, who thus far has survived three different regimes in the past three seasons. "I feel like at any given moment somebody could come in and take your spot. The NFL is a revolving door.

"Look at Jay Feely's situation. He kicks 90-something percent [on field goals] and he's gone. If they want me to go in there and kick extra points, that's what I'll do. There's nothing too big for me."

When the Dolphins gave Feely the boot Tuesday, undrafted rookie Dan Carpenter went from offseason roster long shot to sure-shot. Thus far, Carpenter's making the personnel gurus look brilliant by nailing his first six field-goal attempts, four from 40 yards or longer.

Cobbs is vying for the third running back spot against sixth-round draft picks Jalen Parmele and Lex Hilliard. He was all over the field Saturday on special teams while also getting a long look as a potential third-down option. However, despite a 9-yard run, Cobbs stood out for getting stuffed for minus-4 yards on the Jaguars' 3, and for a 15-yard fair-catch interference penalty on a punt return.

Who could've predicted the fallout from the Brett Favre trade to the Jets would dramatically change the status of Dolphins quarterbacks Josh McCown and John Beck, who overnight went from potential starters to bubble inhabitants, with Beck apparently on the trading block.

So, did Sean Ryan's dropped pass hurt his chances in the battle for the third tight end spot? Did defensive tackle Paul Soliai's touchdown-saving, forced fumble and tackle for a loss save his job? Did former Arena Football League receiver Anthony Armstrong's three catches, including two for first downs, keep the dreaded Turk at bay?

"When final cuts come around I'll be looking around like, 'Who's that and why are you coming my way?'" Armstrong said. "You don't want the grim reaper coming your way so of course I'll be nervous. But I've got to know I did as much as I could, so I'll have the confidence they won't be coming for me."

[phinphan]

I think we will have some chads

[YoFuggedaboutit]

I think we will have some chads

The Chads will be hanging in Florida again.