John Clayton has the game at 7 on First and 10
10. Matchup to watch: Dolphins LT Jake Long vs. Colts RDE Dwight Freeney: The Dolphins’ O-line was supposed to be a strength, but it didn’t look like it in Week 1. Long gave up two sacks, after giving up only 2.5 sacks as a rookie in 2008. What was alarming for Miami was that Long was physically overpowered on several plays. Now he faces Freeney, who is the quickest DE in the NFL and has a huge array of pass-rush moves. This does not bode well for the backside protection of an immobile pocket QB such as Pennington.
Accuscore calls for a close game
The Dolphins need Chad Pennington to pass for bigger chunks of yardage. They are underdogs at home despite Pennington completing over 70 percent of his passes. Unfortunately, he is averaging just 8 yards per completion. By contrast, Peyton Manning is averaging 1 fewer completion per simulation but 50 more passing yards. If Chad Pennington can actually have success passing downfield with 225+ yards and 2+ TDs and the Dolphins do not turn it over more than once they actually are the 64 percent favorite.
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