Dolphins vs. Buccaneers: 5 Dolphins Players That Impressed, 5 That Disappointed

In what's often looked at as the dress rehearsal for the NFL season, the Miami Dolphins traveled up to Tampa to face their in-state rivals the Buccaneers.

Miami came in at 2-0 while Tampa Bay came in at 1-1. In the end, it was Tampa Bay who came in with a 17-13 victory.

But of course, its nothing more than a Pyrrhic victory. That's the best way to describe preseason games. What matters more is how the players looked.

Here's five Dolphins players that impressed, as well as five that disappointed me, beginning with the disappointing players.  

Marc Colombo

Colombo is what everyone thought he would be when Miami signed him: a turnstile. 

Henne got sacked three times, including once when he fumbled the ball (recovered by Bush).

Two of those times the Bucs' D got passed Colombo. 

Reggie Bush

Five carries for -6 yards.

Wow! I mean, I know the offensive line was bad, but even with bad offensive lines, you have to do better than -6 yards.

Bush somewhat redeemed himself with two receptions for 23 yards.

But he also had a drop in the Dolphins' red zone. 

To quote the Family Guy version of Tim McCarver: "as good as Reggie Bush was in their game against Carolina was as bad as he was against the Buccaneers."

Vernon Carey

Here's what disappointed me about Vernon Carey: he's usually a pretty good run blocker who's pass blocking has at times left something to be desired.

But today he was horrible. Yes he's transitioning from right tackle to right guard, but that doesn't excuse his poor play on Saturday night. He's just as responsible for two of the three sacks allowed as Marc Colombo is.

Even more disappointing: Carey has been with the Dolphins the longest of anyone on the offensive line. 

John Jerry

Very disappointing game from a player whose job is on the line.

With the Dolphins moving the football and on third down and five on Tampa Bay's 22, Jerry just lets George Johnson go right past him for a sack.

I'd be very surprised if Jerry's final game with the Dolphins isn't on Thursday against the Cowboys. 

Clyde Gates

Gates took some snaps with the first team offense on Saturday and was targeted five times with only two receptions for 15 yards.

Odds are he's Miami's main return man (even though Phillip Livas was the return man all game) however Gates has to become a better route runner in order to help this team as the big speed threat the Dolphins need. 

Tonight was his chance, and he didn't take advantage.

And Now a Word About the Officials

Miami had 11 penalties for 79 yards. 

Tampa Bay had 15 penalties for 135 yards.

Combined, that's 26 penalties for 214 yards.

Just a sloppy game on both sides. It really took a lot of the rhythm out of the game and made it not so fun to watch. 

But I couldn't really argue any of them save for an illegal touch penalty on a punt, and only because the Bucs guy the flag was called on was running forward and couldn't see the ball before it hit his foot. (The illegal touch penalty is you can't down a punt if at any time you're running down the sidelines you run out of bounds.)

And Now, for the Five Dolphins That Impressed Me

The Bucs cheerleaders always impress me. Very underrated cheerleading team. Now let's look at the Dolphins who excelled.

Anthony Fasano

I've been pretty hard on Fasano, but he's deserved it. 

First preseason game he gives John Abraham a Chad Henne interception. 

But today he was the tight end that Miami needed. 

Fasano caught all three passes that went his way for 39 yards, including one reception that went for 22 yards.

As tight end, Fasano has to be Henne's safety blanket, and he'll get plenty of wide open chances with most defenses keying in on Brandon Marshall and Davone Bess.

Kevin Burnett

Burnett was only signed by the Dolphins three weeks ago, but impressed against Tampa Bay on Saturday night.

Burnett was involved in a great number of plays and recorded five tackles and a pass deflection. 

Brandon Fields

Brandon Fields punted the ball seven times for a grand total of 413 yards, an average of 59 yards per punt.

First off, Dolphins fans can only hope that Fields never has to punt seven times, however if he does, than the best thing to hope for is a night like tonight. 

Fields' punts went for 59 yards (the Dolphins were at their own three yard line), 62 yards, 68 yards, 53 yards, 58 yards, 49 yards and his last one went for 63 yards. YIKES!

Now please, can this be the last time I'm impressed with punting? 

Marlon Moore

Marlon Moore had catches for yards. His second reception from Matt Moore was an impressive grab 18 yard grab that helped to set up a Carpenter field goal. 

Chad Henne

So you're running game is responsible for 17 yards (and none of them came while you were playing), zero first downs and a failure in goal line situations, your best wide receiver fumbled the ball after a 30 yard catch and run, and people still have the perception that there's a quarterback controversy.

What do you do? Go 10-for-13 for 175 yards, a touchdown, zero interceptions, and a QB rating of 143.9.

This game should prove that if the Dolphins fail this year, odds are it won't be Henne. The running game is a lot worse than previously thought (self-inflicted of course, they should've kept Ricky Williams) and the offensive line is terrible with the exception of Jake Long (who still has had yet to play) and Mike Pouncey (who's a rookie.)

Henne has impressed me all through training camp and the preseason, and can hang his hat on on a second consecutive great performance. This time against a top tier team.

Thomas Galicia is a Miami Dolphins Featured Columnist. Follow him on twitter @thomasgalicia. For more of his opinions on other subjects, visit www.thomasgalicia.com.