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Super Bowl XVII Preview

Miami Dolphins Out
QB Steve Ramsey
DT Dave Roller
SS Glen Edwards

New York Giants Out
CB Larry Carwell

Quarterbacks
What a hectic season it's been in Miami, where no less than four QBs have seen gametime snaps. Steve Ramsey, the former Giants' starting QB, was off to a sensational start before shattering his ankle in Week 7, thus ending his season. Rookie Scott Bull had 2 starts, but was pulled in favor of Manch Wheeler following a 4 interception performance against the Tucson Titans. Wheeler then went on to stun the league by showing something left in the tank, leading the Dolphins to the AFC East title and the AFC Championship game before a well-publicized mental breakdown in his hotel room following the Divisional Round victory over over the defending Super Bowl champion Houston Oilers. This meant second-year man Don Milan got the nod, who went on to win Player of the Game in the AFC Championship game and improve his career record to an amazing 3-0. Wheeler has recovered from his anxiety attack, however, and will get the start in the Super Bowl. He has a huge chip on his shoulder and the 15th year vet is determined to win a Super Bowl ring.

No such drama existed in New York, where the Giants had 9th year veteran Greg Landry at the helm all season long. He compiled 3,109 yards and 19 TDs vs 6 INTs while completing over 60% of his passes. Surprisingly, this is only Landry's second season as a full-time starter, the other in 1973 with the New Jersey Jets. He won't ever be a yardage king, but he's accurate and manages the game well.

Advantage: Giants

Running Backs
Once upon a time, the Miami Dolphins had a two-time defending MVP QB in Ken Stabler. That was before they shipped Stabler and 3 1st round picks to the New Orleans Saints for the #1 pick in the 1975 draft. That pick was Walter Payton, who has established himself as a dominant, franchise RB in his first two years in the league, winning Offensive Rookie of the Year in 1975 with 1,562 yards and 9 TDs. Though his numbers were slightly down this season at 1,468 yards and 7 TDs, he cut his fumbles in half, from 8 to 4 and has been an absolute monster in the postseason. #2 back Otis Armstrong is good enough to be a starter on a lot of teams and the tandem give opposing defenses a headache. Herb Mul-key is a special teams ace. FB Larry Csonka is still among the league's best.

Charlie Smith has only broken 1,000 yards once in his 9 years in the league and he fumbled 14 times in the regular season. He's fumbled twice this postseason as well and his inability to hang on to the football will be a worry for the Giants. Doug Dressler or rookie Bubba Bean would actually likely be better starters, but the Giants coaching staff swears by Smith for now. John Keyworth is the equal of Csonka.

Advantage: Dolphins

Wide Receivers
A major reason why Miami has continued to play well despite the QB carousel is their wide receiving corps, the single-best group in the NFL. Dolphins GM Tim Moungey is known to prize WRs and it shows: 3rd year Lynn Swann and rookie Steve Largent are an exciting, talented pair of starters who should have the Dolphins set for years to come and 6th year man Frank Lewis is a fantastic 3rd receiver. Things don't get any easier for opposing defenses in four WR sets, as 13 year vet and career-long Dolphin Paul Warfield, a 5-time All-Pro is waiting for them. TE is much less stellar, where J.V. Cain is the starter over the much-more deserving Mack Alston.

The Giants are young at starting WR as well in second year men Willie Miller and Alfred Jenkins. Much like with [b]Charlie Frazier[b] and Gary Ballman from the same Dolphins draft, however, the later-round player is the superior one, as the 3rd rounder Jenkins has over 1,000 yards receiving in his first two seasons, whereas 1st round Miller has just 500. 3rd WR John Gilliam is league average. TE Raymond Chester is sorely underutilized in the passing game and has absolutely no blocking talent.

Advantage: Dolphins

Offensive Line
Miami boasts a strong interior line in C Tom Banks and long-time Dolphins starting guards Mo Moorman and Gene Upshaw. Tackle is an Achilles heel, however, with Levery Carr a notorious revolving door on the left side and Ron Mikolajcyzk finally reaching league average in his fourth season. Backup C Rich Coady is a top-shelf long-snapper, reserve long-time Dolphins guard Howard Fest is adequate, and Dick Cunningham plays above his greybeard years as the backup tackle.

The Giants are the exact same as Miami, with a strong inside in C Tom De Leone and guards Pat Matson and Steve Lawson. The problem is that Lawson is no Upshaw. LT John Williams is almost as bad as Carr, but RT Doug France plays exceptionally well, particularly for a second year former late 3rd round pick. Bryce Darrow and Bill Ellenbogen are superior to their Dolphins counterparts.

Advantage: Draw

Defensive Line
Losing Dave Roller for the season really hurts, as it required the Dolphins to sign DT Vern Vanoy, who hasn't played since being cut by the 49ers after the preseason, as an emergency backup. That said, this is still a respectable line, with L.C. Greenwood having a career season in tackles and sacks at 49 and 14.5, continuing a streak of 7 straight 10+ sack seasons. He's one of the best DEs in the game. The other end, Julius Adams, is a run-stopper and not much on the pass rush, though Bob Maddox, whom Miami GM Tim Moungey calls "Our best 3rd round pick since Gary Ballman" is coming off a banner regular season himself. Randy Crowder, who will start in place of Roller, has shown nothing. Aging Aaron Brown, Greenwood's best friend on the team and opposite end-mate got 3.5 sacks out of his old legs as the backup DE this season.

Billy Stanfill is a DE who's even more superior than Greenwood and has the 3 All-Pro awards to prove it. Fellow DE Steve Baumgartner had 10.5 sacks in his first season as a full-time starter, after 3 seasons as a backup with the Packers. LDT Bob Heinz had 10 sacks himself and RDT Ernie Holmes is equally adept at the pass-rush and the run defense. The G-men's reserve players, both at end and tackle, are better than the Dolphins as well.

Advantage: Giants

Linebackers
MLB Willie Lanier has lost a step or two, but the 10th year veteran is still the literal and figurative heart of the Dolphins defense, and has posted at least 111 tackles all 7 years he's worn the aqua and orange. While he isn't likely to add any of his 3 All-Pro awards, all earned in Miami, he's still a fearsome competitor. SLB Rod Shoate continued his steady improvement in his second year, but WLB Clyde Warner is replacement-level and the backup situation awful.

MLB Ed Bradley is okay, but no Lanier and WLB Charlie Weaver is, like the other CW, essentially a waste of space. SLB Isiah Robertson broke 100 tackles this season though and is a steady, consistent threat in the pass-rush, the only 'backer on either team to be so in fact. The Giants boast a much stronger backup corps than the Dolphins, with some even going so far as to argue that reserve MLB Sam Hunt should be the starter over Bradley.

Advantage: Giants

Secondary
Willie Alexander has not been the playmaker the Dolphins were hoping to get when they lavished him with a 5 year, $2.3 million dollar contract two seasons ago and his pass defense looked alarming during the regular season, the 0 INTs particularly troubling. He's re-discovered his pass defense skills in the playoffs however, and has an interception. Fellow CB Rolland Lawrence is just the opposite, a 1975 All-Pro CB who's played fantastically for the Dolphins each of his four seasons, but he's been repeatedly picked on this postseason. Nickelback Walt Sumner has also been a target during the playoffs. Losing starting SS Glen Edwards for the Super Bowl is really going to hurt Miami, for his replacement Tony Greene, was brilliant in the regular season, with 5 interceptions and an 82.5% pass defense in just 8 starts, but he's been terrible in the postseason, with a ghastly 73.5% pass defense and no interceptions. FS Chuck Crist is one of the most criminally underrated free safeties in the game. He gets his turnovers, plays terrific pass defense and shows occasional pass-rush skills, but he gets snubbed every year in All-Pro voting. Backup Gus Holloman is a zero, however.

Charlie Ford has been sensational in the playoffs after replacing Larry Carwell on one corner spot. Alvin Wyatt's been effective as well, though not superlative. There's no talent to speak of in the nickel package, however. SS Ray Brown is a very, very good player and Ken Stone is a hard worker with a tremendous nasty streak that helps him overachieve relative to his talent. Backup S rookie Ernie Jones is still raw, though, and has been a weak point during the playoffs.

Advantage: Giants

Overall Opinion:
This is going to be a very, very close game, one of the closest Super Bowls we've ever witnessed. It's going to come down to the following keys:

Keys for the Dolphins:

1. Mix up the play-calling on offense.
While it'd be natural to rely on gamebreaker Walter Payton, calling his number too many times against this Giants D will result in a long, long day.

2. Dare New York to beat you on the ground.
The Giants have a gaping turnover-infested hole at RB, so by going heavy on the pass-coverage, Miami can force New York to go on long drives that lean too heavily on Charlie Smith.

3. Give Manch Wheeler time to throw.
When Wheeler isn't rushed, he can be pretty effective if you give him time in the pocket. Apply pressure on him, though, and he'll hurry throws, leading to turnovers.

Keys for the Giants

1. Get pressure on Wheeler
Miami's weak on the tackle spots and New York can use their superiority on the defensive line to absolutely manhandle the Dolphins o-line and harass Wheeler all day long.

2. Take advantage of the weak spots in the Dolphins' secondary
Glen Edwards is out and a lot of Miami's defensive backfield has been playing poorly this postseason. By going to the air often, with multiple receiver sets, holes can be found and exploited for the points the Giants need.

3. Keep a body on Walter Payton at all times
He's proven to be just as dangerous a receiver as he has a runner, so penetration is going to be key to both pressuring Wheeler and stopping Payton. Even then, one or two hits may not be enough to bring him down, so someone is going to have focus solely on Payton ever single play. He's that much of a gamechanger.

Final Opinion
The Giants' defense is just too good for Miami's offense to beat. New York will be in Manch Wheeler's face all day and the resulting turnovers will put the G-men in position to win.

Not even Walter Payton can save the Dolphins.

Giants by 2