Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Graham
Two games into the season, the Miami Dolphins looked dead on arrival. They were competitive in their home opener against the New York Jets, but lost anyway. The Arizona Cardinals waylaid the Dolphins in Week 2.
| Miami Dolphins: 2008 Season | | | 1st 2 Games | Last 2 Games | | Points/Game | 12.0 | 27.5 | | Opp. Points/Game | 25.5 | 11.5 | | Yards/Game | 256.5 | 425.5 | | Opp. Yards/Game | 369.0 | 208.5 | | Record | 0-2 | 2-0 |
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Something clearly has happened between then and now.
Take away those two lackluster games, focus solely on their last two outings and Miami looks like world beaters.
The Dolphins started 0-2 against teams that had a combined 12-20 record last year. Then they posted decisive victories over clubs that played in last year's AFC title game.
The Dolphins and their fans are unusually geeked up these days, but Dolphins coach Tony Sparano on Monday suggested they need to remember the first two games as much as the past two games.
"Don't get too hyped up," Sparano said of his message to the players. "A lot of people want to pat you on the back when you do good. When you don't do good, they want to bring you down or they want to kick you in the butt.
"As I told this team, the big thing right now is just from our end, don't get caught up in all of that stuff. We've got to keep a level head. We've got to keep going out playing, stay hungry, stay humble. That's what we're talking about."
Graham joined ESPN.com in 2008 after covering the Miami Dolphins for the Palm Beach Post. He previously spent eight years at the Buffalo News, where he was an award-winning NHL and boxing writer. The Baldwin-Wallace College grad also has worked for the Las Vegas Sun and Boston Herald.
