DAVIE, Fla. -- The Miami Dolphins, who face four of the NFL's top quarterbacks in the next month, figured it would be wise to come up with something fast.
So defensive coordinator Kevin Coyle created a package named "speed."
The scheme gets ends Cameron Wake, Olivier Vernon and Dion Jordan into the game together, which gives the Dolphins a formidable pass rush and considerable flexibility. Miami unveiled the alignment in Sunday's season-opening win at Cleveland, and Coyle said it will be used more in the weeks to come.
"We can do a lot of things with those guys on the field," Coyle said. "We had a lot of fast guys on the field with that particular group. We can cover with those guys because they are all athletic; you might have seen Dion dropping into coverage a few times. We just scratched the surface with that."
The speed package is one of many schemes designed to take advantage of the depth and versatility in Miami's defensive front seven, which is the strength of the team. But the group will be sorely tested by the upcoming schedule, beginning Sunday when the Dolphins faceAndrew Luck in Indianapolis. Then come Matt Ryan and Atlanta, Drew Brees at New Orleans, and Joe Flacco and Baltimore.
If the Dolphins are still above .500 when that stretch ends, they'll be well-positioned for a run at only their second playoff berth since 2001.
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