Dolphins need to find 'space' for Ginn
You can find out all you need to know about Ted Ginn Jr. by watching the YouTube clip of a long punt return he made against the Buffalo Bills a couple of weeks ago.
The run was actually nullified by a clip (like many such infractions, it really didn't affect the play), but that's irrelevant. The video shows Ted Ginn Jr. evading one tackler with a neat hip slide, bursting into the open field and galloping 85 yards to the end zone. What's most impressive is that three Buffalo defenders appeared to have an angle on him as he neared the goal line, but Ted Ginn Jr. whizzed past them like they were three Wiley Coyotes and he was the Roadrunner.
The kid isn't just fast -- he's supersonic.
As a return man alone, the former Ohio State star has justified his pre-draft publicity. He's averaging 12.5 yards per punt return, 23.9 per kickoff, and he did haul a punt all the way last Sunday against Philadelphia.
As a receiver (his primary role as a Buckeye), Ted Ginn Jr. has 12 catches for 205 yards (a 17.1 average) and a touchdown.
Simply put, the Dolphins need to use Ted Ginn Jr. more. To his credit, new starting QB John Beck tried, but he was shaky in his NFL debut. One attempted long ball to Ted Ginn Jr. was almost picked off by the Eagles' Sheldon Brown.
But how about trying a few more reverses (OK, Ted Ginn Jr. has gained a total of 5 yards on three of them, but it's the sort of weapon that keeps defenses honest), screen passes, or short tosses that leave the rookie, as the currently popular term goes, "in space" against slower defenders?
What you wonder about is how Ted Ginn Jr. might have performed with better quarterbacking. Or an offensive line that allowed those QBs more time to throw and Ted Ginn Jr. more time to get open.
You can't coach speed. But you can harness it.
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