Fish bowled over

Wannstedt says change of scenery will help RB Williams

MIAMI -- As soon as the Miami Dolphins landed Ricky Williams -- their biggest catch ever in that decades-long quest to acquire a franchise running back -- the two words that jumped to everyone's lips this offseason were "Super Bowl."

Not Dave Wannstedt. The Dolphins' third-year head coach was thinking "fish bowl." Yep, fish bowl. As in, Williams was no longer captive to the gargantuan hopes, expectations and scrutiny that marked his three-year tenure in New Orleans.

"I really think that Ricky was put in such a fish bowl in New Orleans," said Wannstedt, whose Dolphins lost 24-7 in desultory fashion to the Saints on Thursday night, in Miami's preseason home opener at Pro Player Stadium. "And now he's in Miami, and he's not in a fish bowl. He's really not. From an outside standpoint, he might be. But not from within this locker room."

No fish bowl in Miami, which has been looking for a running back of Williams' stature since the passing of Larry Csonka's prime? No fish bowl for a team that has won 22 games the past two seasons, but hungers to take that next step to legitimate Super Bowl contention? No fish bowl for a player who could end up costing the Dolphins two first-round picks?

Nope, says Wannstedt. As strange as it sounds, Williams isn't Miami's new savior, because the Dolphins weren't lost to begin with. No. 34 is a piece of the puzzle. Not the final one.

The Dolphins pulled off the deal, Wannstedt points out, in order to -- and hang onto your hats here -- get better. To win more, not start winning. To not only make the playoffs, but also to make the playoffs pay off.

His message to Williams? Ricky, don't lose that mindset. It's the only one you need.

"I'll take the pressure off Ricky," Wannstedt said. "I'll take the bullets for Ricky right now. When we made the trade, one of the first things I told him was, 'We've got Pro Bowlers on defense. You don't have to be the center of attention here. The media and the fans are going to try and make you that. But understand that's not how we're looking at it. We're not bringing you in here because we haven't been able to win any games here.'"

That's all well and good, but no matter how you frame things, expectations for Williams and/or any other Dolphin aren't exactly in short supply. Miami boasts the NFL's longest current streak of non-losing seasons -- the team's last sub-.500 season was 1988. For these Dolphins, the playoffs are no longer enough.

Miami made made two significant moves on offense this off-season: The trade for Williams, a fourth-year veteran, and the hiring of Norv Turner as offensive coordinator, replacing the departed Chan Gailey. Both were designed to break Miami out of its late-Marino era and later pattern of being good but never great on offense.

"Like everyone else in here, I hope those two moves are the moves that help us get past that playoff level to the next level," fifth-year Dolphins receiver Oronde Gadsden said. "They had a chance to get Ricky, and they went out and did it. And it's like everybody says, we're going to ride him until the wheels fall off."

The Dolphins have been seeking a back like Williams so long that they could be forgiven for forgetting that having a big-time No. 1 running back means one thing: You've given every opposing defense a clear-cut No. 1 objective. Wannstedt is braced for the stop-Ricky-and-you've-stopped-the-Fish approach early and often this season.

Already in the preseason, against Tampa Bay on Monday night and again Thursday against Williams' former team, Wannstedt watched as the blueprint emerged. The Bucs and Saints committed so many defenders to stuffing Williams that they basically dared the Dolphins' passing game to beat them. Williams was held to just nine yards rushing on five carries in a quarter of action against the Bucs, and 17 yards on eight carries in the first half against the Saints.

Wannstedt is preaching that while Williams' rushing numbers may suffer early, he still may be helping Miami win in the process. Let's face it, folks: You couldn't say that about Lamar Smith.

"I guarantee you teams are going to start off saying, 'Don't let Ricky Williams run the ball,'" Wannstedt said. "That's the way it is when you have a pedigree back like Ricky, a name back. That's when the rest of your offense has to step up and force a defense out of that approach. Ricky's challenge is going to be to be patient and make sure he understands we're doing what's best for the football team and what's best for the whole offense.

"The good thing about him is he gets it. He understands the whole picture. A lot of guys would never get it. Either they're too selfish or they're not smart enough to understand it. But with Ricky, as long as we're winning, he's going to be a major reason why."

In other words, if teams put eight men in the box to stop Williams, Dolphins quarterback Jay Fiedler must find receivers Chris Chambers, Gadsden and Dedric Ward in single coverage and make those teams pay. Driving home that pick-your-poison mentality falls to Turner.

"Certainly we're going to see it until we prove we can handle it," said Turner, who's bringing to Miami a West Coast offense that's well suited to beating the eight-in-the-box defensive approach. "Ricky may be the guy who makes Chris Chambers and Oronde Gadsden benefit from that kind of defense. Ricky may put Jay Fiedler into a position where he has great success."

If that's the case, then the acquisition of Williams will end up being remembered as the final piece of the puzzle in Miami, whether Wannstedt is willing to admit it or not. Count Gadsden among the potential believers.

"We think we can put all the pieces together to make Ricky the one, the running back we've been looking for," Gadsden said. "When they load up to stop Ricky, that's when there'll be single coverage out there for us receivers. We've got to take advantage of that, and we're ready. Maybe the first eight games they'll concentrate on Ricky and forget about us. And then the next eight games, we'll ride Ricky."

Just how far is the only question that matters in Miami this season.

Don Banks covers pro football for CNNSI.com.

 

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