The 2009 Miami Dolphins season was the franchise's 40th season in the National Football League (NFL), the 44th overall and the second under head coach Tony Sparano. The Dolphins entered the 2009 season as the reigning AFC East champions after posting an 11–5 record in 2008. Dropping by four more games, the Dolphins failed to make the playoffs for the first time since 2007, marking the 25th consecutive year that the region hosting the Super Bowl did not see its host team play in, thus it set off a playoff drought that lasted until 2016http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/columnists/greg_cote/story/822086.html (not counting years where Super Bowls have been played on neutral sites).
Offseason personnel moves
Coaching staff The Dolphins fired offensive line coach Mike Maser on January 14, 2009, just one year after he was hired to head coach Tony Sparano's staff. During Maser's lone season with the Dolphins, the team had the 12th-best offense in the league with 345.6 yards per game. A day after firing Maser, the team hired Dave DeGuglielmo, who had been the assistant offensive line coach for the New York Giants, as their new offensive line coach.
After kicking coach Steve Hoffman left the team to join the Kansas City Chiefs, the Dolphins hired University of Rhode Island head coach Darren Rizzi as the assistant special teams coach on February 21.
Players
Re-signings January 5 – Re-signed wide receiver Anthony Armstrong, cornerback Scorpio Babers, cornerback Will Billingsley, fullback Chris Brown, defensive tackle Joe Cohen, running back Lex Hilliard and wide receiver Todd Lowber. February 20 – Re-signed offensive tackle Vernon Carey. February 25 – Re-signed linebacker Channing Crowder. February 27 – Re-signed safety Yeremiah Bell. May 16 – Signed fullback Lousaka Polite to a multi-year extension. May 26 – Signed cornerback Will Allen to a multi-year extension. June 22 – Signed safety Tyrone Culver to a multi-year extension.
Signings January 6 – Claimed linebacker Tearrius George off waivers from the New Orleans Saints. January 19 – Signed safety Ethan Kilmer (Bengals) and linebacker Cameron Wake (BC Lions). February 25 – Signed safety Gibril Wilson (Raiders). February 27 – Signed guard Joe Berger (Cowboys). March 3 – Signed center Jake Grove (Raiders). March 12 – Signed cornerback Eric Green (Cardinals). April 25 – Signed punter Jy Bond (Australia). May 13 – Signed linebacker Jason Taylor (Redskins).
Departures February 10 – Waived guard Matt McChesney and linebacker Kelvin Smith. March 2 – Terminated the contract of defensive end Vonnie Holliday. April 27 – Released quarterback John Beck. June 1 – Released wide receiver Todd Lowber. June 15 – Released cornerback Scorpio Babers and punter Jy Bond.
Trades March 19 – Acquired defensive tackle Tony McDaniel from the Jacksonville Jaguars in exchange for seventh-round pick in the 2009 NFL draft. March 23 – Traded center Samson Satele to the Oakland Raiders in exchange for a sixth-round pick and a swap of fourth-round picks in the 2009 NFL draft.
Free agents UFA: Unrestricted free agent, RFA: Restricted free agent, ERFA: Exclusive-rights free agent Position Player Free agencystatus Date signed 2009 team SS Yeremiah Bell UFA 2/26 Miami Dolphins OT Vernon Carey UFA 2/20 Miami Dolphins LB Channing Crowder UFA 2/25 Miami Dolphins CB André Goodman UFA 3/1 Denver Broncos TE Aaron Halterman ERFA FS Renaldo Hill UFA 2/27 Denver Broncos C Al Johnson UFA 3/17 New England Patriots LB Quentin Moses ERFA 3/31 Miami Dolphins G Ike Ndukwe ERFA 3/20 Miami Dolphins WR Tab Perry UFA LB Derek Smith UFA = Retained by Dolphins
2009 NFL draft Originally slated to have the 26th overall pick in the 2009 NFL draft, the Dolphins' pick moved up one spot to 25th after the Arizona Cardinals and Philadelphia Eagles made it to the NFC Championship. Both the Cardinals (9–7) and Eagles (9–6–1) were projected to pick before the Dolphins (11–5), but with one guaranteed to make the Super Bowl (and thus pick 31st or 32nd depending on the outcome) the Dolphins moved up one position in the draft.
Draft Name Position College Height Weight Rnd Pick 1 25 Vontae Davis CB Illinois 5'11" 203 2 44 Pat White QB/WR West Virginia 6'0" 197 61 Sean Smith CB Utah 6'4" 215 3 87 Patrick Turner WR USC 6'5" 220 4 108 Brian Hartline WR Ohio State 6'3" 188 5 161 John Nalbone TE Monmouth 6'4" 255 165 Chris Clemons FS Clemson 6'1" 210 6 181 Andrew Gardner OT Georgia Tech 6'6" 305 7 214 J. D. Folsom ILB Weber State 6'3" 230 Notes The Dolphins acquired Washington's 2009 second-round pick when they traded defensive end Jason Taylor in July 2008. The Dolphins traded their 2009 sixth-round pick to the Dallas Cowboys when they acquired defensive tackle Jason Ferguson in February 2008. The Dolphins acquired Cleveland's 2009 seventh-round pick when they traded cornerback Travis Daniels in August 2008. The Dolphins acquired Carolina's 2009 seventh-round pick when they traded quarterback Josh McCown in August 2008. The Dolphins traded its second-round selection (56th overall) to Indianapolis for their second- and fifth-round selection (61st and 165th overall, respectively). The Dolphins traded their second 2009 seventh-round selection (237th pick) to Kansas City for a 2010 seventh-round selection.
Draft pick signings May 21 – Signed tight end John Nalbone to a four-year contract. June 18 – Signed offensive tackle Andrew Gardner to a four-year contract. July 3 – Signed wide receiver Patrick Turner to a four-year contract. July 3 – Signed linebacker J. D. Folsom to a four-year contract. July 15 – Signed wide receiver Brian Hartline to a four-year contract. July 24 – Signed cornerback Sean Smith to a four-year contract. August 1 – Signed cornerback Vontae Davis to a five-year contract. August 2 – Signed quarterback Pat White to a four-year contract. August 2 – Signed safety Chris Clemons to a four-year contract.
Undrafted free agents Following the 2009 NFL draft, the Dolphins signed the following nine undrafted free agents on April 30: DE Ryan Baker (Purdue) TE Jared Bronson (Central Washington) NT Louis Ellis (Shaw) RB Anthony Kimble (Stanford) OG Mark Lewis (Oregon) RB Rob Lewis (University of Virginia) WR Brennan Marion (Tulsa) DE Orion Martin (Virginia Tech) OT SirVincent Rogers (Houston) WR Chris Williams (New Mexico State)
The team later signed guard J. D. Quinn (Montana) on May 11. Two of the undrafted rookies left the team shortly after signing, with Bronson failing to report to training camp on August 2 and Rogers opting for retirement on August 6.
Training camp and preseason
Opening camp roster Miami Dolphins 2009 opening training camp roster Quarterbacks Chad Henne Chad Pennington Pat White
Running backs Chris Brown FB Ronnie Brown Patrick Cobbs Lex Hilliard Anthony Kimble Lousaka Polite FB Ricky Williams
Wide receivers Anthony Armstrong Davone Bess Greg Camarillo Ted Ginn Jr. Brian Hartline Brandon London Brennan Marion Patrick Turner Chris Williams
Tight ends Anthony Fasano Joey Haynos David Martin John Nalbone Ernest Wilford Offensive linemen Andy Alleman C Joe Berger G Vernon Carey T Brandon Frye G Andrew Gardner T Nate Garner T Jake Grove C Mark Lewis G Jake Long T Shawn Murphy G Ike Ndukwe G SirVincent Rogers T Justin Smiley G Donald Thomas G
Defensive linemen Ryan Baker DE Joe Cohen NT Lionel Dotson NT Louis Ellis NT Jason Ferguson NT Kendall Langford DE Tony McDaniel NT Phillip Merling DE Quentin Moses DE Paul Soliai NT Randy Starks DE Rodrique Wright DE Linebackers Charlie Anderson OLB Akin Ayodele ILB Channing Crowder ILB J. D. Folsom ILB Tearrius George OLB William Kershaw ILB Orion Martin OLB Joey Porter OLB Jason Taylor OLB/DE Reggie Torbor ILB Erik Walden OLB Cameron Wake OLB
Defensive backs Jason Allen CB/ Will Allen CB Yeremiah Bell SS Will Billingsley CB Courtney Bryan S Chris Clemons FS Tyrone Culver S Vontae Davis CB Eric Green CB Nathan Jones CB Ethan Kilmer FS Sean Smith CB Joey Thomas CB Gibril Wilson FS
Special teams Dan Carpenter K John Denney LS Brandon Fields P Reserve lists Jared Bronson (did not report) Matt Roth OLB (active/NF-Inj.)
Rookies in italics
Final preseason roster Miami Dolphins 2009 final preseason roster Quarterbacks Chad Henne Chad Pennington Pat White
Running backs Ronnie Brown Patrick Cobbs Lex Hilliard Lousaka Polite FB Ricky Williams
Wide receivers Davone Bess Greg Camarillo Ted Ginn Jr. Brian Hartline Brandon London James Robinson Patrick Turner
Tight ends Anthony Fasano Joey Haynos David Martin John Nalbone Offensive linemen Joe Berger C Vernon Carey T Brandon Frye G Andrew Gardner T Nate Garner T Jake Grove C Mark Lewis G Jake Long T Shawn Murphy G Justin Smiley G Donald Thomas G
Defensive linemen Ryan Baker DE Lionel Dotson NT Jason Ferguson NT Kendall Langford DE Tony McDaniel NT Phillip Merling DE Quentin Moses DE Paul Soliai NT Randy Starks DE Rodrique Wright DE Linebackers Charlie Anderson OLB Akin Ayodele ILB Channing Crowder ILB J. D. Folsom ILB William Kershaw ILB Joey Porter OLB Jason Taylor OLB Reggie Torbor ILB Erik Walden OLB Cameron Wake OLB
Defensive backs Jason Allen CB Will Allen CB Yeremiah Bell SS Will Billingsley CB Courtney Bryan SS Chris Clemons SS Tyrone Culver FS Vontae Davis CB Nathan Jones CB Sean Smith CB Joey Thomas CB Gibril Wilson FS
Special teams Dan Carpenter K John Denney LS Brandon Fields P Reserve lists Jared Bronson TE (did not report) Ethan Kilmer FS (Left Squad) Joe Kowalewski FB (IR) Brennan Marion WR (IR) Matt Roth OLB (active/NF-Inj.)
Rookies in italics
Transactions August 2 – Waived guard J. D. Quinn and placed tight end Jared Bronson on the Reserve/Did Not Report list. August 4 – Placed linebacker Matt Roth on the Active/Non-Football Injury list. August 5 – Waived/injured wide receiver Brennan Marion. August 6 – Waived fullback Chris Brown and signed fullback Matt Quillen. August 6 – Placed wide receiver Brennan Marion on injured reserve. and offensive tackle SirVincent Rogers on the Reserve/Retired list. August 10 – Waived fullback Matt Quillen and signed wide receiver James Robinson and placekicker Connor Barth. August 11 – Signed fullback Joe Kowalewski. August 12 – Placed safety Ethan Kilmer on the Commissioner's Exemption list. August 19 – Released cornerback Eric Green. August 19 – Moved safety Ethan Kilmer to the Reserve/Left Squad list. August 24 – Waived running back Anthony Kimble, nose tackle Joe Cohen, linebacker Tearrius George and linebacker Orion Martin. August 24 – Waived/injured wide receiver Chris Williams. August 24 – Traded offensive lineman Andy Alleman and Ikechuku Ndukwe to the Kansas City Chiefs in exchange for an undisclosed 2010 NFL draft pick. August 25 – Released wide receiver Chris Williams with an injury settlement. August 29 – Waived wide receiver Anthony Armstrong, nose tackle Louis Ellis and placekicker Connor Barth. August 29 – Waived/injured fullback Joe Kowalewski. September 1 – Placed fullback Joe Kowalewski on injured reserve. September 5 – Waived or released safety Courtney Bryan, offensive tackle Brandon Frye, linebacker William Kershaw, wide receiver Brandon London, cornerback Joey Thomas, defensive end Rodrique Wright, offensive tackle Nate Garner, cornerback Will Billingsley, defensive end Ryan Baker, guard Mark Lewis, linebacker J. D. Folsom and wide receiver James Robinson.
Preseason Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Game site NFL.comrecap 1 August 17 Jacksonville Jaguars W 12–9 1–0 Land Shark Stadium Recap 2 August 22 Carolina Panthers W 27–17 2–0 Land Shark Stadium Recap 3 August 27 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 10–6 3–0 Raymond James Stadium Recap 4 September 3 at New Orleans Saints W 10–7 4–0 Louisiana Superdome Recap
Regular season
Schedule