By Stephen F. Holder, Times Staff Writer

In Print: Sunday, August 28, 2011

Bucs defensive end Da’Quan Bowers drapes himself over Dolphins quarterback Chad Henne and brings him down after a 1-yard gain on third down to the Bucs’ 3 in the second quarter.
	[DANIEL WALLACE | Times]

TAMPA — The Bucs have spent much of the past several seasons looking for some consistency in their pass rush.

Just because Bucs defenders found their way to the quarterback five times in Saturday’s 17-13 preseason win over the Dolphins, that doesn’t mean the days of defensive dominance are back.

But it’s certainly a step toward the ultimate goal.

“Being aggressive up front, that’s just been the history of the Tampa Bay defense for years and years,” defensive tackle Frank Okam said. “We’re just trying to bring that back.”

The five sacks and six total quarterback hits were a good start. What’s better is that much of the quarterback heat came from the primary members of the defensive line rotation.

On the Dolphins’ first play from scrimmage, quarterback Chad Henne was sacked by defensive end Michael Bennett. Bennett also barreled through a gap and dropped running back Reggie Bush for a loss of 3 yards. Bennett later left after taking a shot to the head that made him wobbly, but he said afterward he would be okay.

Ends Da’Quan Bowers, Tim Crowder and George Johnson, and linebacker Dekoda Watson also had one sack apiece.

Watson’s sack was particularly notable. In the so-called “Redskin” package, in which the second-year linebacker lines up as an edge rusher, Watson raced in to take down Henne and jar the ball loose. Bush recovered and was dropped for no gain.

“For myself, it’s just confidence,” Watson said of his recent improvement. “The more I’ve been working with (defensive line) coach Keith (Millard) the better I’ve gotten. … It’s about the season. This preseason stuff doesn’t even matter. Got to keep getting better.”

What Watson and every other edge rusher said is that the pass rush is vastly improved because of the play of the interior linemen also is improved. The sacks often are a direct result.

Roy Miller remained sidelined with a knee injury, and Brian Price played a bit in his first preseason action. So, the defensive tackle play figures to get even better.

Okam dropped Bush for a loss with a violent hit. And he took on double teams.

“Everyone who gets one on ones, we challenge ourselves to never lose,” Bowers said. “Every time we get one, we have to win. We don’t get many, so we have to win.”

[Last modified: Aug 28, 2011 12:29 AM]

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A look back at the Miami Dolphins’ first defeat of the preseason …

It was another strong first half for Miami Dolphins QB Chad Henne.

QUICK TAKES

1. So … about that offensive line. The Dolphins struggled to run block and they struggled to pass block on Saturday night at Raymond James Stadium. Asked for his impressions on the line, Dolphins coach Tony Sparano offered a curt, “Wasn’t pleased” during his press conference. That about says it.

2. Another strong half for Chad Henne. Don’t look now but Chad Henne in the past two halves has completed 25 of 36 passes for 370 yards. Yeah, it’s the preseason. But still. That’s impressive. He was 10-of-12 for 175 yards and a touchdown in the first half against the Buccaneers.

3. Lots of mistakes. In addition to the errors up front on the offensive line, the Dolphins weren’t sharp in a lot of other areas, either. They committed 11 penalties. There was the costly Brandon Marshall fumble that led to a Bucs touchdown at the end of the first half. Just wasn’t a sharp effort for the Dolphins.

THE PLAY
The Dolphins best highlight came on their first offensive series of the game. Henne completed a 60-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Marshall. It was pretty, indeed. The pass was perfect – deep down the right sideline – and what Marshall did afterward might have been even better, stiff-arming his way to the end zone.

THREE STARS
1. Henne. He was the best player on the field for the Dolphins. See above stat line.

2. Marshall. Yes, he had the costly fumble. But also 90 yards receiving and a touchdown in the first half.

3. Brandon Fields. Go ahead and snicker if you want at the inclusion of a punter on here. But Fields was one of the Dolphins’ most valuable players. He averaged 59 yards on his seven punts and twice pinned the Buccaneers inside their own 20.

THE MATCHUP
Sparano was interested to see how his offense would perform against a fast, young Tampa Bay defense. The results were mixed. The running game was nonexistent – Daniel Thomas led the Dolphins with 16 yards rushing while Reggie Bush finished with negative-one yards rushing – but Henne and the passing game was a success, especially in the short routes over the middle. If Marshall doesn’t fumble on that drive late in the first half, the Dolphins could have been up 17-3 or, at worst, 13-3 headed into the half.

UP NEXT
The Dolphins will take Sunday off but will return to practice on Monday in Davie. The final preseason game will be on Thursday at Sun Life Stadium against the Dallas Cowboys. It’s unlikely that the starters will see a lot of action in that one.

Signing off from a darkened Raymond James Stadium …