Ginn Finally Banished to Sidelines
The stench of Cam Cameron lingers...
By JANIE CAMPBELL
Updated 3:54 PM EDT, Wed, Oct 28, 2009
On one hand, the backlash against Ted Ginn, Jr. deserves a little backlash. It's his fault he's not doing his job well, but it's Cam Cameron's fault for handicapping the Dolphins into giving Ginn so much time to figure out how to catch (or not). And he didn't single-handedly lose to the Saints.
On the other, it's about time Ginn sat in the corner to think about what he's done. When the only argument a staff can make for playing time is that he's speedy enough to keep defenses honest, even though the entire world knows he can't catch a downfield pass, it's over -- drama overblown or otherwise.
So the Dolphins are finally moving on, at least for a week. Ginn spent today's workouts watching the first and second team offenses play without him, following Tony Sparano's admission that rookie Brian Hartline has earned more opportunities. Ginn was joined on the sidelines by rookie WR Pat Turner and practice squad hands James Robinson and Julius Pruit, while Hartline, Davone Bess, and Greg Camarillo rounded out the O.
There's probably little a first-rounder could find more insulting, so it'll be interesting to see how Ginn responds. Judging from what happened later in one-on-one drills -- Ginn beat practice quad safety Nate Ness but then dropped a pass and was yelled at -- the response hasn't started yet. Or maybe that's all there will be.
Meanwhile, his former Ohio State teammate Hartline is reported to have a better grasp on the playbook, if a little less speed. Of course, that wasn't Ginn's problem -- he was usually in the right place, just got there without shedding coverage and then bobbled the play -- but a look at the team's yards after catch averages says drops aren't the only reason this shift is overdue:
R. Williams 10.3
Hartline 8.4
Haynos 8.0
Cobbs 5.7
Polite 5.7
R Brown 5.3
D Bess 4.0
Fasano 3.2
Ginn .99
Yup. It's time to see what Hartline's made of, even if it happens in slow motion. If the speediest guy on the team isn't getting separation enough to take a few more steps with the ball, he's clearly not doing his job. And someone else should get a shot.
Janie Campbell thinks Ted Ginn should follow Mark Sanchez' version of penance and donate 500 sets of hands to schools when he drops a catch. Her work has appeared in irreverent sports sites around the Internet.
Copyright NBC Local Media
First Published: Oct 28, 2009 2:08 PM EDT
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