The Dolphins kick off the 2010 season today at 1:00 on CBS, and hoo, boy! It seemed this day would never come.

Relief isn't borne of any certainty they'll win -- the Fins have lost five straight games in Buffalo, and stand 1-6 in the last seven season openers -- but the fact that it means, once and for all, this horrid offseason has come to a close.

The Dolphins have been having a rough time, that's for sure. There were the arrests and the Jason Taylor debacle, the hooker question and the injuries. But worst of all, even just days before kickoff, the Dolphins were jettisoning the latest of a handful of hand-picked failed cornerstones of this rebuild, all selected by this front office.

Jake Grove, released last week, along with Gibril Wilson, Ernest Wilford, Eric Green, Josh McCown and Reggie Torbor started just 27 games between them, but cost Miami $42 million. None lasted more than one season. All were highly touted by management.

Then the one guy able to provide any reassurance that this front office knew what it was doing abandoned his post just days before the season. Trying to escape the mess? Maybe. The running game died in the pre-season. Last year's starting corner was demoted. And the passing game, behind a guy who's supposed to be the team's next Marino, tanked hard and was forced to play a fourth game, one saw Jake Long get hurt.

It's not exactly comforting. But at least now we'll be able to get some beer and sunshine to go with our Dolphins. Here's a few thoughts:

Chad Henne will be fine.
Boy, have a tough pre-season and everyone forgets you slayed the Patriots and the Jets last year, when things mattered. Sure, Bill Parcells is disappointed, and Dave Hyde tried to make us feel better by pointing out that everyone's disappointed. He is going to be fine. We think.

Baby, baby, where did our run go? 
Ronnie and Ricky went nowhere during the pre-season. The line struggled to clear any space, and the offense sputtered. It's hard to imagine, however, they can't have a good game in Buffalo, a team against whom they've combined to average 121 rushing yards in four games.

And they need to, for the sake of an emerging quarterback in an away game situation -- if they can get the ground game churning, and the Bills safeties come toward the line, that prevents free safety Jairus Byrd from sitting back and lying in wait for Chad Henne to throw.

Don't panic if The Beast doesn't get many opportunities. 
Because the Dolphins would be smart to take advantage of the coverage he'll require to make good use of Brian Hartline and Davone Bess in the slot. Marshall can outwork any double team, but they likely won't want to ask Chad Henne to make many throws into tight coverage at this point. If he doesn't see the ball much, that's not about forever -- it's just about where the Dolphins are right now with Chad Henne.

Bills to watch:
Human waterbug/running back C.J. Spiller can be a demon on returns and shifty on the run. He's not faced anyone like Karlos Dansby coming out of the backfield, but the Dolphins' special teams has been suspect of late.

Lee Evans is the Bill's only real downfield threat, and Buffalo's o-line likely won't give Trent Edwards a whole lot of time to make plays. But Evans will still be a difficult matchup for sophomore corner Vontae Davis, who must keep him from gaining chuck yardage.

Key Dolphin:
Cameron Wake could have a field day against the Bill's Demetrius Bell and Cornell Green. Bell is coming off knee surgery, and Green struggles with speed. If Wake can get around the two, Trent Edwards is imminently rattleable -- and that keeps the ball from finding Lee Evans.

Predictions: 
The talking heads are nearly unanimous. Tom Jackson, Mike Ditka, Mike Florio, Gregg Rosenthal, Peter King, and Ron Jaworski tip Miami for the W. This probably means Chris Mortensen, Adam Schefter, and Prisco are right in giving Buffalo the edge. It just works like that.

Jim Kelly picked the Bills, but he would. Homer!

Pick:
21-17, Miami. The Dolphins may be in an unsettling place in their rebuild, but the Bills are coached by Chan Gailey. Chan Gailey! It'll be close, but in the end, that Buffalo o-line isn't going to get it done.