Cameron Wake and Olivier Vernon getting ready for Alex Smith

Written by Matthew Cannata | Twitter: @PhinManiacs
The Miami Dolphins are preparing for quarterback Alex Smith of the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday. While Smith isn’t a quarterback who’s going to set the world on fire, he’s known as someone who can move the chains and keep his team in the game. This year, he has thrown for 457 yards on 45 completions. He is averaging 5.9 yards per pass, 228.5 yards per game and has thrown 1 touchdown with 3 interceptions. The longest pass he’s thrown has been 27 yards and he’s been sacked 6 times for a loss of 32 total yards.

Despite those mediocre stats and a quarterback rating of 63.6, Cameron Wake and others on the defense know what can happen if they take Smith too lightly and give him too much time to throw.

“He is a good football player, he stands in there in the pocket and he has the heart of a champion. He will stand in there take a hit and throw the ball. He can move around just enough to get the ball to the open guys and obviously he has great guys to get the ball to, who can catch the ball and run the ball and make big plays,” Wake said. “He is the train so to speak and you have to do whatever you can to stop it. Whether it’s (defensive backs) in the backend covering receivers or the front seven stopping the run or pass rushers getting to him, we have to get it done.”

Fellow defensive lineman Olivier Vernon echoed some of the same sentiments as Wake.

“We’ve got to be disciplined in our rush lanes. He’s trying to get up out of there, he’s trying to make plays happen. Discipline in the rush lanes, forcing the issue, making him feel uncomfortable, but staying disciplined at the same time.”

If the Dolphins can do to Alex Smith what they did to Tom Brady, they should be able to control the game and the line of scrimmage. If they give him too much time to throw though, it could be a long day for the Dolphins defense.

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