Mike Wallace is well-aware of how the season is progressing for the Miami Dolphins. The Dolphins sit at 5-5 and Wallace has been criticized for not doing enough to get the team over the .500 hump. Certainly displaying lower numbers than his contract dictates he should have, Wallace is concerned about himself and the rest of the team.
Heading into Week 12, Wallace has 44 catches for 534 yards and one touchdown. Just one touchdown for the massive free agent contract he signed after leaving the Pittsburgh Steelers. The wide receiver is coming off a game where he put up just four catches for 39 yards in another small in quiet performance. Despite his season struggles, Dolphins offensive coordinator Mike Sherman is praising the new effort by the marquee player.
"I thought Mike had a tremendous ball game," Sherman said, via the Miami Herald. "He ran hard, and he ran his routes very disciplined. He was open on a number of occasion and sometimes it was protection issues and we didn't get him the ball, other times we just didn't get him the ball, but I thought Mike had a tremendous impact in that ball game, because he changed how they played us and allowed us an opportunity to control the game with some runs and what not. He started the game with a catch and a first down where he broke some tackles. It kind of set a tempo for us, I thought, in that ball game."
Shocked by the praise considering his small numbers, Wallace is realistic of where the season is headed. The receiver notes that he is still struggling with his connection with quarterback Ryan Tannehill. The quarterback has had a streaky season just like the receiver and Wallace is frustrated.
"Ha, it's Week 11," Wallace said.
The veteran is not ready to place sole blame on the quarterback saying it is a true team struggle and panic should really start to set in with players. Hampered by a hamstring injury, fantasy owners were certainly expecting better numbers out of the receiver. Wallace is averaging just 12.1 yards per catch while sitting second on the receiving depth chart.
When thinking of ways the team could improve, Wallace suggested Tannehill start overthrowing him since he can speed up and better catch the balls. However the Dolphins decide to address the problems, Wallace promises things will get better because they simply have to at this point.
