The Dolphins were able to stop the Titans' Chris Johnson last year, but in 2010, Miami's run defense is not as strong.


BY DAVID J. NEAL
dneal@MiamiHerald.com
Defending the run requires fast-paced geometry. Stay acutely aware of where you are or you'll play the angle wrong and some swift, shifty running back will make you look obtuse.


Tennessee's Chris Johnson, officially listed as probable with a thigh injury, is the premier angle buster in the NFL.

He's the closest thing to a distance sprinter you'll find.

The Dolphins kept him from exploding last season, but they're coming off a game against Baltimore in which they flunked their geometry test.


``Most poor tackling defenses or when you have a bad day, it's because your angles are really bad to the ball,'' Dolphins defensive coordinator Mike Nolan said.


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SOME ANSWERS


Big kids with bad geometry.


``One of our answers is that we have to take better angles and [Johnson] can run away from angles,'' Dolphins coach Tony Sparano said. ``There's a run that he has in the San Diego game that's off the charts. It starts to the right and he makes two guys miss, jump cuts and circles the whole defense back to the left and runs it in for about a 40-yard touchdown. There's a bunch of people that have angles and nobody really has an angle.


``I think with this guy, you got to get him down on the ground. You can't let him get started.

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