FanHouse JesseChatman

If the signings of Alan Faneca and Damien Woody weren't enough to convince you, if Tony Richardson joining the team at fullback and plucking Jesse Chatman as a third option in the backfield didn't put the light bulb above your head, perhaps Musa Smith's signing will finally put it all together for you. The Jets are going to do everything in their power to establish a successful running game this season or they're going to die trying.

The team announced Smith's signing yesterday. Rich Cimini of the Daily News wonders how this will affect one of the holdovers from 2007.

Running-back depth is critical, as the Giants proved last season, but Smith's arrival must have a guy like Leon Washington wondering about his role. A year ago, he was voted the team MVP. Now he finds two veterans, Smith and Chatman, trying to squeeze their way into the rotation.

I don't see it that way. Yhe 6'0", 232 pound Smith isn't a big-play threat like Washington. He's most likely going to help in short yardage sets. That should worry Chatman since it's unlikely five backs would see regular playing time. Smith also has a lot of experience on special teams, something that could give him a leg up in a roster crunch.

The next question is how all these backs affect the team's quarterback competition. Does Chad Pennington, excellent in play action, benefit? Or is Kellen Clemens, given coverage by the improved running game, more likely to succeed now? Should be an interesting training summer.

The Jets continued their effort to sign every available free agent in the NFL yesterday by inking a deal with former Dolphin tailback Jesse Chatman. On the surface it doesn't sound like something to get all that excited about. Chatman is a career backup and would be insurance in case Thomas Jones and/or Leon Washington got hurt in 2008.

Below the surface, though, there could be more going on. The Jets have now signed two offensive linemen, a fullback and Chatman. That's an awful lot of attention paid to getting the running game up and, er, running and they've still got other holes that need filling on defense. Could that mean the team intends to pass up Darren McFadden in April?

I think the two things are mutually exclusive. If the Jets feel McFadden is the best fit and best player available, having Chatman on the roster isn't going to stop them from selecting him. They haven't released financials on Chatman's deal but I'd imagine the Jets' obligations are on the smaller side and McFadden would play a much larger role on the field than Chatman would. A lot will happen between now and the sixth selection of the first round and the Jets have simply made sure that their running back spot will be well-stocked with or without McFadden's addition.

New Dolphins vice lord Bill Parcells made it clear earlier in the week that he didn't want "thugs and hoodlums on the team." Yesterday, he made an appearance at Miami's practice, presumably to kick-off the weeding out process in earnest.

Understandably, most Dolphins' players realize the situation and are already preparing for the eventuality that includes some form of the conversation: "Parcells wants to see you ... and don't forget your playbook."

"I could tell you there's no fear and be vague and ambiguous, but let's be real," running back Samkon Gado said. "Yes, it's a concern for every person in this locker room. Because, at this point, our body of work is accomplished, and there is nothing you can do at this point to change your lot."

Luckily for Gado, if this professional football thing doesn't work out, he's been accepted to medical school. Other players don't have a non-football-related fallback plan:

To get you ready for Week 17, FanHouse is previewing all 16 NFL games. Here is your Bengals/Dolphins preview.

2007 Records:
Cincinnati Bengals: 6-9 (3rd in AFC North)
Miami Dolphins: 1-14 (4th in AFC East)

Last Week:
Bengals 19, Browns 14
Patriots 28, Dolphins 7

Why We Care: For the outsider, nothing really. For fan of the two teams, it will be the last time we will see alot of the familiar faces. Miami has Bill Parcells ready to gut this franchise, so who knows who will be back. As for the Bengals, this horrible season has to be dealt with in some manner ... so a franchise guy or two may not be there in 2008. Oh, and there is the face-to-face between Levi Jones and Joey Porter since their tussle in Vegas.

To get you ready for week 14, FanHouse is previewing all 16 NFL games. Here is the Miami Dolphins/Buffalo Bills preview.

2007 Records:

Buffalo Bills: 6-6 (2nd in AFC East)
Miami Dolphins: 0-12 (4th in AFC East)

Last Game(s):

Bills 17 - Redskins 16
Jets 40 - Dolphins 13

When the Bills have the ball: Will Marshawn Lynch make his much anticipated return this weekend? If he does, he couldn't have picked a better time. The Dolphins have the worst rushing defense in the entire league, and you can bet Buffalo will aim to exploit that.

It's been a constant struggle this year for Miami. And while their secondary has performed admirably, no other unit has really stepped up. If they want to end this 12 game skid and avoid one of the most embarrassing seasons of all time, their front seven will have to find a way to shut the Bills running game down. If not, they'll be looking at 0-13.

Ricky Williams' comeback lasted less time than an ounce of Acapulco Gold at Ricky Williams' house. After a year and a half wandering the globe in search of inner peace and a league that would have him, Williams finally got back into the NFL during last night's slopfest in Pittsburgh. Six carries later it was all over and he'll spend the rest of the season in the trainer's room after tearing his pectoral muscle.

After fumbling, Williams' chest was stepped on in the scramble for the loose ball by Lawrence Timmons of the Steelers. The play seemed incidental, by the way, He returned for one more carry but wasn't seen again as Jesse Chatman, who hurt his neck last night, and Patrick Cobbs handled the running, er, slogging chores for the Dolphins for the rest of the evening. At this rate Larry Csonka will be running the ball for the Dolphins by Week 17.

For Williams this can't help his chances of prolonging his career in 2008. He'll be 31 by the time next season starts and has essentially missed three of the last four seasons. At least he'll have yoga, meditation and other new age pursuits to help him transition to the next stage of life. The rest of us will have to make do with our memories of dreadlocks, wedding dresses, helmeted interviews and enough weed jokes to last a lifetime.

Guess what, people? It might be Ricky Time. Yep, Nick Saban's favorite player, Ricky Williams, the guy who spent a few months in India on the World Yoga Tour, the former Heisman Trophy winner and Miami Dolphins running back could be coming back to South Florida.

Okay, I'm getting ahead of myself. For starters, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell hasn't even reinstated Williams, who was suspended for violating the league's substance-abuse policy a record 47 times. Also, head coach Cam Cameron didn't offer a comment one way or the other on the issue.

But with Ronnie Brown down for the season and Dolphins in need of some depth at running back, it's not a completely insane idea. Nothing is a completely insane idea when you're 0-7.

Williams' agent, Leigh Steinberg, said Monday night he doesn't know how long it will take before the league makes a decision on Williams. It could be several weeks. But Steinberg also said, "It wouldn't surprised me if it happened this week, and it wouldn't surprise me if it happened next week.'' ...

''We've got three guys that we'll go with,'' Cameron said. 'You don't replace a Ronnie Brown, but you say, `OK, these are the guys we have. How do we maximize the guys that we have?' ''

Those three guys would be Jesse Chatman, Patrick Cobbs and Lorenzo Booker, and they have combined for 131 rushing yards on 23 carries, which makes for an impressive 5.7 yards per carry. Not too shabby. Maybe there's no hurry on Williams.