March 2
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
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Chad Henne isn't scared of competition, and he doesn't care if it comes from the mentor he replaced as the Miami Dolphins' starting quarterback. In fact, put Henne down as an influential endorser, pushing for the Dolphins to re-sign Chad Pennington. "I'd love it. I love Chad to death," Henne said when asked about Pennington possibly returning to the Dolphins. "Whatever happens, happens. I learned so much from him. If he's with us, I'll learn even more. It's a great opportunity if he comes back. We'll welcome him back." But that doesn't mean Henne is interested in relinquishing his job as starting quarterback. As a starter, Henne led the Dolphins to seven wins while completing 60.8 percent ..."
February 26
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
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Miami Dolphins GM Jeff Ireland danced a little bit when I asked him about his interest in bringing back Chad Pennington in a backup role at quarterback. Earlier, Ireland had called Chad Henne "the future of this organization right now," but if both Chads are on board with the arrangement, hey, why not? "We talked to Chad [Pennington]," Ireland said. "We've talked to Chad [Pennington] on a number of different avenues. Obviously that's a decision that would show you my cards on where we're going from our offseason plan. I like Chad a lot. I think he' s tremendous for the team. He's a tremendous leader. But those decisions will be coming later." Arizona and St. Louis are just two of the ..."
February 5
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
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Spoke to Chad Henne on Monday at Dan Marino's rained out golf tourney, and Henne again had the highest praise for Chad Pennington. It is clear that Henne would not publicly protest if the Dolphins brought Pennington back. The question is whether it makes sense. The Dolphins like Tyler Thigpen, bit it's not really about that. The question is whether you want Henne looking over his shoulder."
February 5
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
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One month from free agency, Chad Pennington is already fighting an inner battle over what his next stop should be. Should he sign with the team that offers him the best chance to return to a starting quarterback role he held with the Dolphins until getting injured in Week 3 at San Diego last year? Or should he take the best backup role he can find in the best overall situation, even if that means staying in South Florida as Chad Henne's mentor? "I've got all kinds of little voices in my head talking to me every day," Pennington said Thursday afternoon after participating at an NFL-sponsored clinic at the Boys and Girls Club. "It's going to be a tough decision." Pennington's rehab from Oct. ..."
January 5
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
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Last year in his final news conference Dolphins coach Tony Sparano gave Chad Pennington a ringing endorsement, naming the savvy veteran the team's starting quarterback for 2009. This year in his final news conference Sparano praised Chad Henne, who was 7-6 as a first-year starter. But Sparano stopped short of anointing Henne the starting quarterback heading into 2010. "I have to sit back now and look at the entire body of work and see what Chad did really well, and what Chad didn't do really well. But I am really pleased with what Chad did, I really am," Sparano said. "This guy, he is a pretty curious guy. He likes to get better at the things he is not good at … I really like what I have ..."
November 18
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
columnist Mike Berardino
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Chad Pennington spends his game days camped in front of the family flat screen, watching his Dolphins teammates do battle in a roaring stadium while he plays referee to his two young sons. "They've got their Dolphin helmets on and they're throwing the football and it gets pretty rowdy and loud in there, that's for sure," Pennington said Tuesday in his first public comments since undergoing season-ending shoulder surgery on Oct. 2. And just how big is that TV screen? "It's pretty big," Pennington said after an appearance at the Miami Dolphins Touchdown Club. The same may be said of the veteran quarterback's impact on successor Chad Henne and the Dolphins' weekly offensive game plan. ..."
October 4
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
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The first goal, as always, is to win your division. So as the Chad Pennington-less Dolphins prepare to open AFC East play this afternoon at home against the Buffalo Bills, it's not surprising that the notion of a fresh start has taken hold within Miami's 0-3 locker room. "It is a clean slate in the division," Dolphins linebacker Jason Taylor says. "One of our goals was always to win this division and do what they did here last year. It starts this week with Buffalo. It's a very important game for a lot of reasons." Just four NFL teams have yet to play within their division. The Eagles, Saints and Buccaneers are the others, meaning the Dolphins are the only AFC team still looking to get ..."
September 29
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
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The Miami Dolphins have added to their thin stable of quarterbacks by trading for Tyler Thigpen of the Kansas City Chiefs, a day after learning that Chad Pennington suffered a season-ending shoulder injury. The Dolphins have sent a 2010 undisclosed draft pick to Kansas City to land the third-string quarterback, who started most of last season and ran a spread offense for the Chiefs. To make room on the roster for Thigpen, the Dolphins placed Pennington on injured reserve, meaning he will be unable to return this season. In last season's 38-31 loss to the Dolphins, Thigpen completed 20-of-41 passes for 320 yards and two touchdowns. But he also threw three interceptions, and gained 57 yards ..."
September 29
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
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In just one hit, Chad Pennington's season, possibly his tenure with the Dolphins and maybe even his career as a starting NFL quarterback have come to an end. According to numerous sources, the hit San Diego linebacker Kevin Burnett put on Pennington in the third quarter of Sunday's 23-13 loss to the Chargers, plus his awkward landing, tore the capsule in his throwing shoulder. An MRI taken Monday revealed the damage, which likely will be surgically repaired in the coming days. While Pennington is expected to seek a second opinion from Dr. James Andrews, the noted Birmingham, Ala.-based orthopedic specialist who operated on the quarterback's shoulder in 2004 and 2005, it's likely he'll be ..."
September 29
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
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Miami Dolphins starting quarterback Chad Pennington is out for the season. Pennington, 33, has been diagnosed with a torn capsule in his right shoulder, two sources confirmed. Pennington underwent an MRI on Monday. A source close to Pennington, who dislocated the shoulder in Sunday's 23-13 loss to the Chargers when he was hit by linebacker Kevin Burnett, could request to be examined later this week by Andrews, the noted Birmingham, Ala.-based orthopedic specialist who performed surgery on the quarterback's shoulder in 2005. The shoulder has been operated on twice. According to the source, sometimes shoulder injuries are misdiagnosed. The Dolphins have remained silent about the extent of ..."
September 28
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
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Here was the sight that had to be Dolphins' biggest nightmare. This was early in the third quarter of what would become a 23-13 loss to the San Diego Chargers on Sunday. Face down Sunday near the Dolphins' 35-yard-line at Qualcomm Stadium were their starting quarterback, Chad Pennington, and their franchise left tackle, Jake Long. While Long was able to limp off and return to action, Pennington was done for the day and perhaps much longer with an unspecified injury to his throwing shoulder."
September 14
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
columnist Ethan J. Stolnick
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John Abraham knew a little about Jake Long, the behemoth across the line on Sunday. The Falcons defensive end knew a lot, however, about Chad Pennington, his Jets teammate for six seasons. He knew that Pennington would usually retreat only about three steps after taking a snap. He knew it was pointless to sprint around Long to get to Pennington, who would just step up and out of harm's way. Abraham knew a better way, and it's a method that many other elite pass-rushers may try to mimic after Abraham's two-sack day. "It's going to be a bull rush and inside move," Abraham said of his strategy, while brushing lint off a black "Death or Glory" shirt with a skull and crossbones across its back. ..."
September 11
Miami Herald
columnist Israel Guitierrez
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Forget, for a moment, the painful schedule that tells us this Dolphins team can be far better than last year and still have a worse record. Let's start this season recognizing not the strenuous, but the refreshing. For the first time since Dan Marino, a Dolphins season can begin without any legitimate concerns about the quarterback position. Not that there won't be concerns voiced. This is, after all, a skeptical football town that has to see consistency before it's convinced to back off. But there shouldn't be any worries. And it's an awfully comforting feeling, one for which we can thank Chad Pennington. There still are, of course, those who can't wait for Chad Henne and his rifle of an ..."
September 10
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
columnist Ethan J. Stolnick
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Forget the NFL-best 67.4 completion percentage, the seven interceptions that ranked second among full-time starters and the 7.7 yards per attempt that ranked ahead of Peyton Manning, Jay Cutler, Donovan McNabb and Ben Roethlisberger. Forget the second place finish in passer rating and the MVP voting. The doubters will tell you that Chad Pennington did all of that last year … and in the season that starts Sunday, Pennington is primed for a fall. To counter that assumption, you need a different sort of statistic. How much of the offense did Pennington know, entering the 2008 season opener? "I would say 75 to 80 percent going into the Jet game," coach Tony Sparano said this week. "And then it ..."
August 31
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
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Some Miami Dolphins starters will get more playing time than normal Thursday at New Orleans. Don't look for Chad Pennington to be among them. Dolphins coach Tony Sparano pronounced his starting quarterback "regular-season ready" on Sunday and raved about the improved arm strength the veteran has shown this preseason. "The throw he made the other night, I bet you none of you guys would have bet on that," Sparano joked to the media in reference to a 54-yard completion to rookie Brian Hartline early in the second half. "Pretty good throw he made in the game the other night. Probably a lot of oohs and aahs." Pennington will probably play at least one series against the Saints, but entering his ..."
June 7
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
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Dolphins quarterback Chad Pennington, who hosted a barbecue for the entire team Thursday, said he's not worried about competition from Chad Henne or having one more year remaining on his contract. "It's a good situation to be in,'' Pennington said Saturday afternoon at the Miami Beach Marina behind Monty's restaurant. "I'm not really concerned about it. To me, it's never really a true competition until it happens on Sunday. "[Practice is] preparation and evaluation. We have to be prepared to play and be ready as players. Coaches have to evaluate and see who they want to play. Competition happens on Sunday.'' Pennington, 32, who won the Don Shula Leadership Award Friday, realizes that last ..."
March 26
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
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Chad Pennington was holding court during the first day of the Sony Ericsson Open and after an informal hit with Nadia Petrova, the ninth-ranked player in the world, he shrugged off any talks of the Dolphins grooming Chad Henne to take his place. "I have no reaction to it,'' said Pennington, who flashed a decent forehand but ugly backhand. "It's not news. Coach [Tony] Sparano, Bill Parcells and Jeff Ireland have been up front since day one about my future. My future is now.'' On Tuesday at the owner's meeting in Dana Point, Calif., Sparano told reporters, "You could see the ball jump off his hand,'' referring to the former Michigan quarterback's arm strength. He said that Henne, a ..."
January 29
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
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Dolphins quarterback Chad Pennington made his first appearance at any Super Bowl site Wednesday, but unfortunately it was limited to guest spots on radio row, NFL Network and as an endorser of a Gatorade 'G' on-line promotion. "This is my first time at a Super Bowl,'' Pennington told the Sun-Sentinel outside a ballroom of the media center in the Tampa Convention Center. "Next time I want to be playing.'' Pennington, whose contract expires following next season, said he has no plans to re-negotiate an extension. "I've been in this league long enough to know to feel good about where I am right now and let that take care of itself,'' he said. Pennington, who was the NFL Comeback Player of the ..."
January 5
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
columnist Ethan J. Skolnick
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Head down, eyes glazed, Chad Pennington kept folding slips of paper with his fingers, then tossing them on the floor. One by one, players placed a hand on his shoulder to console and thank him. "I can't say enough about these guys," Pennington said 20 minutes later, in the wake of his worst game as a Dolphin. "They've been unbelievable." Pennington was an unbelievable performer in 2008, which is why teammates, most not knowing him before August, could never say enough good things about him. Joey Porter was right; Pennington should have been the MVP. His reward? He enters next season as the unquestioned starter and leader, even with Chad Henne waiting. Yet while Pennington will likely play ..."
January 4
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
columnist David Hyde
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Near the end of any concert there's the hopeful moment after the band has left the stage when the crowd keeps cheering, the lighters start flickering and the chant goes up, "One more song …" We're officially at that moment in the Dolphins' season. Do they have another song in them? Does Chad Pennington, specifically, have an encore performance? Inside the Dolphins' locker room last week, where some cameras focused, linebacker Channing Crowder was saying, "My first three years I played with guys who got up under center and handed off the ball." He looked at Pennington sitting at his locker with a notebook. "That guy's made all the difference," Crowder said. "He's the big reason we're here." ..."