Submitted by admin on Wed, 2006-11-22 08:00. ::
Joey Harrington never won three straight games in a single season with the Detroit Lions . He`s already done it in just six starts for the Miami Dolphins .
Harrington was traded to Miami (4-6) in May, just four years after the Lions (2-8) drafted him third overall. He became the scapegoat for Detroit`s woes during his time there, as the team went 18-40 in games during which Harrington played.
After losing to Atlanta last Thanksgiving, the Lions fired Steve Mariucci, and cornerback Dre` Bly later blamed Harrington for it. Bly is doing his best not to escalate the drama.
But Harrington has helped the Dolphins, who had the league`s worst record less than a month ago, find some consistency. He went 26-for-42 for 254 yards with one score as Miami beat Minnesota 24-20 on Sunday.
The Dolphins dominating defense allows Harrington to be part of the supporting cast, with his goal to avoid the kind of mistakes that doomed Miami early in the season. That worked against the Vikings, who self-destructed with three turnovers in the fourth quarter, with Miami returning two for scores.
Harrington`s throwing on Sunday compensated for a running attack that was held to a franchise-low 4 yards. Running back Ronnie Brown netted 2 yards in 12 attempts, and the No. 2 overall pick in last year`s draft is averaging 3.8 yards per carry after posting 4.4 as a rookie.
The Dolphins may be without two ailing defensive backs as starting cornerback Will Allen (groin) and reserve safety Travares Tillman (hand) were hurt Sunday.
Detroit couldn`t even beat lowly Arizona, losing 17-10 on Sunday, but coach Rod Marinelli is trying to get his team to forget about the defeat quickly.
``I said, `This is disappointing, tough pill, but we have to immediately lick the wounds and move on.` We have to wire in to do our job,`` he said.
Lions Pro Bowl defensive tackle Shaun Rogers is eligible to return this week after serving a four-game suspension for taking a banned substance that was in a weight-loss supplement, but Marinelli is not sure if Rogers will play after he had knee surgery during the suspension.
Running back Kevin Jones (ankle), kick returner Eddie Drummond (concussion) and wide receiver DeVale Ellis (shoulder) were injured against the Cardinals, and Marinelli said he did not know whether the trio of banged-up players would be on the field against Miami.
Jones leads the team with 636 yards and six touchdowns on the ground. He has also been a threat as a receiver, catching 50 passes for 367 yards.
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