MIAMI - The Miami Dolphins run wind sprints and pass patterns. They run sweeps and draws. They run out of bounds and run out the clock.Mostly they seem to run in place.The Dolphins have been at or near .500 for three consecutive years under coach Joe Philbin, showing little or no progress toward ending their playoff drought. They were the only AFC team to finish 8-8 this season, and they went 4-4 at home, 4-4 on the road, 3-3 in the AFC East and 6-6 in the conference.That made them the NFLs most mediocre team.Its hard, defensive tackle Randy Starks said. But it has been like this since Ive been here.Actually, the most recent playoff appearance came in 2008, Starks first year with the Dolphins. But theyre 43-53 since.For the second year in a row, a dud of a December ruined the Dolphins post-season chances. They lost three of their final four games and were widely regarded as underachievers, even in their own locker room.Not making the playoffs with such a good team and good people, its sad, safety Jimmy Wilson. Were 8-8, an average team. Thats not what we wanted when Philbin came here.Here are things to know as the Dolphins begin another long off-season trying to escape their rut of being not quite good enough:THE COACH STAYS: Philbin will be back for a fourth season because owner Stephen Ross believes the franchise is headed in the right direction. But Miami has gone 7-9, 8-8 and 8-8 under Philbin, and the coach knows hell begin the 2015 season with his job on the line.I told Mr. Ross when I interviewed for the job that we were going to get better week to week and year to year, Philbin said. Going 8-8 again, obviously I failed my obligation of responsibility I made to Mr. Ross. I didnt do well enough coaching this team to get them better. ... We have to find ways to improve, and do that quickly.DEFENSIVE DECLINE: Philbins first big off-season decision will be whether to retain defensive co-ordinator Kevin Coyle after his units late-season collapse. In the final four games, Miami gave up 28, 41, 35 and 37 points.The aging defence ranked 20th in points allowed, compared with seventh and 11th in the first two seasons under Philbin and Coyle.We couldnt stop the bleeding, Starks said. It was miscommunication, different things. We werent on the same page. It just fell apart at the end. Put it on everybody.ROSTER CHANGES: Mike Wallace ended the season on the bench, and the $15 million receiver might not be back next year.Wallace has three years left on a $60 million, five-year contract, but his future is in doubt after Philbin yanked him for the second half of Sundays season-ending loss to the New York Jets. Wallace led Miami with 10 touchdowns but was unhappy not to be targeted more often.The Dolphins are also expected to consider releasing Starks; receivers Brian Hartline and Brandon Gibson; linebacker Dannell Ellerbe; and cornerback Cortland Finnegan, who might retire.Players who will become unrestricted free agents in March include safeties Wilson and Louis Delmas; defensive tackle Jared Odrick; running backs Knowshon Moreno and Daniel Thomas; tight end Charles Clay; offensive linemen Samson Satele and Daryn Colledge; and backup quarterback Matt Moore.OFFENSIVE PUNCH: The most encouraging development in 2014 was the improvement of third-year quarterback Ryan Tannehill. He set a franchise record for completions and became Miamis first 4,000-yard passer since Dan Marino. He ranked fifth in the NFL in completion percentage, 10th in touchdown-interception ratio and 14th in passer rating.The running game was good, too. Lamar Miller surpassed the 1,000-yard mark for the first time, and Miami averaged 4.7 yards per carry, second best in the NFL.But pass protection was poor once left tackle Branden Albert suffered a season-ending right knee injury in Game 9, and for the second year in a row, an overhaul of the offensive line is needed.NEEDS: General manager Dennis Hickey enters his second year in Miami about $6 million under the salary cap, and the Dolphins will be in the market for upgrades at guard, defensive tackle and cornerback.Hickey will hope to do as well in the draft as last year, when he took tackle JaWuan James and receiver Jarvis Landry in the first two rounds. James started every game and played well, and Landry led the team with 84 catches.Miami will have the 14th pick in the first round in April.___AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP_NFL___Follow Steven Wine on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Steve_Wine Custom Nike Minnesota Twins Jerseys .B. -- Canadas Rachel Homan had ideal preparation for the playoffs at the Ford World Curling Championships with a pair of hard-fought wins over tenacious opponents Thursday. Custom Nike Baseball Jerseys Sale . The biggest shock of this seasons competition was on when Watford took a 2-0 lead after 30 minutes at Etihad Stadium, only for a remarkable Aguero-led comeback by City in the final half-hour. The Argentina striker produced clinical finishes in the 60th and 79th minutes to level the score before Aleksandar Kolarov put City in front in the 87th. https://www.customnikebaseballjerseys.co...s-baseball.html. -- Michael Bennett gambled last off-season that playing on a one-year deal in Seattle would pay off in the future with the long-term contract he always wanted. Custom Nike Baseball Jerseys Store . "First, I would like to offer my deepest and sincerest apologies for any harm I have inflicted on University of Missouri defensive lineman, Michael Sam," the statement read. Cheap Custom Nike Baseball Jerseys . -- James Harden scored 31 points, including 25 in the second half, and the Houston Rockets dug out of a double-digit, first-half hole to beat the Orlando Magic 101-89 on Wednesday night.Waco, TX (SportsNetwork.com) - The 21st-ranked Baylor Bears will close out their non-conference schedule on Wednesday evening, as they play host to the Huston-Tillotson Rams at the Ferrell Center. The Rams are looking at a stiff challenge against the Bears. HT comes into this contest with a meager 3-13 overall record. The NAIA school from Austin, has struggled this season in the Red River Athletic Conference, sporting a mere 2-6 league ledger. Baylor is looking up in the Big 12 standings as well with a 2-3 conference mark. The Bears enter this contest off a hard-fought 63-61 loss at Kansas State. Still, BU is an impressive 9-1 at the Ferrell Center this year and sports a 28-4 record against in-state opponents since the 2011-12 campaign. This marks the first-ever meeting between these two teams on the hardwood. The Rams enter this contest with a four-game losing streak in tow, with the last outing resulting in a 131-100 loss to league-leading Our Lady of the Lake. The 100 points marked the highest scoring output of the season for Huston-Tillotson, powered by a 36-of-58 showing from the free-throw line. However, it wasnt nearly enough to end Our Lady of the Lakes perfect RRAC season thus far. Still, Shai Fields was superb in defeat, going 11-of-19 from the floor and netting 30 points. Malcolm Ballard added 19 points On the season, the Rams are averaging 75.0 ppg, but are giving up a generous 85.2 ppg. In conference play, that number has jumped sllightly to 87.dddddddddddd4 ppg, factoring in the ridiculous 131 points allowed last time out. The addition of Fields to the lineup recently has certainly helped out. In the three games he has played, Fields is averaging 17.0 ppg. Ballard is next in the scoring column at 12.2 ppg, followed by Quincy Durden and Darion Cooks with 11.5 and 10.0 ppg, respectively. Strong defense is what fuels the Baylor attack. The Bears are limiting the opposition to just 57.6 ppg, while holding foes under 40 percent shooting overall (.394) and under 30 percent from behind the arc (.291). In addition, the team boasts of a +9.9 rebounding margin. At the offensive end, Baylor is averaging a modest 68.6 ppg, but there is some depth in terms of scoring, as four Bears are currently in double figures. Taurean Prince leads the charge with 12.1 ppg. Kenny Chery is a close second at 11.2 ppg. Johnathan Motley and Rico Gathers are averaging 10.0 ppg each. The 6-foot-8, 275-pound Gathers leads the Big 12 and ranks fifth nationally with 11.2 rebounds per game. Baylor hit six 3-pointers in the first half and held a nine-point lead (33-24) at the break against Kansas State, but could not sustain the strong play and faltered in the second half in a two-point loss to the Wildcats. Chery was 8- of-14 from the floor and hit four 3-pointers en route to a game-high 21 points. Prince poured in 20 points, but there was little offensive help elsewhere in the narrow loss. ' ' '