Dolphins lost CB Allen to knee injury for the season

The Miami Dolphins cornerback Will Allen (not the Will Allen in Buccaneers jersey) will not play the remaining games for the season in his Dolphins jersey as he hurt the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in the third quarter of the Dolphins’ loss to the New Orleans Saints. The injury is just serious enough to end his season.

According to Coach Tony Sparano, Allen’s knee needs surgery and a lot of time to recover. The 2009 first-round draft pick Vontae Davis will take over Allen’s job to start in the lineup against the New York Jets this Sunday. Another rookie, second-round pick Sean Smith will start opposite Davis as he has been starting opposite Allen.

Sparano conceded he was unsure whether the rookies were ready to assume such a load.

“They need to mature really fast,” Sparano said. “I don’t know if they’re equipped for 10 games in a row of doing full-time duty without having Will Allen out there. But these guys are playing at pretty good levels.”

But he has to trust them. Their performance has not been bad. Davis has seen significant playing time as a reserve and on special teams, playing 28 snaps Sunday against the Saints. And for Smith, since he was able to win a starting job in training camp, he should be given to confidence that he would do the job well.