MIAMI -- Ninety minutes up the Florida Turnpike, a restaurant in Fort Pierce advertises its hours: We take Sundays off, just like the Dolphins.In South Florida and beyond, Miamis NFL team is again the butt of jokes. Theyre laughing in Fort Lauderdale, Fort Pierce and probably Fort Collins.Another punchline of a score could come Sunday when the Dolphins (1-4) play host to the Pittsburgh Steelers (4-1).The Dolphins are one-touchdown underdogs at home, for good reason.Their only victory came in overtime against winless Cleveland, and in two games since, theyve been outscored 52-24.Following last weeks dismal home loss against Tennessee, first-year coach Adam Gase described his offense as inept, and his defense might be even worse.The Steelers, meanwhile, lead the AFC North following consecutive wins by a combined score of 74-27. Here are things to know about two teams headed in opposite directions:BAD START: Rather than contend for their first playoff berth since 2008, the Dolphins are in the mix to pick No. 1 in the draft for the first time since ... 2008.Defensive end Cameron Wake is in his eighth season with Miami and said losing doesnt get easier.I hate it as much as my first high school game, the first time I lost, Wake said. The same pain, the same disgust, same fury. It boils inside of you. Unfortunately, Ive experienced it too many times.As usual, fans have directed the bulk of the blame at the quarterback. Fifth-year starter Ryan Tannehill has led the offense to just one touchdown in three of Miamis five games, and he was jeered like never before last week.But there are plenty of other culprits. The Dolphins rank fourth worst in the NFL in yards, and fifth worst in yards allowed. Their run defense ranks last, and their running game next to last.It aint just one person. It aint one group, center Mike Pouncey said. We all have to do better to win games.BAD BLOCKING: After Tannehill endured six sacks against the Titans, Gase released two offensive linemen who made emergency starts, sending a signal that even the Dolphins have standards.That ensures more lineup changes this week. Because of injuries and illness, Miami has had three starters at left tackle, three at left guard and three at center.ANOTHER REVAMPED LINE: The Steelers will play without defensive end Cam Heyward for the first time since they took him with the 31st overall pick in the 2011 draft.Pittsburgh will split Heywards snaps between rookie Javon Hargrave and veteran Ricardo Matthews, while Stephon Tuitt will take over the defensive line calls, a role Heyward prepped Tuitt for over the past two-plus years.Hes telling me hes talking a lot more, and we need him to do that, Heyward said. When I come back, we can do that twice as much. Hes only going to grow in this situation.Pittsburghs pass rush has picked up after a slow start. The Steelers have seven sacks in their past two games, numbers that could rise significantly against a Miami offense thats allowed Tannehill to be sacked 17 times. Only the Colts have given up more.Were getting more pressure, but weve got to figure out ways to get the quarterback down, linebacker Lawrence Timmons said.NUMBERS LIE: Pittsburgh is just 25th in total defense and 30th against the pass, an area the Steelers pledged to shore up in the offseason when they spent high draft picks on cornerback Artie Burns and safety Sean Davis.Yet Pittsburgh is a respectable ninth in points allowed (18.6) thanks in part to effective work on special teams and an offense that is holding onto the ball.Coach Mike Tomlin said he can live with the lack of splash plays like turnovers and sacks if it means the defense doesnt give up chunk plays that can flip the field and momentum in a hurry.We just have a desire to be a difficult team to beat, and for us it starts with not beating ourselves, Tomlin said. Defensively specifically, we look at not being a highly penalized group and one that makes our opponent earn it, and by that I mean keeping the ball in front of us.FAMILY REUNION: The Pouncey twins will butt heads Sunday. Not literally, because both play center, but the Steelers Maurkice and the Dolphins Mike will go against each other for the first time.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow Steven Wine on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Steve-Wine . His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/steven-wineHarold Baines Jersey Large . -- Running backs Darren McFadden and Rashad Jennings were back at practice for the Oakland Raiders on Wednesday despite being hampered by hamstring injuries. Custom Early Wynn Jersey . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. http://www.customwhitesoxjersey.com/ .com) - The Pittsburgh Penguins placed forward James Neal on injured reserve Tuesday. Jeff Keppinger Jersey Large . It says Pocklingtons lawyer filed the appeal Friday in a California court. CTV Edmonton also says Pocklington gave a $100,000 cash deposit as part of the conditions of his bail, and that he will be out on bail until his appeal is heard. Custom Michael Jordan Jersey .C. -- When North Carolina freshman Ryan Switzer reported to training camp in August he was a little miffed to learn he was third on the depth chart at punt returner. MIAMI -- The Miami Marlins rough first inning certainly didnt suggest they would eventually get the best of Stephen Strasburg and the Washington Nationals. The Marlins spotted Strasburg three runs in the first, but responded in a big way. Marcell Ozuna drove in three runs, and Giancarlo Stanton homered for the Marlins, who dealt Strasburg the worst loss of his career in a 8-3 win over the Nationals on Friday night. "Obviously, that first inning wasnt how anybody drew it up," Marlins manager Mike Redmond said. "I dont think anybody anticipated that. Fortunately for us we were able to come out there and have some great at-bats." Strasburg (5-7) allowed a career-high seven earned runs and tied a career-high with four walks in two innings after the Nationals gave him a 3-0 lead. "Hes been awfully good, but this time was the one bad one," Nationals manager Davey Johnson said. "It was just a tough time. We got him the lead and he had some problems." It was his shortest outing since he pitched two innings on May 31 at Atlanta. He left that game early because of a lat strain that forced him to go on the disabled list. "Today was one of those days where Strasburg really looked out of whack," Redmond said. Washington has lost four of five. Nathan Eovaldi (2-0) settled down after the tough first inning and held the Nationals without a run over the next five innings. He struck out five and walked four. The Nationals took a 3-0 lead on a two-run double by Adam LaRoche and an RBI groundout by Jayson Werth. "I kind of let the first inning get the best of me," Eovaldi said. "The guys picked me right back up as soon as we got in the dugout, which was huge for them to put together the at-bats they did against Strasburg." It was rare run support for Strasburg, who entered the game with a 2.45 ERA, but he was unable to hold the lead. "I couldnt throw a strike," Strasburg said.dddddddddddd "Its frustrating. Throw ball one, ball two to every single batter." Strasburg walked three of the first four batters he faced, and Ozuna made him pay with a bases-clearing triple to deep centre field that tied the game 3-3. "I was facing him a couple years ago in low-A when he made a rehab start, and I struck out," Ozuna said. "He threw harder before and now he is 96 sometimes -- 93, 92 is the average of his fastball. He threw very hard 99, 98 with a big curveball, no chance to get a hit. "Now we face him and I got my hit, a big hit." Derek Dietrich and Eovaldi followed with RBI singles, and the Marlins sent 10 batters to the plate in the first inning and led 5-3. "I wasnt planning on going out there and giving up five runs in the first inning, but it is what it is," Strasburg said. "You just have to hang in there, I guess. Its tough. It happens to everybody. Its all about how you bounce back." Stantons ninth home run of the season, a two-run shot into the Nationals bullpen in right field, stretched Miamis lead to 7-3. Adeiny Hechavarria, who singled in the first to extend his career-best hitting streak to 11 games, had an RBI double in the seventh to make it 8-3. Hechavarria is batting .442 (19 for 43) during the streak. NOTES: Strasburg dropped to 1-4 with a 4.66 ERA in nine road starts this season. He also gave up seven runs on Aug. 28, 2012, against the Marlins, but only five were earned. ... Marlins RHP Henderson Alvarez will start on Sunday, replacing Kevin Slowey, so Alvarez can get another start before the All-Star break. ... Marlins RHP Chad Qualls will be placed on the paternity list on Saturday and then join the team in Milwaukee after the break. ... Marlins rookie All-Star RHP Jose Fernandez (5-5, 2.83 ERA) will take the mound on Saturday against Nationals RHP Dan Haren (4-10, 6.00 ERA). ' ' '