It's the afternoon of September 7, 2014, the Dolphins' opening game: at home, against perennial powerhouse and Fins nemesis the New England Patriots. Deep in the third quarter, the Patriots are up by a touchdown. Living legend Tom Brady takes the snap. He moves back laterally, scanning his head side to side for a receiver. Dolphins defensive end Cameron Wake targets Brady like a laser and flies full speed around the Patriots' linemen. Brady sees him coming, tries to dance away. Wake lunges hard at the quarterback and tackles his torso. Fumble. Dolphins recover. Dolphins score. Late in the fourth, Wake sacks Brady again. Another fumble. Victory sealed. Wake, a 33-year-old Maryland native, signed with the Dolphins in 2009 after struggling for years to find a spot on an NFL roster. In Miami his star finally rose, and last season Wake's defensive play was as bright as the fan favorite's megawatt smile: He earned AFC Defensive Player of the Week honors for his takedowns of Brady and went on to rack up a season-total 11.5 sacks and 31 tackles. That was more than enough to cement his place as one of the Dolphins' top performers — and to earn the onetime mortgage broker his fourth Pro Bowl nomination.
Readers' choice: Ryan Tannehill