He had a message for four of them. Partly, a thank you. Partly, an acknowledgement.

"There have been a lot of changes around here," Sparano told them. "But one of the few things that has been consistent has been you four guys. That's a credit to you."

He was talking about how Yeremiah Bell, Renaldo Hill, Will Allen and Andre' Goodman have managed to endure together Miami's mass makeover in 2008. Impressive? Sure.

This quartet didn't just survive one coaching change. They also lived through another. Each current starter in the secondary also started games under former coaches Nick Saban and Cam Cameron.

That's nothing that should be taken lightly.

"I think we have a real special bond back there," Bell said. "Any time you can have a group of guys together for an extended period of time, going through the ups and downs together, learning new defenses, I think it always has a positive impact on what we do."

What is perhaps equally intriguing isn't simply that Miami's secondary has survived so long. It is also how the group has done it. No other position -- aside from quarterback -- has seemingly been critiqued more often when it comes time for Miami to draft players.

HELP WAS HERE

As Dolphins fans have consistently wondered when the upgrades would arrive, it turned out that the pieces might have been here all along.

"I think that's why Coach mentioned it to us in the Jets game," Hill said. "I think he recognizes what we've been through. But all of that only made us stronger. We knew what we had. We just had to go out and prove it. We had to show everybody else."

Recently, they have. And the biggest reason might have to do with the fact that those four players have finally managed to get on the field all at the same time for an extended number of games.

Although the quartet has been assembled since 2006 when Goodman, Hill and Allen were added as free agent acquisitions (Bell was already here as a sixth-round draft pick in 2003 but didn't become a starter until the other three arrived), they have struggled to stay healthy at the same time.

Whether it was Goodman's shoulder issues, Hill's torn ACL, Bell's ruptured Achilles' tendon or a groin injury that held Allen out of one game in 2006, the timing of each injury had resulted in just seven games when all four started in the base defense with one another.

"The thing with us four, we haven't always been in there at the same time," Bell said. "It's been a different mix of guys. But I still just think it's something the coaches see in us. When we play together, we're very good."

Even this year, it wasn't until the secondary got fried against the Cardinals that Sparano decided it was time to mix it up. By mixing it up, that meant putting Hill into the starting lineup in place of Chris Crocker, who was cut one week later.

A similar situation occurred in 2006, when it took Saban seven games to finally put Bell into the lineup as a starter at safety. It's as if there is often some initial resistance to what eventually and perennially turns out to be the best combination.

But Sparano seems to have figured it out. The quartet has started 14 consecutive games together -- and the consistency of the bunch has resulted in a high level of communication.

"There's a comfort level that everyone has, and it allows us to go out there and play freely," Hill said. "When somebody sees something, they're alerting the other guy. After the play, you can point at him and let him know you were on the same page."

BAND OF BROTHERS

Hill said the group also has become extremely close away from the field. It isn't as if they hang out often -- family life tends to limit that -- but it is almost as if they have become more like brothers than friends.

That's something each of them clearly senses, even at times on the field.

So as Miami's group of defensive backs continue to prosper, it is the bond between them that provides the perfect symbolism for this improbable resurrection of the Dolphins.

And each one of them has been there to witness it all.

"We're all tight on and off the field," Hill said. "I know I'm lining up with one of my brothers out there. I know they'll do anything to protect me, and I'll do the same."

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