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Mike Wallace: Browns' Joe Haden 'better be ready'

If Warren Sapp's lofty predictions for Ryan Tannehill are to materialize, the Miami Dolphins will require a massive season from newly installed deep threat Mike Wallace.

The former Pittsburgh Steelers receiver was signed in March for $60 million to alter Miami's passing game. Wallace was quiet during the preseason, but the Dolphins are expected to unleash him in Sunday's season opener against the Cleveland Browns.

The game itself offers one of the weekend's more intriguing matchups, pitting Wallace against Browns cornerback Joe Haden.

"I'm going to have my swag out, too, so he better be ready on Sunday," Wallace said of Haden this week, per the South Florida Sun Sentinel.

"I know it is going to be a long battle all day long. I'm going to sleep early, and I hope he goes to sleep early because it is going to be a long day," Wallace said. "I'm excited because (Haden is) a guy where you can really (gauge) where you're at."

One clear sign that football is back: Trash talk streaming liberally from all corners of the league by everyone with a mouth.

Still, Wallace clearly respects Haden's gifts after waging battle with him during Steelers-Browns tilts of old. The X factor for Miami is how the Dolphins' offensive line fends off Cleveland's revamped and aggressive pass rush. If Miami's blockers don't protect Tannehill, Wallace breaking free downfield won't mean a thing.

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