--LB Derek Smith was signed Tuesday to bolster the linebacking depth due to the uncertain status of starting MLB Channing Crowder, who missed Sunday's game with a sore left knee. Smith, a 12-year veteran with 1,528 career tackles, last played for the Chargers earlier this season before being released on Nov. 12.

--WR Chris Hannon was released to make room on the roster for LB Derek Smith. Hannon, who was acquired on Dec. 4 off the 49ers' practice squad, was not active for any game. His signing came just 10 days before the Dolphins played his former team, the 49ers.

--WR Davone Bess had six catches for 57 yards and now has 48 catches to become the second-most-prolific undrafted rookie receiver in NFL history. He trails former Jets WR Wayne Chrebet, who had 66 catches in 1995.

--QB Chad Pennington threw for 235 yards, giving him a career-high 3,253 yards this season, surpassing his previous best of 3,352 in 2006.

--TE Anthony Fasano had two TD catches, giving him a career-high six TDs. That's the most by any Dolphins tight end since Keith Jackson had seven in 1994.

--WR Ted Ginn Jr. had a 31-yard flanker-reverse TD. He had a 40-yard TD run against the Raiders earlier this season. Of the four Dolphins receivers to ever notch TD runs, Ginn is the only one ever to have two in one season.

--RB Patrick Cobbs' 60-yard kick return on the opening kickoff was the longest of the season by any Miami returner. His 44-yard run off a Wildcat reverse was a career-long jaunt for Cobbs.

--MLB Channing Crowder missed his first game of the season with a sore left knee. He said after the game he was about at 60 percent. He won't test the knee until Wednesday's first practice of the week. Akin Ayodele and Reggie Torbor filled in inside and combined for just four tackles.

REPORT CARD VS. CHIEFS

PASSING OFFENSE: A -- A poised Chad Pennington delivered another efficient, intelligent performance despite the minus-12-degree wind-chill factor. He hit 26 of 34 for 235 yards and tied a season high with three touchdown passes. He executed the game-winning 85-yard drive in the fourth quarter to perfection, hitting seven of seven passes, including the 14-yard TD to TE Anthony Fasano. The receivers couldn't feel their numb fingers but held onto every ball. Davone Bess continues to be the best undrafted rookie receiver of the season.

RUSHING OFFENSE: B -- Two trick plays, including a 31-yard flanker reverse touchdown by Ted Ginn Jr. and a 44-yard Wildcat romp by Patrick Cobbs, elevated the rushing yards to 168 yards (5.6 per carry). But featured backs Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams only combined for 66 yards on 20 carries, and Williams nearly had a costly fumble when Miami should've been kneeling down.

PASS DEFENSE: B -- This would've been a "C," but CB Andre' Goodman's stellar play lifted the entire unit with his five pass breakups and one interception. CB Nate Jones added a sack and his first career pick, while S Renaldo Hill secured the victory with Miami's third interception of the day. However, the first-half inadequacies can't be overlooked, as QB Tyler Thigpen had two TD passes and threw for a career-high 320 yards. The pass rush was nonexistent, as OLB Joey Porter didn't crack the stat sheet.

RUSH DEFENSE: D -- The defense stiffened in the second half after allowing the Chiefs to gain 121 of their 180 yards on the ground in the first half. Old reliable Larry Johnson gained 108 yards on 12 carries, so why the Chiefs only gave him four carries in the second half is mind-boggling. Without injured MLB Channing Crowder on the field, replacements Akin Ayodele and Reggie Torbor struggled, and the middle was vulnerable. Even Thigpen had 57 yards on six carries, including an easy 8-yard TD off a quarterback keeper.

SPECIAL TEAMS: A -- Another great move by the coaching staff to replace a slumping Ginn with a healthy Cobbs paid off right away with a 60-yard return on the opening kickoff. Cobbs averaged a lofty 28.8 yards on four returns. The Dolphins coverage units continued their steady improvement. The kickers weren't much of a factor for either team.

COACHING: B-minus -- Tony Sparano provides the motivation, and offensive coordinator Dan Henning bailed out the struggling defense for a change with his usual chess-master play-calling, including a flanker-reverse TD and a tweaked Wildcat to set up another score. There was a bizarre fourth-and-1 call that cost Miami a field goal, and inexplicably Ricky Williams nearly cost the Dolphins the victory with a fumble when they should've been kneeling down.