Ivan prompts Dolphins, Titans to push up opener

As the Miami Dolphins prepared to practice Thursday, quarterbacks A.J. Feeley and Sage Rosenfels sat in the locker room and studied a laptop showing the projected path of Hurricane Ivan.

Like the rest of Florida, the Dolphins are anxious about the latest storm heading their way.

With the forecast ominous, Miami’s season opener against the Tennessee Titans was switched to Saturday from Sunday. Kickoff will still be at 1 p.m. EDT.

“Our first question was how we could make this safe for everyone,” said Dolphins president Eddie Jones. “Our first concern is for families of our players and staff and, of course, being in Miami, for our fans.”

Ivan could reach southern Florida as soon as Sunday, forecasters said.

The Dolphins and Titans discussed moving the sold-out game to other sites, including Nashville, Tenn., but decided to change the date instead.

The Titans flew to Florida today.

The last time the Dolphins’ schedule was affected by a hurricane was in 1992, when devastation caused by Andrew forced the opener against New England to be moved to a bye week in October.

•Craig Hentrich might have to do much more than punt with Tennessee running out of time to find a new kicker before the opener.

Until he hears differently, Hentrich is preparing to handle kickoffs, field goals, extra points and punts.

Pace breaks silence on holdout

St. Louis Rams offensive tackle Orlando Pace broke a three-day silence on his contract holdout, saying a lighter playing weight would help him get back into playing shape in time for Sunday’s opener.

Earlier this week Pace agreed to a one-year, $7.02 million contract as the team’s franchise player, and he practiced for the first time Wednesday.

He reported at 325 pounds, almost 20 pounds less than last year, and believes that will offset the fact he has only four practices to get ready.