It wasn't pretty, but the Dolphins churned out an efficient 20-10 win over the Carolina Panthers Friday night at Sun Life Stadium.

The first half was the flip side of Miami's disastrous effort against Atlanta last week.

In Cam Newton's first NFL start, Miami held him to 7-of-14 passing for 66 yards, and allowed the Panthers just three first downs and eight minutes of possession in the first 30 minutes.

Too often, Newton's receivers could not get open, and he was forced to either check the ball down to a tight end or back, or run it himself. The Auburn Heisman Trophy winner gained 18 yards on four carries on the night.

As for the Dolphins, Chad Henne rebounded from a poor effort against the Falcons with 15 completions in 24 attempts for 194 yards, and most importantly, no interceptions.

He repeatedly found Brandon Marshall for steady gains in the first half, as Marshall caught five passes for 46 yards in the first half.

Henne's finest play came late in the second quarter, when he was flushed from the pocket, and found a wide-open Anthony Fasano for a 38-yard pickup deep into Carolina territory.

The Dolphins' long-lost running game, buried by Atlanta last week, found the Panthers' defense inviting, as Miami ran for 164 yards on 43 carries.

Reggie Bush saw his first action of the season, and he gained 48 yards on eight carries.

Rookie Daniel Thomas was the team's leading rusher with 52 yards on 12 carries and a TD.

But, in fairness, Carolina's defensive line was not very good, as several times the Dolphins had sizable running lanes cleared by the offensive line, the same line that couldn't create any holes last week.

And there was a troubling moment in the first quarter, when Miami moved the ball inside the 5, and on three attempts, Bush and Thomas were not able to score a TD.

Lex Hilliard promptly entered the game, and finished with a scoring dive on fourth-and-1, leaving one to wonder if Bush and Thomas would be able to finish drives at the goal line consistently this season.

The defense didn't put much pressure on Newton all night, but from what I saw, it didn't matter.

With Legadu Naanee and Brandon LaFell starting, Newton literally had no options on the outside, which is why tight ends Jeremy Shockey and Greg Olsen were on the receiving end on a lot of his passes.

In fact, neither of the Panthers' starting receivers caught a pass the entire evening.

The game went as advertised. Carolina looks like a team that should struggle this season, and without many weapons, Newton will also. He looks serviceable as a quarterback, but his talent didn't jump out the way I've seen other players in preseason games.

The Dolphins at least proved they will not be a cellar-dwelling team this season. But after two uneven performances against one of the best teams in the league in Atlanta, and one of the worst in Carolina, it looks like they will again threaten mediocrity as they did in 2010.