A crazy thought

Let me start by saying I am not big on conspiracy theories, and I doubt that a football coach and GM would conspire...BUT....

As I look back over the train wreck that is this season, I keep going back to that fateful day when Stephen Ross called up Jeff Ireland and said "Jeff, I want you to fly out to northern California to meet me..." and the two went and "talked with" Jim Harbaugh about joining the Dolphins.  Ireland, at least on the surface, was friends with Tony - or at least had to have an amicable working relationship with him.  And this HAD to be awkward.

Meanwhile Tony finds out about it, while he's still employed.  It had to be awkward for him, too.

But here is the imaginative (and to be fair PURELY SPECULATIVE) part of the story.  What if Tony, and maybe Jeff, decided that they would turn the tables and stick it to the owner?  What if they just said "screw this, lets show him by simply making things implode!" 

It would certainly explain some of the behaviors, some of the personnel decisions, and some of the coaching issues we've seen surface.

Alternatively, what if Sparano simply said "ahhh, whatever, I'm just gonna dog it this year" without malice or anything, and just didn't push anyone, barely practicing, and generally just "giving up" - that, too, would explain a lot, wouldn't it?

Now wouldn't we have an ENORMOUS laugh if any of this turned out to be true??!!

Sage Rosenfels?

Really?

Short. Sweet. To the point. That's the beauty Dave's iPhone.

Henne....done?

The dolphins were apparently holding out hope that Henne might return this season. They worked out - but didn't sign- several QBs.

And today cones word that henne is done for the season; he needs surgery. And since his contract is up this year, it seems likely he had played his last game for the fins.

And btw, it turns out Matt Moore is the 16th guy to start since marino retired 12 years ago.

How sad is that?

Fwd: Tuna Article I Thought You Might Like

My thanks to the dolphins ranter for pointing me to this article. 

Dollar Bill. I love it. 

http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/bill-parcells-miami-dolphins-kansas-city-chiefs-big-tuna-responsible-for-two-of-the-worst-teams-in-the-nfl-100611

What does that even mean?

I've been hearing a lot of "talk" coming from the Dolphins.  Sparano says "we'll get this thing turned around" and Ross says "we still believe we have a good team and we'll get on the winning path" ...

But what does that mean?  They expect the team to go 12-0 the rest of the way?  11-1?  10-2?  Anything less would not - at least in my humble opinion - be much of a turnaround.  

Maybe they go 9-3 the rest of the way.  That would put them at 9-7, and on the outside looking in to the playoffs - and that would undoubtedly mean consternation on the part of the owner. Finishing 9-3 might cause him to say "Tony's still my guy" and we're back to being average.

In summary, I'm simply confused by what is considered "getting it turned around"...

And while I'm on the topic, I read Armando's article where he talks about why he thinks Jeff Ireland stays, regardless of what happens to Tony.  I have to agree - and it underscores how Ross is blinded by his lack of knowledge in football matters and puts too much stock in what his *one* guy is telling him (Peterson).

I am not claiming to be an expert by any stretch.  However, I would argue that most of us who have Dolphins sites know a fair amount about football and can see through the "fluff" and could probably create an informed opinion about the state of the fins, whether Ireland deserves to stay, how Tony is doing, etc.  And in spite of our loyalty, I think we could be fair about it.  

Hmmmm....In fact, I think I'm going to reach out to the other sites, and see what we can do.  Maybe we come up with something that helps Steve Ross out? Or maybe not?  I dunno.

Theres a shocker!!

The dolphins poached an o-lineman from the bucs practice squad.

Any guesses as to which team he started his career with?

Of course its the Dallas cowboys!

The word I'm looking for is "moribund"

It means "In terminal decline; lacking vitality or vigor"  and that's where we are at.

There doesn't seem to be a way out, does there?  Many coaches.  Many rosters.  Different owners.  Same results.

Seems to me there's only one thing left to do: We need to embrace the proud history of the franchise.  To make it fun and not about glitz and glamor.  Bringing out the statue of Joe Robbie was "nice." Offering up Mandich's name to the stadium's ring was nice (thought still hasn't been done).  But its not enough.  You've got to find a way to stop all the "bungling" (selling Jets jerseys in the team store?) and get fans excited about football again.

Yeah, the season is probably done - but there has to be a way to get it going.  Other than a public exorcism, I don't know what that is.  

Maybe its time to hire someone to be "the voice" of the franchise.  Don't leave it to Mike Dee or Stephen Ross.  Nope, make it someone fun and pasionate, maybe a former player or coach.  Don't make it all about the "company line," rather let him say things that still represent you but seem to be making a little more noise.  "Bill Parcells - you left us, good riddance!"  Or "We suck - no question about it - but we're going to get better!" 

Ha Ha.

Reggie Bush was asked about whether there would be a dropoff with Matt Moore as the starter.  He said "No, we're going to still be an attacking offense."

And he said it with a straight face.

One TD a game is an attacking offense?

Then again maybe he meant the way they approach the "trainer's table" (a/k/a the food line).  Maybe they attack that?

Quarter season wanker

My wankerific friend reminds me that we have yet to name a wanker of the week thus far this year.

Now I'll be honest here: with as bad as this team has been, selecting a wanker of the week feels kind of like piling on - especially considering how "rough" I have been on the team.

But I can't pass on an opportunity to call out a wanker of the first four games (the quarter season wanker).  

The question is: who should it be?  Remember a wanker is someone who's overly show, over-aggrandized. That is, someone who doesn't live up to (their own) hype.  

There are several candidates on this team, obviously.

But the guy I turn to is none other than Brandon Marshall.  The guy says he needs to focus, and then goes out and misses a couple of "easy" catches.  Dude. Duuuude.  Are you just picking up a paycheck, or do you have a little pride?

Maybe its something in the water in San Diego?

A couple of seasons ago, Chad Pennington injured his shoulder on the field in San Diego and was lost for the season.

Now it appears that Chad Henne injured his shoulder on the field in San Diego and will be lost for the season.

The lesson here is: if you're a QB for the Dolphins and your name is Chad, then miss the team charter to San Diego!

Dolphins Cycling Challenge

Tom Eddie was a friend; he was the founder of miamidolphinsonline.com.  

In his honor, the Dolphins have created a virtual rider page in the DCC.

http://www.ridedcc.com/dcc/page/Tom-Eddie.htm

Please join me in making a contribution in his name by clicking on the link above. Thankyou!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

About the DCC:

100% of the dollars raised goes directly to the University of Miami Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Launched in 2010, the Dolphins Cycling Challenge ("DCC") is a two-day tri-county charity cycling event coordinated by the Miami Dolphins Foundation. The purpose of the DCC is to increase cancer awareness, encourage healthy hobbies, and raise funds for the University of Miami Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center. In its inaugural year, DCC raised $533,106 for Sylvester, setting the bar high for future rides.  This year the Dolphins Cycling Challenge will honor Dolphins legend Jim "Mad Dog" Mandich who led the team on and off the field for over 40 years and lost his courageous battle with cancer this spring.

The DCC will take place on November 5th and 6th, 2011.  Rides begin in Miami-Dade at Sun Life Stadium, in Broward at Huizenga Plaza and in Palm Beach at CityPlace through the weekend.   Along each route, water stops will be located approximately every 15-20 miles, with food, beverages, entertainment, restroom facilities, medical treatment and mechanical assistance available for riders.

Now where do we go?

If I were Mr. Ross, I would start taking a look at this team. But here's the problem: I don't know that much about football, and anyone who does is part of the network - they all have friends, play "politics", curry favors, and generally help each other out.

So I would suggest that he consult multiple sources. Hire 10 different "experts" to give you a detailed analysis of the management of the team, and the roster. Ask Shula to do it. Ask Peterson to do it. Get loads of information about the state of the team.

Meanwhile, look at successful organizations. What do they do right? That's generally what you want to emulate.

Later - after that's done - you want to decide where to go. Lets assume for a moment that the reports all indicate that there's not enough talent on this team, and they're not working hard enough. Presumably you need a coach and a GM, so its time to compile a list of who's out there, get profiles, resumes, and interview the ones that might be available. As a businessman, remember they are working for you. Their job is to produce some excitement, win, and fill seats. And they will either have to be compatible, or one will be in control.

There's no point in this "suck for Luck" campaign, but as the season draws to a close later, Miami could be in a position where they're not bad enough to get him and just not good enough otherwise. I would suggest in that case, they get him at all costs. You can have the whole draft. You can have my first and ANY two players on my roster. Whatever it takes...

That's my two cents.

Now if I'm Sparano, and I just got this vote of confidence from my owner, I'm taking a different approach to this. First, I have to cut ties with a couple of players. I'd start with Nolan Carroll and Marc Colombo. Then, I would put Jake Long on IR. Let him heal. Then, I'd be looking at the stat sheet, performance, and loose tongues: JT, Brandon Marshall, and Yermiah Bell would all be inactive until further notice. And I'd go ahead and start Matt Moore. Shake the whole freakin' thing up.

I'm not sure what to make of Ross' comments

"[I'm] very disappointed, to put it mildly [about being 0-4] but Tony is the right coach and that the players believe in him."

"But certainly, we have to see better results."

"Everybody involved with this team – the players, the coaches, are disappointed to be 0-4. We have to stay together and really get behind our coach. I believe Tony is the right coach. All the games we've played have been very close, could have gone either way. But when you see the team practicing and playing as hard as they can, I think that's a good sign."

"I am hopeful [the team will turn around its season]"

"You read in the press, everybody talks about changes and that would change things around.  I really believe that any football team, if you look at the winning teams, they are consistent and they stay the course. You go through rough periods. I think we have a lot of talent."

"But I think, most important, the players believe in Tony. As long as the players believe in him and are playing hard for him, with the talent we have, we are going to win our share of games."

"We're committed to winning, will do whatever resources it takes to win. As long as the team is really behind its coach and it has talent, it has a good shot of winning. Like in anything else, you've got to be optimistic. I think you stay the course. We'll get there."

"I feel as frustrated as you do. When you hurt, I'm hurting. I'm dedicated to making sure we turn this around as fast as possible."

So....he's okay with losing?  And he's okay with scoring one freaking touchdown a game? And he thinks this team has talent?  Where, exactly?

Sure we'll get there.  Someday. sigh. 

Phins @ Jets

Hi guys,

Well, since misery loves company, I can't think of a better idea than getting a ton of Dolphins fans together in the Meadowlands.  :)  And maybe we can make enough noise to actually motivate the team to win. (A girl can dream...)

But still, DolfansNYC is 3 for 3 at the Meadowlands, so you never know. That streak could continue.

I know the last thing people want to talk about is going to the games, but I was hoping you all could please help us spread the word that we have a huge group (71 to be exact) going to the game on Monday the 17th and we do still have some tix available if anyone is interested in joining us.

If you have Tri-State area fans on your sites or know anyone who is thinking of making a trip up, please send them this link:

http://lunarsportsgroup.com.s90845.gridserver.com/miami-dolphins-vs-new-york-jets-monday-night-football-game/

They can also e-mail dolfansnyc@gmail.com for more info. We'll also be tailgating before the game if they want to meet up.

Thanks in advance for getting the word out!

Enjoy the bye week!

-Short Michelle =)

______________________________

Oh and 4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbT3PEW150Y

Short. Sweet. To the point. That's the beauty Dave's iPhone.

You know its going bad when...

The "upgrade" at linebacker (Kevin Burnett) stopped doing an interview to call out a reporter who wrote a not-too-nice article about him.

Really?  You're reading the paper and worrying about what people think/write about you?

How about covering your opponent, rather than caring about who covers you?

He told the reporter to 'quit hiding behind a computer and put on some pads.'  How about *you* put on some pads, Kevin?

Seriously, this team is ridonculous. 

And it just goes to show you that he must not read my blog.  Otherwise he'd be looking to try and sack me.  But he'd probably miss the tackle.  (ha ha)

Watching today's game

I actually found myself hopeful that at least a few games will be blacked out this year.  Today was hard to watch, though I had it on for most of the afternoon.  I was in and out, took a nap, and watched some rugby.

But I watched intently as the Lions and Cowboys played, and switched over to the Houston-Pittsburgh tilt at times.  Those were some great, and very entertaining games.

Funny isn't it?  A few years ago, the Dolphins were always fun to watch and the Lions were bad.  Now the roles are totally reversed.  At least it provides a glimmer of hope - Miami can rebuild and get better!

OH and 4

Miami barely gets to 16 points.  I would argue that Hilliard's TD was wrong - he never broke the plane.  But I think the officials actually felt sorry for Miami and cut them a break.  (ha)


At various times, it looked tantilizingly close - as though the Fins might actually win.  But you knew that somehow, some way, they would manage to lose.  The team has everything at stake, and Tony remains true to himself and settles for field goals, rather than simply pressing on, and letting things play out.  The bootin' bull is nothing, if not consistent.


Wake had a sack and Ian Eagle was saying he's been a good player having 18 sacks in 20 games.  And that is an accomplishment.  But it actually hasn't done much good.  In that span, Miami only has a couple of wins.  Jason Taylor "started," but like the rest of the defense, his part was played by an actor, brought in from LA. (It was nice of Steve Ross to hire a busload of actors to play the fins, and let the players have the day off, wasn't it?)


And so comes the bye.  Maybe the owner cuts ties with Sparano.  Maybe not.


But I think its time to start up the discussion about the next head coach - and what QB prospect (and probably veteran QB) we'd like to see here next year. 


I personally am not big on retread coaches - please no Cowher or Gruden.  Instead give me a guy like Rob Ryan.  He's about as opposite to Sparano as I can imagine.  Where everything is a secret with Sparano; with Rob its all on the table.  And imagine how much fun the Jets games would be when he could tweak his brother.  Talk about creating a buzz!


Funny how we had one head coach here for 26 years, and really 4 QBs in that time.  And in the last 15 years, we've had 6 head coaches and a boatload of QBs (I think its 12?)


Ah well, 2012 is our year!!!

The elusive QB

Matt Moore came on in relief of Chad Henne today, and I would argue that on the whole his performance was better than Henne's.  Now I would put two caveats around that: (1) He was playing with nothing to lose, so reckless abandon didn't matter and (2) defenses have a hard time adjusting to a QB they rarely (or never) see on film - there is no book of tendencies.  If Moore is forced into duty next week, the outcome might be different.


Now, with that said, I ask you what do the following list of QBs have in common?
Jim Plunkett, Joe Theismann, Joe Montana, Jim McMahon, Phil Simms, Doug Williams, Mark Rypien, Troy Aikman, Steve Young, Brett Favre, John Elway, Kurt Warner, Trent Dilfer, Brad Johnson, Tom Brady, Ben Rothlisberger, Peyton Manning, Eli Manning, Drew Brees, and Aaron Rodgers


You might realize they are the QBs who have won at least one SuperBowl since 1980.  What else do they all have in common - except maybe one or two of them, that I'll get back to in a minute? 


That would be they are (or were) at the top of their sport.  They have been considered as the best QBs of their time, some of the greats.  Now, I realize there are other greats (a certain Dan Marino springs to mind) who have never won a superbowl, but this post about the ones who have won it all.


I'm making an argument that unless you have one of the great QBs, your team will not win a SuperBowl title.  Heck, as you look at the losing QBs in that same span, most of them were also greats - so you could probably argue that just to get to the big show, you have to have a great QB.


Now as for the couple that might raise an eyebrow or two - Dilfer had probably the single greatest defense across the field from him; McMahon had arguably the second best.  And a few others had outstanding running games and very good defenses and good coaching - and they didn't make a lot of mistakes.  They were the kind of players you could count on to bring you back, and had success.


And guess what?  They are all fairly smart guys.  If you listened (again to MOST of them), they were articulate and really understood the game. 


And overall, that's something that's been missing here since 1999 when Marino retired.  And it won't get better until the dolphins finally address that need....