By: Randy Campbell (Old Dolfan)
Game 2: Sept. 24, 1972 – Houston at Miami
2012 Marks the 40th anniversary of the greatest achievement by any team in the storied history of the National Football League. In 1972 the Miami Dolphins did what no other team had ever done before AND what no other team has ever done since.
They ran the table. They were perfect. They were 17 and 0.
Yes, I know, I used those exact same words to begin my first article on The Perfect Season. But those words are extremely important to those of us who witnessed Absolute Perfection. It is something young Dolfans should always remember. It is something old Dolfans will never forget.
The Perfect Season is the source, the very essence, of Dolphin pride. It is what separates us from the fans of every other team in the National Football League. Breathe it! Eat it! Sleep it! The Perfect Season is OURS TO ENJOY!!
The Houston Oilers dominated the early years of the American Football League. They had high profile super stars, such as legendary quarterback and placekicker George Blanda and Heisman Trophy winner Billy Cannon. But they also had ace wideout Bill Groman from division III Heidelberg College. Groman led the AFL in receiving in 1960 with nearly 1500 yards and a 21 yards per catch average. Fullback Dave Smith, from tiny Ripon College, keyed the running game along with Cannon.
The Oilers won the very first AFL Championship Game 24-16 over the Los Angeles Chargers (led by future vice presidential candidate Jack Kemp). A year later, in 1961, Houston defeated the now relocated San Diego Chargers 10-3. Houston’s attempt at a “3-Peat” failed when they lost the 1962 AFL title game to Lamar Hunt’s Dallas Texans 20-17 in a double overtime thriller. Humt subsequently moved the Texans to Kansas City where they became the Chiefs in 1963.
The Houston Oilers team that took on the Dolphins the second week of The Perfect Season was a far cry from the juggernaut Oilers of the early 1960’s. Both George Blanda and Billy Cannon were shipped to the Oakland Raiders. They were replaced by a group of ragtag misfits who would produce a 1-13 record in 1972. The only star on this Oiler’s team was future Hall of Fame receiver Charlie Joiner.
Miami head coach Don Shula was taking nothing for granted. He was intimately familiar with the “On Any Given Sunday” credo. His totally unexpected loss as head coach of the Colts to the upstart Jets in Super Bowl III still ate at his belly. And his lopsided loss in Super Bowl VI to the Cowboys was still fresh in his mind. Shula decided he would take out some of his frustrations on this outmanned Oilers squad.
Shula was pleased with Miami’s ground game in 1971. Csonka and Kiick were outstanding. But Shula wanted more, much more. So he made heavy use of speedy Mercury Morris during the 1972 preseason. Morris responded with several spectacular long runs.
The Don of Miami thought the Houston game would be the perfect time to spring Morris on the National Football League. Shula’s timing was just right. The “Three Back Offense” made its first appearance in game #2 of The Perfect Season. Morris ran 15 times for 94 yards and a touchdown. Csonka had 17 carries for 79 yards and a score while Jim Kiick ran 9 times for 55 yards and a TD. The result was a team record 17 first downs rushing for 247 yards on the ground.
Jim Kiick was the first runner to benefit from the “Three Back Attack.” On the game’s second play Miami’s Vern Den Herder crushed Houston’s Hoyle Granger, forcing a fumble. Bill Stanfill recovered at the Houston 14. Two runs by Kiick produced the game’s first score after just 1:43 of playing time. On Houston’s second series quarterback Dan Pastorini attempted an ill-advised quick-kick. Miami’s Jim Mandich recovered the botched play fumble at Houston’s 30. Three runs by Morris produced the game’s second touchdown and Miami led 13-0 after Yepremian shanked the PAT attempt on the wet artificial surface.
In the second quarter Bob Griese tossed a perfect deep pass to Paul Warfield good for 39 yards to the Oilers 10. A six yard burst by Kiick was followed by a four yard touchdown run by Csonka and Miami led 20-0 at the half. Combined with Miami’s 17-0 halftime lead at Kansas City in game 1, the Fins had now out scored their opponents 37-0 in the first halves of their first two games.
Miami seemed to take complete control of the game when they roared down the field during the first few minutes of the third quarter. Griese capped the 76 yard drive with a two yard TD scamper and the Dolphins led 27-0.
Game over? Not quite.
An 82-yard TD bomb, Pastorini to Joiner, was followed quickly by a one yard touchdown plunge by Willie Rodgers annd, suddenly, it was 27-13. Shula said he felt a “little uneasy.”
Not to worry. The “Three Back Attack” had the remedy for Shula’s unsettled stomach. A 16 play 93 yard drive consuming over seven minutes of the clock was just what the doctor ordered. Csonka carried the ball four times. Morris had three carries. Griese completed key passes to Paul Warfield and Marv Fleming.
The drive ended when Griese tossed a perfect 6 yard TD pass to Jim Kiick in the left corner of the end zone. Yepremian’s conversion on the rain slicked polyturf surface gave Miami a safe 34-13 lead.
Some wondered “Would all 3 members of the Three Back Attack gain 100 yards?” Not on this slippery day. Shula wisely replaced his starters with back-up runners Hubert Ginn and Charlie Leigh.
In the Houston locker room, head coach Bill Peterson (whose coaching success at Florida State led to the Oilers job) was in awe of the Dolphins’ effort. “Let me say the Dolphins aren’t a good football team, — they are a GREAT football team. They showed it in the fourth quarter on that game clinching drive.”
For just a few minutes Shula allowed his team to enjoy their victory over an outmatched Oilers team. Then, he turned his attention to next week’s challenge. He knew his Dolphins would be underdogs on the road at Bud Grant’s Minnesota Vikings. Yes, there was trouble on the horizon.
The 1972 Miami Dolphins were now 2-0.
Finsmob Unleashed 
Good morning.
I appreciate the effort and research that went into this, OD. A lot of detail in a relatively short piece. Thanks for sharing it with us.
What are we going to talk about today?
THANK YOU TRY POD!!!! – – I hope ALL of you wonderful Dolfans get a kick out of this episode of ABSOLUTE PERFECTION. – – Your’s truly will be heading out to North Carolina tomorrow morning at 6 AM sharp after getting up a little after 5 AM. –It’s about a 10-11 hour drive from Tampa to Charlotte. –The low tomorrow night in Charlotte is supposed to be 20 degrees. By Saturday night the low will be 13. –Hope the convention is “hotter” than the temperature!! –I’ll get home from Charlotte after midnight on Sunday. then it’s off to work Monday morning and ANOTHER 7-day work week. But, next weekend, I’ll be in the Lake Worth area (a West Palm Beach suburb) and the temps will be much better. My next day off is Feb. 28.
As Dick Le Beau says, “Life is a gift. And age is just a number. Onward and upward!” –Go Fins!
PS: My sincere thanks to HERDFAN for helping to make this all possible and to MISS GIGI, who “produced” the original version of ABSOLUTE PERFECTION!!
Charlotte my in laws live in Charlotte Dillworth area. In fact my wife’s sister and husband is coming in today to take a vacation at our home and take care of the grand kids while we are on vacation. I love Charlotte and all the surrounding areas around it. Of course I love the barbq joints(pulled pork with vinegar) YUM YUM and the rich history of nascar. Don’t forget to visit the nascar hall of fame.
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Today’s quiz———– how many ways can you spell barbq
Ahhh Wednesday – must be “Absolute Perfection” Day.
Should be required reading for all current Dolphin personnel with a quiz after every installment.
Thanks OD
“The Perfect Season is the source, the very essence, of Dolphin pride. It is what separates us from the fans of every other team in the National Football League. Breathe it! Eat it! Sleep it! The Perfect Season is OURS TO ENJOY!!”
So nice to read these again – Thank you OD!
Not sure if any of you picked up on this from the article, but I did.
Shula said he felt a “little uneasy.”
Except when Don felt uneasy, he hit the gas and his team promptly scored a TD, instead of hitting the brakes, and giving the ball back to the other team. Had to point that out.
Oink
What a perfect day
Thanks for the great piece OD
you the oinks
Love this series, OD. I bookmarked them all before. Print them up, do a “poor man’s copyright” and mail them to yourself (filed away unopened)… (counselors? does this still work like it used to?) and then let me have a copy. 🙂
I dunno
but I’m guessing emailing them to yourself has the same effect
Quick drive by as the work day is underway: I hope somebody is working on an analysis article of a Tannehill contract. It’s not just about the QB… it’s about protecting the Fins as well. Kaep and Dalton had horrific seasons after their big paydays (competitiveness ‘gauge’?). I like so much about Tannehill, but he doesn’t have the “mind” to make the decisions under pressure like Marion, Manning, and even Brady.
IF we ink a big deal… we MUST keep throwing O-line against the barn wall until we get 5 or 6 of them to stick! Tanny protected (vs many other QBs protected) is lethal, IMO.
This contract is a HUGE decision that could have ramifications for the next 5-6 years.
Me? : take 5th year option which gives him two more years… build best o-line in AFC… if the game takes off, give him the big ass contract.
You’re comparing him to QBs who played a long time. He’s entering his 4th season.
If you find a QB you believe in, this is the nature of the business. We spent years complaining about not drafting a QB in the 1st rd and getting that franchise guy. Now that we have that guy, we’re worried about his contract. Oh to be a Dolphin fan. LOL
MikeE… did you see how Belicheat was being criticized for NOT calling a timeout on the Seahawks last drive? lol Had Seattle played their strength and finished the game, that NO call of timeout would have Pats fans cannibalizing the “Coach/Physics Expert”.
Luckily for the Patriots it was
fixeda bad decision by Pete “Chokey” Carroll that won them the game.Rhino
Armando discussed the future of the Dolphins and Tannehill’s extension the other day. Very gloomy article, as per usghe, but he does have some valid points. Once we go all in on Tannehill and make that investment, it’s going to be much harder to keep enough talent around him, especially when we don’t have that much anyway. We’ll have to rely on the draft that much more, and really have to nail our picks and actually, you know, use them. Imagine that?
That’s the case for all teams that have a QB they believe in. We haven’t had a QB to really invest in for a long time and we haven’t been that good so no worries. 🙂
It’s a good thing, but the state of the rest of the team isn’t so great. We need to really hit on a few of our draft picks, and our 2 star defenders are getting old, and after that, we don’t really have anything special. We need to find special in this draft.
If the way they are saying the deal is being structured, “all in” is a 3 year commitment max. I dont call that “all in” when you put a back out clause after year 3. All in is the shit they did in Chicago, or Detroit, or Cincy, etc. Team with QB’s who were less deserving. I dont see one issue with the contract numbers they were rumoring the other day, sounded liek a very fair to team, and Tanny, contract.
Any receiver us for contract this year should walk into their prospective GM’s offices and say, “Pay me like Mike Wallace, or ill start acting like Mike Wallace.” 🙂 Its the new negotiation tactic!
My mom and dad were away for just about a month and I picked them up at the airport last night. First chance I had to talk about the SB with them (my mom the patsie fan) and without any provocation whatsoever my Dad’s initial feeling is that the pass attempt is to “throw” the game.
The league is a joke right now. Screw you Goodell we all see it – Quit ruining OUR game.
Son — your Mom is a Pats fan? Guess every family has its dirty secrets. 🙂
My entire family is from RI and the surrounding area, they’re all patsie fans.
As Peter Gabriel would say, “not me I’m smarter than that…” (that a song reference to Big Time, I know you don’t follow the music scene)
LOL — so you being a Phin Phan was a way to rebel. That’s the way I became a Pirates fan…….my Dad was big into the Mets.
Mike E, we have a solid core of players but yes we need to find some special at some point. That’s the nature of this game. I’m not afraid.
You guys really think the SB was fixed and Carroll purposely lost the game?
I know you’re not afraid, you’re a very, very, very, very, very patient man. Me, not so much!
This was a actually a reply to you post above. Silly me!
Yep — the way I hear it the last Seahawks play was called by the same guy that staged the moon landing footage in Hollywood.
Rhino its a 3 year commitment, its 15 mil a year and can be structure in a way where its not a full 15 mil cap hit the first year, where as the 5th year option is full on. I think Tanny has proven enough to give him grace through his 5th year, so if we plan on committing to him at least through his 6th year, then why not ink it now instead of waiting for even more contracts to be inked pushing his cost even higher. That contract was very fair to both sides and there is 0 reason not to ink it now.
D – Not sure what you’re talking about, but there were reports of a 7 year $100M plus contract for Tannehill
Mike look below, those were the rumored contract details.
OD — man I love reading your stuff. Makes it seem more like religion than football…….just as the Phins should be.
Rhino, Once Tannehill signs the deal its going to be on him to put this team on his back and go. Make it happen. I get where Randy comes from I want to see our QB pull games out late, sustain drives when we have a lead, take chances down field to squash teams these are things he’ll have to do when he takes the biggest single chunk of the salary cap.
I now y’alls response to this I’ve seen it plenty but the fact remains we have to rely on our QB to take us to a higher level. I feel he can but he has to likely go outside of his own comfort zone and ball out on a different level.
I know where you’re coming from and you know the response…he has to be given time to nail that opportunity. There’s a reason why NE is constantly investing in that OL. When Brady is under pressure he doesn’t perform.
“Incognito has enough of a track record, a pattern of behavior of bullying and harassment, that it’s unlikely that that would all of a sudden that would change. So it is a little bit disheartening knowing that he is coming to our community.”
You knew some had to say it, but it in Richie’s defense that was a Univ. of Buffalo prof who is the head of a cCenter for Bullying and Abuse Prevention….so she sorta had to.
He sat out a year for “bullying” a grown man, and professional football player, in ways a lot of football players treat each other. He doesnt get suspended, but pretty much blacklisted for a year.
Ray Rice on the other hand pimp slaps his woman, knocking her out cold, and after her head clunks against the rial of the elevator, grabs her by the ankle and drags her partially out of the elevator, using her limp body as a door stop, kicking at her to wake up, all caught on video and gets re-instated before the end of the year.
Dont care for either of them or what they did, but you have to admit, if Ray Rice deserves a second chance, surely Richie does.
Oh forgot to mention, Ray Rice continues to say he did nothing wrong, and never entered treatment, whereas Richie did…
Didn’t say I agreed D. And actually I’m with you. Richie has paid the appropriate price for what he did……maybe even more than that. Was actually surprised no one picked him last year.
7 year 105mil, team option after 3 years, Tanny has option on years 5 and 6. 15 mil a year, not sure the guaranteed money, so cant speculate on how they could structure it, but i do know it will be able to be structure in a way that makes it a lot friendlier on the years we need it to be.
Mike E. says:
February 11, 2015 at 10:05 am
I know you’re not afraid, you’re a very, very, very, very, very patient man. Me, not so much!
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Gotta be a patient man if ya wanna get he whole jar in, otherwise you wind up like that fool who broke it.
Ewwwww. lol
stangerx says:
February 11, 2015 at 10:15 am
Didn’t say I agreed D. And actually I’m with you. Richie has paid the appropriate price for what he did……maybe even more than that. Was actually surprised no one picked him last year.
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Yeah i got that from your response, i was more in righteous indignation mode because i think the league is showing a double standard to people probably because of the position they play on the field. Richie is branded for life, Ray Rice gets a hug as he walks back through the door.
Rice still sat out the season at least once the vid came out. But the NFL versus other places is interesting. Can guarantee you if we had a vid of one of the lawyers in my office punching his wife in an elevator that he might get work again, but he would have been out our door ASAP.
You have to invest in a QB and protecting him.
Didn’t we invest in Daunte Culpepper?
Correcting Tim…..You need to invest in a QB with a fully functioning brain 😄
Hmmm, what would you guys think of a trade of Wallace to someone like the ‘hawks, for like a 3rd rounder? or like with Stabby a 3 and future 3, or a 3 and a 4 this year.
Myself, I’d do it in a heartbeat, I’m in the minority….YEAH, FUCK THAT GUY!!!!
If we could get 2 (3’s), I’d consider it. I’d prefer that 1000X more than just outright cutting him, which you know i think is a bad decision.
I would like to get a 2nd
I would take a 2nd now instead of two 3s over the next 2 years
Since it would be a low round 2, MAYBE, but with Ross having tipped the hat which way he is leaning, i think it hurts any leverage we would have in a negotiation.
I don’t get the Culpepper angle. He played for us one season so no we didn’t invest in him or build around him.
Pretty sure “The Culpepper Angle” was a Robert Ludlum thriller.
GUESS WHO IS HOME early today?? –ME!!–Our computer system is down thanks to another goof-up by Brighthouse Networks (AKA “Dumbhouse Networks.” Hope to have it up and running later today. However, my work day MAY be over. Gives me more time with Mrs. OD and more time to do needed laundry before travelling. Will be taking Mrs. OD to lunch in a few minutes.
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THANKS, GUYS and GALZ, for your comments on ABSOLUTE PERFECTION. –NOW if Herd, Gigi, Rhino or SOMEONE could just figure out a way to ship it TO STEVE ROSS!!!!!!
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Hope to talk to all of you later today.
Nice! Lucky you!
They could possibly pass it along to Tom Garfinkel. That guy is always interacting with fans.
YOUNG STANGER: FAU hosts the U. of Buffalo at Schnellenberger Field this upcoming football season. OUR GOAL is to give that Buffalo professor (now THERE’S AN OXYMORON) an up close and personal view of his team getting “BULLIED” on the football field!! – – Wonder if he’ll give us a “PAUL LIND RESPONSE?” (“OH YOU BRUTE!”).
Thought the Star Wars geeks would enjoy this
https://twitter.com/depresseddarth/status/565527858383433728
it should have ended with Vader force choking all of them….. well at least from my perspective it should have.
I really dont think Tim is that kinda guy, but whatev’s
Other people see something in GDP’s post? Mine shows blank so i was trying to be funny lol.
Who are the others, anyone else know?
Probably recent guys like Kaep, Wilson
If I want to go way back I say Randall Cunningham
I bet Vick did it in his good year with the eagles
“Chris Shula, the grandson of former Miami Dolphins coach Don Shula, has been hired by the San Diego Chargers as a defensive quality control coach.
Shula spent last season as defensive coordinator at Division III John Carroll University.
A former linebacker at Miami of Ohio, Shula was assistant linebackers coach at Ball State in 2010 and then spent three seasons as an assistant at Indiana, working primarily with the defensive backs.
He is the son of former NFL coach David Shula.”
Apples and trees.
I’ve always hinted at David Shula being hired by Ross to be our HC….but he keeps going in directions like Sparano, Philbin…lol
Omar Kelly ✔ @OmarKelly
And I’m told Frank Gore, who lives 3 miles from the Dolphins facility, would definitely welcome a return home.However, he wants to be a 49er
Basically saying pay him and he will come “home” lol. Gotta think about it, home really now is SF, so its not coming home when your already at home there. Im sure though it would be a preferable location to going somewhere completely foreign.
SF has little to no way to re-sign him though.
Will be interesting to see which way Baalke goes & which way Hickey goes in FA.
RB’s most of the time are much better to get through the draft, and ordinarily id say we would be better off as well, but if the price is right we could really use a good vet RB, someone like Gore who still seems to have a little left in the tank, but also brings a lot more than just play ability with him.
GDP, i dunno that being a Shula qualifies him to be a good HC, Mike Shula was pretty bad at it, and his isn’t tearing it up as an OC either.
Mike Shula, that’s who I meant to say. He has done well for Cam Newton, who has nothing but good things to say about him, as well as Stewart & Williams.
I seriously doubt that Mike Shula would be worse than Joe Bazooka.
I think Mike Shula has helped with getting Cam to mature a little, and he has helped Newton learn to lean on his team instead of trying to do it all himsefl, but i dont think he is helping with his overall development. Newton is in some ways showing some regression in past couple of years, He has some good moments, but overall his passes look shitty and his decisions arent the best. He is a complete beast of an athletic specimen but id take Tanny over him at this point, i think there is better upside with Tanny, and believe he will be top QB i the league longer.
Mike Shula over Joe, i wouldn’t do that. I know Joe has his issues, but he is improving and refining, he has 3 years of experience now and the experience is starting to show. I know we are down on him because we expected him to pretty much immediately turn the ship around but that’s not going to happen 90% of the time. Shula wouldn’t have turned us around by now either.
Piggy, the key is the QBs have to have thrown for 4,000 yards.
D, I’ve always thought Tanny would be better than Cam, RG3, Kaep, Cousins, etc. from day 1.
I did too, he has IT, you could tell watching him the first year. His development was my only concern but i think we are about to see that really take off too. Finally have the right people to get him where he needs to go, now we just have to keep adding pieces around him.
The WR we all forget about when salivating over speed demons Dorsett, Devin Smith, etc.
CBS Sports’ Pat Kirwan passes along that Florida State WR Rashad Greene had the best drop rate he’d seen.
And you wonder why Jameis Winston loved him so much. Greene dropped only one of every 74 balls thrown his way this past season, a ridiculous percentage. We expect Greene to be selected on Day 2. NFL Media analyst Daniel Jeremiah compares him to Broncos’ WR Emmanuel Sanders.
I dont forget about him, but if your looking for a BIG guy and a speed guy, you will tend to over look someone like him. Truthfully, Amari Cooper is that way too, neither really big, or really fast, but obvously really good. Green is one of those Landry types, who will get open and he will catch it when it hits his hands, he just doesn’t flash in a lot of areas you need to to gather all the attention. Id be ok with taking him if we missed out on a few others, and i think he would come in and replace Hartline. I just dont think he gives us a big target guy, which we really need, and he doesnt offer an outside guy, replacement for Wallace.
Its sad to say, because of all the changes that 4k QB is like a 3k QB from just 10-15 years ago. Marino would probably pass for 6-7k these days. I hate seeing his records broken by this generation of QB’s. Farve at least broke them by being so fucking durable that he lasted 17 years lol, so i give him credit for earning his. Brady, Manning, Brees, etc would not have broken his had they played under same rule structure.
Marino came out of the womb twenty years too early. He would have been the best QB ever with the new rules.
He still is the best pure passer I’ve ever seen.
“getterdone says:
February 11, 2015 at 11:42 am
Mike Shula, that’s who I meant to say. He has done well for Cam Newton, who has nothing but good things to say about him, as well as Stewart & Williams.
I seriously doubt that Mike Shula would be worse than Joe Bazooka.”
Has Joe not done well for Tannehill? Has Tannehill every had anything but good things to say about Joe? You want a guy fired that your favorite player is developing happily under. Ironic.
Did you see me mention the word fire Joe in my post???
Seems you take things out of context and run with it…Hmm, Ironic!
If we’re gonna play the pissy game, answer the question straight up. How does Joe get replaced by Shula without being fired?
I’ll wait.
And on another note, I like the mention of Rashad Greene GDP.
Thanks, I was always scared of his only being 175-180, but they say he’s a toughly built 180…I like he’s a bit taller than Dorsett @ 6’1. ..just don’t expect these guys to be much of a down field blocker. 🙂
Seems like a player that could work in a WC system.
D, 4,000 yards isn’t quite like 3,000. Only 12 QBs threw for 4,000+ this past season. Back in Marino’s era any starting QB who played a full season threw for at least 3,000 yards.
from CBS….the Browns would be nuts to trade up for Mariota…IMO…SMH
It was reported about a week and a half ago that the Cleveland Browns were set to hire Kevin O’Connell as their quarterbacks coach. O’Connell, the former NFL backup who played for the Patriots, Lions, Jets, Dolphins and Chargers, now works as a quarterbacks tutor for the San Diego-based sports performance company, Prolific Athletes, and while it’s been widely reported that he’ll eventually be named Cleveland’s QBs coach, he’s yet to officially accept the job.
Instead, he’s continuing to work with prospects for now. Among his pupils this year at Prolific Athletes: Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota. This, apparently, is rubbing some league executives the wrong way.
“The Browns can have their quarterbacks coach in waiting work with a player, teach him the entire offense, etc., but we can’t even talk to any potential draft pick until the Combine per league rules? Something is wrong here,” one league executive told ProFootballTalk.
The Browns are reportedly considering trading up in the draft for Mariota, and this early, inside look they’re getting at him through their future quarterbacks coach seems to at least skirt the line of what’s actually allowed. O’Connell is not yet a team employee, so he is technically allowed to do this, but as PFT pointed out, NFL Media, which partially owned by the Browns, has reported that he will be — and the Browns have never refuted it.
And this all comes on the heels of general manager Ray Farmer sending illegal electronic communications — text messages — from the press box to the sideline during games this season, a violation for which the Browns are still awaiting punishment.
We have a few good young players developing nicely on this team but Philbin gets no credit for it. But anything that doesn’t work out is clearly on him. LOL
Clearly. 🙂
I think Joe has done some good things definitely, especially in ‘some’ of the players development, but not some of the ones you’d think he should. Also his in game coaching is worrisome at times right?
I don’t have big issues with his in game coaching and have said as much. I also think Coyle calls a good game so I’m clearly in the minority.
Russell Wilson and Colin Kaepernick have never thrown for 4,000 yards so they’re not one of the 8.
David Shula was a disaster as a HC in the NFL with CIN – he was 19-52 with his best season being 7-9. Why would anyone even consider him?
TIM; You ask “Who would consider him?” -ANSWER=The same man who, in response to Sparano’s 0-7 start, said “Tony Sparano is the right man to lead this franchise.” –The one and only STEVE ROSS.
All coaches make questionable decisions from time to time. McCarthy has SB rings and there is talk of him giving up playcalling in GB. Belichick was bailed out by a miracle pass call from Carroll (also widely criticized as a bad call) and a miracle play from his rookie DB when he failed to call a timeout late in the game and preserve some clock for a game tying fieldgoal. He was widely criticized for going for it on 4th down vs. the Colts a couple years ago in the playoffs.
None of those guys are bad coaches. They just made some questionable calls here and there. Every coach does, and it’s easy for fans to criticize. But it’s one of the reasons I try very very hard not to be an armchair playcaller. Calling a game is not an easy thing, and in the case of an HC who isn’t calling plays, there’s variables (who called what, why, what was the rationale, when should one be over ruled etc) that can not be accounted for in passing judgement.
It’s so easy to say I would have done the opposite.
Tim, you are in a huge minority, probably a party of 1 if you like Coyle and think he calls a good game.
There might be a couple that agree with ya on Joe’s in game coaching, etc…but Coyle is your unicycle. 🙂
Because fans think they know more than they do. 🙂
Our defenders are regularly in the exact right place on most plays. Whiffing on tackles or dropping a pick isn’t on Coyle.
I question how Mariota will transition to the pros, but if I were a GM who needed a QB (this may or may not apply in the Cleveland case) I wouldn’t hesitate to draft him high, even first overall. He’s the best shot at a franchise guy in this draft IMHO, and it’s a QB driven league. you’ve got to keep trying til you hit on one. When you hit on one, you lock him up asap to a relatively team friendly, but lucrative contract.
Above the shoulders, in character and integrity and work habits…this is a guy I trust to continue improving after getting paid. That’s all you can ask. Does he have enough physical talent, and does he have it upstairs.
BTW, I’m not sure if that paragraph is about Mariota or Tannehill, but I think it fits both.
I’ve heard quite a few people in the NFL and college football biz say they don’t think Mariota is a top NFL talent and that Winston is but he has some red flags.
I’ve heard all that too. But to me the gulf in the upstairs department dwarfs the minor difference in the raw talent department between the two.
Mariota is feared to be a system guy, not the best on reads (Ohio St. kinda exposed that some), and not much more than a dink n dunk arm.
Lots of folk saw the same thing happen to Winston in the playoff game too. I will make a huge wager that Mariota ends up having a better career then Winston right now, because I think at the QB position brain is more important the raw athleticism (not that Mariota is a slouch by any means) 100% of the time.
All IMHO of course.
Glad Ross, Hickey, Philbin see that we should lock Tannehill up and keep building around him, as I’ve chanted for many a day. 😉
Jahn,
Fair points, but by Joe’s own admission to feeling queasy for not going for a 1st down and handing it back to his defense that cost us a crucial game is something we can’t have…seems it wasn’t an isolated onetime event either…same with many of his questionable use of TO’s, clock management as well.
I hope he grows a big set of overly inflated BALLS in his Win or be Gone year and really gives it a go. Same with his leadership, which I think will help the previously mentioned.
Sports is an emotional game and coaches go with their gut all the time. One call or play is rarely ever the reason for a win or a loss.
I don’t want to devolve into too much speculation, but I really genuinely think we NEVER should have thrown the ball on that series. I think Joe felt the same way and when Lazor called the pass and it fell incomplete, I think we ALL got queasy. It’s a rallying cry for those anti-Joe, but I think Joe made the best decision he could at that point and pulled rank on the next play asking for the ball to stay on the ground.
He felt queasy because Lazor threw the ball when we should’ve been killing clock. He didn’t lose his nerve. He took a bad call from his OC and did his best damage control work. The fact that some of us can’t even agree if we should’ve been throwing or running there, is proof that there’s no clear cut “right playcall”, and all the more reason to withold judgement in those situations IMHO.
Also, I don’t want to get into it, but I didn’t have a problem with any of the TO usage either. If I had to point to one death knell in the GB game, it was a shanked punt.
I don’t know TIm. I generally have thought Coyle calls a good game, but I think at the end of the season what we saw was that maybe that style of playcalling lends itself to late game or worse, late season letdowns.
I have a real issue with him rushing 3 DL at critical times in the game. I’m ok with rushing 4 and hoping one gets home the the QB, but even that strategy can’t be used exclusively, or players wear down.
I think if football were played with robots, instead of players, who get tired, he maybe is an outstanding playcaller, but I think sometimes he forgets about the players and falls back on scheme calls a bit too much.
Not sure if that makes sense…I’m not anti-Coyle, I just can’t help but see what I’ve seen. Wake isn’t getting any younger. He needs fewer reps, and more help from LBs, and he needs coverage schemes that will prevent QBs from getting rid of the ball in a fraction of a second. He’s our highest paid Defensive player, and probably our best, but his window is closing. Hope the scheme we see this season accounts for that.
The collapse coincides with the injuries and I believe Coyle was adjusting to what he had to work with. When our defense is healthy he usually rushes 4-6. When we’re starting corners who were signed the week of the game, he went max coverage. Not that hard to understand.
We ranked high in almost every defensive category the first 10 weeks. The last 6 games we fell apart. I believe injuries and fatigue was the culprit and so do a lot of people including Jason Taylor.
I can give you ground on some of that stuff, but fatigue can be a factor of scheme can it not? Fatigue is exactly what I’m concerned about. To me the strength of this defense is and has always been pass rush. You can not forgo your strongest suit in the clutch because you’re afraid someone in the secondary isn’t going to do their job, when you set them up for failure by playing off and soft coverage to start with.
He’s got to pick his poison in the clutch, and sometimes that means having the fresh bodies to get to the QB. He’s setting it up for failure when he plays coverage with umpteen players and then plays off of receivers.
I just heard Tark died. What a character he was.
Who?
Jerry Tarkanian, legendary head coach of UNLV about 25 years ago.
TryPod, I thought ya meant Fran Tarkenton at first…he was the original Russell Wilson with his scrambling abilities….lol
Jahn, I agree above on Winston too….I think both will not have a long NFL career. I see Winston following the shoes of Jamarcus.
I admit I’m glad our team doesn’t need a QB. But if we did, I’d support Mariota 100% and have a very very hard time getting behind the Winston pick.
Jahn, like you said before about Philbin and coaching decisions, they don’t always do the right thing but it doesn’t make them bad. Coaches learn through mistakes too. I think our issue on defense was more of a personnel issue and I’m sticking with it. 🙂
Fair enough, but I think plenty of it falls at the feet of Coyle, and I sincerely hope he does some soul searching this offseason in effort to get the ship turned around.
RIP Tarkanian.
TIM: ANSWER FOR YOU below your 12:20 question regarding David Shula.
I never heard Ross say anything about David Shula. I heard him say he hopes to find the next young Don Shula.
Guess you missed ROSS’s comments on Sparano, too. –I thought Ross WAS KIDDING when he said that. But he wasn’t. Therefore I believe Ross is a poor judge of head coaching material. But if Philbin wins a couple of Super Bowls, people will think Ross is a genius for picking Philbin.
I think you’re taking his comment a bit too literally. Owners always stand by their coaches until they fire them.
Jahn, the defense was playing at a high level for 10 games so Coyle must have been doing something right.
Tark and the Snake were two guys before the current breed who had an amazing knack to keep plays going. Like they had eyes in the back of their heads.
JAHN; Caught your comments on fatigue being a factor on the demise of our defense, especially late in the season. –I agree. But I’m also NOT convinced that this team was the best conditioned team in the league, either. FAR FROM IT. One thing Don Shula always insisted on is a well conditioned football team. Yes, I know, the CBA prevents Shula-style 3-a-day workouts in pads. -But it DOESN’T forbid tests to determine exactly what kind of shape a given player is in. Philbin needs to establish very high standards in this area AND STICK TO THEM!! – -Losing to better talent is one thing. But losing because you’re NOT in as good a shape as the other team is unacceptable. –I’m hoping SOMEONE can convince me that the 2015 Dolphins are one of the very best conditioned teams in the NFL.
I honestly don’t know what the fitness requirements are for reporting to camp. Most teams have them, it’s hard to say if Philbins’ is any less/more demanding then anyone else’s.
I don’t think there was a fitness problem. I think scheme put undo pressure on the pass rush, and that’s why it collapsed down the stretch. There is no car in the world that can redline indefinitely and Coyle had our guys redlining all season long. Eventually the machine breaks down.
I love your historical perspective on the fins OD, but I don’t know that everything can so simply be distilled down to “Shula didn’t do it that way”, especially when we all remember that Shula himself struggled late in his career, and received plenty of criticism himself.
Shiot — just realized it was not Fran Tarkenton who passed.
RIP Jerry. You made it interesting.
I remember Jerry Tarkanian. RIP
Nobody chewed a wet towel like the Tark, I mean nobody!
RIP Jerry Tarkanian.
OD, what does David Shula have to do with Tony Sparano and Ross didn’t hire Sparano, he was already the coach when Ross bought the team.
SPARANO has EVERYTHING to do with Ross and the team. After an 0-7 start, everybody Dolfan poster on the other site was calling for SPARANO’s head, and justifiably so!!–Ross basically told all of us we were wrong and that “Tony’s the man to lead this team into the future.” SO it’s on ROSS that Sparano was kept around a couple seasons more than he should have been. The fact that Sparano was head coach when Ross bought the team didn’t insulate Sparano from the need to be fired after he’d proven to everybody on the planet (except Ross) that he COULD NOT take this team where we all want them to go.. Sparano would later cement his reputation with failed HC stints with the Jets and Raiders.
Lunch time BBL.
My sister’s dog chews a wet towel pretty good.
Yes, as Jahn mentioned, I was referring to Jerry Tarkanian, UNLV men’s basketball coach, usually caught in cameras shots chewing on towels because he had so much nervous energy during games he needed some way to dissipate it.
Tim,
You can say how great a car is while you’re mashing on the gas pedal, but when it runs out of gas you have to consider the leadfoot to be at least part of the reason.
Mike E,
Glad to see you. You’re a GOOD dude. BTW, just wanted to say so. Publicly.
🙂
He said Mike E, not you Pig.
Smart move by this kid…maybe he’d be good in a Phins uni afterall, although I had him pegged more as a Will. 🙂
Washington’s Shaq Thompson attempted to end the debate on his position, saying he feels most comfortable at strong side LB.
“But I want to put it out there: I’m a linebacker. Outside linebacker,” Thompson wrote. “Strong side, that’s where I feel most comfortable. It’s basically like a strong safety… You need linebackers who can cover and drop in zone. And I’m a three-down player.” We agree. Many classify heftier linebackers playing the strong side, and although that might have been true in the past when defending against the run it is not so in passing situations. The strong side backers will play on top of tight ends of shaded to extra receivers. Either way, Thompson’s role will be more important than his actual position title.
Gotta bail myself. I’ll check in later. Cheers gang. Nice to read some different perspectives.
Woo hoo! Unblocked, unfettered and unrelenting!
Kong is back in the saddle again.
Welcome back ya big ape.
Cheers 🙂
Thanks for the heads up, Piggy.
WOW, Colts just released LaRon Landry. I’d pass on him in Miami, we have a better SS in Jones.
but he has a monkey
He does? lol
Awesome to have yu here Kong
Oinks to you
and Oinks to all animals
Pick of Leron Landry and his pet monkey in 2009
Aww, a capuchin.
Bill Polian is the patron saint of building teams. At least he should be if you’re a Dolphins fan for the last two decades. The former general manager is in the Hall of Fame for a reason. His Bills teams haunted Dan Marino and Don Shula. He went to Carolina’s expansion team and within two years it was in the NFC Championship Game. He then went to Indianapolis, where the Colts went to two Super Bowls, winning one. Yes, he didn’t do a good job at the end in leaving the Colts. It goes bad for a lot of people in the end. Latch onto that, if you want. Or look at the bigger picture of what he’s done and how his thoughts matter.
Polian had five key components to building a team. I’ve written about them before as an occasional check-up to where the Dolphins are. Let’s look at them now on the edge of free agency and the draft to see where the needs are:
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/dave-hyde-blog/sfl-hyde5-polians-building-blocks-and-the-dolphins-20150211-story.html
Jahn, I have no idea what you mean about Coyle redlining the pass rush. It sounds like an excuse for the players to me.
http://www.hngn.com/articles/67859/20150209/nfl-rumors-miami-dolphins-trading-mike-wallace-to-the-seattle-seahawks.htm
This guy thinks Seattle is a suitor
but he says Miami should trade Wallace for a Day 3 draft pick….I would not be happy with a Day 3 pick
I’m think Day 2 if we have a suitor
A mid round pick for Wallace does seem like a rip off, but it is far better for us than just releasing him, this also applies Capwise as well.
I’d be tempted to let him go for a 2nd or say two 3rd’s.
But I doubt it happens, due to his still bloated contract and the glaring need of Philbin & Hickey to Win Now!
OD, Ross fired Sparano at 3-9 after starting 0-7. Sparano was also never hired as a HC for any other teams. He was interim HC this past season for the Raiders when they fired their HC.
Ross has hired one HC in his life in Philbin. So there really is no track record for him hiring HCs.
He’s no Robie 😉
TIM: I think you’re an utter ass on this one!!–Saying Ross has no responsibility for keeping Sparano around is FLAT OUT WRONG!! –OF COURSE HE DOES!!–NOW, as for Sparano “not being hired” as HC of the Jets and Raiders, do you think they left “Asst Coach” on his door and on his title or not?? Semantics aside, Sparano was a dismal failure as Dolphins head coach, as Jets head coach and as Raiders head coach. –Ross’s decision TO KEEP SPARANO EMPLOYED was bad for the franchise AND he deserves blame for that decision!! YOU can give Ross all the free passes you want. I choose to hold him responsible for the last several seasons, none of which have produced a single playoff victory. –And as for Philbin, I hope all 3 of his supporters prove me wrong. –I’d like nothing better than to see him take this team to a Super Bowl title. But I think the chances of that are mighty slim. INSTEAD, I believe 2015 will be PHILBIN’s last year as Miami’s head coach because even Ross isn’t stupid enough to give Joe another shot at his FIRST winning season.
——
OUT for the rest of the week.
When you want to get rid of a player and his contract any draft pick will due. We didn’t use a draft pick to acquire Wallace so who cares.
See below
you don;t get rid of the whole contract
its the same as cutting him before 6/9
Its just 2.5M in cap savings
not a whole lot
That’s not the point. If you want to move on you make the deal. You don’t have to pay him for 3 more years.
trading him does not help the salary cap situation much
its just 2.5M in savings
So I would insist on a Day 2 pick
There are few speedsters that will be available in this draft on day 3
but I don;t think we can view that as an a lock
Day 3 picks usually don;t contribute immedialty
may as well keep wallace if that is all that’s on the table
Robbie was also cheap.
Which is an even greater testament to Shula’s incredible coaching with less.
Yeah Shula had no good players when he won. LOL
How about those mid 80s teams?
Why does anyone care? LOL
Pig, our day 1 picks usually don’t contribute immediately either…think I’m gonna cry now…ugh!
Like Pouncey, Tannehill and James?
I was thinking over a longer period of time, plus the Dion Jordan thing still bites…as a recent flub so far.
Then it gets worse with many of our 2nd & 3rd picks…ugh.
Kong, I didn’t realize you were locked out.
My work has been blocking the new site as spam. I checked it again and again for weeks to no avail. Pig let me know one of the other peeps had the same problem but was now able to log in so I checked it today and it’s not designated as spam anymore 😀
Cool!
This is my if we trade wallace draft
Your Picks:
Round 1 Pick 17 (S.D.): DeVante Parker, WR, Louisville (A)
Round 2 Pick 14 (S.F.): Benardrick McKinney, ILB, Mississippi State (A)
Round 2 Pick 16 (S.D.): Michael Bennett, DT, Ohio State (A-)
Round 2 Pick 20 (PHI): Devin Funchess, WR/TE, Michigan (A)
Round 3 Pick 16 (K.C.): Derron Smith, FS, Fresno State (A)
Round 3 Pick 20 (PHI): Lorenzo Mauldin, OLB/DE, Louisville (B+)
Round 4 Pick 15: Geneo Grissom, OLB, Oklahoma (C+)
Round 4 Pick 19 (K.C.): Jeremiah Poutasi, OT, Utah (A-)
Round 5 Pick 14: Tyler Varga, FB, Yale (B+)
Round 6 Pick 15: Stefon Diggs, WR, Maryland (B-)
Round 7 Pick 15: Deshazor Everett, CB, Texas A&M (A)
Yeah good luck with that lil Hickey
How are you guys getting these ridiculous amount of picks? It’s totally unrealistic.
I might as well do a mock draft with all 1st round talents through 7 rounds. LOL
Quit being a pick Nazi😃😃😃😃 if there’s a trade offer you take it. Sometimes you don’t get an offer.
Here’s an article for Kong.
“It was like being hit by a train.”
No actually it was like being hit by a gorilla. If it was a train you’d be dead. LOL
http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/nature/post/photographer-punched-drunk-gorilla/
GD, 3 out of 4 1st rd picks starting as rookies over 4 years is very good. Landry as a 2nd last year was very productive. Why dwell on the past when the present has been good?
Kong
you let your employer know there is no spam on this site
we are 100% HAM!
LOL @ Dbolt
But these mocks are getting extremely silly. Like I said I’ll do a 7 round mock with all top talent. That’s just as realistic as these.
Tim occassionally First Pick has ridiculous offers
In the last draft I was offered SF 2nd round pick to move down one spot with them…lol
then to make thibngs worse I was offered the Chargers 2nd to move down to 17
So I picked up 2 2nd rounders to move from 14 to 17….lol
Then I had 3 picks in a row in the 2nd round and I moved down from 15 to 20 and picked up a 3rd rounder
So suddenly I had the 17th pick, 3 mid round 2nds and 2 3rd round picks
Imagine that one of those extra picks was for Wallace….lol
Okay, I’ll be sure to keep my eye open for the Easter Bunny banging a Mermaid while riding a Unicorn on the way home. LOL
take a pic if you see it
These mock drafts are just for fun
don;t take them so seriously
LMAO!!!
Im not catching that guy.
I’d like to echo the sentiments expressed by Jahn in regards to Mike E being a good dude. I do not know why he felt compelled to say this, but I could not agree with him more. Mike is a stand-up guy. I can’t imagine how this could even be debatable.
Oink and Agreed
https://twitter.com/fragilebabybird/status/565601065891282944
Lmao
D says:
February 11, 2015 at 11:51 am
I did too, he has IT, you could tell watching him the first year. His development was my only concern but i think we are about to see that really take off too. Finally have the right people to get him where he needs to go, now we just have to keep adding pieces around him.
*
WHAAAAATTTT??? Says who? Omar says he doesn’t have “it” and if you don’t have “it” you can’t develop “it” or be coached to learn “It” you either have “it” or you don’t have “it” according to the braided cocoanut. Have you seen “it”? what does “it” look like? Can anyone explain to me what “it” is? how do you measure “it”?
And Matt Barkley has “IT”….per Omar🐒💩
maybe roger should hire some of little league officials to do his investigating
http://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/more-sports/chicagos-little-league-championship-team-stripped-of-title/ar-AA9goqD
try
that isnt necessarily true. mike is only friends with married men
Ok so let me assume we do this, Trade Wallace (3 and a 4) and cut most the people we have mentioned previously, but ill keep Hartline, since its almost identical to what we save having traded Wallace. By numbers i previously generate, we would have roughly 32mil cap space, if all our cuts were pre June 1 cuts. With the 32 mil im signing Knighton for 7mil a year, Iupati for 7mil a year and Thomas for 8 mil a year. 5mil for the rookie class leaves us with 5mil left in cap space. I then draft like this:
Your Picks:
Round 1 Pick 14: DeVante Parker, WR, Louisville (A)
Round 2 Pick 15: Benardrick McKinney, ILB, Mississippi State (A)
Round 3 Pick 14: Derron Smith, FS, Fresno State (A-)
Round 3 Pick 31: Phillip Dorsett, WR, Miami (Fla.) (A)
Round 4 Pick 15: Senquez Golson, CB, Ole Miss (A)
Round 4 Pick 31: Robert Myers, OG/OT, Tennessee State (C+)
Round 5 Pick 14: Cameron Artis-Payne, RB, Auburn (A)
Round 6 Pick 15: Shane Carden, QB, East Carolina (C-)
Round 7 Pick 15: Derrick Lott, DT, Chattanooga (A-)
Rock, Omar uses another intangible called “kill”, when he determins if a QB will go on and do good or not.
How would you know that when he doesn’t talk QBs?
Vince Young had “IT” & the scary “KILL” factor. He’s only out of the NFL because the league is racists.
If only Omar would be out of blorting about the NFL because they were. might have one good thing to come out of that.
On my mock i ran 2 mocks, one for seatlle and one for us, i picked the rounds 3-4 picks i got for the Wallace trade as if i was picking for us having those picks having made the picks i made in the dolphin mock. I ran mocks until i got one that was picking in a similar pattern as the one when i ran the Dolphins mock, ie all picks i made doing the Dolphins one were there when i did the Seattle one. I has option of Green or Dorsett with that R3P31 pick and took Dorsett even though pretty conflicted. I think Greene is probably the overall better receiver, but Dorsett has the speed to replace Wallace.
NOBODY wants to get punched by a drunk gorilla, lol.
LOL — not me. Thanks to god the bar fight days are well behind me.
About twenty years ago learned when I go challenged to just let it go and then inform the bouncer to “watch out for that guy…..he’s looking for a fight.” Took pleasure a number of times watching what happened afterwards.
The link Tim posted was great. You can actually see the gorilla pulling back for the punch right before he wallops him, lol.
Best bouncer fight i ever saw was in Vegas outside a strip club. These two little chinese guys were acting a fool and got kicked out and this big muscled up black bouncer (must have been 6’8+ 385-400lbs) was standing at the door guarding it, arms crossed, keeping them from going back in. Well at some point the crazy fuckers decided to challenge him and at first i was amazed at how well they fought together as they were kickin that dude’s ass, but then came the thunder. Guy connected with one of them and hit him so hard i thought i just saw someone die, dude’s leg buckled and then his whole body went limp, other dude tried to run at that point but he caught him by the back of his head, by the hair kinda just brought both his fists together in a thud i can still hear to this day when i remember that moment. Cops were near by, and came and took those guys away, but can bet we fucking minded out p’s and q’s after seeing that.
I also so a dude get picked up and thrown about 5 yards in the air by a huge white bouncer in Houston, who reminded me of Paul Bunyan, except fat. The bouncer had this big ass Python he kept hanging across the back of his neck and when this dude kept trying to force his way back in he’d knock him back and do that no no no finger oyu see in the commercial (this was before the commercial though). Eventually guy tries to force his way past him and he just grabbed him by the collar and belt and threw him like a duffle bag. I get they are drunk, but its just stupid to fuck with those guy. They didnt get that job because they are a pussy,
LOL Cav. Didn’t check out before. Telegraphing gets you in trouble, but maybe not as much when it is a gorilla related to you. 🙂
Awesome stories D. Never F with a bouncer. Even if you can take him Patrick Swayze is ready to pop in as back up…….and no doubt whose side the cops will take no matter what goes down.
Unless you are Richie I at club LIV of course. 🙂
Cool stories, D. Over the years I’ve had a few friends that were bouncers. It was always amusing to watch them work. Drunk people often overestimate what they can handle, lol.
Lol, Stanger.
After reading your response I realized I should probably reference Tim’s earlier post rather than appear to be pounding my own chest.
But that’s what you do.
LOL
How do you get the images like that? Paste the URL?
haha, sweet
Jahn
Thanks man! I guess you saw. Appreciate the support! 🙂
D — just to add in a story where the bouncer did get beat up. Was on a booze cruise with my rugby team in the Bahamas. Everybody’s drunk (beware of Bahama Mamas) and one of the guys on our team got beat up by one of their bouncers. You have to realize we are on a boat, we are all riggers, and there are like 40 of us and only like eight guys working the boat.
Head guy says, “we’ll handle it.” They got a Boston Whaler from the shore to take the guy off and then it rode next to the booze boat for like five minutes as the other guys on it beat the shiot out of him. If they were faking it for show…..they did a real good job. And there was blood.