So the 2018 NFL season will be coming to and end next week, and as per usghe, Dolphins will watch other teams in the playoffs. Also as per usghe, we will not be picking top 10. We’re not even good at that! Sometimes if you’re bad, it’s better to be baaaad. Get that top 5 pick, or even #1 pick, and then parlay that into more picks, and really change the roster. No, we’ll pick somewhere in the middle, maybe 15 or 16, or maybe even 18 or so when we beat Buffalo when it doesn’t count next week.
Let’s take a step back. I’m not mad that we lost yesterday, our playoff chances were slim going in, but for a while there, the Colts were losing, so our opportunity was there, but we couldn’t take care of business. It seems like whenever the stakes are high, and the playoffs are on the line, we manage to show our worst. Ryan Tannehill is a big part of that. He’s not, I repeat, NOT the guy that will lift your team. I watch a lot of games around the NFL, and the best QB’s take chances. They don’t always work out, but guys like Brees, Roethlisberger, Wilson etc. when the game is on the line, throw a 30 yard pass on 2nd and 8. They throw a 30 yard pass on 3rd and 10, in fact, they always look to get the ball downfield for a big play. That’s the last place Tannehill looks. He’s a warrior, but he’s gutless in his decision making. He’s not a guy that wants to get the kill, he’s a workaday bee. He’s more than happy to just do his job, but he’s not wired to kill.
There are rumblings for a big front office shakeup in Miami. If so, that would probably signal the end for Mike Tannenbaum ( Executive VP of Football Operations) and Chris Grier (GM). Which direction we would go from this I don’t know, but I’d hope we find a guy with experience that can build the team from the ground up. No quick fix plan, but build the team in the image of what he feels is successful, and sustainable in the current and future state of the NFL. Identify a HC, and mutually agree with that HC on the coordinators, and then build the team. If it takes 2 or 3 years, fine. Don’t cut corners to try and win now, no foolish FA spending. If we take our lumps for a year or two, so be it. Just build it right. The best teams do, and repeatedly are contenders.
If we don’t fire any executives and and don’t bring a new FO, I’d hope that Adam Gase is truly on the hot seat. I can’t be sure he’s not the one, but it’s becoming clearer to me that he might not be. For all of his offensive knowledge and potential, our offense is in the bottom 5. It’s understood we lost players to injury, yet there are players on the roster that are here that I feel are underused. Kenyan Drake had 10 total touches Sunday. He’s you’re home run hitter, the big playmaker. C’mon, it’s not like he’s Tavon Austin and we’re afraid he can’t touch the ball too many times, Drake is 6’1 212. Frank Gore is out for the season, and Drake gets 10 total touches. What’s the problem? Where’s the disconnect?
Forget about the defense, Gase has no part of that, and it’s obvious, because Matt Burke still has a job. Oh BTW, our defense is also in the bottom 5. Yeah, we lost some personnel there too, but it’s more than that, a lot more than that. We don’t make adjustments on either side of the ball, just keep going with what we’ve got. What we got ain’t working all too often, so . . . At the very least, if Gase is still here next season, he has to do 2 things. Fire both coordinators, find a legit OC who can call the plays so Gase doesn’t have to sit on the bench during the damn game doodling by himself. Find a legit DC who has been proven elsewhere, and will straighten out and identify our issues, and fix them. That might even be enough to save his job for the future.
I think we MUST draft a QB next season, and not just pick one in RD 5-7 to say we took a QB. It’s possible the best QB for us might be in RD 5, but then I want that guy competing to start from the get-go, and not sitting on the bench because Gase loves Ryan Tannehill. If Tannehill is still here next season, his reign is over. He is on notice, and any real competitors should have a fair shot to unseat him. If somehow he comes out on top, as soon as he falters, the next man up if ready should be given his shot. We’ve seen this show far too many times, It always ends the same. Ryan Tannehill has never played in a playoff game, and he probably never will. Nuff said!
I wish I had a brighter outlook for all of you, I think we all could use a little Dolphins cheer, but we’re going to have to wait and see how things shake out.
Happy Holidays to all of you!
Enjoy!
Finsmob Unleashed 
1st?
Congratulations! It must be your first in quite some time
https://www.miamiherald.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/barry-jackson/article223155990.html
Not that I expect Gase, or any other coach in the same spot to say anything different, but why is Gase only worried about Buffalo? Does it mean anything? We’ll probably win this game because it means absolutely nothing, other than moving back about 3-5 draft spots
I always want the win
It’s funny, my heart will totally not be in it, but my mind will. My mind will tell my heart to STFU and wake up, and that a pointless win against the Bills in Game 16 after we’ve already been eliminated has no carryover value whatsoever. On the negative side, we will have moved back a few draft slots, which my mind will remind my heart is more important. 🙂
I know the feeling and feel your pain but I just can’t bring it in me to root for a loss
Tannenbaum is definitely gone. Problem with Grier is he’s just a glorified personnel guy because he was a pawn in the power structure.
With that being said, he’s not a strong enough candidate to run the show.
Mike E there is just no good QBs in this year’s draft especially where we will be drafting. Even if we are at the top of the draft I am not loving any prospects in this year’s draft. I agree we need to move on but don’t count on this year’s draft for our solution at QB
I don’t get that at all
I think there are 4-5 guys better than most of the prospects last year and better than tannehill was as a prospect
It would probably be wise to develop one and have him play behind a vet in 2019 – but these are good prospects to spend a pick on
I disagree. Last year’s class was much better. Herbert is probably the top prospect but he has never really dominated. I don’t trust the kid at WVU. Too many warts. Maybe the kid at Ohio State if he comes out. But all those guys will be long gone by the time we pick
C’mon now, that’s just not true. Guarantee that 4 QB’s go this year in 1st RD, so why shouldn’t be one of the teams that take one? Who knows who will be there when we pick, and besides Tannehill, what do we have? The Chiefs took Mahomes when they had Alex Smith. We must improve the position w/o paying top dollar for it. We have to draft a QB. MUST!
I am sure 4 QBs go but it doesn’t mean that they should
All that reinforces is the importance of trying to find a franchise QB. We don’t have one, so must try and identify one. We have to keep trying until we do. Not drafting one guarantees you that you will not find one.
Amen Piglet! Right with ya!
Ken – I won’t be rooting for the loss, I won’t be rooting at all, and very possibly, won’t be watching it either. I can probably find 3 more productive hours. lol
Sorry, I missed the new blog:
There is plenty of blame to go around. That’s what sucks. If it was just a Tanny or just one other position or guy, then it would be an easier fix. We have multiple issues. It’s not a quick fix by plugging in a guy or two. That’s why I think you should have a long range view in your picks. Nothing we do next year is going to somehow turn us into a viable playoff contender. Build for the future. I assume this is what every FO does most of the time anyway. We need better players…at several, unfortunately, key spots…QB, DE, CB for instance.
***
Its not nearly all Tanny’s fault, but he’s not the QB to take a flawed team on his back and win. The OL injuries hurt….especially because we really didn’t get to see our expected starting OL play together for long…so it’s still an unknown if they can be a good, functional OL. With the starters all back, they might be, but you can never count on all your guys staying healthy all year. Backups will play. It’s just a matter of how much. Are ours good enough?
***
I’m always a player issue over coach issue guy. We need better players. Yes, it’s possible we need better coaching too. I could see giving Gase one more year, but he needs to show improvement in some areas too. Where’s the discipline? Where’s the intensity on offense? I heard from media people up here in MN that watched us warm up prior to the MN game, and they said we looked listless and were completely flat. One guy, Paul Allen, said we looked as flat and uninterested in pregames as he has ever seen in his calling games in the NFL. That’s not good. Where’s the leadership?
In this year’s class I would prefer a mid round pick at QB with an eye on development. 2020 draft should be much stronger for QBs with Tua and the kid from Georgia becoming eligible
You really have to take QBs until you find your guy
I know I’m in the minority in this but having an experienced Qb like tannehill is a blessing
He’s not the guy
But he’s a guy
But you have to take your shot at the chance to acquire the guy
And there are plenty of prospects here with a hot to be the guy
I’m probably not trading up but I dont think we will need to
Anyone who can be the guy this year we will have to trade up for
That’s just not true Ken
You are fighting off a bunch of prospects awfully early and setting th draft awfully early too
I think you are clinging to Tannehill a little too much
Let it play out a little
Not clinging to Tannehill. I recognize we need to move on for multiple reasons. I just think it’s a poor draft for QBs.
I think we are 29th or 30th in both offense and defense
It’s actually sttirsrically one of our worst years ever
We been on the wrong side of some blowouts to boot
This is a good year to wipe it clean if you ask me
No o e is really doing a very good job
Not the FO, not the coaches, not the vet players
I think we can identify some good young players and then just build a young team in the next couple of years
I will enjoy watching a build up from scratch much more than .500 football where we struggle to do anything well
I would rather focus on drafting both sides of the lines and get our QB in 2020. Really good draft for DL this year
QB is 1 pick
Don’t mind if it is in the mid round. Don’t want to waste our 1st round pick on a sub par QB prospect which I think all the guys at the top of this draft are
Mid round? Wtf – that is wasting a pick
What do you think the likelihood of. A 4th rounder being our next franchise QB is
Just about as good as a first rounder in this year’s draft
The question is . . . Do you think any of the teams that drafted a QB in the 1st RD last year regret doing so? I can guarantee you the Jets don’t, the Browns don’t, and the Bills don’t. The Cards might, but Rosen was the one QB I never wanted last year, and I actually was thankful he wasn’t there, because we might have taken him. I didn’t love Allen either, but I would have been willing to take a shot with him.
All 4 of those guys are better prospects than anyone in this year’s draft
I don’t think so, and I bet by the time draft process is done with, they won’t be saying that.
I remember this time last year and being very disappointed in both Darnold and Rosen’s last year
A lot of that talk went away when April rolled around
It’s very much the cycle of the draft
But just looking at volume of potential prospects this year
There is a lot of guys that justify picks in the first 2 rounds
Ken – What if the QB’s you think are great that will be in the 2020 draft have shitty seasons next year, or get hurt? You can’t do that. When you need a young QB, you go and get one, there is no position more important. If you don’t have one, you get one. This is supposed to be a deep draft on the D-line, we can get in the 2nd RD.
BTW – Nothing would stop us from taking another QB in 2020 if we wanted to. We need quality depth, we have nothing.
That is always a chance but I believe in best player available and if we take a QN at 17 we will not be doing that. We will be reaching for someone who is not qualified. I would not mortgage our future on a trade up for any of the top guys in this year’s draft.
Tannehill was as undeveloped and raw as they come. He was also way overdrafted because of the emphasize put on drafting/finding a QB. He’s a perfect example of what happens….and how trying to find a QB in the NFL goes. You gotta keep trying, or you’ll never find one. Sometimes you miss, but you can’t just sit back and wait for a good one to fall in your lap.
I wouldn’t call him overdrafted
But I see your point
End of the day – you have to keep at it
It’s really hard to find the guy
But you have to try
Ken I think you have this draft read all wrong
It’s deep with QBs
But yes – it’s not really elite at the top at QB
But it’s very deep
If you don’t nab one in the first couple of rounds you will miss your chance at a franchise QB
You k ow who wasn’t considered an elite talent – baker mayfield
Nowhere near the kind of prospect as prior number ones
And he just broke the record for TDS by number 1s yesterday
Who would rather have right now Mitch Truninsky it Patrick Mahomes?
No one had Mahomes grading out higher than Trubinsky
But certainly he was a potential first rounder
And that is a common theme with QBs
Jamies Winston and Marcus Marriotta were both considered elite prospects
Neither is really a bust but neither is anything to hang your hat on either
Elite prospects…that means little unless you have the number 1 or 2 pick
Deep though…that’s when you want to shoot your shot
You just better get it right
I guess you can draft the next Juwann James instead though…
Or the next Charles Harris, or Dion Jordan
Exactly
Why does anyone beleive drafting DL/OL is any more secure
I admit I like the talent on the DL this year coming into the draft
But you can really miss big on pass rushers
There is also some quality Interior OL
But if we end up taking a QB in the 1st
And then OL in the 2nd
I think we did alright
If we take DL in the 1st
And QB in the 2nd, we can still find a good OG it C in the 3rd
But if we don’t take a QB in the first 2 rounds
We probably don’t have a prospect with a realistic shot
Deep means you can get a QB in 3rd or 4th who may develop into a quality starter
Not that deep…lol
Somewhere between 4 to 6 with a shot
That will be over by early round 3
Ken – Here’s the thing, and I think it has some credence. If we had people in charge in the FO who could be honest and was skilled at identifying QB talent, and there was a player in the 2nd, 3rd or even 5th RD that they wanted more than any 1st RD pick, and they were willing to treat that QB as if he were a 1st RD pick, and be wiling to hand him the reins as quickly as they would a 1st RD pick, I’m fine with that. If they take a QB in the 3rd or 5th RD just to say they took a QB, and have him for deep depth, I can’t tolerate that. We need a winner, someone to start grooming NOW!
I really think if we draft a QB at 17 we will be overdrafting just for the sake of taking a QB. Any other round I am fine with it. I like the way the 2020 class shapes up better than this class
Beleive it or not
I think we might be taking a QB early in The next couple of drafts
And if one of them ends up being a backup, so be it
I don’t think looking ahead to 2020 is a good reason not to bring a QB in high now
Tannehill could be the perfect argument for not taking a qb in the first even if 4 go in the 1st.
The biggest argument for not taking one, IMO, would be if we’ve got the same people evaluating talent.
If we do have the same FO I can’t argue with this statement.
Then again, I don’t trust them to draft a DE either.
Well presumably there might be some makeovers in the FO
I hope so anyway
This QB class would be better if kyler Murray declared
If we had a class including Herbert, Greier, Lock, Haskins, Murray and Finley
I dont know who ends up being a franchise guy
But I like the odds of dipping into those prospects
Guys like a Patterson, Stidham Browning appears to be in the next tier
But each of hem have a shot
I didn’t personally think much of Darnold or Josh Allen last year
But I recgnize that prospects with some basic skills can be really good if a lot of things go their way and on The right team
So when I see all those potential QBs this year – I think it worth a shot
Murray is way too small
He might agree with you if he ends up playing baseball
JMHO
Mike E. says:
December 24, 2018 at 12:55 pm
https://www.miamiherald.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/barry-jackson/article223155990.html
Not that I expect Gase, or any other coach in the same spot to say anything different, but why is Gase only worried about Buffalo? Does it mean anything?…
—————————–
Hell yeah it means something! I gotta get me that bag of chips.
Although if we’re being honest, I’d rather take the loss and move up in the draft order…although in the moment I’ll root for us to win because I am not built to be able root to lose. It’s all very confusing.
LOL! Understood
However, if we were to have a new GM & coaching staff and they made the move I’d be all for it.
However, Haskins, Grier and Herbert are definitely 1st rd prospects. All major upgrades for Miami
You dont hold Lock in that category?
How about Murray?
I don’t. Again, JMO, but he was a one read guy until his new OC came from the Cowboys and installed a pro-style offense & struggled.
I watched some of his games this year and they were just downright bad.
Lock’s stock took a serious fall this year. Tyler Murray is just too short at 5’10” I would not mind taking a shot on him in round 2 or 3 but not in the first
It would be kinda nice to have a new QB for us to fight over all season.
Yeah we need some changes in order to keep our arguments fresh
Piggy,
He was seen as being an athletic, smart guy with an above average arm who was very raw and undeveloped with only 19 college games under his belt. The only reason he was drafted that high was because of the emphasis on QBs. That’s an awful lot of question marks for a top 10 pick. He has not performed like a top 10 pick, so he was overdrafted. But, for how it goes with QBs…like I said…you take chances.
I agree for the most part
I guess it’s just the semantics of “overdrafted”
All qbs are overdrafted
Maybe not a prospect like Andrew Luck who was off the charts in terms of evaluation of a prospect
But if you are the 10th best player in the draft at QB
You have a good shot at being 1 overall
No response to my 2:44PM post? It’s the thing that worries me, if we don’t take a QB early enough, they won’t ever consider him a legitimate candidate to be the starter. If they handle him like SEA handled Russell Wilson, I don’t care where we draft a QB
Nothing to really respond to. Whoever we draft and wherever we draft him he should get a fair shot to play
Alright I am out for mass and then to the family Xmas party. Peace to all of you and Merry Christmas
Merry Christmas Ken, to you and the family!
Great discussion on QB…we need one through draft so why not give it a go sooner rather than later. Gase needs help…good OC with similar philosophy. QB is an extension of design and vice versa. We don’t have that.
Gase needs to be fired IMo
Landry is a dingleberry, and I’m glad we didn’t pay him 14+ mil a year, he isn’t worth it, but that was one hell of a pass he threw yesterday. That was a good pass for a QB, let alone a slow WR with an attitude problem.
I agree with Piggy. Gase needs to be fired. His offense has been putrid two years out of three.
On QBs- Haskins is the best pick by far. If he doesn’t go by pick #2, we need to move up and take him. Grier is fools gold, Lock has been terrible this year and so has Herbert to be honest. That doesn’t mean they can’t be the guy but the warts are significant for early picks. All of the guys outside of Haskins and Murray have had multiple games where they either completely disappeared or were horrible. Grier and Herbert did it against subpar opponents as well.
Ken, I’m on board with your later pick if it’s Minshew who I’m riding high on as a 3rd rounder.
Haskins is probably my favorite
The time is ripe for us to wipe the slate clean
If we could get Haskins, and the right FO, coaching, etc…I think we could be truly competitive by 2021. Like consistently competitive year in and year out. The kind of team KC, the Pats, and Pitt brings every year.
Maybe Gase is the only one that needs to go? Are the players that bad or is the coach a stubborn mule?
Why not keep running the ball yesterday? Is there a play action that doesn’t start in shotgun?
I’m in the minority but think the FO is getting this team younger faster and set up well with $. And yes, we all agree new QB is or should be coming regardless. But what do I know…
I think they started heading in the right direction personnel wise. That doesn’t mean I think they’ve done a great job. I know people say Gesicki sucks, he’s weak, he can’t get open, but how much of that is coaching? If Gesicki were on the Patriots, he’d probably be blowing up this season. Baker showed promise, Minkah fell in our lap, so no big credit there, Ballage is incomplete, but we probably should have used him more. Seattle has like 5 RB’s, and they have used them all. We can barely use 2. Last years draft we hit on our late picks better than our early ones. The thin g I’m most impressed with is no stupid trade ups the last 2 drafts. Maybe MTP is on his meds.
Good write Mike, other than that I got nothing. LOL
Thanks Tim – C’mon man, let it all out. You have opinions on these matters, let’s hear them! 🙂
Whatever we do this offseason I hope it makes us a better team.🤪
https://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/miami-dolphins/fl-sp-hyde-dolphins-priority-20181224-story.html
This is our biggest problem. We don’t have guys who made a strong plan and then executed said plan. We picked 5 old dudes in FA, traded for another, and maintained the one we already had. We didn’t plan for injuries or have multi-purpose guys who could fix problems. Our drafts have been subpar so far. Gase kept 4 QBs when only one was average(Tannehill) and only one other could ever be a solid backup(Falk). Gase misused his TEs and Drake, as our starting WRs disappeared every week after Wilson was lost.
Every year the plan seems to be different as players like Landry, Miller, Vernon, Ajayi, Sims, etc leave and while none are irreplaceable, they are all needed to be replaced with limited draft stock. Why did we draft so many WRs the past few years and then use FA money for more? Especially Carroo? Why did we let Sims leave just to use another 4th on another TE that may end up being even more limited? Why are DTs 1st and 2nd round picks for most teams but we used 5th and 6th rounders as our replacements for Suh?
Why do we never stockpile picks? Look at what Gruden can do this next draft. When was the last time we had a plethora of picks on draft day? How do you get better if you are wasting your money on average FAs instead of piling up cheap draft picks?
I love Minkah but why when we paid so damn much for the other two? It makes zero sense how we go about running this team’s talent acquisition.
New Age,
When you’re constantly mediocre. Your ability to gather draft chips is tough unless you just trade away a ton of high end players.
Better to trade than allow to leave in FA. They had a pretty good idea of Landry, Miller and Vernon. Vernon and Landry would have netted them something decent that doesn’t appear when you just let them leave. I see teams like the Rams trading the guys they don’t want anymore for decent value. They also were consistently mediocre under Fisher
I keep hearing this years QB,s are not deep, next year will be better.
But, we don’t need a deep draft class, we need ONE QB only. While some years may be loaded more than others, doesn’t mean we can’t find ONE player that can make this team better, lead with inspiration and skills, and get WINS, and do it sooner versus later
other teams draft QB and have success, why not us? We don’t need anymore Harrises and Jordan’s, trade up and get a QB that can ball
On the flip side of that
If we drafted a great pass rusher that would be great for us
I happen to think QB and DL are both pretty strong candidates for our 1st round pick
And OL should also be addressed fairly early
I agree with improving ourselves up front
But I also think if we have a shot at a good QB we take it
I hear the Jets are trying to lure Jim Harbaugh and make him the highest paid coach in NFL history, Ross has said that he will not pursue Harbaugh but if he intends ro leave Michigan Ross will make him Miami’s next HC.
https://www.thephinsider.com/2018/12/24/18154664/sources-miami-dolphins-stephen-ross-prepared-to-make-run-at-jim-harbaugh-come-back-to-the-nfl
Vi agree with you here. I don’t think he will steal takent from Michigan but I think if it’s a done deal that harbaugh will not be with Michigan next year, Ross will want to have here be the spot. I just think he doesn’t want to step on toes at his Alma.
That will be the home run swing move I think. There are other options though, plenty. Coaching changes wouldn’t be as difficult as a FO change right now. I’m leaning towards keep at least Grier, probably TBaum as well but flushing the coaching crew completely, maybe sans rizzi, and bringing in a guy and letting him get his QB. The rest of the offense has pieces to work with and really just needs some depth and better management
Yeah I agree
I don’t think he wants to ruffle feathers at Michigan
There is only one pass rusher in this next draft I’d take over a QB and he is likely the number 1 pick this coming year.
D – I’ve been trying to figure out who Vi is for the last coupla minutes. Who is it?
V is not a person
It’s a race of alien lizard people who are here to take over
V does not come in Peace!
Yeah, I remember that show.
It’s also for vendetta
Here to take over the Front Office
LOL
Some one just did a mock with us taking Herbert
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.sbnation.com/platform/amp/2018/12/24/18153921/2019-nfl-mock-draft-nick-bosa-dwayne-haskins-drew-lock-justin-herbert
I’ve seen a few people with Haskins over Herbert
Who’s your pass rusher D
Honestly curious to see what happens with Ed Oliver come draft time
A very Merry xmas , Happy Hanukkah and whatever else anyone celebrates this time of year … may Santa Ross be especially nice to us this off season and build us a stronger , faster, better team 🏈🏈🐬🐬🎄🎄
Merry Christmas, happy holidays to everyone!
Oinky Christmas to All
🎄 🐖 🎁 🐖 🎄
Merry Christmas
Merry Christmas everyone
Maybe Santa will bring us a shiny new Quarterback…
I want a new coach, new QB and new FO for Christmas
It’s going to be interesting to watch and see how everything plays out. I have no idea if Harbaugh is going to leave Michigan, but if he does, I can’t imagine Ross not getting him at any cost. If that happens, I hope Harbaugh would committed to a long term gig, not just 4 years, although I’d take 4 years of Harbaugh over 4 years of Gase for sure.
If Harbaugh does come here, I wonder if he would want complete control over personnel, which would mean bye bye to Mr. T and Grier
Merry Christmas to everyone.
Oh and my pass rusher is Bosa the Nose 2.0 Piggy
Merry Christmas. …..
But, not ready to move on without Gase. He has improved the team. He needs to improve himself, too. We were mostly excited with the speed, no FA signings to break the bank or cap, more youth, and more. Then, the injuries at almost every key position. Not an excuse, but what does our strength and conditioning process look like?
Belichik was a loser his first 5 years as a HC.
And, was not really a winner until he found Brady. Their dynasty was born. Belichik gave up his DC job to be a HC.
When you say Gase has improved the team, what is it you think he’s solely responsible for improving?
We were predicted to be almost the worst team in the league. So that’s something. LOL
IMO I can give gase another shot but he has to stop the stupid support for Tanny when he knows as good as anyone he doesn’t have it. He needs to admit there needs to be a change at QB and pull the trigger on the cut or trade. If he does that then I’m ok with giving him a chance with his guy. Still I’m not certain it will change anything since I’m not convinced that the play calling isn’t still a big part of this and that changing Tanny will change that part.
Ageed
It’s such a strange year in the NFL. In the AFC, there’s really just one powerhouse offense (530 pts scored), the Chiefs, but they have close to the worst defense in the AFC (418 points allowed). In the NFC, there are 2 offensive powerhouses, the Saints (490 points scored) and the Rams (479). I can’t see an AFC beating whichever NFC team gets in.
ER – I think our over/under on wins was 6. We’re just one above that right now, so not way above, just one game at present.
I mentioned several areas of improvement, but for some reason those weren’t counted.
Let’s do the same thing we always do….blow it up, rinse, repeat. ….That’s worked for last 20 years so let’s keep doing it….yay.
Good teams build and improve. …Gase needs to improve, too.
You mean the speed, and no FA signings and youth? I’m not sure who’s responsible for that, but I can’t give Gase the sole credit there when it had to be a collaborative effort. I’m just trying to discuss this, I like specifics. I’m not being argumentative, you seemed to have lost patience very quickly here. What I find troubling is the fact that we hired an offensive minded coach, and our offense is awful, and it wasn’t good before the O-line injuries hit. He doesn’t seem to be involved at all with the defense, and Burke I think is in over his head. Not being difficult, just tell me all of the things you think Gase did well this year please. Thanks
Lost patience….I have no idea what you are referring to?
What specifically does a coach do to make a team better, Mike? All of is important, from vision to process to tesult. I submit it takes years to right .500 ball and establish winning culture. ..
Turnover does not establish anything except spinning wheels.
I’m referring to your comment – “I mentioned several areas of improvement, but for some reason those weren’t counted.”
You might be right about the constant turnover, but on the flip side, how much more of Ryan Tannehill do we have to see? Does anyone (including Gase) think he has better days to come? How long does it take, 10 years? Does it not trouble you that Gase has tied himself to Tannehill? If he continues down the Tannehill road and doesn’t draft a QB early to push Tannehill, I just can’t get behind that.
That wasn’t a loss of patience, you seemed to discount what I said…it wasn’t good enough.
New QB new coach new FO. Start fresh. What we have doesn’t work
We need some more talent and the coaches need to do a better job, but injuries definitely derailed us. This team never had a chance to really go on a run because the lineup was different so often. I hope someday we can have a season where it all comes together. I’ll take one season like that. Not sure who it will be with but I hope it’s not in the too distant future.
We were 3-1 and then injuries started picking off the team. Everyone was excited.
I hate jerry Jones but he understands how important continuity at HC means. Maybe Gase isn’t the guy but let’a keep doing what has failed for so long.
Krishna – What specifically does a HC do to make it better? For one, make damn sure that your team is better in the capacity you were hired for. Gase was supposed to be an offensive coach, so the fact that our offense is ranked near the bottom is problematic. We drafted an athletic TE and we hardly used him. Sure, some of that is on the player, but coach that kid up, press the buttons you have to in order to get that kid going. We got nothing out of Devante Parker again, very little from Stills overall. He underused Drake all season. Why?
I agree, Gase needs to let Tannehill go and actively try to improve the position. …100% agree….and find an OC to call the plays.
Krishna – I diidn’t discount it, I just don’t think Gase himself was responsible for those things. He doesn’t run the draft, and I don’t think he was in charge of personnel over Tannenbaum and Grier as far as bringing in FA’s. If you call that discounting, so be it.
It’s a team effort. ..did the coaches ask for more speed, share in evaluating. We need to get better on all fronts…..turnover at Hc is not one I’m with at the moment.
Need to leave but will be glad to pick up later.
Later Krishna – Merry Christmas!
Gase calling his own plays is a real negative. He is not in the flow of the game. I think it is one major reason he has difficulty making adjustments. His play calling is boom or bust. There are big plays but few sustained drives. I have seen enough of Gase. Time to move on
Your Picks:
Round 1 Pick 16: Sweat, Montez, DE, Mississippi State (B+)
Round 2 Pick 16: Tillery, Jerry, DT, Notre Dame (A+)
Round 3 Pick 15: McCoy, Erik, OG, Texas AM (A+)
Round 4 Pick 16: Biadasz, Tyler, C, Wisconsin (A+)
Round 5 Pick 16: Robinson, Rashad, CB, James Madison (A+)
Round 6 Pick 16: Rypien, Brett, QB, Boise State (A+)
Round 7 Pick 15: Armstead, Ryquell, RB, Temple (A+)
Fire every Quarterback on the team. There are 3 QB’s already in the league who might be relatively easy to get that would be an improvement over the crap we have. Mullins, Brissett and Dobbs and then draft one or two. We suck so bad at QB that it’s hard to truly evaluate what’s wrong with the rest of the team.
And DO NOT let Reshad Jones leave, that’s just stupid. The fact that this coach and front office would move on from Jones is the primary reason I’d fire all their asses.
Get new Quarterbacks and leave Jones alone, there’s your off-season.
the facts are that rashad jones did quit on his team and team mates during a game.
Sonny – I’d trade Reshad for a 3rd RD pick, as long as T.J. McDonald is healthy. If we can’t get that much, he has to stay, his dead cap hit is over $17M
his cap hit would be 12 mil in a trade
I don’t get why we’d move on from a Pro Bowl caliber Safety. Quit fucking with him and let him do what’s made him one of the better Safeties in the league. Our secondary is solid with him and McDonald at Safety and Minkah and X at corner plus Bobby McCain. Get rid of Jones then we need a starter at Corner for no reason.
I’d trade him because we don’t need 3 safeties, and I’m tired of keeping guys too long w/o getting value for them. We have Minkah and T. J. and that’s enough. If we could get a solid OG or CB in the 3rd for that pick, to me that would help us much more than having Reshad will.
I think Minkah would be better suited at FS
Ken says:
December 25, 2018 at 1:06 pm
Gase calling his own plays is a real negative. He is not in the flow of the game. I think it is one major reason he has difficulty making adjustments. His play calling is boom or bust. There are big plays but few sustained drives. I have seen enough of Gase. Time to move on
—————————————————
easier said than done, who do you replace him with? maybe mike mcarthy, if youre not totally sold on his replacement then you stay put and wait for that one coach who has a track record for success, if you fire him ands just hire the best prospect who happens to be unemployed you may regress.
not sure why you would sign a safety to such a lucrative contract, 33 mil guaranteed, 19 mil at signing. it will never reach the 4th year, so you end up paying this guy 11mil per season guaranteed.
he doesn’t have to worry about the repercussions of quitting on his team, nothing the team can do. you can’t dump him.
We need Quarterbacks and linemen on both sides why make Corner a need?
It’s already a need. Minkah’s not a CB. He’s going to be a great FS.
Minkah is a great football player, wherever you play him he’ll do great.
Merry Christmas Everyone ☃️🎄
Merry Christmas Dawg
Sonny – IMO, Minkah makes a decent corner, but he will thrive as a S. Let him roam free back there, make plays, and protect us deep.
Who here thinks Devante Parker becomes a consistently good WR when he gets cut here next season, and goes to some other team?
He’ll play 48 consecutive games without any ailments.
I feel it coming Tim, I’m telling ya. He’ll go to the Texans and become a dynamic duo with DeAndre Hopkins.
He wont ever amount to anything.
Just wanted to stop by to wish ALL of y’all a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
Yes I don’t think I said Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays earlier when I meant to. I hope you all enjoy all of it.
Merry Christmas everyone!!!
I’m willing to argue that a team that isn’t willing to constantly turnover their leadership is more likely to continue to spin their wheels than the other way around. Just like QBs and players, you find a good one and keep him. He shows the goods early or you start looking again. You give him a little lee-way but having one of the top 5 worst offenses and defenses two years running is beyond the lee-way I’m willing to give. Just like with Tannehill, we can probably do better than Gase, Grier, Tannenbaum, etc. If not, then at least we looked and evaluated. I would tell the coaches and FO every year, unless we are in the playoffs, I’m looking for the next guy.
You think the team is different without key injuries? I do, I think we could be 9-6 easy right now. Again what was your projection at full strength? I really didn’t see us better than 8-8 to 10-6. But I wasn’t anticipating all the injuries either. Why is 7-8 this ultimate failure? We’re only half the team we used to be. All season key players missed games or went down for the year. Forget being an armchair GM, now be an armchair HC and play with what you have. If we only called this play instead? LOL
I don’t view the big picture like many here do. A small minority of things are being targeted with the majority of issues as a side bar.
We’ll see what happens in the offseason and whatever happens I’ll root them on. But the main issues are not Gase, Tannehill and play calling for me.
Tim, I consider injuries one of the worst excuses. No team avoids them and the better teams find ways to work around them. Seattle is going to the playoffs with one more guy on IR than we have. Philly has one more and is fighting to get there with their backup QB for the second straight year. Colts have 5 more on IR,
I can’t see how the main issues aren’t the guy throwing for less than 200 per game and the guy running one of the worst offenses in the league for another year. Same old same old will result in same old same old. Gase is 23-24 and is the epitome of average.
Who is on I/R for SEA? That said, they are 9-6 we’re 7-8.
So the lack of blocking both run and pass doesn’t concern you? How about the defense front 7? That said look who’s playing? Youngins and backups, off the street backups. Some of the starters there aren’t good enough.
I’m actually surprised we’re 7-8. LOL
I agree with all that. It’s one reason I want it all gone. We spent about 2 million less for this roster than last year’s roster. As you said, does it look like we have a $171 million dollar roster? Is it because of dead money and if so, are those not bad decisions? They all concern me but this was partially the team Gase wanted to field. A group of ‘team first’ dudes. Doesn’t really work when you use inferior talent does it? That’s just as much on Gase as the guys grocery shopping. They didn’t just pick these guys without Gase feedback. The NFL is a talent driven league but Gase is almost as poor dealing with alphas as Philbin was.
New Age, be careful what your ask for.
I have thought extensively on it. I can’t change anything but I’m pretty sure that if we keep most of this leadership team, we will be having this discussion again next Christmas.
For me, it’s simple. This team has not looked good most games….a few yes…but too few. I expect the WHOLE roster to play good. Injuries happen. Backups playing and performing is just part of football. Either signing good backups and/or developing players is the expectation. And, to be honest, it’s not like our actual starters have shown they can play well enough to be anything but average anyway.
****
This isn’t a bad team because of injuries. It’s bad because they have no leadership. No discipline. No ability to execute basic plays. No intensity. No focus. I don’t see a well coached and honed team most weeks….and that should be the expectation no matter who’s playing. You’re a professional. Play like it.
****
Oh yeah. MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!🎁🎄
So talent doesn’t matter? Shit happens? None of us should even bother with the offseason then? That’s what you’re saying because you always say that’s what it’s about except for now. This team did hang in there, we’re not 4-11.
Tim,
Do you have any proof that the talent on this team is anything better than average? Or is that just your hope? Just saying it doesn’t make it true.
I didn’t say that. I asked why is everyone so up in arms when we didn’t think we’d be that good anyway? lol
For the record Jarvis Landry was #129 in scoring in the FF league I’m in. The Bears DEF was #21. I won with them, Landry was a #2-3 WR at best.
He was #24 at WR and behind 5 TEs. At his contract, no way.
I agree Randy coaching is piss poor, no discipline, every down they casually walk to the LOS, barely get the play off, the opposing D knows the snap count when the play clock is down to 1 sec, no safety valve for Tanny to dump the ball off or he isn’t aware where that safety valve is.
qb should get rid of the ball in 2.8 seconds, tannehill holds the ball way to long, if you’re going to do that you need to improvise by escaping the pocket at the right time which tanny doesn’t do.
horrible offensive coaching from an offensive guru…..he sure is offensive!
look at what the good teams do and what we do, there’s a glaring difference.
the Pats always catch the D out of position, so do the Rams, we wait until the D is ready and they get a jump on our guys, it makes individual players look bad as if their the problem.
we hire defensive coordinators who have no experience in that job and have done it twice in a row.
i have read Tannenbaum is on the hot seat and may be unemployed by 2019
I’ve read the same. Yay!
Mike E,
Hell of an article by Mando. I don’t completely agree but good points.
https://www.miamiherald.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/armando-salguero/article223556745.html
“Gase who has contractual control of the 53 man roster and reports exclusively to Ross.”
So we can’t even put this under talented roster on Grier or Tannenbaum as much as on Gase. Like Tim says, this team had very little talent this year. That’s as much on thin-skinned Gase as anyone in that building.
Here are a couple of things about Mando’s article. I’m not sure how he knows exactly what the hierarchy was with Tannenbaum, Grier and Gase. I know he’s a long time reporter, but I seriously doubt they pass that info along. I think he’s guessing big time. If Gase truly did have power over Tannenbaum and Grier, then Gase should be fired, not Tannenbaum. In fact, they should all be fired because WTF do you need a Vice President of Football Operations and a GM if they both cowtow to whatever the HC says. I find that hard to believe. How can they give a rookie HC all that power? I think Mando’s entire article makes no sense. What experience did Gase have that they would give him complete control of personnel? Maybe Mando is completely wrong here, I’d like to believe that. Think about what he said.
Mando always speculates and is wrong a lot
We’ve seen it before from him
I doubt anyone knows that Ross will fire Tannebaum but keep everyone else
Maybe that happens but I agree, it’s clearly a guess by him we’ve seen him do this before
Reporters may not be right but it was widely reported when he took the job that he has full control over the 53 and I don’t know of anyone who disputed that from the Dolphins. That’s a massive amount of control. That leaves drafting to Grier and who knows for Tannebaum but full control means any FA acquisition has to be checked and approved by Gase.
I don’t doubt he has control over the 53
I just doubt that mando knows who will be fired or retained and isn’t just guessing
So you believe that straight up? It makes sense to you? Having control over the 53 is pretty ambiguous anyway, what exactly does that mean? Did he have input in the draft, or FA, or was he only able to whittle down whatever he was given. Is he allowed to solely cut a player?
I don’t really get any arguments to keep Gase
The thing about injuries this season as a basis to defend him is that they are directly related to lack of depth
And Gase has been depleting our depth since he got here
I’m not just talking about guys that left in the off-season for money or whatever reason
I’m talking about mid-season cuts to guys like Phillips
Sure Phillips was inconsistent
But he was on a rookie contract and was depth, if nothing more
Remember 2016 cutting Dallas Thomas and Billy Turner. Same thing. I know they weren’t good – but this idea that you cut players to send a message just leaves you with lesser players on the roster. And was the message received. How is that OL playing these days?
Of course we have problems with injuries and depth
The coach is cutting our draft picks
The biggest argument you can give for Gase returning is continuity, and giving him more time to grow. I’m not really convinced of either. It still bothers me that the guy is an offensive genius, yet our offense was just terrible. I hope if they do just fire Tannenbaum, we get some kind of explanation. Why him, what did he do poorly, and how are they going to remedy that.
Let’s preserve the continuity of the 29th ranked defense and offense? No thank you
If you hang your hat on continuity there better be something worth continuing. It’s easier to make this argument if we are doing something well. But we aren’t doing anything well
FYI
Now Sports Illustarted and other nfl news outlets are reporting what Mando said
But they are just reporting what Mando said not citing any new information
So expect that talk to continue and all of it based on the same report by Mando which fi think lacks credibility
Mike E,
As Piggy said, reporters will just regurg other reporters but when hired, this is what came out on Gase. Tannenbaum and Ross confirmed this as well. Want to know why we are so dysfunctional?
http://www.espn.com/blog/miami-dolphins/post/_/id/19391/new-dolphins-head-coach-adam-gase-also-in-charge-of-53-man-roster
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000619867/article/adam-gase-to-control-miamis-53man-roster-call-plays
I’m with you Jordi, not my arguments, just what people who want to keep Gase will say.
I just don’t get it
Even if there were good arguments for Gase, the time is ripe to restart the whole thing
Gase has final say. This is HIS roster. This is what he wanted and it’s the very reason he should be fired.
Don’t forget that he is responsible for the OC and the DC
And they both sucked
I keep hearing people on twitter supporting gase by saying fire Burke and give sone else playcalling duties
And I think – what? Gase is the one who insisted on calling his own plays and hired 2 coordinators based on familiarity
You can make the same argument for backup QBs we bought in: cutler and osweiler
Both failed
Yep, I totally agree with you. Tannehill is unwilling to cede any control but has way too much on his plate. Guy is fiddling with his laptop as our defense is getting blown out and he needs all this control? Nope, time to move on and learn from mistakes.
Gase lol not Tannehill.
I don’t care about any of that stuff, our Quarterbacks suck out loud and we need new ones. Without new ones the sucking will only continue.
Incidentally, that was my man Telvin who pick sixed Tanne-useless.
You should care, because if Gase really is in charge, he loves him some Tannehill, so . . .
If Gase stays and he keeps Tannescrotum then we’ll suck again next year and they’ll all get fired.
I think the best direction would be what I said in this article. Find an experienced football exec, let him build the team, which would mean tearing it up, and starting over, choosing a new GM and then finding a new HC. Sure, you may take a step backwards while you rebuild, we need that anyway, maybe finish bottom 5 or worse, and then infuse some talent into this roster.
I read somewhere that it might be Marino as top dog. We’d get a QB then I bet.
I agree. Ross keeps half-assing our rebuilds and it shows. It’s one reason he can’t get a talented exec. Why would you agree to come here when the HC has so much authority? When you can’t fire the GM, or must keep certain players or have a person besides you directly reporting to Ross? It’s dysfunctional and the primary reason we can’t move forward. OD is right on this. Ross needs to get out of his own way.
Game didn’t just stick with tannehill
The qbs he did bring in based on familiarity aren’t qualified to compete with him
Tannehill just never made the next step. There’s a reason a college coach gave his job to another guy for two years. He has talent but can’t read defenses quickly enough. Baker is far superior to him and one reason is because he had to fight to win his job almost every year(and won). I like the guys who find a way to win the job either early or when not expected to.
If we draft a qb high
I would be okay keep my tannehill
I think you can afford to do that bc of the rookie cap number
And then you have a seasoned vet and your future on the roster
I am also okay drafting qbs high in 2019 and 2020
Keeping tannehill fir one more year might not be that bad imo
Except he sucks but other than that…
Sonny – I would bet anything Marino wants a different QB. Is anyone listening though?
Half assed as usual. If we are going to fire the gm at least let the new gm the authority to hire the coach he wants. Right now Ross has just made Gase more powerful than the gm. No gm candidate worth their salt is going to want this job
Tannehill just won the Ed Block Courage Award. I saw this and immediately thought Blockhead Courage Award. lol
Justin Herbert is staying in Oregon for one more year.
Well that changes the draft quote a bit
I guess Haskins is going to be the first QB off the board
Wow you guys are in full blown start over mode. Again I ask what were your expectations before the injuries stripped this team all season? Now I’m seeing all kinds of new criticisms as if this team never won a game. I’m sure everyone here would have done a much better job coaching the team with what we had to roll with every week. Don’t worry about FA and the draft because talent doesn’t matter. We should have been one of the best teams in the league with anyone. Wow!!! LOL
Gase wanted this lackluster talent…so what makes you think he’s qualified to continue to have final say on this front? He signed off on every player decision since he got here. Gase is 23-25, or 13-18 in the past two years. We might not have coached better but I’m sure someone could have brought in a better group of coordinators than this.
Tim
The record doesn’t mean much to me
The fact that we are near the bottom of the nfl in bothnoffense and defensenis a very big deal
There is nothing to build on
If you are insisting on a reasonable expectation for a record, I think 10 wins would have caused me to reconsider
But this team that gase has put together is pathetic and plagued wIt’s bad decision after bad decision by the coach that I think you are ignoring
The backups he signed (cutler and osweiler)
The coordinators (both oc and dc)
The faith in tannehill
The willingness to part ways with players like a Suh this season.knowing it would affect our depth
The fact that drake got 3 carries the week after making the play of the decade
The fact that he has butt heads with so many of our best players (like Jones)
The playcalling on a weekly basis which he insisted on doing
The fact that the dolphins tried to tell us they cleaned up the locker room last off-season and yet – we don’t have a result to show for it. Actually this one gets me more than the rest. Gaze has proven himself to be a finger pointer imo
“But the injuries” is not a magic wand that you waive and have everything else go away.
And Tim
What do you mean “full start over mode again”
We are still at the start line
We have to improve literally everything between 2018 and 2019
It’s not the fans in full blown start over mode
It’s the team
They aren’t doing anything well
Does anyone on this blog think 2 years ago they would have been debating whether Rashad Jones is a lockeroom problem?
What do you think is the common denominator with all our best players becoming “problems”?
Gase
Yes – I think so
I’m heading g rumors that Haskins might stay in school too
Maybe Ken was right…lol
2020 is going to be very deep with QBs if that happens
“Suck for anyone” should be our 2019 motto
Tim – I mentioned in my article that I would like a start over for our team, and this emanated from the rumors that there was going to be a FO shakeup. I felt if we’re going to do this right, better to hire an established football exec, and let him build the team by choosing his GM and then both hire their HC and let the HC fill out his staff. To me firing Mike Tannenbaum just screams scapegoat, and doesn’t really change anything. If it’s because Mr. T wanted anyone but Tannehill, then maybe he’s the only guy who should have kept his job. lol
It’s a finger pointing move
You got to just wipe the slate clean, out some in charge and let them build their vision – enough with the half ass measures