Miami Dolphins

We all saw it coming…

If you want more details about Todd Haley’s situation you can’t find a better source than Charles Robinson of Yahoo.

This is just a snippet. If you want all the juice, you have to read his entire timeline. There’s A LOT there. But ultimately, it comes down to a major clash of egos AND the quarterback situation in Kansas. I think the consensus is that nobody really knows what to think about Cassel’s potential. And apparently the Chiefs organization is no exception.

As for the Dolphins…there was a part of me that thought the Dolphins might keep Sparano…well at least until the end of the season.  Miami has really pulled it together the 2nd half of the season and you have to give Sparano some credit for that given the fact that he motivated a team that really has nothing to play for THIS season. Funny that up until yesterday when the Eagles beat the Dolphins both teams had the same record. Did the Eagles fire anyone yet?

I do think it’s possible that both teams could draft a quarterback next year. The Dolphins definitely have to-although I have a feeling that Matt Moore has played well enough for some team to at least consider him as their starter. I just don’t think the Dolphins will be willing to risk it when everyone will be looking at them to make a play for a QB. My guess is that Andrew Luck and this year’s Heisman winner Robert Griffin (assuming Griffin declares) will be gone by the time Miami gets a turn though.

I’m interested to see what happens next with Sparano. He never looked completely incapable to me. Miami is short on talent at some key positions and plus the Dolphins are such a drag as an organization. I looked at Miami’s roster from the past several years and I just don’t know what to think.

You tell me…[keep in mind, the Dolphins were 11-5 Sparano’s first season.

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/mia/2008_roster.htm

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/mia/2009_roster.htm

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/mia/2010_roster.htm

Dolphins Coach Tony Sparano has been promised he won't be fired in the near term. But that's not how it sounded when he told the refs to review a call or else he would be fired. The Dolphins are in shamnbles.

If you’re here to make fun of Reggie Bush, get it out of your system cause that’s not what’s going to happen in this post. Sorry to disappoint. No I’m not.

I wanted to write a longer post looking at the Dolphins, but when I thought about it…it was kind of pointless. Why? Cause from my vantage point, the Miami Dolphins have 1. a lack of talent (which is just hard to overcome in any situation) and 2. aren’t disciplined on the field, which running back Reggie Bush pointed out yesterday.

It’s just embarrassing, I don’t know any other way to explain it,” Bush said. “It’s an embarrassing loss. Had no business losing that game.”

“We were up 15 points with what, five minutes left to go? And we couldn’t win it? It’s disgusting.”

“Right now, this team stinks.”

The Dolphins controlled the game for the first 55 minutes, but allowed Tim Tebow and the Broncos to drive 80 yards for a touchdown, recover an onside kick, drive 56 yards for another touchdown, convert a two-point conversion and kick a game-winning 52-yard field goal in overtime.

Bush said he and his teammates didn’t have any “fight” in the last five minutes.

“Just a lot of undiscipline on our part,” Bush said. “Played good – not great – for 55 minutes. Everybody’s got that relaxed attitude. We just didn’t fight towards the end. We didn’t have enough effort for 60 minutes. We had five minutes to win the game and we couldn’t.”

The coaching is a big part of this, but again, the Dolphins lack player talent, starting at Quarterback. Chad Henne was doing pretty well in passing, but Matt Moore (who has replaced Henne who’s out for the season) just isn’t very good. Neither are the best at making decisions. But the kicker is that the Dolphins’ offensive line has been horrendous in pass protection and are ranked 30th in the league.  On the run, they’ve been “okay,” respectable even. Bush is averaging 3.9 yards per carry, but his attempts are low. Because Miami’s stuffed rank is #2, I think Bush’s low numbers speak more to play calling than teams stacking up in preparation for Bush. Besides, he hasn’t warranted that consistently in years. Regardless, he should have more than 232 yards total for the season.

The Dolphins have remained competitive in games in the first half, including in their loss to the Jets. But the discipline issue is an issue. Throughout that Jets game, you could see a supreme lack of discipline from Miami’s primary star WR Brandon Marshall. Marshall has at times looked like he wanted nothing to do with the ball and less to do with contact even when running along the sidelines. Bush’s point about having no fight left in them is well-taken. Honestly, when you’re winless at this point in the season, your starting QB is out, it feels like why bother?

Sparano needs to find a way to get these guys motivated. The best scenario here is that the rest of their season is an advanced OTA in preparation for a better next season. But even that’s hard to rally around when you know your QB next year will either be Chad Henne or someone who will be starting from scratch. And even if it’s Andrew Luck, his last name is “luck” not “miracle.” The Dolphins need more of the latter than the former.

Still, the Dolphins just should not have lost to the Denver Broncos and I will never forgive them for increasing the hype around Tebow. They should be ashamed for that alone.

The oft-maligned Miami Dolphins QB Chad Henne cranked out 416 yards against the Pats

89 sacks were recorded opening weekend in the NFL. That’s more than have ever been recorded since they started keeping track back in ’82.

5 sacks on Tavaris Jackson, Kyle Orton, Matt Ryan and Jay Cutler. 4 sacks on 9 other QBs (including Ben Roethlisberger in the Steelers embarrassing loss to the Ravens) and 3 on Michael Vick and some others I’m too lazy to look up.

The same weekend 4 QBs passed for more than 400 yards (including rookie Panthers Cam Newton, New England’s Tom Brady and Miami’s Chad Henne who did so in a game against the Pats, and New Orleans Saints Drew Brees). There was a total of 7,842 passing  yards in all games opening weekend with a total of 14 QBs passing for over 300 yards. Those 14 included Washington Redskins Rex Grossman, Arizona Cardinals Kevin Kolb, Dallas Cowboys Tony Romo, San Diego Chargers Phillip Rivers, New York Jets Mark Sanchez, Detroit’s Matthew Stafford and Denver Broncos Kyle Orton. A few QBs stopped just short of 300 such as New  York Giants Eli Manning who came in around 268 yards.

Both the increase in yards and sacks just highlight the fact that the pass keeps growing and growing and growing. And, consequently, so does pass rushing. There are some teams like the Jets who unleash constant blitzes aimed at confusing the other team’s offensive front line and QB. And still other teams like the Philadelphia Eagles who play their ends wide and apply constant pressure on each possession without a need to blitz.

With so many teams having only two QBs on the roster and possibly someone who can be an “emergency” QB the way Wide Receiver Hines Ward is for the Pittsburgh Steelers, the need to keep the passer on his feet is elevated. Let’s not forget that even when QBs manage to stay on their feet, they’ve often still absorbed a hit.

I assume Jarred Allen is skeptical about the defense across the league right now

1. Atlanta Falcons Fans

As an Atlanta Falcon fan I am HEATED. I’m almost glad I missed the game. The Bears gave them an afternoon they won’t soon forget. This, after Roddy White had a T-shirt made that said “unacceptable” and had the Packers/Falcons score from last year’s first round of the playoffs (where they also got whooped) on the back. This after Sports Illustrated’s Peter King pegged the Falcons to win the SuperBowl.

I never jump off a cliff after week 1. And I do remember very well that the Bears went to the NFC Championship game with their QB lying prostrate the entire time. And the Falcons have started off bad and picked it up after week 3. But this ain’t the preferred way to start a season. It’s one thing to lose, it’s something different not to be competitive. The Falcons have the same core offense they had last year. They added pieces to the pass rush and reworked their secondary (though it still lacking). Consistency and talent was supposed to take this team to a fast start. That didn’t happen. And I’m not happy about it!

2. Peyton Manning’s neck

Now you’d think that Colts fans and the Colts organization would be angrier than Peyton Manning’s neck. But how mad would you be if you prematurely ended the career of someone you’ve been eating, breathing, working and sleeping with for 36 years? It wasn’t supposed to happen like this! Manning’s neck has stuck closely by him for so long and now, toward the end of an illustrious career, he can no longer control himself? He…it….cannot possibly be happy.

3. Running Backs

Hey man, nobody cares about yall anymore. And by nobody I mean coaches, offensive coordinators and quarterbacks. Running backs are so irrelevant that the Philadelphia Eagles, arguably the deepest defensive team in the league have all but admitted that their linebackers will only be seen on a 3rd and 1. And they dare you to run on them. GO AHEAD. MAKE MY DAY.

Last night, New England Patriots Tom Brady passed for over 500 yards on the Miami Dolphins. That’s crazy enough but check this: Fins QB Chad Henne passed for over 400 yards. I SAID CHAD HENNE PASSED FOR OVER 400 YARDS. I SAID CHAD HENNE PASSED OVER 400 YARDS. I wrote that three times cause some people use the skim, scan, scroll method to read and I didn’t want anyone to gloss over the fact that CHAD HENNE PASSED FOR OVER 400 YARDS.

Together, Brady and Henne combined for 906 and now hold the record for most combined total passing yards in a game.

Am I awake?

Maurice Jones-Drew and LaGarrette Blount became the first two star RBs to complain about not getting enough playing time. Hey man, nobody cares about yall anymore. Tight Ends are getting 50+ receptions. Elite ones like Jason Witten are getting 90. Hey man, nobody cares about yall anymore.

Maybe as the season goes on offenses will develop some feelings for their running backs. I mean the extremely pass-happy New Orleans Saints let lil baby Darren Sproles go buck wild the other night. They say that people can fall for each other after they’re already married. It’s entirely possible that in a few weeks coaches will will see their running backs sitting on the bench or looking lonely near the line and say “hey…you wanna go out some time?” On the other hand, we could get to week 16 and find out that offenses like running backs…just not “in that way.” Unless of course your last name is Johnson (Tenn), Peterson (Minn) or Williams (Car).

4. Pittsburgh Steelers Defense

Their blood rivals beat their asses like they got caught stealing out of the team giftshop. This needs no further explanation. They gotta be PISSED.

5.Chad Ochocinco (honorable mention to his “fiance” Evelyn Lozada)

If I were to write a book about Chad Ochocinco and his made-for-television fiance Evelyn Lozada (which I would NEVER do), I would call it “Of Meal Tickets and Attention Whoring.” It’s a snappy little story about a guy who was the center of attention in a small town. A man who was the best player on a bad team. A guy who used a charismatic personality to climb all the way to the middle. And once he got to the middle, he figured dating a reality comet (I wouldn’t yet call her a star), would help him get to the bottom of the top (even though he had referred to the same woman as a whore on his twitter feed the year before). But then he left the bad team in the small town where no one ever paid attention to him breaking off routes preferring to shift all the blame to Carson Palmer’s knee, to go to a place where on and off-field discipline is demanded. Where you’re expected to not only know the playbook like that thing on the back of your hand, but to carve out a specific role for yourself. Or as my uncle used to say “earn your keep.” And while Chad struggles to learn the Patriots system, his newly minted feyawnsay is doing provocative photoshoots with the Boston Herald (what the hell are yall putting the clam chowdah to come up with something like this?) and swearing she’s no jersey chaser despite affairs with former NBA Boston Celtics players Antoine Walker and Kenny Anderson.

This book would be based on a true story, so since it’s week 1 the ending hasn’t been written yet. But suffice it to say, there may be some cutting going on by Week 7 if things don’t start looking up. Chad needs some reps, and he didn’t get many chances to prove himself last night. That’s gotta be frustrating for him and his tag along cookie, Evelyn.

6. Cam Newton Detractors

Before I begin, I’d like to say to all those who want to see Cam fail: hahahahahahah bwahahahahaha hahahaahh muwahahahahahahahahaahahah.

*sigh*

yeah I know it’s Week 1. And I know they played the Arizona Cardinals whose defense is holier than a Tyler Perry movie. And yes I know they lost. But come on! He passed for over 400 yards. In the clips I saw, Newton looked big and strong and capable (wait, are we still talking about football?). He seems to have fixed his laser eye that tells every dude on defense who he’s about to throw to. When he gets that backfoot squared away he will be kicking more ass than Anderson Silva and taking more names than Nevin Shapiro. I can feel it. I CAN FEEL IT!

It bothers me that Cam Newton inspires so much disdain. This whole idea that kids should be held more responsible than adults for their actions is astounding to me. A guy gets accused of breaking a few NON-VIOLENT rules and all of sudden everyone in the public turns into Mother Teresa. This is football, if you want to see girl scouts buy some cookies.

7. Broke Has-beens (ouch…but I didn’t know a better way to say it! I swear I’m a sweet girl!)

If ever there was a year not to be a financially devastated elderly team cancer looking for team, it was this one. Tiki Barber and Terrell Owens have both learned this the hard way. Even for team players whose pockets are straight (like Clinton Portis and Darren Sharper), the interested teams were slim. The current league boasts lots of rookie starters and with the shortened practice period it seems like the right time to just go ahead and give them their reps.

When it comes to Owens and Barber, I imagine teams looking at their phones when their agent’s call, laughing and saying “What I look like getting back to a has beeeeen. Yeah, I said it. Has been. Hang it up. FLAT SCREEN.” Sorry. lol

8. The Few People Who Still Play for the Giants

The season just started and the Giants have some exciting players currently active. Those include Steve Smith…wait…no, I meant Plaxico Burress…oh naw naw…Kevin Boss…ooo hmmm….Osi Umenyiora…oh wait…he’s out…Justin Tuck…oh umm…their brand new highly touted rookie CB Prince Amukamara…oh dammit! A lot of the guys you associate with the Giants have either moved on to other teams or are nursing injuries. The Giants have  8 defensive players out for the season.

The ones that are actually playing were left to get a serious smackdown from the Washington Redskins and their quarterback Re…Re….Re…I can’t even type his name. Anyway, you know that dude that passes the ball or whatever for that one football team in Washington. Him! He balled out on the Giants and there is no way in hell anyone is more angry than the players who had to endure the douchbaggery that is Re…Re…ughhhh

Definitely not a Giants fan, but my heart goes out to them!

9. Anterior Cruciate Ligaments

Before the season started, we were at about 11 achilles tears. Now we’re up to 9023939029343. It’s just getting ridiculous. Player ACLs have been texting each other tips for staying healthy. So far the tips they’re sharing are not working.

10. Defensive Players

You can probably tell by reading this blog that I am ALL about defense. Offense doesn’t really move me beyond whatever the tight ends are doing. Blame Shannon Sharpe for that. Defensive schemes and philosophies are where my heart lies. Defensive back is my favorite position. Linebackers make me swoon. Defensive Ends get my attention. Defensive Tackles get my heart pumping. The best thing about defense is there’s always something more to learn.

The worst thing about defense-there’s always something to learn. It’s clear that defenses across the league are struggling to adapt to all the damn creativity. I find it hard to believe that offenses are just this damn good. I think that defenses are so caught up with giving QBs different looks the players are confused as to where to be. This is just a hunch. I plan to blog about this more next week as I get more of an opportunity to get caught up on which teams have installed what and how it’s shaping up.

But to give you one good example, I’ll use my Eagles (YES I LIKE THE EAGLES AND FALCONS, HAVEN’T WE GONE THROUGH THIS ALREADY?). During Pre-season, alleged CB Nnamdi Asomugha lined up on the right, behind the DE, as a safety, and in the slot all in one game. Watching Asomugha during the Eagles-Rams game was like playing “Where’s Waldo?” except Waldo was dressed like everyone else. And his damn face was covered, which makes the game almost entirely impossible to win. The Eagles also rotated 8 on the line to keep legs fresh. Technically that means 8 dudes are “starting” just on the line. That’s more players that have to learn more than base defense.  I could have sworn I heard one of them say “Where am I? Who am I?” at one point. Or maybe that was me.

I think defensive players have a difficult task right now. Again, I want to revisit this at a later date when I have more to go on. But remember, many rules have been implemented to give offense an advantage. (OMG Can Goodell fine me for saying that?) But looking at this week’s games you’d never know that “more offense” was needed. Defenses can’t be happy with the points and yards that have been given up in week 1.

Tavaris Jackson had a few chances in Minnesota and didn't deliver. Seahawks coach Pete Carroll thinks a stable situation will turn his play around.

I feel like I’ve gone on too much about the dearth of talent at the QB position in the NFL. But since there has been a bunch of movement at the QB spot over the two weeks, I suppose it’s appropriate to discuss it really briefly again.

Redskins QB Rex Grossman turned down a longer term offer with the Redskins preferring to sign a one year contract and keep his options open. On one hand, given Grossman’s previous performances, this could serve as a prime example of the audacity of NOPE. But, since the current NFL will now boasts Snap-starved Tavaris Jackson at the helm for the Seahawks and a very unproven Kevin Kolb taking 30 million + to take over the Arizona Cardinals, Grossman’s comment almost seems acceptable.

ALMOST.

Middling QBs are having the best year ever! And rookies that have to start right away might be having the worst. I’ll be interested to see how football commentators assess Andy Dalton and Cam Newton as they lead the disastrous Bengals and win-deficient Panthers from day 1. Both rookies will have it tough.

As for Rex Grossman, he is still going to have to “compete” for the starting spot in Washington with some dude named John Beck who I was going to research but lost interest half way through. In fact, I don’t plan to mention the Redskins much at all this year. As I’ve been told, “if you don’t have anything nice to say…”

The main thing that is disappointing to me about bad quarterbacking is the impact it has on receivers. I’m rooting for Kolb to be good because I want Larry Fitzgerald to be good. I’m rooting for Tavaris Jackson to succeed because I want Sidney Rice to succeed. And so on. This is one thing to keep in mind as you build fantasy teams…who’s getting your guy the ball? Anyway, a great receiver on a team with a bad QB makes me feel like I’m being cheated out of something great.

All the more reason for the NFL to think about how it can better nurture and preserve QB talent.

A little bit on good cap management

Everyone was wondering how the Philadelphia Eagles could sign so a many high value players and remain under the salary cap. Peter King sums it up.

Understand this principle to start: The Eagles were not in bad cap shape to begin with. When free agency opened they were at $99 million in commitments to veterans and draft choices. (More about those later.) They had shed big veteran salaries over the last couple of years — including quarterback Donovan McNabb’s — and by opening day 2010 had the third-youngest 53-man roster in football. Young means salary manageable.

As of Sunday morning, the Eagles’ projected roster (there’s some guesswork here, but it’s close) consisted of 35 players with cap numbers of $1.5 million or less. And only six players — quarterback Mike Vick ($16.1 million cap number), cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha ($10 million), cornerback Asante Samuel ($9.34 million), tackle Jason Peters ($6.54 million), and defensive ends Jason Babin ($5.3 million) and Trent Cole ($5 million) — had cap figures of $5 million or more.

King goes on to say:

Not including Asomugha, the eight free agent signings and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, who came from Arizona in the Kevin Kolb trade, have zero dollars promised to them for 2012 and beyond. There are years remaining on contracts, yes. But guarantees, no.

Point is, this is the kind of cap situation that can absorb Vick at $16.1 million this year, and Asomugha at $10 million this year and $11 million next year. And the kind of cap that can accommodate a very good player like Cullen Jenkins, the best rush defensive tackle on the market, who never saw the market develop for him the way he thought it would.

Jenkins thought his first-choice team, Philadelphia, wouldn’t sign him after giving Asomugha a four-year, $48-million contract. The Eagles convinced Jenkins they still wanted him badly, but just couldn’t pay him what they’d been discussing pre-Nnamdi. After a night to think about it, Jenkins decided he’d rather play where he wanted for $4 million than to go to a Cincinnati-type team for more money. Jenkins figures he’ll still have another payday if he outperforms this contract in the first year or two. The reputation of the Eagles helped — as did some players’ desire to play on Vick’s team.

One more thing about the Eagles’ cap. It’s not the league’s number of $120.38 million per team. It is actually $125.58 million. That includes $2.2 million in what the league calls “reallocation credits” from the last capped year, 2009, when the Eagles didn’t spend to the cap, and the $3 million every team can borrow from a future cap year to support veteran player costs this season.

Love that King mentions guys wanting to play with Vick, and if you haven’t checked my Vick bromance post, you should.

I don’t know where to begin on this one. As most of you know, Brandon Marshalls wife was arrested for stabbing him a few months ago and the charges have since been dropped. Apparently, Marshall was inspired by all the talk about he and his wife to share a little more about what makes him tick. He decided to announce to the world that he has borderline personality disorder via the Sun-Sentinel.

Marshall has long struggled with so-called character issues off the field. Apparently, the NFL had ordered him into therapy, and after four years he has now been diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder.

During Marshall’s treatment at McLean, he learned how to defuse the bomb inside of his head. Now with the tools and a new perspective he’s returning to the real world, to the NFL, to a marriage he admittedly broke, and to a wife who feels vilified. He must use the skills he’s learned to survive, if not thrive.

He has informed the Dolphins of his diagnosis and said he is revealing his story with the goal of creating more awareness of BPD and advocating for better treatment and medical coverage for a treatment program that cost him $60,000.

From NIH:

Borderline personality disorder is a condition in which a person makes impulsive actions, and has an unstable mood and chaotic relationships. Symptoms: Relationships with others are intense and unstable.

Worth noting, Borderline Personality Disorder is one of the personality disorders that escaped removal from the Fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders that is slated for release in 2013.

Based on Marshall’s tweets and this article, he is trying to take responsibility for the issues he has caused in his marriage. That doesn’t really change the face of what happened, though. Whenever there is a domestic abuse incident I assume either or both people in a couple has some sort of problem. Only difference is Marshall’s condition has a name that we know.

Update: I thought this article in the NY Times was interesting. It’s about a renowned expert on mental illness who struggled with it herself. She said that one of the reasons she committed to battling her own illness is so that she could help others who were suicidal, usually as a result of borderline personality disorder. BPD often causes a gap between who you are and who you want to be. Thought that was pretty deep.

Also, Brandon has released the trailer to his documentary “Borderline Beast.” Most powerful line? Marshall says he’s been trapped all his life, not by man or by beast, but by his own emotions.