I write this to all NFL fans of all NFL teams, it’s time to put the petty differences that drive us to bicker and argue all season aside for a month and focus on something larger. As the NFL goes into its month of hibernation before the start of free agency, this is the perfect time to address the biggest threat facing the NFL. In all likelihood, after this upcoming uncapped season, the NFL owner’s will lockout the players for the 2011 season. Asked this week about the odds of that, NFLPA Head DeMaurice Smith responded gloomily that there was a high probability of a work stoppage. As Brian Miller so eloquently put it a few weeks ago in his post the NFL is facing a looming disaster. The point Brian made, that I agree with so profoundly, is that every single NFL season the fans take it on the chin.

It’s because of the fans that the NFL has risen to the level of prominence in this country that it now enjoys. It’s because of the fans that the NFL has negotiated billion dollar TV contracts. It’s because of the fans that owners are able to get public funding for stadiums that will in essence really only serve to profit them. It’s because of the fans that a Superbowl ad now costs 2.4 million dollars. But in keeping with the theme of the fans taking it on the chin, because of the fan-driven popularity of the Superbowl it’s now too expensive for most fans to even be able to get tickets to attend. It’s because the fans are actually willing to pay the prices, that the NFL continually increases the cost of apparel and tickets. The NFL even went so far as to try to sue people in New Orleans these last couple weeks for selling marginally associated Saints t-shirts (meaning, essentially, they tried to sue people for supporting the Saints without paying them properly, hey, it’s okay New Orleans, I don’t have 35 dollars for a baggy Reebok official team t-shirt either). What I’m getting to is the NFL treats its consumers like dirt because we’re all suckers for the game we love and they know they can take advantage.

Well I’m tired of it. And you should all be tired of it too. I love football, it’s my favorite sport and I go through extreme oftentimes ridiculous lengths to be able to watch it. In college (in Tallahassee, Jags and Falcons territory) I used to skip lunch all week so I could save the money to go watch the Dolphins at a sports bar when they wouldn’t be on TV. I don’t think twice about driving eight hours there and eight hours back to get down to Miami to see a game in person nowadays even with work the next day. I’m not trying to illustrate that I’m a big fan, we’re all fans like that. NFL fans are the American equivalent of the European soccer hooligan. We love our football. That’s why this is a call to arms to all NFL fans, to some of the most passionate fans in the world. Let’s not let this labor stoppage happen. Let’s not let the NFL go the way of the NHL and baseball. I have a plan. I have a plan that I think can work if it gets enough widespread grassroots support and football fans show the same passion in fighting for as they do in pulling for their teams every Sunday.

Stop what you’re doing, look up your state’s congressmen and senators and call or write them about the NFL work stoppage. That may sound silly, but it’s not. I’m not going to make any kind of critical assessment of how things are going in this country politically aside from saying that Congress is doing a truly lousy job. They’re not really making any headway on anything relevant, whatsoever, but they have had the time in the past few years to investigate steroids in baseball, attempt to put an end to the BCS and Arlen Specter even wasted congressional time on Bill Belichick’s spygate. If congress doesn’t want to discuss issues like healthcare or campaign finance reform, fine, but they are public servants and if they’re going to waste their time on sports at least they can pay attention to a sport we all care about, one that actually is in crisis. The NFL.

This isn’t a partisan issue. There should be no partisan bickering, Democrats, Republicans, hell even Joe Lieberman (probably) are all football fans. It doesn’t matter if you’re red or blue, love of football is one common bond that unites us all in this country. Hell, David Letterman was able to sit on the same couch as Jay Leno long enough to film a Superbowl commercial. If football can bring those two together, well you get the idea…

All it took to get the ball rolling on the other sports issues in congress were enough constituents writing and calling their congressmen and senators. With the BCS it was pissed off alumni from the University of Texas and Utah and other states where college programs had been the victims of a BCS snub. Arlen Specter, the senior Senator from Pennsylvania, responded to spygate because enough of his constituents (Steelers and Eagles fans) contacted him irate over Belichick’s perceived misuse of camera equipment (again, let’s not be divisive on this, these are only examples meant to galvanize NFL fans towards a greater cause).

So start writing your senators and congressmen. Write the President, he’s certainly gotten enough credit for being a sports fan in the last two years. Hell, contact anyone who even might represent you at a national level. Tell them you’re mad as hell and you’re not going to take it. Tell them the senate or the house, whichever respective body they work in, may not be accomplishing much but you’d be much more inclined to give them your vote if they would act to try and stop the looming NFL work stoppage. Politicians respond to votes, and if enough people contact them about this issue with the prospect of their reelection mentioned, you’d be surprised how quickly something will happen. That may be a sad statement in and of itself about the political process in this country, but that’s another debate for another time.

Now what could Congress actually do? Well aside from the considerable pressure that congress could put on both sides in the NFL labor dispute there are both financial and legal recourse that congress could take to try to push along a resolution. This sort of an issue isn’t even unprecedented. In the past 150 years Congress, as well as the president, have both stepped in to help resolve labor disputes in this country. The fact it’s an NFL labor dispute may make some roll their eyes, but at its core this is still a labor dispute and with the amount of public funding and federal help the league is given it’s not hard to argue that the US would have legitimate  interests in this labor dispute. Believe it or not, this is an issue that our government actually could step in and fix. For once. Finally.

So this is the call to arms, not just to Dolphins fans but to all fans. This is the start of our grassroots movement. Look up your senators, look up your congressmen and call their offices, write them emails and letters. Bombard them. It’s time the fans had some recourse and its time that congress actually did something beneficial. Spread this around, Tweet it, Digg it, put it on Facebook, tell your friends, post this on your blog. Spread the word. Write the man. Let’s unite as fans and try to do something about this. I will be the first, as of the completion of this post I’m going to call and write Bill Nelson and George LeMieux’ offices (Florida’s senators), I’m going to look up my congressmen and write and call them too. Join me. It takes 20 minutes tops. 20 minutes! If enough people actually take the time to contact their congressmen and senators and demand action, you’d be surprised how much of an impact we, the fans, can have. More than anything else, football is supposed to be our game. The fan’s game. The NFL claims to have the greatest fans in the world (even if they don’t treat us like that). Let’s prove it. Let’s protect the game we all love so much. 20 minutes. Let’s do it.

This years Super Bowl fell way short of the super shoot out that many expected.  A low scoring first half that was way more defensive than offensive gave way to a more exciting 2nd half that ultimately fell short of any real drama when Peyton Manning threw the first turnover of the game.  The 7 point swing set up the “WHO DAT” New Orleans Saints as the “WHO DAT NFL Champions”.

The game was over when Tracy Porter picked off Manning late in the 4th quarter and returned it for a touchdown.  Manning who was leading a final 4th quarter drive that would likely have sent the game into overtime took his team to the goal line with just over a minute to play following the pick only to be picked again to seal the deal.

Drew Brees let his shaky start give way to an almost perfect second half that started with the Saints’ Sean Payton calling an opening second half onside kick that the Saints not only recovered but converted into a TD.

The story however was all Brees.

Brees connected on 10 plus consecutive completions in the 2nd half and completed 32 passes on the game.  Spreading the ball around, Brees found Devery Henderson, Jeremy Shockey, Marques Colston, and a critical 2 point conversion by Lance Moore.  When he wasn’t hitting his receivers he was hitting Reggie Bush out of the backfield.

Still, for all the completions on both sides of the ball, the gunslinger scoring barrage never got going.  Instead, fans were treated to a game that didn’t open up until the 3rd period when the teams exchanged TD’s.  Still, the game finished with the Saints scoring 31 and the Colts 17.  Far below the teams usual 40 plus winning point totals that were norms most of the season.

For Drew Brees, a name that Miami Dolphins fans not only know well but want to forget, he played in his first Super Bowl in the city that two times before shunned him and he walked away with not only a Championship but an MVP award as well.

So, not to Dave Wannstedt, Drew Brees was a lot better than Jay Fiedler and Nick Saban, Drew Brees’ shoulder is just fine and Brees is much better than Dante Culpepper.

Congratulations to the New Orleans Saints and Drew Brees on a victory well deserved.  Who Dat?  Saints Dat!

The final game of the year is here and befittingly it will actually be the Super Bowl.  Unlike in years past where next weekend would be the Pro-Bowl.  So with a flip of a coin tonight shortly after 6:00 Pm the 2009/2010 season will build towards it’s final curtain.  And when all is said and done, the New Orleans Saints should be the new Champions of the NFL.

Yes, you heard correctly, the New Orleans Saints will win tonights game. 

All the hype is around Peyton Manning becoming the “greatest QB of all-time”.  While he still very well could go down into history as such he will have to be almost perfect to come out a winner tonight.

The Saints are just as high-powered as the Colts are but they have something that the Colts do not.  A running game.  A good running game at that.  The advantage is simply this.  Throw the ball with Brees and his cache’ of receivers and then run the ball.  When the Colts think they have it figured out, start throwing to the RB’s…then back to the WR’s.

Indy has a very good defense but they are not great and the Saints offense is great and their defense isn’t too bad either.  The Saints “D” won’t stop Peyton Manning but they will slow him down.  With blitzing LB’s and rushing DE’s the Saints will try and put constant pressure on Manning and force him to check off to his 2nd and 3rd WR’s. 

With no threat of a real running game from the Colts, the Saints can simply sit back and defend the pass while attacking Manning quickly.  And if by chance that doesn’t work…then the Saints offense can simply match them strike for strike.  In the end, the Saints should be able to stop Manning on a few occassions but I don’t think that the Colts will be able to match the Saints on defense. 

CHAD PENNINGTON

So Pennington is a free agent in less than a month and the team is actually considering bringing him back.  As a back-up.  So what happens to Tyler Thigpen?  Some speculate that he may get traded to the Bills or another team in need of a QB that will come in and compete. 

I’m not buying it.  Penning“10″ would still be a very good “coach” for Chad Henne and as much as Henne says he would love for CP to stick with the team, he needs to take over the team and in order for him to do that, he can’t be looking over his shoulders after a few bad games and that is exactly what will happen with CP.

This is Chad Henne’s team now and unless CP wants to retire and come back as a coach, he needs to play somewhere else.

We here at Phinphanatic strive to bring you the best in Miami Dolphins news.  While sometimes we may have a gap or two in our postings, we want to make sure that you always have access to the breaking news you want.

Today, we would like to announce that Phinphanatic.com has officially gone mobile with our very own iPhone application…and it’s FREE! 

This iPhone application is the first of it’s kind specifically for the Miami Dolphins.  Unlike one other “mainstream” media site that bills themselves as a Miami Dolphins app and charges you 2.99 for it…yes, I actually bought it.  This app is a direct link to our site with our Miami Dolphins news and no links to other stories you don’t care about.  And again…IT’S FREE.

What perfect timing as well!  With the free agency period less than a month away, what a better way to get all the breaking news on signings without having to wait until you either get home, or sign on to a web site.  Now, it will be at your fingertips!

To download the application, simply click the link below and follow the instructions.  Hope you enjoy Phinphanatic, not just at home, but quickly on your iPhone anywhere you get service. 

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/phin-phanatic/id354046086?mt=8

Last week Joey Porter said he didn’t want to stay in Miami and now he is saying he wants to be traded.  Won’t happen.  The Miami Dolphins will not trade J-Peezy because frankly, no one will give anything for him prior to the March deadline of his impending 1 million dollar roster bonus.

Porter made his recent claim on the Jim Rhome show stating that if the Dolphins were going to use him in a rotation, he wanted no part of it.  The Dolphins will likely cut him before that early 1 mill payout unless they actually believe they can pay the mill and recoup it with a draft pick or some other compensation.

The Miami Dolphins unveiled a new statue of the great Don Shula just prior to the start of the Pro-Bowl at their newly named “Sun Life Stadium”.  The statue will be in front of the teams new offices on the newly named road, 347 Don Shula Dr.  The 347 of course representing the number of career victories Shula owns.

The bronze statue shows Shula hefted on the shoulders of Nick Buoniconti and Al Jenkins following the 1972 Super Bowl victory over the Washington Redskins.  The only NFL perfect season.  ”Perfect in Time” is printed on the statue.

The NFL also announced that a new yearly award will be handed out in Shula’ name.  The Don Shula Award will be handed out to the coach who displays the integrity, achievement and positive impact on others exemplified by the winningest coach in NFL history.

The award however, is not just for an NFL coach, but any coach on any level who displays that type of leadership on and off the field.  Shula and Roger Goodell will begin evaluating a selection process VIA an eventual committee after the Super Bowl.

“I am honored that Commissioner Goodell has created this award to honor football coaches that live with integrity and have the right impact on other people,” Shula said. “I always relished the teaching and mentoring aspect of being a coach as being the most important thing we did. I look forward to working with Commissioner Goodell and his team to recognize that positive impact that our game can have on our society.”

Don Shula celebrated his 80th birthday a few weeks ago.

The Pro-Bowl had more excitement to it with 34 non-voted roster spots than anyone might have expected.  It’s over now, as is all the controversy surrounding the game being played in Miami a week before the Super Bowl…which of course is in Miami.  Here are some of the Monday Morning QB ramblings for the day.

“Put  a ring on it”

Last night while many watched the Pro-Bowl and my son and I watched ESPN’s Winter X games, others tuned in to watch Beyonce’ take home 6 Grammy awards…the most by any female on one night in the history of the 52 year old event.  Not surprising her hit song “Put a ring on it” led the way.

Perhaps that is what Rex Ryan was trying to say when he flashed his finger to a group of Miami Dolphins fans who approached him.  Rex has been anything but quiet in his first year as an HC and it’s befitting that he is with the NY Jets.  Still, all his talk and smack couldn’t put a ring on his finger.  Nor could he manage one single victory against the Miami Dolphins.  Yeah, Rex, your number 1.

Ryan has since apologized for his actions saying he was sorry to the Jets organization and his players, and the NFL, and NFL fans everywhere…not so much to the Miami fans who he also verbally told to “go Eff themselves”.

Yeremiah Bell played in his first Pro-Bowl along with Dolphins kicker Dan Carpenter.  Carp missed a 40 yard field goal but made several others on a night that saw the AFC put up 41 points…of course the NFC put up 34.  Still, Bell made a good showing in his first post-season honor game.  He almost came down with 2 interceptions.

How bad was this last decade?  The NFL announced their “All-Decade” team and the Dolphins placed 3 players on it.  Jason Taylor, Zach Thomas, and Joey Porter.  I say bad because in 10 years the Dolphins best performer is in his 13th season, their second best is out of the NFL, and Joey Porter got in more as a Pittsburgh Steeler.  Hardly a ringing endorsement considering all the other players that sped through Miami.  Of course they did in fact speed through.

CBA news.  Roger Goodell has said that it almost a certainty that the 2010 season will be an uncapped year.  Given the fact that the league new year is one month away…it’s of little surprise.  What happens after that is a different story.

Many fans really don’t care if there is a cap or not considering they would love to see the Dolphins throw some money out there without restriction but remember, the stand-off could easily end the 2011 season before it ever gets underway.  In addition, if a new CBA is ratified and teams throw huge amounts of money at players, that new CBA could hold a cap structure that would mean any amounts owed after the 2010 season could be under cap restraint.  Buyer beware.

If ever you needed a pill that would alert you to the impending free agency date of early March, the Pro-Bowl would be that pill.  As this years event unfolds tonight in our very own Miami, all eye’s may be on the game but all ears on the “I  would love to play in Miami” comments being thrown around.

It is after all, that time of year.

It’s not just Miami, it’s simply that Miami is all we really care about.  Consider last week the Miami nation was rocked by innuendos of Vince Wilfork coming home.  The former U defensive lineman has been saddled in New England his entire career and would “love to come home to Miami”.  If only it was that easy.  First, there of course is the issue of the inevitable franchise tag.  Whether Wilfork wants it or not.  Then there is the issue of Bill Belichick allowing Wilfork to play anywhere else in the AFC East.  So basically, it won’t happen.

This weeks comment du’jour is being spewed by former local safety Antrel Rolle.  Rolle of the Arizona Cardinals and the Pro-Bowl.  A Miami native and U alum.  So when he says he would “love to play in Miami someday” the first reaction is “WE GOT ‘EM”.  But it’s never that easy.

This is, again, that time of year and Rolle is a very good example of this.  Would he love to play in Miami?  Sure he would.  His parents are here, he is from here, but that does not mean he will take a pay cut to make it happen and when another team starts tossing dough his direction…he will be in that “I’m very excited to be here in Detroit” mode.

It’s all part of the game that revolves around free agency.  Tell your prospective employers what you want to hear and leave no bridges burned.  It’s literally as simple as that.  Once the mid-night hour rolls around on the eve of free agency, all that “would love to” talk turns to “show me the money”.

In the case of Rolle, he is in the final year of his contract and is due an 8.1 million dollar roster bonus.  The Cardinals are expected to try and re-sign him or may be forced to release him.  The comments of “would love to” work both ways in any negotiation.  The fact that Rolle says he is willing to leave allows him to maintain at least something looking like the upper hand.  It lets the Cardinals know that he can walk if they don’t pony up the dough.

Ahhh, sometimes this time of year just makes us crazy.