What Could Have Been
By author
As the Miami Dolphins head into their final 3 games of the 2010 regular season, it’s tough to not think about their 7-6 record and how it could have been better. Although Miami is still hanging on to slim playoff hopes as they head into this Sunday’s match-up with the Buffalo Bills, we all know they shouldn’t be in this position.
The year started with high expectations for Miami, from the owner Stephen Ross, to fans like us. It’s hard to not be disappointed with how the year has turned out, but if you’re like me and keep wondering ‘what if,’ you will drive yourself crazy to the point of playing Call of Duty Black Ops every night because you don’t want to hear about football.
But being married with kids, it’s tough finding time to get on the PS3 and hide from the disappointment. So how in the heck did the season get to this point for the Miami Dolphins? Let’s look at the 6 loses and find out.
Loss 1: New York Jets on Sunday Night Football. The first ‘PrimeTime’ appearance for the Miami Dolphins of the year. It was also the first home game of the year for Miami, and to top it all off, they wore their orange jerseys, I was thinking 3-0 here we come! Little did I know Jason Allen would slip trying to make a tackle and end up getting burned by Braylon Edwards for a 60+ yd touchdown. Although Miami lost by 8, that slip was the difference in the game, and ultimately caused the loss.
Loss 2: New England Patriots the following week on Monday Night Football. Ok, here we go, Miami was going to shake off the loss to the Jets and come back and beat the Patriots. Miami gives the Patriots fits each and every year, and they would find a way to pull out the victory and move to 3-1. Someone forgot to tell the Dolphins to play both halves of the football game. The Dolphins were absolutely pummeled in the second half, and it ended up costing the Special Teams coach his job. That second half was an absolute disaster. One play or player didn’t contribute to the loss, it was an entire group effort.
Loss 3: Pittsburgh Steelers. Miami had plenty of chances to win this game. Sure it’s easy to say if Miami converted their redzone chances into touchdowns instead of fieldgoals they would have easily won the game. But it’s far more easy to say Miami got screwed by the refs in this game. That’s how I feel about it, and I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one on that side of the fence. That call gave Miami the loss.
Loss 4: Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens are the one team in the NFL I feel can beat Miami 10 out of 10 times. They completely dominate Miami almost every time they play them, and this time it was no different.
Loss 5: Chicago Bears. I thought the 2nd half of the New England game was the worst performance I would see from the Miami Dolphins. They topped that in this one. The Bears made the Dolphins look pathetic, or maybe it was the Dolphins that made the Bears look like the team to beat in the NFC. Either way, this game was gross to watch.
Loss 6: Cleveland Browns. Typical trap game for Miami. They had the big game with the Jets coming up, all they had to do was beat the lowly Browns with Jake “Pick Machine” Delhomme starting at Quarterback. Well Jake didn’t disappoint, he hit several Miami players right in the hands, if only Nolan Carroll would have caught the damn ball. It’s hard to knock the rookie for failing to make that play, but if he would have gotten the job done, Miami would have won the game.
Now Miami enters the final 3 games of the season needing to win all 3 and get a lot of help. It’s too hard to fathom what it would take for Miami to make it into the playoffs, the main thing is for them to win their final 3 games and hope for the best. It won’t be easy because Miami has struggled to win the games they are supposed to win, but if they do they will leave the playoffs for the other teams fighting to get in to decide.
Phins Up!
BEL