"The Guy Can't Find His Way Out Of A Huddle"

Finally, someone said what many fans have been thinking since the day they heard “The Miami Dolphins select, Ted Ginn, Jr.”.  From the “whole Ginn family” comment to the lack of WR play that Ginn has shown, fans wonder if this is all there is…a 9th overall punt returner who is explosive but inconsistent.  On ESPN 760, Miami Dolphins Hall of Famer, Nick Buoniconti said “The guy looks like his lost on I-95.  The Guy can’t find his way out of a huddle”.

And so it begins.

The play of Ted Ginn has been less than stellar.  When you hear names like Desean Jackson a 2nd round pick becoming an integral part of the Philadelphia offense in his first game as a pro…fans will get upset.  When you hear about Eddie Royal lighting it up for the Denver Broncos, fans will grind their teeth.  When is Ted Ginn going to play like a 9th overall pick?  Will he ever?

"“Here’s a guy who’s finally got to step up and start performing,” Buoniconti said. “They’ve been treating Ted Ginn with kid gloves, and I understand that. But younger guys now have to rise to the occasion, and they have to start playing.”"

Of course Nick is right.  Ted Ginn had 32 all purpose yards on Sunday and failed to make a catch until the 4th quarter.  His route running was not good and he was manhandled in the endzone at the end of the game unable to outplay Darrel Revis for the ball.  Revis intercepted and the Dolphins lost.

The question is whether or not Ted Ginn is ready for this duty at all.  He didn’t see his first action as a WR until 2004 at Ohio State, a corner prior to that.  With the Dolphins lack of depth at that position maybe he should move back there.

Ginn also does not benefit from a very poor WR corp.  Teams don’t fear the Miami Dolphins passing attack and there is no other players on the Dolphins that will take pressure off of Ginn allowing teams to not worry about one on one coverage deep, where Ginn can use his speed.  The lack of a QB that can throw a deep ball consistently also hurts his progress.

Is Ginn the product of inexperience and overall offensive team issues including a reliable deep throwing QB or is Ginn simply not an NFL WR.  While fans expect him to develop now, it tends to take a WR 2 full years to show he has it or not.  While Dolphins don’t want to wait any longer for this team start playing, at some point they all need to step up and that too includes Ted Ginn.

There comes a time when Miami fans will not want to see improvement from week to week but will start wanting to see results.  Improvement will only get you so far…at some point you need to start winning.  In the case of Ted Ginn, his contract and draft position may be the only reason he has time on his side…and that could run out sooner than later if he can’t improve.  Nick is right.