Observations from an Embarrassment
I have watched the Dolphins play on television several times this year and over the past few years. Let me tell you, they have NEVER looked worse than they did last night against the Jets.
I felt ashamed wearing my Dolphins gear. The team is 0-5 and the frontrunner in the Andrew Luck sweepstakes. And that is fine by me. This team needs some energy injected into its fanbase, and Luck is probably the only way to do that. But before we start declaring this season 0-16 (which I believe is a distinct possibility now), I’ll share some observations from last night.
1. Bye, bye Tony. It’s time. It’s past the time. Tony Sparano needs to go. I have never seen players less excited to play for a head coach than in Miami. This team is dead. They have absolutely no energy. Sparano is a lame duck at this point, and I honestly see zero point in letting him finish the season. What exactly will that accomplish? Remember last year when the Dallas Cowboys fired Wade Phillips and let Jason Garrett coach the reminder of the season? And magically, the Cowboys started to string a few wins together and actually looked like a decent unit, right? Well we borrow all the old Cowboy-cast offs anyway, why not follow in their footsteps here as well?
2. Red Zone execution. It’s basically like beating a dead horse at this point. Every week, it’s the same story. The score should’ve been 21-7 Dolphins at halftime. At one point in the 2nd quarter, the Jets had zero first downs, the Dolphins had 176 yards of total offense, and the score was 7-6 Jets. Unacceptable. If Matt Moore doesn’t throw the interception to Darelle Revis, we could be talking about a very different game. On a sidenote, why the hell was Moore trying to pick on Revis in the end zone. On consecutive drives?? You just don’t do that. Just abolsutely horrible red zone calls, and you aren’t going to win games by kicking field goals. Simple as that.
3. Time Management. This is a vent. Plain and simple. 2nd quarter. About a minute left. One timeout. Ball on the 20-yard line. Team is 0-4. WHY THE @#$% ARE YOU RUNNING OUT THE CLOCK? Please explain to me what the Dolphins had to lose by trying to get some points before the half. They were playing in the opposing stadium, in a stadium where every single fan hates you. Any idea how demoralizing it would have been for a team and their fanbase coming off three straight loses to go into the locker room against an 0-4 team up by only one? It’s not like the Dolphins are fighting for a playoff spot. The goal coming into New York is just to kick in the teeth of a bitter rival. Instead, by not going for anything in the final minute of the half, you just gave them a teeth whitening (bad analogy, I know).
4. Still no pass rush. Once again, it looked like the defensive line was not there. You had five guys at least who at the beginning of the season, looked like they could be starters for most teams. Not one of them is getting after the quarterback this season. Cameron Wake especially, looks like a shell of himself from last season. Mark Sanchez had all day to throw the ball, and if he were a capable quarterback, the game could’ve been more out of hand than it was. I will say that our offensive line played a bit better last night than they have all season, and they may be the only positive thing I can take from the game.
5. Stop throwing to Brandon Marshall. Not completely. There is a time and a place for Brandon Marshall to be the main target, and that is not when Darelle Revis is shadowing him. The Dolphins have other capable recievers. But Marshall caught six passes (and had plenty more targets that he missed), while the next closest reciever was Brian Hartline with three receptions. Moore only had eyes for Marshall in the red zone, and again, he is not going to win that battle against Revis. He just is not talented enough, no matter what he says. And did you see how he gave up in the end zone on that 3rd down pass in the first half? Horrible. I don’t understand why Daboll doesn’t get Anthony Fasano more involved in the red zone. He is a better tight end than the Dolphins apparently think he is.
I’m sorry, I have pretty much reached my breaking point this year with this team. They should be better than this. They have the talent to be better than this. The players have quit. It’s pretty obvious the coaches have quit. It’s also pretty obvious that Tony Sparano has no idea what to do, and it’s time for him to go now. What I saw last night was an embarrassment, the laughingstock of the league.
Twitter – @notquiterosey