Adam Gase among least likely to win Coach of the Year
In his first season as head coach, Adam Gase nearly won Coach of the Year, but fell just short. Gase isn’t receiving any love this season, however, as he is projected as one of the least likely coaches to win the prestigious award.
Miami Dolphins head coach Adam Gase did a lot in his first year. After the team started the year with a 1-4 record, Gase righted the ship and led the team to win nine of their next ten, resulting in Miami’s first playoff berth in eight years. The massive turnaround almost gave Gase Coach of the Year honors, finishing with six first-place votes, but it was Dallas head coach Jason Garrett who would eventually go home with the reward.
One would think that Gase would again be a favorite to win COY honors, but apparently, that couldn’t be further from the truth. The truth is, most people are not giving the Dolphins any kind of chance in 2017. There are some who believe that the Dolphins making the playoffs last year was a fluke. That they will come back down to reality this year with a tougher schedule. Others think that the loss of Ryan Tannehill will be too huge to overcome, and season-ending injuries to Raekwon McMillan and Tony Lippett don’t help matters either.
The lack of optimism for the Dolphins, which also includes a lack of confidence in Jay Cutler, has resulted in ESPN dropping Miami twelve spots in their latest power rankings. Because the Dolphins are expected to fall significantly in 2017, Adam Gase’s chances of becoming COY are listed as a long shot.
Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald first reported that the famous gambling website, Bovada, now has Gase listed as the longest shot to win the award at 50 to 1 odds. Gase is not alone at the bottom as Todd Bowles, Jim Caldwell, John Fox, Hue Jackson, Marvin Lewis, and Sean McVay are all listed at 50 to 1 odds as well. Not surprising, Bill Belichick is considered the favorite at 7 to 1.
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In a recent tweet, Beasley admits that he understands the skepticism for the Dolphins entering this year, but to list Gase as the longest shot to win COY is harsh. I completely agree with Beasley on this. I understand that the Dolphins have had an extremely tough training camp, and that the schedule looks tougher on paper, particularly in the second half, but to list Gase all the way to the bottom is absurd.
Yes, the Dolphins took a huge blow in losing Tannehill, and no, Jay Cutler is not a quarterback messiah, but there’s not a huge drop-off between the two. Gase already has history with Cutler so it’s not as if he has to teach a new quarterback the entire system. The loss of McMillan and Lippett hurts too, but Miami can find viable replacements for both.
The good news is that Dolphins fans have grown accustomed to the negative press that the team receives, and have grown even more accustomed to ignoring it. While Gase will have a long road to climb, it’s a bit disrespectful to have him listed all the way at the bottom based off of what he did in his first season.
Obviously, winning games is the only thing that is on Gase’s mind, not winning personal awards. If Miami does exactly that though, and makes it back to the playoffs for a second straight season, then Gase will have earned strong consideration to winning that honor.