Dolphins culture change more about Adam Gase’s opinion
By Brian Miller
The Miami Dolphins went through big changes this past off-season and the words “culture change” was trending far more than Adam Gase.
It will never fully be known who was actually behind the departures of three prominent members of the Dolphins team. Ndamukong Suh, Jarvis Landry, and Mike Pouncey. The Dolphins practically gutted portions of their ‘leadership group’ as Adam Gase molded the team.
Was it Mike Tannenbaum who came to Gase or was it Gase going to Tannenbaum and Chris Grier? Was Grier the guy behind all of it. He is the general manager after all. Those are answers we will never know but what we can figure out is that the changes were not so much “cultural” as they were Adam Gase culture.
Clearly Gase was unhappy with the play of his team last year despite Ryan Tannehill’s sideline attendance. Gase was not thrilled with the way his first year ended either. Again without Tannehill. A players coach, or so his former players have said, Gase didn’t have the team he wanted on the field. He is closer to that vision now.
Clearly Gase want’s players who are not distracted by the outside world. He want’s players who want to play football. Not find a celebrity status or a big paycheck that comes with non-football dealings, he wants focus. 365 days of the year.
It’s hard to argue with the attention to football given by Suh and Pouncey but Landry was all about Landry and that was pretty clear from the start. Gase however wanted a different kind of leadership than the quiet Suh and overtly loud Pouncey.
The big three releases by the team were the glamour shots. Miami also parted way with Koa Misi, Julius Thomas, Matt Moore, and Lawrence Timmons. Either by release or other. They allowed several contributors to leave in free agency. Terrence Fede and Michael Thomas as well as others.
More from Phin Phanatic
- Tua Tagovailoa practicing with teammates is everything a leader does
- 4 offensive tackles Miami Dolphins could draft at 51
- Miami Dolphins don’t need CB help but these 5 could be available at 51
- 4 players that could replace Wilkins if Miami Dolphins don’t re-sign him
- Miami Dolphins have a starting point with Wilkins after Simmons deal
The Dolphins are not looking to “win now” but they have to improve and they have to get better in all areas of the team. This Miami Dolphins team is young and many of the draft picks are showing signs of improving but if the Dolphins fail to make strides in 2018, Gase will very likely enter 2019 on the proverbial hot-seat.
This is why the changes made this off-season are important. He inherited the mess that Joe Philbin left behind and while he tried to work within the parameters of what he was given, this was still not the type of team he wanted.
There have been obvious mistakes of course. Julius Thomas and Jay Cutler come to mind. Just saying their names brings a shuttering feel to the body.
We won’t know if Gase is on the right or the wrong path until we see how these players respond on the practice field and the game field and we see where the win/loss tick marks are going to end up. This team may have undergone a lot of changes but “culture” wouldn’t be the word I would use. This was Adam Gase and that is not a bad thing.
Next: Alliance of American Football set to play in February 2019