http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=teamreports-2011-nfl-mia "Chad Henne remains in the Miami Dolphins’ plans for 2011 and could remain the team’s starting quarterback, general manager Jeff Ireland said at the Senior Bowl. “He has all the ability in the world,” Ireland said. “We’ve just got to put a plan together and an offensive philosophy that fits Chad Henne, and I think we’ll do that.” “He has shown some aggressive tendencies,” Ireland said. “He has shown some exciting throws. The quarterback position is obviously a very important position. We’ll evaluate what’s out there, like we do every position, in free agency and the draft.”
“We’ve just got to put a plan together and an offensive philosophy that fits Chad Henne, and I think we’ll do that.” While this pre-draft jibber jabber is typical, I found it interesting that he mentioned the philosophy of the team and how it may have impacted Henne. If I was going to put a dollar on it either way I'd say he is a supporter of the QB. But Ireland you really, really, really need to step it up and fix this offense around the QB. Purty please?
“It’s part of the deal,” Sparano said recently. “There’s pocket disruption for a lot of these quarterbacks, and they keep the play alive and make plays and do some of those things.” As the season wound down, Sparano commissioned a study by Dolphins video director Bob Hack of all the NFL pass plays this season that gained 30 or more yards. The teams that produced the most of these so-called “explosive” connections were Aaron Rodgers’(notes) Packers and Michael Vick’s(notes) Eagles. Coincidence? Sparano didn’t seem to think so. “Those were the top two teams,” he said. “You figure it out.” Sparano watched every single one of these big plays. Imagine the overwhelming feeling of envy as he watched Greg Jennings(notes), James Jones(notes), DeSean Jackson(notes), Jeremy Maclin(notes) and friends running free in opposing secondaries in a way Brandon Marshall(notes), Brian Hartline(notes) and Davone Bess rarely did. “It’s like Fran Tarkenton running around back there at times,” Sparano said, “and all of a sudden a play is made. So, it isn’t designed. I mean, no coordinator is sitting there saying, ‘Hey, let these 10 guys chase you, and you throw it here.’” It goes back to the quarterback. Doesn’t it always? “There’s a little bit of ability that goes into that and some luck,” Sparano said, “and a couple guys playing kind of—at times it turns into street ball—together to make a play like that. But that’s what our league is about. It’s about: Sometimes you’ve got to make those kind of plays.” So who do you want Coach...Newton..or Ingram/Colin..?
I have the feeling that Ireland is a Henne guy, while Sparano & Henning were/are both Pennington guys. I think Sparano wanted to go with Penne all along. Just a guess obviously. But the way Henne was announced as the starter arbitrarily, even though Penne was coming off of an MVP type season wreaks of someone in the front office making the decision. Coaches like to maintain as much flexibility as possible, they also care more about winning the next game than grooming a QB for the future. Usually. GM's tend to think more about the long term. And when you watch the way Henne was yanked in and out when we were in scoring range, it was like Henning didnt trust Henne. He max protected an inordinate amount of times, even when we weren't seeing any blitz looks. "Just don't mess it up, kid". Then all of a sudden in the Tennessee game, everything looks like 2008 all over again. That's the game where Henning drew up a game plan for Penne, not Henne. After that week, it was back to the status quo ultra conservative stuff, all the way until the Detroit game when they finally opened it up. Then you see other players on the team, Fasano & Marshall most notably, visibly going after Henne on the field. Henne not responding, never acting as though the team was actually his. IMO it points to the team and the coaches still being loyal to, and preferring, Penne, while the bosses upstairs were thinking long term and wanting to go with Henne. They just forgot to give him a running game or enough tools to get by during his on the job training.
I am starting to think that Henne and the controversy surrounding him fueled the rift between Ireland and Sporano. I found Ireland's blather a little comical though; how indeed could we build an offense around Henne when in the next breath he said that he would be looking for other QB's, or as he put it. . . "We’ll evaluate what’s out there, like we do every position, in free agency and the draft.” In other words: words were spoken that said or indicated nothing. I personally don't care if Daffy Duck is our QB as long as our offense compliments him, we stop turning the ball over and we win ball games. Both Ireland and Sporano need to get on the same page and build and offense that generates points and that task cannot solely be blamed on this or any QB. Listening to Ireland talk is like listening to a politician, you get the feeling that 1/2 of everything he says is BS, you just don't know which half.
I agree with this. What makes a QB look great is that the offense has been made to compliment him. Pretty hard to do for Ireland when he's still looking for more QB's. The only real compliant that I had with Henne was his one dimensional style has him flat footed and he lacks being a mobile threat or having the necessary escapeability, this lead to interceptions. All the rest can be taught and trained. I also think that we made a huge mistake by not letting our new OC pick his own assistants and sub-coaches, meddling Tony picked them for him; including Karl Dorrell at QB coach with no experience at the position. Due to this molding a new QB will be a joke. We should have picked a QB coach with experience training and molding new talent.
Been saying that for awhile jd, he makes sense. Or Gradkowski from Oakland, below 60% passing but he fits that mold and would not break the bank to sign him.
Reading that inflamed me: If he wasn't so ****ty at O-Line evaluation (go figure), there wouldn't have to be 10 players chasing him or laying out our RB's. He's pretending like a bad O-Line is a fact of life that Henne just needs to deal with. Why not fix the damn line and take some blame for ****ting the bed on that one? Well, see, I think Ireland understands something, he has a talented QB, but not a star, at least not now. So, he's going to make sure that whatever that QB can do well, he maximizes that. Sparano is being a stubborn idiot. He does not have Mike Vick, Aaron Rodgers, or Ben Roethlisberger. It's going to be nearly impossible to get anyone like them this year, but rather than understand that and fix what CAN be fixed, he's gonna ***** and say, well maybe he should be better at making something out of ****ty O-Line play. It's like telling a woman who you raped, she shouldn't have been sexy. Sure, she could carry mace, but why should she even have to?
I read Tony's quotes and it just proves to me again how inept he is. If your base offense is not working, your Wildcat is not working, then guess what, you aren't going to be making big plays either. Its not magic. Having Fran Tarkenton (or Rodgers or Vick) will not be an elixir to cure what ails the Dolphins offense. The "you figure it out" quote is classic.
And I Agree With You 100% on that! I Believe we'll pick up a Quarterback Just to Silence The Fans, But Henne Will Improve being in Competition and Be Our Quarterback and have a Better Year. Especially having more Chemistry W/ Our Receivers, a better RunningGame Hopefully and a Better O-Line Than our recent season
I have to be honest; I am very worried about drafting a QB, however necessary it may be. Karl Dorrell (our new QB coach who used to be our WR coach) has no business or experience grooming our next hall of fame QB. This has disaster written all over it. Yet another classic flub by our FO.