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What is wrong with our offense?

Discussion in 'Miami Dolphins Forum' started by Big Red, Nov 8, 2010.

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  1. Big Red

    Big Red Long Lasting Freshness

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    1. The numbers don't support that theory. Nobody is going to confuse Fasano with Gates (who is playing out of his mind this season) but bottom tier is not an accurate description of Fasano in any way shape or form.

    2. Marshall is our playmaker/homerun threat. He is supposed to stretch the field and gain chunk yardage. I believe Hartline is also capable of stretching the field. Where I am confused is why we don't see more pass attempts down the field.

    3. I would not call Hartline mediocre. That being said he hasn't really done much to distinguish himself either.

    4. Are you seriously blaming our #4 & #5 wideouts for our problems on offense?

    5. Everybody has an inconsistent ground game. Arian Foster leads the league in rushing. Week 5 he had 25 yards and zero touchdowns. If anything our ground game has been surprisingly consistent. Ronnie Brown averages about 60 yards per game. Maybe the real problem is he's only averaging 12-13 carries per game. Ricky Williams has been a little inconsistent but not wildly inconsistent.

    That being said our ground game is definitely something to consider. We should much more dominant. Why haven't we been more dominant? I don't know.

    6. Agree to disagree. Ronnie and Ricky have some of the best hands in the league. If you're looking for a COP back that is supposed to be Cobbs who has been basically invisible so far this season.

    7. Henning may be the problem but the OC is an easy scapegoat and hindsight is 20/20. There were a fair share of dropped passes and sacks that you cannot blame on Henning. I would love to know what plays he calls versus what is executed on the field.

    8. That 20 yard box theory is interesting.

    9. True. Field position has been poor.

    10. We absolutely need to create more turnovers. If Sean Smith made that pick six we might have won. Who knows? However that still doesn't change the fact that could only muster 10 points and got shut out in the 2nd half.

    11. Henne threw 3 interceptions and zero touchdowns. He has to do better than that. Bottom line. Now one of those interceptions was tipped but the pass wasn't exactly on the money. That said there were times when Henne was on the money but the pass was dropped.

    Maybe you were onto something with our inconsistency. But maybe it's our passing attack that is inconsistent. How do we correct that?
     
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  2. Clipse

    Clipse mediocrity sucks

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    The same reason it's been all year. Dan Henning. Plays not to lose, which is a losers mentality. Doesn't know how to feed the hot hand, as evidenced by him abandoning Ronnie Brown after he had 6 carries for 45 yards in the 1st series of the Ravens game. Loves to kill drives with trick plays. Loves to play for FG's, instead of actually trying to pick up the 1st. Doesn't take any chances down the field, which makes it all the more easier on the defense. Can't draw up a screen pass worth a damn, whether it's a RB screen, or a WR screen. Rarely uses slants, which is absolutely ridiculous considering our top 3 WR's are great at picking up YAC. He calls play actions on 3rd and long, as well as in the hurry up offense where it's obvious we need to throw the ball.

    How this guy still has a job is beyond me. We didn't learn after all his average/bad offenses as the Panthers OC? And then after the 21st and 15th overall offenses since he's been here? Dude is senile, and needs to be fired, or retire, doesn't matter.
     
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  3. padre31

    padre31 Premium Member Luxury Box

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    What is wrong with the offense?

    We have to get the running game moving, it is that simple.

    If we cannot rely on Henne, then don't, run the ball.:up:
     
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  4. Desides

    Desides Well-Known Member

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    Not even Chris Johnson last year could take his team to the playoffs. Ronnie and Ricky will fail at that task, too.
     
  5. padre31

    padre31 Premium Member Luxury Box

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    Everything works off of the run for us.

    Besides, the Titans started out 1-6 including a massive 50 pt blowout vs the Pats and they still finished with a winning record.
     
  6. Desides

    Desides Well-Known Member

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    Just because Sparano wants to run the ball doesn’t make it an effective way to win games and clinch playoff berths. Quite the opposite.

    It would be nice to get the running game going, but it’s not a requirement to get to the playoffs.
     
  7. ToddsPhins

    ToddsPhins Banned

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    He's 25th in receptions, 19th in yardage, 19th in ave, 14th in TDs, 14th in 20+, zero 40+, and has a number of drops. The numbers do support it. Some teams have a better receiving #2 than our #1. TE is a problem.

    Marshall isn't a DeSean Jackson type. He doesn't create his own space the way a DeSean does. When we're playing in a 20 yard box while Brandon's double covered, it makes it difficult for him to create enough separation to break off big plays (hence typically being tackled as soon as he catches the ball). Therefore, Brandon's NOT a playmaker/homerun threat when he does NOT have space to work with b/c defenses can drape coverage all over him and give him zero room for any YAC (which is where his strength lies). He isn't a burner. He's not going to stretch the field. Being capable of stretching the field isn't the same thing as being a field stretcher. We don't see many pass attempts down field b/c we don't have a legit down field threat. It makes it much more risky. A group of 4.5+ WRs and RBs along with a 4.8 TE make it a little difficult to get behind coverage to where Henne can chuck it and trust that our WR can blow by defenders and run under it.

    As a #2, Hartline is mediocre. As a #4, he is not. Right now he's our #2, so he's overmatched.

    Yes. I am also blaming our #4 & #5. What are they contributing? Zilch. Look at the #4s and even 5s of teams of other teams. They actually catch some balls and contribute to the offense, as well as give their other receivers a needed break from time to time.

    We'll have to agree to disagree. The ground game has come up short in times when we've needed it which is putting more pressure on Henne. Foster has helped to bail out Houston's pass happy offense.... and they're not even a running team. Our ground game hasn't bailed us out, and we're supposed to be a smash mouth offense.


    R&R might nave good hands, but that doesn't mean they're a threat out of the backfield. They've both lost a step and can't eat up space in a hurry. They lack the explosiveness to take it to the house at any given moment. They're possession backs. Cobbs lacks legit explosiveness as well. He' also more of a possession guy.... and he's dropped a crucial wheel route that was right in his bread basket.

    His philosophy is in part responsible for allowing defenses to play us 20 yards at a time..... and the 3rd and long play action doesn't help matters.

    We're basically playing every possession as if we're inside the 10 yard line.

    I blame this regime for not keeping Ginn until we found his replacement.

    I agree that he does need to play better, but we're not exactly making it easy on him. Other teams get their franchise QB and then prioritize getting him weapons to succeed. We didn't do that. We did bring in Marshall, but at the same time we let go his vertical threat in Ginn and a reliable vet in Cam. We've had plenty of opportunity to give him weapons w/o using high picks, but we haven't done so.

    Allow Henne to just start chucking it from time to time...... get him a vertical threat to utilize his cannon arm..... and get a seam busting TE who can be his best friend over the middle who helps take coverage away from Marshall and Bess....... and get him a back who can actually gain chunk yardage out of the backfield b/c our guys lack the wheels for it.

    All my opinion of course. :knucks:
     
  8. smahtaz

    smahtaz Pimpin Ain't Easy

    For a guy who can who can sling it deep, Henne only has 6 pass attempts of 31 yards or more through 8 games. On the other hand, V. Young has 21 of those attempts with 1 more completion.



    I certainly don't get it at all..
     
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  9. Clipse

    Clipse mediocrity sucks

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    The running game has been moving. Ricky averaged 5.0 YPC weeks 3-8. Ronnie averaged 3.5 YPC in that same span. Guess who got the bulk of the carries though? Ronnie with 66 carries vs. Ricky's 48 carries. Weeks 1 and 2 Ronnie was the hot back with a 5.6 YPC while Ricky averaged 3.3 YPC. Guess who got most of the carries? Ricky with 28 vs. Ronnie's 26. Then of course Ronnie had 6 carries for 45 yards on the first series of the Ravens game. How many carries the rest of the way? 3 for 19 yards.

    So to say the running game isn't going would be inaccurate. What is accurate is we have an incompetent OC who would rather split the carries, than feed the hot hand. Typical of an idiot.
     
  10. ToddsPhins

    ToddsPhins Banned

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    Vince also has a legit vertical threat who has speed, size, and can go up and get a pass.
     
  11. Big Red

    Big Red Long Lasting Freshness

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    Wow. I didn't know that. Now I am really depressed. :sad:

    That is the play-call I second-guessed as well. And not just 3rd down. We passed on 1st down, 2nd down, and 3rd down.

    And check out the series prior to the missed field goal:

    1st and 10 - Short pass to Ronnie goes for 14 yards
    1st and 10 - Ronnie rushes for 9 yards
    2nd and 1 - Ronnie rushes for 3 yards
    1st and 10 - Pass to Fasano goes for 9 yards
    2nd and 1 - Five yard penalty
    2nd and 6 - Henne scrambles up the middle for 3 yards
    3rd and 3 - Incomplete pass to Ronnie

    I know the penalty hurt that drive. But what is our offensive philosophy? I said it before and I'll say it again. We should run until they stop us, and then pass. Why is Henne dropping back to pass on 2nd and 6 when Ronnie and Ricky average 4 yards per carry?
     
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  12. Big Red

    Big Red Long Lasting Freshness

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    I agree but I wouldn't say we cannot rely on Henne. It comes down to our philosophy. Do we run to set up the pass or do we pass to set up the run? When you have two backs like Ronnie and Ricky you run to the set up the pass. Then when they stack the box you unleash Marshall.

    That would be my philosophy anyway.
     
  13. Big Red

    Big Red Long Lasting Freshness

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    Ah, stats. So misleading. First off he is not 14th in TDs. He is in a 14-way tie for 6th. Hardly bottom tier.

    He is not 14th in 20+ receptions. He is in a 4-way tie for 7th.

    John Carlson, Brent Celek, Chris Cooley, Owen Daniels, Jermichael Finley, and Tony Gonzalez don't have a reception for 40+ yards either.

    Jason Witten is 2nd in the NFL among tight ends with 506 yards off 45 receptions for an 11.2 average. Fasano has less yardage (260) and less receptions (20) but his average is higher (13 YPC). Maybe if we threw to him more he would have more yardage and obviously more receptions.

    I am not trying to convince you Fasano is the greatest thing since sliced bread but bottom tier? C'mon...

    You make a convincing argument but Marshall stretched the field in Denver. That's a fact. And there is no reason why he cannot do likewise in Miami.

    I agree. As a #2, Hartline has been mediocre this season. I've got him at 15th...

    Steve Smith (NYG)
    Jabar Gaffney
    Jeremy Maclin
    Austin Collie
    Chad Ochocinco
    Davone Bess
    Lance Moore
    Dez Bryant
    Eddie Royal
    Patrick Crayton
    James Jones
    Roscoe Parrish
    Derrick Mason
    Mike Thomas
    Brian Hartline

    But that's AFTER Davone Bess who ranks 6th among #2 receivers. So if you consider Bess our #2 and Hartline our #3 that changes the picture considerably.

    As a #3 receiver, Hartline ranks 3rd...

    Mario Manningham
    Lee Evans
    Brian Hartline

    Names please?

    And are these West Coast or spread offenses you're talking about?

    Hey I am not defending our ground game. I was expecting a lot more out of Ronnie and Ricky. But I wouldn't call them inconsistent.

    Ronnie Brown lacks explosiveness? That's news to me.

    I am sure Ricky has lost a step but he a bruiser and extremely effective catching the ball out of the backfield. In fact, Ricky could line up in the slot and catch touchdowns in the redzone if we wanted him to.

    Yes but is Henning responsible for our offensive philosophy or is Sparano? If Sparano said run the ball first and pass second then Henning would run the ball first and pass second.

    Except when we're not. :lol:

    How do you explain 21 completions for 20+ yards for Henne? Where we are really lacking is the completions for 40+ yards.

    I am not really disagreeing with you. I just think playing "EVERY possession" as if we're inside the 10 yard line is a bit of an exaggeration.

    I agree. :up:

    We desperately need a wideout who runs for the sidelines as soon as he catches the ball. :wink2:

    Just kidding. We should definitely target a burner who stretches the field if Hartline comes up short in that department.

    Very true about the wasted high picks but letting go of Ginn hurt our return game much more than our passing attack. Would defenses really fear him more Hartline?

    Ginn had 38 receptions for 454 yards (11.9 average) and 1 TD last year.

    Halfway through the season Hartline already has 29 receptions for 372 yards (12.8 average) and 1 TD.

    And to be fair we haven't really missed Camarillo. Plus Benny Sapp has made a fair share of plays.

    Agreed on the vertical threat. That's why I was surprised we passed on Randy Moss. However I am not upset. Just surprised.

    But Fasano is a very good seam busting tight end. Maybe not elite. But very good. (I agree that he has dropped too many passes this season.)

    And a back who can gain chunk yardage out of backfield? Are you serious?! Ronnie Brown is a beast receiving out of the backfield. Just look at yesterday's game:

    1. Short pass to Ronnie in the 2nd quarter went for 14 yards. That's a chunk my friend.

    2. Another short pass to Ronnie went for only a yard but that was in the redzone. Shorter field.

    3. Short pass to Ronnie in the 3rd quarter went for 14 yards. Another chunk.

    4. Short pass to Ronnie in the 4th quarter went for 10 yards.

    We don't do that enough.
     
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  14. ToddsPhins

    ToddsPhins Banned

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    I'm not saying he's complete dog trash.... but IMO he's not a premium #1 TE. He's a great #2 however, and that's where he should be IMO again. I only wish Fasano were as talented as Finley, Gonzalez, Daniels, Witten, Gates, Miller, Miller, Davis, Keller, Clark, Heap, Pettigrew, Olsen, Shockey, Cooley, Hernandez, Shiancoe, Gronkowski, Jimmie Graham, Tammie. You're leaving out the teams who have young TEs still developing who don't show up in the stats columns but would be improvements over Fasano. Some teams like Balt have multiples of them despite having Heap. Some teams have better #2's than Fasano but don't see the field enough to build their stats b/c the #1s ahead of them get the bulk of the catches.
    Marshall had a lot of pass catchers to help him out that defenses had to defend: Gaffney, Royal, Scheffler, Stokley, Lloyd, Graham, Moreno,
    Buckhalter.
    -They had 8 people catch 200 yards or more. We have 5 people on pace to catch 200+ yards.
    -Denver had a #4 receiver who caught over 300 yards and 4 TDs. We have an inexperienced, raw #4 who's on pace for 4 catches, 36 yards and 0 TDs. - their #5 receiver was Brandon Lloyd who is currently leading the league in receiving yards...... Our #5 is a FA rookie who is on our practice squad. :lol:
    -They also had some speed. We don't.
    -They had a seam busting TE and a quality #2 TE that combined for 700 yards. We only have 1 TE with a reception on pace for 520 yards and average wheels.

    It's a lot more difficult for Marshall to be effective here when defenses can afford to key in on him IMO.


    Bess is a our slot receiver so Hart cant truly be a 3rd. But it doesn't matter what we call him b/c he doesn't capitalize on the single coverage that Marshall and Bess provide him..... and he doesn't draw coverage away from Marshall and Bess so that those 2 can make more plays. Either way you slice it, he's a weak link in the offense in his current role as a starter on the outside.

    I'd put him much lower than 15th no offense. But that's just my opinion.
    Ahead of him besides who you mentioned, I'd add:
    Mike Wallace
    Santonio Holmes
    Housh
    Mike Jenkins
    Malcolm Floyd
    Roy Williams
    Ajirotutu
    Pierre Garcon
    Nate Burlesone
    Louis Murphy
    Jacoby Ford
    Nate Washington
    Robert Meachem
    Donald Driver
    Brandon Tate
    Demaryius Thomas
    Golden Tate
    Massaquoi
    Antonio Bryant
    Anthony Armstrong is a vertical threat that I'd like to have back who is beginning to edge out Hartline.





    They are not explosive. Chris Johnson is explosive. Darren McFadden is too. Effective catching the ball is not the same thing as explosive. Sure they can make some nice gains here and there, but they're not going to run by a defense.



    Y
    The 10 yard line to the back of the endzone is 20 yards of field, which is what we're basically operating under at all times, hence the problems you mentioned with the 40+yard plays.




    I think you might be misunderstanding "chunk yardage". The plays you referenced are nice gains, but they're not really chunk yards. Chunk yards would be Chris Johnson, McFadden, Jhavid Best, or LeSean McCoy turning those 14 yard gains into 40+ yard gains. Ronnie can not eat up open space and pick up 20 yards in a flash. Those other guys can.... and that's one weapon we're missing.
     
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  15. rafael

    rafael Well-Known Member

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    IMO we have some talent on offense but we lack play makers, particularly complimentary play makers. The play makers on offense have been Marshall and Bess. Brown could be a play maker but he isn't used enough. He played a ton of snaps against the Ravens but he was mostly pass blocking. Marshall and Bess work the short and intermediate routes. They need a complimentary play maker to make the defense have to cover more of the field. That could have been the running game, but the running game hasn't been effective. I do have hope that our interior line will continue to improve and gel and that maybe then the team will stick with the run more consistently. The other potential complements would be a TE that attacks the seam or a WR that keeps the Ss back. We don't have a TE that threatens the seam. They keep focusing on blocking types which is a mistake. Hartline has shown flashes, but isn't doing enough to ever draw more than single coverage. This could be a sophomore slump or it could be that Henne doesn't target him deep. And that could be on Henne or the coaches for over-emphasizing the safe play. I think that when you focus too much on never making a mistake you end up with more mistakes and very little chance to overcome those mistakes.

    The next part of the problem has been the play calling. Henning has seemed to abandon what is working to stick with some predetermined game plan. Sometimes you have to just ride your horses. He also has a tendency to go for the risky play just after crossing mid-field that has ended far to many drives. A few have worked, like that reverse with Hartline against Cincy, but too often it was a predictable failure. I also think that there is too much predictability in our offense. Early on especially, we seemed to always run Brown inside and Williams outside. The defenses could easily key on an area by looking at the personnel. I also think that Williams no longer has the speed turn the corner as often. He can still hit the hole fast on an interior run, but we don't have any back with the speed to turn the corner.
     
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  16. maynard

    maynard Who, whom?

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    i think we surprised the ravens in the opening drive with how quick-hitting our runs were. too often the runs are slow developing

    either way, its still henne. he is not challenging defenses. i dont think our scheme fits him and i dont think that the scheme makes it easy on him. a few times the ravens blitzed and we dont have a single WR in a vacant spot looking at henne. they are all still running down the field as he is getting harassed

    as a fan, if i am going to see 3 picks, i would rather they be him attempting to do something big

    he needs to take chances on smaller windows
     
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  17. DolfanJake

    DolfanJake Banned

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    wow, you are looking forward to a owners lockout ? :tongue2:

    Seriously though next year may not come until 2012 acutally.
     
  18. PhinsPhan23

    PhinsPhan23 New Member

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    Well said. I think each and every one of your 11 are spot on.

    #10 jumps out at me b/c when you look at our defense, it has actually been pretty darn good. Very good inside the 30 and the secondary has improved on the long ball (they gave up a couple - Mike Wallace - but they have still improved from last year's abomination).

    This team just does not know how to captilize on turnover opportunities. Would love to see some ball hawking drills being done. On defense though, that is really the only MAJOR hole I see. Everything else rests on the offense.

    1. We need to protect the ball better and just play better football on offense. It's really a joke watching. Henne makes some good throws over the middle or on out patterns and then throws and easy pick right in the middle of triple coverage.

    2. We need to take more shots down the field. Nothing wrong with Pass Interference. I understand it's hard to throw down the field when the defense is in the Cover 2 shell, but if every defense is playing that way, we should be running the same curl routes on every single play. If a defense continues to run Cover 2, those routes will be open all day. Until we move the ball with that efficiency, teams will continue to drop 2 safeties back. Or we could start developing a run game consistently and actually call run plays more often when it's working. That will also pull a safety up.

    3. We talk alot about the amount of FG's we have been getting and I think that is primarily due to the Cover 2. Once you get down inside the red zone, it becomes very difficult to throw the ball with fewer yards of field. Which is another reason why being able to run the ball down there would be helpful.

    I'm very disappointed with how this team has played so far this year. No game could you say we dominated a given team outside of maybe Jets game when our passing game was unstoppable. In the end, we are a second half team, so hopefully they start showing up and beating the teams we should beat. I will say that unfortunately I don't think that starts this week. I now have Tennessee as the team to represent the AFC in the Bowl this year. Moss will help Chris Johnson in so many ways, the guy could end up running for 250 yards every game from here on out and once a team stacks the box again, Moss will hit them for a 65 yard TD and make it look so easy.
     
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  19. Big Red

    Big Red Long Lasting Freshness

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    Okay. I was just responding to your "bottom tier" comment.

    Good points! :up:

    I just want to mention of few things:

    Bess's numbers last year compare favorably to Gaffney's numbers. Hartline had better numbers than Royal last year.

    We don't have a guy who compares to Stokley but the reason the Broncos have such a productive #4 receiver is because they run a spread offense.

    Lloyd was a nonfactor last year when they had Brandon Marshall. I am not really sure why you are mentioning him.

    Catching passes out of the backfield, Ricky Williams was every bit as effective as Moreno and Buckhalter last season. Ronnie was injured so it's impossible to compare but in 2008 he was also just as effective. All four running backs have comparable numbers.

    Scheffler had 8 games where he only caught one pass. Also he caught a pass for 20+ yards in five games. Fasano has already caught a pass for 20+ yards in four games and we're only halfway through the season.

    Daniel Graham had 6 games where he only caught one pass. He averaged 18 yards per game.

    Denver did not have seam busting tight end last year.

    Hartline and Ronnie Brown are probably our fastest guys on offense so you are right. We could use some more speed.

    Okay. I get it. You are not a fan of Hartline. Sheesh! :lol:

    Yeah, I don't know how I missed Mike Wallace. Santonio Holmes is better too. He doesn't have the numbers because of his suspension so that's why I missed him.

    But Hartline has more yardage than Housh, Mike Jenkins, Roy Williams, Pierre Garcon, Nate Burleson, Louis Murphy, Nate Washington, Robert Meachem, Brandon Tate, Golden Tate, and Anthony Armstrong. You might be in a little bit of denial about Hartline's production.

    Malcolm Floyd is a #1 this year. Massaquoi is Cleveland's #1. Demaryius Thomas is a future #1.

    Ajirotutu and Jacoby Ford have had one good game! C'mon...

    Antonio Bryant?!!! Now you're just hatin' :lol:

    Donald Driver is an interesting name to bring up in this conversion. His production is down this year. Hartline actually has more yardage than him too. But Driver is standard to which Hartline should aspire.

    Agree to disagree. :up: You will never convince me Ronnie Brown isn't explosive.

    I agree. Overall our offense is way too conservative. But "EVERY" down. C'mon...

    You're right. Generally you're talking about 20+ yards when you're talking about chunk yardage.

    You believe Ronnie isn't capable of picking up chunk yardage after catching a screen pass. I whole-heartedly disagree. I don't think either of us would be disappointed if he proved you wrong. :up:
     
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  20. Big Red

    Big Red Long Lasting Freshness

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    This bears repeating:

    Scheffler had 8 games where he only caught one pass. Also he caught a pass for 20+ yards in five games. Fasano has already caught a pass for 20+ yards in four games and we're only halfway through the season.

    Daniel Graham had 6 games where he only caught one pass. He averaged 18 yards per game.

    Denver did not have seam busting tight end last year.
     
  21. Big Red

    Big Red Long Lasting Freshness

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    Question: Should the Dolphins make the switch to a spread offense? Would that suit our personnel better?
     
  22. Stringer Bell

    Stringer Bell Post Hard, Post Often Club Member

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    We don't have the OL, or a QB thats accurate enough for the spread IMO. You're essentially making the windows for the QB to throw into smaller.
     
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  23. cdz12250

    cdz12250 Season Ticket Holder Club Member

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    I agree 100% with execution. These people are dropping balls. They are missing tackles. They are dropping pick-sixes. They are missing blocks. They are not hitting holes at the right time. They are blowing coverages. No one can possibly win making those kinds of mistakes as often as they make them.

    These are professional athletes. They should not be having problems with executing the fundamentals. Whose fault is that? No idea. But the coaching staff is supposed to go back to the fundamentals when the team poops on the bed the way this team has been doing. I would rather have them work on fundamentals to the detriment of the game plan if that's what's needed. I am ready to flush this season down the crapper and forget about winning games if we can stop the problems in execution. I'll bet that we would win some at the end and a lot more next season if we do.

    The inability to score touchdowns once they get into the red zone is lack of execution and physical play, pure and simple. These coaches are convinced that these players can't get two yards on the ground when they need them, so they chicken out and bring on the field goal unit. This kind of lack of coaching coxones is inexcusable on any football team at any level of play. You have to have your people do things the right way and have the huevos to let them try to execute them under game conditions, even if they fail at it in the beginning. Eventually they learn to execute correctly. That's exactly what Cam meant by "fail forward fast." We crucified him but I see what he was driving at.

    I think Henne is a talented quarterback. But he can't get open and he can't catch the ball for the receivers. He can't alley-oop it downfield if the coaches are chicken to let him do it.

    It's execution. It's the bobble and drop of the interception for a touchdown. The turnstile block. The unblocked rusher. The slip and fall. The bonehead penalty. The blown route. These things keep killing the drives or allowing scores, and make the coaches more and more scared to try anything other than the small-box, dink and dunk Wannyball game. I'd be happy to hear everyone's ideas on how one fixes bad execution.
     
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  24. DevilFin13

    DevilFin13 Season Ticket Holder Club Member

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    Despite our lack of big plays in the passing game we are slightly above average in passing yards and net yards per attempt. Henne is in the top 10 in completion %. So even though we don't get much chunk yardage we also don't get many 0 yardage plays. Henne is also in the top 10 in sack %, so we don't get many negative plays.

    So the passing game isn't that bad. If we could get a few big plays here and there while cutting down on the INTs a bit it could actually be very good.

    The running game has not been as good though. We're right at average in total yards but we're 21st in yards per attempt. So were aren't being efficient when we run the ball, which we do more than average since we are 13th in rushing attempts. It seems to me that we also lack big plays out of the running game. The longest run I can recall is Ronnie's 50 yarder from the goalline.

    This all adds up to not getting the ball in the endzone. Not getting big plays is not the only reason we aren't scoring more. But it isn't helping. And as long as you are only getting 3.9 yards per rush and not much yardage after short completions its just going to be really difficult to score TDs consistently.

    Add turnovers to the fact that its hard to score TDs consistently with the way we play and it makes it even harder to score enough points to win.

    We also heard Ed Reed say why its easy to defend us. They know we don't get big plays. So that makes it easier on them trying to defend what we do. Its the Randy Moss effect you saw in NE. With him gone, you can shrink your defense and make less room for Welker and others to work with.

    The Pats are 20th in total yardage this year. Welker is averaging 8.1 yards per reception this season. I'm not totally sure why the Pats are scoring so many points considering they gain less yardage than we do. Part of that is special teams, which we heavily contributed to. Part of it is Brady not throwing INTs and being better at finding the endzone than Henne. I think part of it is just luck. But without Moss and an inability to gain more yards consistently, they will begin to look more like our offense than the offense they've had for a few years.
     
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  25. adamprez2003

    adamprez2003 Senior Member

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    theoritcally an interesting question. realistically a non starter. we are the bill parcells blueprint of a team. what that means is we draft bigger, stronger players that are suited for a 60 minute war and we will play play action ball control offense and stifling defense. thats our destiny. we are 80% of the way their personnell wise. Our success or failure rides on Henne developing into a top 10 QB. Nothing else.

    Having said that I would like to see us exxperiment a bit more with four wide sets. Sadly we lack the burner to really make it work but maybe next year we can add a receiver who runs a 4.3. Even a 4.4 would be an improvement
     
  26. padre31

    padre31 Premium Member Luxury Box

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    Why not flip the question?

    What is right with our offense?

    And work from there?

    To me, Ronnie B is picking it up along with Brian Hartline, the Oline has gelled, at least imo, and Lou Polite appears to be back on track, on Ronnie B's TD run his seal block was very effective.
     
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  27. adamprez2003

    adamprez2003 Senior Member

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    i think the oline is jelling but hasnt jelled completely. in a sense, that to me is the key to the season. it does seem as if our running game is starting to show signs of life. if we can get to even 80% of last year, I think we have a chance at going 6-2 over the next 8
     
  28. ToddsPhins

    ToddsPhins Banned

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    Thanks.

    Agree on all points...... and welcome to the forum PP23. Insightful posters are always welcomed here. Hope you stick around. :knucks:

    I think the bottom line to our woes (outside of coaching etc) is that our extreme youth and inexperience as a whole is catching up to us. On the bright side, when we flash, we look like we can beat anyone, so that keeps me going.
     
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  29. padre31

    padre31 Premium Member Luxury Box

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    Henne had plenty of time to throw v the Ravens and Steelers, to me that was a great sign.

    Also Hartline re-appearing is good news, man on man coverage he has shown he can generate YAC and RAC, and Ronnie B has stopped stutter stepping when there is nothing there.

    Next step, Fasano hanging onto passes and pushing into that 15-25 yd area from the line of scrimmage..hopefully that happens vs the titans.
     
  30. adamprez2003

    adamprez2003 Senior Member

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    whoa whoa whoa. now thats just crazy talk :lol:
     
  31. adamprez2003

    adamprez2003 Senior Member

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    the pass blocking has been stellar for about six games, the run blocking just the last two. i expect good pass blocking with this unit but i'm hoping we start being able to run. then we will make a huge leap in the red zone IMO. So long as we cant run, we will kick field goals
     
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  32. padre31

    padre31 Premium Member Luxury Box

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    Ugh, this gets me into trouble when I say stuff like this "but":

    I think the blocking scheme has changed, to me they are doing more short pulls and quick hitter types of plays than the fmr head on head blast them out of the hole blocking scheme they used last season.

    I think it is due to Richie Incognito not being quick enough to get waaay outside or downfield like Smiley could, but in a short area he is quite effective.
     
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  33. adamprez2003

    adamprez2003 Senior Member

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    well that first series they were running to john jerry's side alot and he was just blasting people out of the hole. then he started missing some blocks after that first series. Conditioning problems after the sickness? it got to the point where they replaced him with mcquistan. but if you watch that first series, the potential of jerry in the run game is staggering, just staggering
     
  34. ToddsPhins

    ToddsPhins Banned

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    This goes back to not being able to audible etc.

    Here's a re-enactment of what Henne's thinking at the line surveying Baltimore's defense:

    -"Heavy blitz from the weak side"

    -"Man, this is gonna f#@%in hurt!"

    -"Looky there, Hartline has single coverage with a 10 yard cushion. An audibled quick slant would be nice right now..... too bad he's running a 15 yard out."
    --------------------------------
    Chad: <Sigh> "Sorry, Ricky!"

    Ricky: "Sorry for what?"

    Chad: "KILL KILL KILL!!"

    Ricky: :tantrum:

    Ricky: "Uhhhh can I at least run to the strong side?"

    Chad: "You know the punishment for disobeying orders-- No weed for a month".

    Ricky: "SHEEIT!!"

    Chad: "Good luck Ricky.... better you than me buddy!"

    Ricky: "F#@K U Henning!!

    Referee: "Delay of game, Miami" :lol:
     
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  35. miamidolphins

    miamidolphins Ravens Fan

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    Lmao
     
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  36. adamprez2003

    adamprez2003 Senior Member

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    dan henning : you had single coverage on marshall and you changed the play to a run up the middle for ricky?!!!!! jeezus christ but this kid is killing me. note to food staff. put henne on a diet of nothing but colorado oysters all week. maybe he'll grow a pair :shifty:
     
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  37. Killerphins

    Killerphins The Finger

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    It's a great point but I doubt it is personnel driven really. I see Henning trying to transition to a pass first, pass again offense but has trouble making it happen. Something has changed there is no doubt about it. We used to be run first. The WC is gone now. I'm happy about that but the balance isn't there. They are trying to compensate. Henne threw the ball 30 + times again on Sunday and we ran the ball 11 time with the running backs.
    That is a new agenda.
     
  38. adamprez2003

    adamprez2003 Senior Member

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    its an interesting question. i think its personnell driven ie the interior off line but i would love to hear the explanation for it from the horse's mouth himself
     
  39. padre31

    padre31 Premium Member Luxury Box

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    Good luck with that, Henning has went all crazy old dude on the local media and just filibusters questions with rambling responses..

    As for the offense, what ever happened to Lex Hilliard?
     
  40. ToddsPhins

    ToddsPhins Banned

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    :dunno:
     

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