I think so.

I think alot of fans think the Dolphins should win more than 10 games but I just don't see it happening.

Barring injuries to the teams we play we will be lucky to get 9 wins this year.

I don't think we can repeat as AFCE Champs. Now I would love to see Miami do awesome this year but I don't want to drink the Kool-Aid.

 

Nope, not at all.

Anything can happen in the NFL. Thinking it is impossible for Miami to win the superbowl next year is silly.

 

I think most teams have a high percentage of fans that are delusional or just don't like to look at anything but the bright side or silver lining....we're no different in that.

Personally I only turn homer when arguing with the opposition but just don't feel the need to break out the pom poms when talkin Fins football with fellow fans. It's like when you're talkin with family. Why sugar coat it?


JS

 

I think we are a better team and have more talent this year compared to last year, but if you look at our schedule it is really tough....so I don't think we will do better then 11-5.....I think 8-8 or 9-7 is more realistic, but the Phins seem to play the tough teams well and then often lose to below average teams. I am always optomistic.

 

I just hate that we lose to teams like the Houston Texans.....they always seem to beat us in the 4th quarter :tantrum:.....I really want to beat them bad. We also should be able to beat the Bills and Jets in their place and ours.....we have a much better team and QB.....but we know how we sometimes play down to our level of competition. Every magazine I have read has the Pats winning the AFC East by about 3 or 4 games. It's up the Phins to prove all the expert's wrong. :up:

 

well If you look at the roster we have gained quite a bit on last years squad...being somewhat optomistic in a paper comparison.


Qb = same or slightly better with both chads having another year in the system and P white having some use VS beck who had none.

RB = Better Roniie a year removed from ACL surgery and the rest the same as lat year.

WR = Better we have Cammy back and Bess and ginn both look improved and the #4 guy from last year looks like he might get cut (london)

OL = Better we get the Legend back and an new more physical center.

DBs = same with more upside we lost Goody who came on strong at the end of the year but Smith and Davis might just be worth more this year when all is said and done.

LBs = Better we got JT back and Wake looks like he can at least be a package guy and Channing and Ayodele looks biiger and stronger and have another year together.

DL = Same a lot Depends on how Merling/Starks fill in for Vonnie...we will certainly miss Vonnies leadership but we look stronger all over with Soliai showing some signs of life.

Coaching = Better another year of the coaching staff getting to work together will be great new for fans...hard to believe how well they did last year in their first year learning and growing together.

 

The '72 Dolphins went undefeated and won the SB.

The '73 Dolphins did NOT go undefeated, although they did still win the SB.

Of the two, the '73 team is considered to be the better of the two.

Regular-season wins aren't everything, except in meeting the requirement to advance into the postseason.

Don't believe me? Just ask the '07 Patriots.

What does that mean for us, this season?

I liken the 2009 Dolphins to the 1971 team; good - good enough to advance deep into the playoffs - but still too young to win it all.

I do like what the Parcells team has built. :up:

 

Schedule is only tough on paper due to predictions of last years achievements.

It's not who you play but when you play them.

Yes we can repeat as AFCE champions so long as the chips fall our way.

 

Hope springs eternal for me. I look at last year and say we were 2 fourth down stops away from 13-3 and a first round bye. An extra week of rest and healthier WRs, and who’s to say we don’t beat the Ravens? Tougher schedule this year? I guess, but there isn’t anyway to really know that until after the games have been played. Too many teams are one player away. An injury or a break out season, and a team goes from super stars to super duds, or vice versa. It’s a cliché, but there is a reason why they play the games.

 

i think we'll be better as a team but it will be interesting to see if that reflects in the won/loss record considering who we played last year and the return of Brady

So to answer the question. No we're not delusional.....who said that, pipe down over there, are you talking to me?!!!!

 

To me it all comes down to the schedule, and this year our's is murderous. It's going to be very difficult to win 10 games this year IMO.
Posted via Mobile Device

 

Maybe I am delusional, but I am not convinced that we are going to do worse this year solely because we have what is considered a tough schedule. God only knows if the teams that were good last year will be good this year.
We could suck on ice and win 6 games, the way the ESPN guys predict, or we could win 12 and go deep into the playoffs. I accept the possibility of the former, but I also believe in the possibility of the latter.

 

I'd say a majority of every teams fan base is delusional.

And looking at the schedule I'd say 11-5 is very possible.

 

I think we are not delusional for the following reasons -

We have improved on both sides of the ball.

We have no idea how hard our schedule actually is until the season plays itself out. Every year some teams take a step back and some teams take a step forward. Guessing at schedule difficulty before the season is underway is a fools game.

I choose to remain optimistic until proven otherwise. I cannot stand fans that insist "we are not a playoff team" and hope to be proven right while wallowing in misery. There were a few of those around these parts last year when things started looking rough. I can only hope they are proven wrong again this year.

 

See, I'm just the eternal optimist... I say, "HELLYEAH we can win 11!" Luck with injuries, lucky bounce of the ball and consistent play will get the Dolphins there.

 

I believe we are very much improved but I still think we will be hard pressed to see our wins over 9. IMHO 8 -8 is probably where we will end at. Our soft schedule last year helped our record be indicative of a better team then we actually were, along with the uncommon amount of no injuries and the record low turn overs. I believe last year's record was a combination of a bunch of different factors falling in place. Can we do it again this year? sure, but to expect it with the brutal schedule, and the over all youth of this team is a little unrealistic. There are still a ton of question marks on the defensive side of the ball, and from what I have read and seen in the one pre-season game our O-line is still having trouble opening holes for a conventional running attack, but I do expect to see improvement as the year goes on.

 

Preseason is a time to dream for all fans. Heck my neighbor Jet fans all think the Jets are winning the division.

 

I really find it interesting how people put so much faith in the record of a team last year that we are going to play this year, and put so little faith into OUR record last year.

People are like well we went 11-5 last year, but we have a really tough schedule this year against teams that had a worse or around the same record as us.

I know some call it Kool-aid, but for me I can say I seen this team improve so much last year, just the whole mentality changed. I can say I have seen the talent improve this year. I may be as homer as they come, but you can't say that we are going to be a worse team this year. I dont care what our record is, I care about the quality of football that is played. If we play as the better team we are this year, we will be there in the end with a record to get us into the playoffs.

 

Strength of schedule is far and away the stupidest thing in football. When has it ever predicted anything? The only time its even remotely relevant is after the season is over and the real "strength" can be determined. Anyone basing our record on strength of schedule (as it stands right now) is well...quite frankly, doing it wrong.

 

I'm delusional enough to think we wion 10 games.

 

There's two reasons I see the general media being skeptical about the Fins...

1) Penny has an on-again, off-again affair with IR and injuries. May or may not come true...perhaps he disproves that issue, but until he actually does it and given what he's done in the past.... Beyond the shadow of a doubt the biggest change in this team was Penny falling into our laps. But still, there is that chance that he won't stay healthy, right ??

2) We won a lot of games by the skin of our teeth last year. Fins pro-pundits point at that and say we were resilient and Sparano is a master motivator and Bill Parcells did this and whatever, but the fact is we squeaked by some fairly mediocre teams last season. We also had the benefit of a Brady-less NE team, that despite not having their superstar, nearly beat us out, were it not for one game, the first game that the WC was unveiled, catching them off guard. Some even say that had it not been for Brat Favre's injured shoulder things would have been different. We were ridiculously injury free last year....can lightning strike the same place this year ?? The fact is we certainly had some things go our way in the 'luck' department, but we also turned a big corner with the talent level here and the coaching ability from the previous few years... Finally some draft picks actually contributed. Can that happen again this year ?? This year, however, the pundits point at our strength of schedule and our weaknesses from last year and say..."It ain't gonna happen again for you guys !!"

I don't have any real answers, as do neither of us nor the media have. It's all conjecture until the games begin for real. It is however, a great thread to start...

 

Actually, if you've followed the game a long time, the idea of SOS has merit. However, in this day and age of FA and changes it is less of an issue than in the past. During the Shula years here, we could be counted on to field a good team year in and year out as there was a lot less movement of talent. Guys who were drafted stayed here and developed where now, if they aren't regular producers, they tend to be moved out for younger guys and 'better' FAs...But you're point is well taken. Who'd have predicted in July 2008 that Miami, Arizona, Baltimore and Atlanta were going to be as good as they turned out to be in January 2009 ??

 

padre, you gave me another head ache. LOL
I am optimistic, always, about the team.
I try to think of one game at a time without predictions etc.
Maybe our schedule is hard, but every team can lose for any number of reasons. Injuries, communication etc. (a dumb coach)
I will just continue to believe, if our guys do the best they can, we can do anything! This team has really jelled and fight together as a team, so I do have high hopes for a good winning season.
We have a good, solid coach, good players with great attitudes, so, why can't we push our way to the top?

I keep asking, "WHY NOT US?" and IMO it's a legitimate question.

 

I am very optimistic about what the Dolphins will do this year. I have not forgotten about what shape the Dolphins were in prior to Parcells arrival. This team was a shambles and Parcells had to virtually rebuild it from the ground up. We had a terrible roster and thanks to inept drafting the cupboards were bare.
I am however aware that we are only in the second year of this rebuild and I wont be overly critical no matter how many games the Dolphins win. I am confident they will win more than they lose and they will be competitive in every game. We may not be 11-5 this year but I think we will win 9 or 10 games and that is good considering we have the toughest schedule in the NFL according to a lot of people. We will be a good team and other teams wont look at the Dolphins as an easy game. Go Dolphins

 

and an improved offensive line which should facilitate a much better game all the way round

 

great expectations can lead to miserable disappointments
however, I think we are poised to launch an excellent season that could even exceed last years results
having said that
I understand that we are in year two of the rebuilding of the franchise & many unforeseen things can happen in the NFL
what I am sure of is that we will contend in 2010 & this will be a competitive year

 

I'm not delusional.......I still hate the JEST:yes:

 

Well I believe we are good enough to win it all this season. Whether that happens or not remains to be seen but there is no way I am going in to week one expecting only 7 or 8 wins this season. I am pumped for the season to get started and will not be dragged down by talk of a 7-9 record. THIS IS OUR SEASON!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

One game at a time.

 

i'll be the unpopular one to predict a worse record this year over last.

while i agree we have a better team this year with more cohesion & time together, we also don't have the benefits we had last year of an easier schedule, team's not considering us as serious contenders (caught some "sleeping"), and of course the wildcat. I mean we barely beat New England out for the playoffs, and they didn't even have Tom Brady all season. This year we don't have any of those advantages.

now it will come down more to football and less about the environment & situation.

i hope we do well, but we have a very rough schedule.

 

The thing that gets me when people talk about our schedule from last year is they completely ignore the impact on the rest of the division.

"Well, the Dolphins played a 4th place schedule, this year they're playing a 1st place schedule"

This is very true, although what is never mentioned is that the Dolphins lost both games last year against their non-common opponents (Houston and Baltimore).

Thus, every team they beat (i.e. all 11 of their wins) was on the schedule of their AFC East rivals. So yes, in short, the Dolphins record could very well have been inflated by beating up on the likes of the AFC and NFC West, but you better believe that the Patriots, Jets and Bills' record was inflated as well.

 

If the OL gels and becomes a dominant unit, then I say 10-6 or better. For me, this is where the team's road will have the proverbial "Y".

1) Defensive backfield has gotten bigger/stronger;
2) we've added some pass rush with Wake and Taylor;
3) Ronnie is at 100%; we'll see some new twists to the WC;
4) one of those will be Pat White; and
5) our WR corps has gotten deeper and so will be more immune to an injury to a Camarillo type.

But, if the OL doesn't gel, then the house of cards described above will come crashing down and they'll be reduced to a .500 team with all things being equal. Why? It's the ultimate neutralizer. No OL play = doesn't matter if Brown's 100%; WC is much less effective; WR depth doesn't much matter because their won't be time to throw more than a 5-10 yd pattern; less running and shorter pass patterns equals less points, so opponents have to throw less to win so pass rush and DB play are less critical.

IMHO

 

What I think about is the teams that were favored last year and how they performed.
Did anyone expected the Falcons to achieve or the Saints.
The teams that the Fins play this year how tough was their schedule last year.
I've looked at the division schedule and I don't think the Bills Jets and Pats have it any easier, so the division is not out of the question.
There is no doubt the Fins are more stable and talented than last year and as far as injuries maybe CP is cursed but if you saw Brady get driven into the ground you might think anything can happen.
As far as I'm concerned you have to play the games otherwise last year the Fins would have been 4-12 like ESPN predicted.
I believe.

 

I think it is all of that and more. This team is more than capable of getting 11 wins or more and yes go and win the Superbowl. We will be in the top ten in offense and defense. This team is strong mentally, physically, and no doubt the commitment is there. If that makes me delusional as a Dolfan then I will gladly accept it with open arms!!

 

The monthe of November is going to be brutal 4 out of 5 games are away

 

Im absolutely delusional when it comes to the Phins....and Im not ashamed at all!!!

In my mind we are the best team in the NFL every single year!!!