http://espn.go.com/blog/nfcwest/post/_/id/17842/power-rankings-how-the-voters-voted-36 This is just laughable
Miami at 22 is a little low but I can't blame them. Our top three running backs are all coming back from injuries, defensively we're counting on a bunch of rookies and position changes, and the amount of progress Chad Henne might or might not make is unknown until we start playing the games. Right now, at the end of April, I can't argue with ESPN.
I liked this part: Took our receivers about a month to adjust as well, but very few people considered this to be a legitimate reason for the struggles Ginn and others were having.
While I love 22 , ranking Miami at 22 is more than a little low in my estimation. Saying that , I would rather get little to no respect and have that add even more unity and focus to this team . Michael Lombardi certainly has us rated much higher than that , and he is someone I definitely respect .
I really like Walterfootball. I can't stand ESPN, I literally can't watch it without getting a headache. NFLN all day!
Lombardi is a former GM. He likes us because he likes the roster moves we've made. The trouble is that a lot of the roster moves we've made mean that we're counting on immediate and notable production from rookies, and immediate adjustment to new positions by veterans. Randy Starks was a DE who rotated at NT due to injury; Tyrone Culver was a rotating backup; Koa Misi is a rookie; Cameron Wake has never played WOLB before; John Jerry is a rookie who has never played LG before; Richie Incognito is boom or bust. I don't blame Lombardi for liking our moves. I love almost all of our moves. But the changes we've made means it's appropriate for outside analysts to take a "show me" attitude about the team.
What Lombardi also mentions virtually everytime he talks about Miami , is how physical he views us. On NFL network they had baloons of NFL teams they thought would be in the playoffs , when Lombardi went to pop his first one ( to show elimination ) he stated I can't eliminate Miami ... I think he sees Henne , Marshall and Dansby as MAJOR improvements over last year. The drafted players can assume a less significant contribution to an overall improvemnt , imo .
Why do folks bother to post these things? According to espn, we've actually gotten worse this offseason.. I like Tim Graham, those rankings are merely a waste of bandwith.
"The only question is whether or not Marshall can make the adjustment from Kyle Orton's girly tosses to Henne's manly throws." HILARIOUS . I think 9 is too high for a team with only 4 starters returning on defense. Vontae, S Smith, Yeremiah and Langford are the only players returining to the position they played last year. I'd rank us around 13-15, but agree we have as good a chance to win the division as anyone. And most of all, I think Miami will be getting GREAT numbers from Vegas, especially early in the season.
I would rather start low and climb the rankings than to start high and slide down the rankings. Some of those teams in the top half are going to slide and Miami can climb the list as they prove themselves.
How the **** are the Denver Broncos ranked ahead of us? It's OK, though. I like being underdogs. ESPN sucks and has no credibility, anyways.
With the odd exception the ESPN list just follows the won-loss records from last year, so they could have just posted those. According to our 7-9 record the ranking of 22 is actually exactly where we should be so its understandable from that point of view. Its just mostly meaningless in terms of what might happen in the future and containing no actual insight of any kind, but then that is ESPN's corporate slogan. I don't even visit their website except for when links get posted here. The only info of any use they provide I can get from Schefter's twitter page.
