From our owner..The letter to his ticket holders..important to read..

Interesting. Could the media be THAT far off with what they reported? I mean ALL of them ?? I guess so.

I want to take him at his word but all I hear in my head when I read that is; blah, blah, blah, back-peddle, back-peddle, back-peddle, blah, blah, blah.

As bad as things were this week. Kudos to Ross and company for doing everything they can to reach out and make things right.

The weatherman is more accurate than 99% of what was reported this week. And that's without knowing if what Ross says is true.

The guy wants whats best for us...

I'll tell ya whats best for us mr. ''fan vision' Ross..

OB2..

He's still an idiot in my book. He needs to show me more before I jump on his bandwagon.

Yeah Ross you made no offer because you couldn't! You didn't fulfil the Rooney rule and Sparano was still under contract! You under estimate the intelligence and knowledge of your fans base Ross! If you had done your homework prepurchase you would know this fan group has been through this type of side show many times before when Huzienga and his morons bumbled their way through the offseason!

Your first instinct was correct Sparano must go! Unfortunately you let Ireland in your ear clouding everything Harbaugh a real football coach was telling you!

The closest you and the two clowns you retained will ever be to a Superbowl in Miami was last year when you hosted one! Not only did you absolutely embarrass the franchise and fans you set this team back another 5 years and when you grow a sack and fire the clowns no respectable coach will work for you!

I think he's just a naive owner really... I think he's learned a lot from his process. I think he's committed to bring a winner to Miami (well, another one) and it's hard to dispute that. I think if we hit free agency hard then it will tell a little bit more. We really need to fix that offense line. He'll have to prove himself over the coming weeks, but unlike others... I am not too upset about this past week.

Being involved with media myself, I know what goes on... 99% of what was said was fabricated bull****. Sports journalism today is more inaccurate the meteorology IMO. And that's saying something..

I think he is an idiot! One more thing not a chance Harbaugh ends the meeting with so Steve what do you think I should do?

I don't believe him.

"RGF wrote:

Interesting. Could the media be THAT far off with what they reported? I mean ALL of them ?? I guess so.

Absolutely positively...mis-information has been the root of the whole weeks' events, including Ross' mis-information...

Now i have true piece of mind. Im going out to get my season tickets right now..................................not!!!!

Good thing he didnt go with his first draft of that letter

LETTER FROM THE OWNER

To Our Loyal Season Ticket Members,

The first of the three commitments that I made to all of my accountants when I purchased the Miami Dolphins was that I would do everything possible to bring a respectable return on my over 1 billion dollar investment. That, above all else, is what I want for this franchise, for this community and what you, as a season ticket member, deserve and therefore I will soon be raising ticket prices and concession prices.

So there is no confusion about our recent actions, and because you are entitled to our trust and confidence, I want you to hear directly from me about the evaluation process of the past week. Basically, I'm a moron when it comes to football matters. This has been confirmed by all the coaches that I have spoken with over the past week. Every single one of them had the same opinion of me.

Going into the 2010 season, my expectation was that we had a team and an organization that was capable of reaching the Super Bowl. This tells you all you need to know about how much of a moron I am when it comes to football. We fell short of that goal and, furthermore, the season was disappointing for a few reasons. One was the empty seats and drop in concession revenue. We were very aggressive during the offseason and added B and C list celebrities that we thought would attract fans. Much to my surprise these has been celebrities dont interest football fans who seem only to care about the product on the field. While many of those new celebrities were outstanding contributors this season, we still fell short in other areas. Namely the product on the field. The reasons as to why the product matters to you over the celebrity atmosphere I am building here is hard to figure. As a fan of celebrities myself, I have no idea why the season was so frustrating to all of you.

Bottom line the revenue results were unacceptable. We hold ourselves to higher standards and have loftier goals for this franchise. We fell short of our mission of returning a 30% return on investment and did not measure up to the high standards we set for ourselves. As a result, I felt it was incumbent upon me to explore options to improve this team.

I met with Tony Sparano on Monday to discuss the season and understand his plan of what needed to change as we headed into the offseason. I told him that I needed time to digest what I had heard and that I would get back to him with my thoughts later in the week. Meanwhile, I received word that Jim Harbaugh made it clear that his intention was to pursue a career in the NFL. As news reports began to surface on Tuesday that Jim was interviewing with other teams, I made the decision to reach out to Jim to see whether or not he would be a beneficial fit for the organization. Basically I saw an opportunity to milk his new found celebrity to bring you into the stadium and spend your hard earned cash

General Manager Jeff Ireland and I met with Jim on Thursday. At the end of the meeting, I thanked Jim for his time, wished him well and soon let him know that we would pursue the discussion further. He laughed in my face and told me there wasn't a chance he would come unless we bucked up 8 million. To be clear, I made no offer to Jim Harbaugh. I simply couldnt afford his 8 million dollar demands and the contracts I was already paying. The associated outrageous financial terms that were rumored with those reports were completely accurate but as I said I'm on the hook for too much scratch and simply cant afford it. We never spoke to any other coaching candidates, including Bill Cowher, Jon Gruden or any other names that have been rumored to be a candidate. We had Carl Peterson do that.

Tony Sparano is the best person to lead this team since I cant get anyone else. Tony's contract has been extended through the 2013 season, and I wholeheartedly believe that the combination of Jeff and Tony represents one of the strongest organizations in all of football and if not I'll fire them all next year. I remain committed to getting as many tax breaks as I can from Miami Dade County.

I am obsessed with winning and that makes me a douchebag since I know nothing about football but will stick my nose in it just to prove to people I am the boss. Many of the model franchises over the course of NFL history have been built on a commitment from football family ownership and not hot shot businessmen. The Mara family, The Rooney family, etc... Compare them to the clowns like Daniel Snyder and its obvious thats where I belong

I realize your faith in us has been put to the test this week, but I assure you we are well positioned to continue jacking up the prices for the DOLPHINS games and we hope to turn a sizable profit in 2011.

Let me end by thanking you for hanging in there and supporting us throughout the year despite our struggles at home. For that, we are sincerely grateful. You have my personal and unwavering commitment that we will do our part to create a true home field advantage with your help in the future. Rest assured, there are better days ahead for the Miami Dolphins.

With sincere thanks and appreciation, Steven Ross.

"flynryan151 wrote:

Yeah Ross you made no offer because you couldn't! You didn't fulfil the Rooney rule and Sparano was still under contract! You under estimate the intelligence and knowledge of your fans base Ross! If you had done your homework prepurchase you would know this fan group has been through this type of side show many times before when Huzienga and his morons bumbled their way through the offseason!

Your first instinct was correct Sparano must go! Unfortunately you let Ireland in your ear clouding everything Harbaugh a real football coach was telling you!

The closest you and the two clowns you retained will ever be to a Superbowl in Miami was last year when you hosted one! Not only did you absolutely embarrass the franchise and fans you set this team back another 5 years and when you grow a sack and fire the clowns no respectable coach will work for you!

Have you seen Jim Harbaugh coach football in the NFL? Well neither have I so there is no way of knowing if he is a REAL football coach at this level. I think it is posters like you and the overzealous media who blew this whole thing way out of proportion. At first it appeared to be a big circus but I don't think things went down the way everyone speculates. You seem to have almost claimed that you were there for it all but I doubt you were. :up:

"Rocky Raccoon wrote:

As bad as things were this week. Kudos to Ross and company for doing everything they can to reach out and make things right.

Personally I like the guy even more now.

IMO he did everything I would have done in the situation.
Sure he's doing damage control now just like he has to and he knew he would have to if the other options didn't work out.

He tried to improve this team period and I applaud the hell out of him for it.

"Killerphins wrote:

Have you seen Jim Harbaugh coach football in the NFL? Well neither have I so there is no way of knowing if he is a REAL football coach at this level. I think it is posters like you and the overzealous media who blew this whole thing way out of proportion. At first it appeared to be a big circus but I don't think things went down the way everyone speculates. You seem to have almost claimed that you were there for it all but I doubt you were. :up:

NO I am not so naive as to believe anything this guy is selling after he got his hand caught in the cookie jar! Look at his actions he met with him at the Orange Bowl, then when he hears the 49ers are close to a deal he fires up his Gulfstream IV jet and flies all night to steal Harbaugh. I tend to believe the dozens of reports that Harbaugh got cold feet, all which happened after Mort reported that Ireland is pissing off he NFL inner circle!

Have you seen Sparano coach? So we know he isn't a real nfl coach! Hey if you are happy with this good for you! You have your view I have mine.

Crafty PR work Mr. Ross... very crafty. Give those guys a raise!

Sadly, we'll never really know what went on this week it seems.

So is he saying that there was only ONE guy that *might* be a better fit for Miami and that was Harbaugh? Not Gruden and not Cowher?

"adamprez2003 wrote:

Good thing he didnt go with his first draft of that letter

LETTER FROM THE OWNER

To Our Loyal Season Ticket Members,

The first of the three commitments that I made to all of my accountants when I purchased the Miami Dolphins was that I would do everything possible to bring a respectable return on my over 1 billion dollar investment. That, above all else, is what I want for this franchise, for this community and what you, as a season ticket member, deserve and therefore I will soon be raising ticket prices and concession prices.

So there is no confusion about our recent actions, and because you are entitled to our trust and confidence, I want you to hear directly from me about the evaluation process of the past week. Basically, I'm a moron when it comes to football matters. This has been confirmed by all the coaches that I have spoken with over the past week. Every single one of them had the same opinion of me.

Going into the 2010 season, my expectation was that we had a team and an organization that was capable of reaching the Super Bowl. This tells you all you need to know about how much of a moron I am when it comes to football. We fell short of that goal and, furthermore, the season was disappointing for a few reasons. One was the empty seats and drop in concession revenue. We were very aggressive during the offseason and added B and C list celebrities that we thought would attract fans. Much to my surprise these has been celebrities dont interest football fans who seem only to care about the product on the field. While many of those new celebrities were outstanding contributors this season, we still fell short in other areas. Namely the product on the field. The reasons as to why the product matters to you over the celebrity atmosphere I am building here is hard to figure. As a fan of celebrities myself, I have no idea why the season was so frustrating to all of you.

Bottom line the revenue results were unacceptable. We hold ourselves to higher standards and have loftier goals for this franchise. We fell short of our mission of returning a 30% return on investment and did not measure up to the high standards we set for ourselves. As a result, I felt it was incumbent upon me to explore options to improve this team.

I met with Tony Sparano on Monday to discuss the season and understand his plan of what needed to change as we headed into the offseason. I told him that I needed time to digest what I had heard and that I would get back to him with my thoughts later in the week. Meanwhile, I received word that Jim Harbaugh made it clear that his intention was to pursue a career in the NFL. As news reports began to surface on Tuesday that Jim was interviewing with other teams, I made the decision to reach out to Jim to see whether or not he would be a beneficial fit for the organization. Basically I saw an opportunity to milk his new found celebrity to bring you into the stadium and spend your hard earned cash

General Manager Jeff Ireland and I met with Jim on Thursday. At the end of the meeting, I thanked Jim for his time, wished him well and soon let him know that we would pursue the discussion further. He laughed in my face and told me there wasn't a chance he would come unless we bucked up 8 million. To be clear, I made no offer to Jim Harbaugh. I simply couldnt afford his 8 million dollar demands and the contracts I was already paying. The associated outrageous financial terms that were rumored with those reports were completely accurate but as I said I'm on the hook for too much scratch and simply cant afford it. We never spoke to any other coaching candidates, including Bill Cowher, Jon Gruden or any other names that have been rumored to be a candidate. We had Carl Peterson do that.

Tony Sparano is the best person to lead this team since I cant get anyone else. Tony's contract has been extended through the 2013 season, and I wholeheartedly believe that the combination of Jeff and Tony represents one of the strongest organizations in all of football and if not I'll fire them all next year. I remain committed to getting as many tax breaks as I can from Miami Dade County.

I am obsessed with winning and that makes me a douchebag since I know nothing about football but will stick my nose in it just to prove to people I am the boss. Many of the model franchises over the course of NFL history have been built on a commitment from football family ownership and not hot shot businessmen. The Mara family, The Rooney family, etc... Compare them to the clowns like Daniel Snyder and its obvious thats where I belong

I realize your faith in us has been put to the test this week, but I assure you we are well positioned to continue jacking up the prices for the DOLPHINS games and we hope to turn a sizable profit in 2011.

Let me end by thanking you for hanging in there and supporting us throughout the year despite our struggles at home. For that, we are sincerely grateful. You have my personal and unwavering commitment that we will do our part to create a true home field advantage with your help in the future. Rest assured, there are better days ahead for the Miami Dolphins.

With sincere thanks and appreciation, Steven Ross.

Omg Coke Zero burns coming out your nose! Thanks Adam

People make too big a deal of it all, the guy hopped on a plane and went to talk to Harbaugh. In the old days noone would have even realized it happened but nowadays because some stalker tracked his plane and set the rumor mill on fire via the internet all of a sudden the world is coming to an end for the Dolphins organization...

Before this all happened it seemed a perfectly reasonable thing to keep Sparano here and just try and find a new OC and QB coach rather than dismantle the whole team and start over with a new HC. Really doesn't seem like much has changed to warrant all the craziness that ensued over the past few days.

This might be a little off topic but I've been interested for a couple years on season tickets. Ballpark, how much would they come out to be when all is said and done?

"flynryan151 wrote:

NO I am not so naive as to believe anything this guy is selling after he got his hand caught in the cookie jar! Look at his actions he met with him at the Orange Bowl, then when he hears the 49ers are close to a deal he fires up his Gulfstream IV jet and flies all night to steal Harbaugh. I tend to believe the dozens of reports that Harbaugh got cold feet, all which happened after Mort reported that Ireland is pissing off he NFL inner circle!

Have you seen Sparano coach? So we know he isn't a real nfl coach! Hey if you are happy with this good for you! You have your view I have mine.

But what if you are naive enough to believe all the media reports that were based on zero evidence?

If he really meant that, I don't think Tony Sparano would (or should in my opinion) be the coach of the Miami Dolphins. And now he supposedly has more say in personnel decisions...I can't get on board with this until I see some W's on the field, especially multiple W's at home.

"Ohio Fanatic wrote:

But what if you are naive enough to believe all the media reports that were based on zero evidence?

Like I said you have your vied I have mine. Ross wanted Harbaugh that is why he went to Cali. He didn't get him and now it is cya! Of course he can't admit to an offer because by league rule he couldn't make one! By the way the media that were allowed in the food for the presser all tell a different tale about Ross and his body language.

Bottomline is we will never know the real truth, but I for one am not going to believe the words of the guy that caused the drama!