This article puts into perspective how much of a defensive decline we had over the second half of the season. Our offense was easily the best part of our team over the whole year. Anybody making the argument that Tannehill or the offense is to blame for our second half collapse reveals their bias as they were such a minuscule part of the problem. It's like being in a rainstorm and arguing that the thimble of water somebody spilled on you is the reason you're wet.

 

IMO this has a lot to do with Coyle complicated system and not doing a good job adjusting when injuries mount up. When you have a combination of less talented AND confused players on the field, that is when problems happen.

 

I think most folks who were critical of Ryan were critical the first half of the season, and rightfully so. The defense was the strongpoint in the beginning and falterd, the offense started playing very well late and the D crumbled.

Both units had their good and bad stretches, that 8-8 record was well deserved by both.

 

Wasn't there an issue of defensive fatigue with the offence bit being able to stay on the field, forcing the defence to wear down over time?

 

If they're leading the league in fewest three and outs it seems unreasonable to put the blame on the offense. People say there's plenty of blame to go around or other such nonsense, but the truth is that by far most of the blame falls on the D. If you're acting as if it's even then you're being unfair.

 

The defense was obviously more to blame as I think the O was 11th or 12th in ppg. But in crunch time, let's not pretend scoring 16, 13, and 13 was any good. Neither unit showed up at the end.

 

Great read. The great thing about this season: with all the improvements that have been made, if the team still goes 8-8 or worse, then we will know exactly what, I mean who, the problem is. Joe Philbin.

 

Depressing read.

Might well be true but it's definitely a critical take. Not that that's a bad thing.

Wake, Grimes getting old. Suh can't and won't change everything by himself. Sturgis a question mark but should do better, statistically speaking. Similarly, other teams' special teams will do better against us this year.

 

We ran a short passing offense in which our QB completed a high number of passes to run the clock. We had the fewest 3 and outs in the league and we didn't run a hurry up offense. Time of Possession backs up the idea that our defense was not 'worn down' any more than most. They just stunk on ice after Delmas went down. Geno Smith, perfect passer rating. Damn.

 

Yes, it is depressing. Especially the blurb about the game in Buffalo that they lost 19-0 with a playoff berth on the line. I was at that game.

When I said great read, I didn't mean it made me feel warm and fuzzy. :lol: But it is a good discussion about why Miami has struggled in the past and a good reminder of the problems still facing the team. I worry the article will end up being right about Suh. He is a great player, but can he really have the impact the Dolphins need him to be at that price tag? We will find out.

 

There's no doubt in my mind that Suh won't have the impact on others that some seem to think. I think a lot of people's expectations in that regard are unreasonable. But he's a great player and we have a good number of other good players and if they are healthy and playing their best the defense will be very good. I think we'll see production from guys like Wake, Grimes and RJones that is roughly consistent with what they have done in the last few years. Maybe a little better; maybe a little worse. But those are great players and if they continue to play that way the defense should be very good.

 

There is zero doubt in your mind? That is a very sure statement.

I disagree. Suh will demand way more attention than Odrick or Starks. I think his impact will help Wake to get even more pressures and sacks. Of course he might not get 20 sacks, because that is difficult, however I do think he will be able to do more damage with Suh right next to him.

 

Very interesting read. He made some good points, kind of brings you down to earth a little bit.

 

I can't see your name without thinking about Grand Theft Auto III's Chatterbox.

[video=youtube;2-1QHcXjY5w]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-1QHcXjY5w[/video]

 

The Killer Bees

[video]https://38.media.tumblr.com/8287a80d85213e31a2a29b967a807525/tumblr_ni0xs4Ebqf1tllkl6o1_500.gif[/video]

 

lolol I remember that. It's a combination between the 80's dolphin defense and Wu-Tang. My favorite Sports team and hip-hop group.

 

This is actually the most positive outlook Barnwell has written for Miami in years.

 

Suh alone doesn't make everyone better, no. But what he gives us is a truly dominant unit in the DLine. When was the last time we had an ELITE group at a position like this, where you know they're going to win their matchup every week? The R&R backfield? This DLine will have the advantage on basically every OLine they see; they have a chance to take over games the way Buffalo's has done to us (I think our DL is better at the moment, fwiw). Units like this are what mitigate weaknesses elsewhere, opposing offenses are going to have to scheme hard against this front 4, imo. To me that's the big thing Suh does: gives us one of the very best units in the League.

 

The offense was middle-of-the-road in the second half of the season (22ppg). Worse if you take out the two meaningless games at the end. Are you saying it's okay to score three total touchdowns in three weeks in crunch time of the playoff hunt? Both units faltered.

 

I am very certain that he won't have the impact some think because some seem to think his impact will be huge. I think there will be an impact but it won't be that huge. Wake has been a 14-15 sack guy without Suh. Not every year, but more than once. Maybe he does that again, but I don't expect it. I expect 11-12, which he's shown he can do without Suh next to him. A huge impact would put him in the 17-18 range, but I'll be very (pleasantly) surprised if that happens.

I think the "attention" thing often gets overstated. The best interior DL typically gets some kind of double team from the C and one of the guards. That's true whether it is Suh or Odrick or Starks or Soliai. Suh is not going to be triple-teamed by OLs on any kind of regular basis, so he'll get about the same kind of attention as those guys. It may be more consistently on him than in the past, when they may have double teamed Odrick on one play and Starks on the next, but we will not regularly have DLs going unblocked. The double teams that Wake has seen have not really been 2 OLs, but rather help from a TE or RB. And teams will continue to do that, but I don't think it will be any more or less than in the past. If we run a lot of stunts/games with Wake and Suh (and they do it well), we might get more synergy, but I don't think we'll see much of that.

 

Sorry dude, I cannot agree with this statement. You are putting way to much into "sacks"

 

Well, here's my thing, Fineas...in the past, Wake has seen many double teams. So, IF teams double Suh, AND they don't double Wake, then he will feast. If they double Suh AND they double Wake, Wake may not post huge numbers, but I would expect that someone else will post big numbers.

 

I'm only talking about sacks and Wake because you brought them up as an example.

Look, through the first 8-10 (whichever it was) games last year our defense was at or close to best in the league. That fell off dramatically due to some injuries and probably a bunch of other factors, but for an extended period of time (8-10 games) the defense played at a pretty elite level. Are you essentially sure that the defense will be Top 3 this year (or at least through the first 8-10 games)? If not, how big will the Suh factor really be? If so, it will really only be matching what they did last year. And even that won't be attributable to Suh necessarily, as there are plenty of other potential sources of improvement -- having RJones the whole season, Wake healthy (he was a little banged up last year), someone replacing Finnegan (who wasn't great), Jenkins with an added year of experience, McCain (hopefully) being better than Wheeler, Phillips being a legit contributor, Aiken being good, Misi healthy, Fede emerging and getting more PT, etc.

 

A DL being double teamed is usually going to be an advantage for the offense int he run game. It is not against Suh. He eliminates much of the numbers advantage up front. He fights to a draw or defeats double-teams at a much higher rate than any other DL.

 

Special teams not getting the credit they deserve. Found it. :thumbdown:

In my opinion if there is a coach that needs to be gone it's Rizzi. This team is not good enough to overcome sub par ST play.

 

True, but we have always had DTs being double teamed in the run game. Every team does. That is due to the numbers advantage the OL usually has. Indeed, the whole point of the numbers advantage is to enable the OL to double team someone. The OL is not even using the numbers advantage if they don't double team someone. In recent years, Mitchell, Odrick, Starks and Soliai all saw double teams at times. Suh might make those double teams more predictable and he probably will beat them more often, but the benefits there are from Suh doing what Suh does, not his making others better. Now if Mitchell or Phillips really emerge and can consistently beat their man in one-on-one situations then there will be improvement, but I think that will be roughly the same as if those guys emerged next to Odrick and he was the one getting double-teamed (up to the point that Mitchell/Phillips are perceived as better and more "deserving" of the double-team).

 

But those guys typically see different double teams. Wake is very rarely doubled by 2 OLs. It is usually a TE or a RB/H-Back. With Suh on the inside, the double team against him will typically be the C and an OG. With a typical 4 man rush, both of those double teams can happen and the other DT and DE will be one-on-one. And that's really what they've always had. Nobody has been systematically double-teaming Vernon. the other DT will be one-on-one with an OG, but do we have anyone who can consistently win that matchup in the pass rush? Not so sure. It would be great to see Phillips do that, but will/can he? Our best bet to exploit that on passing downs may be to move Vernon inside and use Fede on the outside.

 

I agree that Jenkins isnt chopped liver, but he is far from a household name right now, maybe after another productive season he will get his recognition but as of right now, not many people outside of Miami fanbase really know about Jelani Jenkins.

 

I agree Jdang, the Offense needs to put points up at crunch time...but... yeah allowing 21 points per game in the 3rd and 4th quarters (combined) of the last 4 games of the year, is not a sign of a Post Season Defense...

Also lets not forget that the D also allowed 19 points per game in the last half of games against the first Bills, KC and GB games, and they were early in the year... The D allowed about 136 yds per game on the ground in those three games... and this was early in the year (3 of the first 5)...

It seemed that there was a kink in the armor early on and later on in certain games, teams were able to exploit it...

 

I think where you'll see the impact of Suh will be through the ripple effects of: 1) the opposing QB not having as much time to throw, and 2) the run defense being strong up the middle throughout the game.

Regarding #1: the opposing QB not having as much time to throw means reduced efficiency of the opponent's passing game, less need for our LB and CB to blitz (which leaves fewer pass defenders) to get the same pressure, and greater coverage ability of LB's and CB's because they need to cover the WR/TE's for a shorter amount of time.

Regarding #2: one can legitimately argue that we lost at least 1 game (probably more) because our run defense got gashed in the 4th quarter. This has been a recurring problem for the Dolphins, not just last year and not just during Philbin's tenure, but going way back. We should win at least a game or more just by having a stout run D throughout the game. Now, this is only run defense up the middle, granted. But forcing the opponent to try to run on the flanks (predictably, I might add) means it's easier to defend (less uncertainty about the opponent's game plan).

I'd measure Suh's impact by several things (that we have measures for): 1) overall run defense ranking in terms of YPC, 2) overall defensive ranking in terms of points (it has to translate to what matters most or what's the point!), and 3) average time opposing QB's have to throw.

 

I agree, his verbiage was very poor in the "cycling through" part, and you make good points with the DVOA.

I actually find it refreshing that people dont know about Jelani, im always talking about him to my non-Dolphins friends and it seems not many know about Jelani, as the media and journalist rarely/if ever mention him and its setting him up to be our "secret weapon" on D, as the focus seems to be on our DL, Grimes and Jones.

I do find the "cycling through" comment despicable and porr writing but like I said, not many know abouy Jelani.... yet..

 

I understand that. Ultimately, the defense allowed a lot of points. But even if they allowed only 20, we still lose those games. The run D was horrific, but at least they held the Jets to 13, we score 16. Win. If we beat Baltimore things are different. The defense held the Ravens for much of the first half. Then they took off and the Miami's offense did nothing after. I think a Tannehill INT set them up for 7 as well. The Dolphins only scored 3 points in the final 3 quarters. How do you blame that on the defense? I'd have to re-watch the game, but NFL Network said the Dolphins built a 10 point lead on short passes and great running by Miller. But the Ravens started to sit on the short stuff and shut the offense down. That's where the small ball hurts us.

The Baltimore game is where it really hurt our playoff chances, and the offense didn't do diddly squat themselves.

 

It's not just those two as you mention , we have enough talented , disruptive , productive players to capitalize on matchps .

I believe it's likely a couple of players other than Suh will have their best year , and he will be a big part of the reason why . Pressure is on Coyle , if we aren't a consistent top ranked defense he would be the reason why , barring injuries imo .

 

I think you are underestimating the impact Suh has on the entire defense...he will make Wake better and open up opportunities for Vernon, Mitchell and all the LBs.

Think about what you just said...despite Suh being double teamed Wake will get attention from the TE or Back...thats 4 guy's trying to prevent 2 from destroying their QB. That also means you will have 2 other guys roaming freely and 7 offensive players vs our 9 defenders. I like our chances in that scenario.

 

Exactly, I've banged this drum for literal yrs, good St wins 2 games per yr, on long FG's or turnovers created, or the punter pinning the opponent inside the 5 yd line

Bad ST costs 2 games per yr, via not doing those things

Great ST wins 3 to 4 games per yr, via returns for Td's or great Field Position, blocked FG's, onside kicks recovered etc

Our Specials unit in 2014 was horribly erratic, this with Landry posting all time type of numbers as the Returner..it will be a happy day when Sturgis is either cut, or lives up to his billing as of now, he literally will cost the Dolphins wins in 2015

 

Agree, I though the same thing.

 

I know that's the theory but I think it is overstated. Most team's base rush is 4 men. Most teams have 6 guys blocking them with one being a TE or RB in a help situation. That is the same thing we will see. Wake has seen that pretty much his whole career. Vernon and the other DT have always been single teamed. It will be the same.

Wake is a great player and will beat double teams like he always has. Same for Suh, who will beat more double teams than his predecessors and make more plays. There will be improvement on the defense overall but that improvement will come mostly from the added production from Suh as compared to Starks/Odrick. Maybe some from Phillips if he is the real deal. But I don't think it will come from Suh making others better. We'll see.


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If Suh is an improvement over our previous DTs, and he is more disruptive in both the passing game and the run game, it stands to reason that other guys will have more chances. If a QB is rolling left to avoid the pressure from Wake and Suh, it would follow that more plays would be made from Vernon or Philips than they would if the QB was able to stand in the pocket without the middle collapsing.

 

What's more likely to happen IMO is that teams will go to more of a quick, short passing game and will get rid of the ball quicker. That may be a successful route because our LBs as a whole aren't great in coverage. And it would probably result in fewer sacks and pressures. You have to account for the kind of changes offenses may make to deal with Suh. And even if that does involve more rolling out, that doesn't necessarily make it easier for Vernon and Phillips to get to the QB. It may make it harder. That's why so many here have been pushing for the Dolphins to roll Tannehill out more the last few years.