But having said there was no timetable, there definitely was a schedule.
And, thanks to this season, the Dolphins are now ahead of schedule.
Regardless of what you know of Dolphins history and the rebuilding project Bill Parcells, Jeff Ireland, and Tony Sparano undertook, you probably agree that last year's 11-5 season was wonderful and surprising and exciting.
But it wasn't the thing. It wasn't the genuine breakthrough.
These guys measure breakthroughs by the number of championships they deliver. And after the Dolphins were bounced from the playoffs by Baltimore, Parcells and Co. talked about not kidding themselves and understanding how very far from their goal they truly were.
The Dolphins weren't championship-caliber and, although the plan was to make them more competitive this season, everyone knew a championship wasn't likely until after a major transition season.
That transition season was supposed to bridge the span from Chad Pennington to Chad Henne.
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