OPINION:The past is worse than some remember and the future is better than some think

63 replies

TrowaTrowaNew MemberOP
Feb 5, 2011, 09:57 PM

I want to share with you all some reasons as to exactly why I think there is a lot of positivity to this team in it's current state. You can dismiss it and write it off as non-sense and that's okay. I'm done trying to change people's mind. I just figure I'll present my point of view with facts and numbers to explain why I feel that way. There's always room for disappointment when a team doesn't win a championship. There is absolutely zero doubt that the Super Bowl is what 32 teams dream of each year. But the key is not to give in to short sightedness. Lost in the disappointment of another losing season is the fact that a team is being built here that's better than anything we've had in years. I've highlighted 04-07 as they were the worst years of the decade vs 08-10. The first thing to consider is the win-loss record

04-07 Record = 20-44 Winning% .313
08-10 Record = 25-23 Winning% .521

In that time Wannstedt went 2-10, Bates went 2-2, Saban went 15-17 and Cameron went 1-15. No coach had a winning record. Tony Sparano has a winning record with a division championship. That gives me hope.

The next thing to consider is our failure in the draft vs our relative success in the past 3 years.

Remaining players from each draft class
2004 - Vernon Carey
2005 - Ronnie Brown, Channing Crowder
2006 - No one, Saban pissed this draft away
2007 - Paul Soliai, Brandon Fields

5 people in 4 years. That's it out of 28 picks. There was zero foundation here to build upon when they got here. If Wannstedt let the cupboard run dry, Saban restocked it with food near it's expiration date and Cameron try to fill it with the cheap store brand stuff and hope no one would notice. In the 3 years that we've had Sparano and Ireland we have 18 players still on the roster. We have nearly as many players on the roster as we did draft picks in the whole 4 prior years. That gives me faith that we've finally learned how to approach the draft.

The next thing I'd like to point out is pro bowl appearances
2004 - Patrick Surtain, Jason Taylor
2005 - Jason Taylor, Zach Thomas
2006 - Jason Taylor, Zach Thomas
2007 - Jason Taylor
2008 - Joey Porter, Ronnie Brown, Jake Long
2009 - Dan Carpenter, Yeremiah Bell, Jake Long
2010 - Cameron Wake, Jake Long

This doesn't count alternates, just guys who were on the original roster.

From 04-07 We had 7 total pro bowl appearances by 3 different players. All of them JJ's players. From 08-10 we had 8 appearances by 6 different players. 3 of them drafted by this coaching staff. That gives me faith that these guys have an eye for talent and know how to coach it up.

And the last point I'll make is that this is a very, very young team. Counting all players who were on the end of the season roster, I/R and practice squad the breakdown of our roster looks something like this.
Rookies - 18
2nd year - 15
3rd year - 6
4th year - 7
5th year - 7
6th year - 7
7th year - 5
10th year - 2
11th year - 1
13th year – 1

39 players in their 3rd year or less this year. That's rediculous. Even more rediculous when you consider who some of those players are. Guys like Nolan Carrol, Vontae Davis, Sean Smith, Kendall Langford, Phillip Merling, John Jerry, Dan Carpenter, Cameron Wake, Koa Misi, Chad Henne, Chris Clemons, Reshad Jones, Jake Long, Davone Bess, Jared Odrick, Nate Garner and Brian Hartline. These guys are only going to get better. When you factor in guys like Karlos Dansby, Randy Starks, Tony McDaniel, Paul Soliai, Brandon Fields, Brandon Marshall and Vernon Carey who are all under 28 years old and in the prime of their career you see that this is the strongest base of players we've seen in a long time.

So basically, what it boils down to for me is that I see distinct progress being made. We're finding better talent, coaching better, drafting better, and building a team better than we have in a long time. This group of guys gets it. They know what it takes to win. Even if Sparano is fired and someone else comes in, there's no rebuilding that needs to be done. We're not paper thin at every position. We need upgrades at RB, QB, S, TE and G. We also need role players at WR. But it's not like we have Travis Minor and Joey Harrington and Ted Ginn out there starting anymore. We've come a long way in a short time. The best turnaround in NFL history from 1-15 to 11-5. That gives me reason to be positive.

UAuab_phinNew Member
Feb 5, 2011, 10:03 PM

Great post!

Boik14Boik14subscriber
Feb 5, 2011, 10:07 PM

Great post brother. Whether we like Sparano and Ireland or not, this is at the very least a big step up from the days of Cameron, Saban and Wanny. I posted a similar post in club within a thread. There is no question that we get at least some talent out of the draft which is more then we can say about previous regimes and do better then many from a talent evaluation standpoint. There is some stuff within the game we can improve on such as clock management, playcalling/being more aggressive, etc but Sparano is not bad at all. Hes young and learning.

padre31padre31luxury_box
Feb 5, 2011, 10:18 PM

Exactly Trowa, though you shorted Randy Starks and John Denny making the pro bowl as well...:wink2:

There are things I do not care for about Sparano's philosophy, but in perspective we are in far better shape then since 2000 when that Defense was in it's prime and we had won a playoff game, 39 players with 3yrs or less is a really young team, far younger than the Jets and better than the up and coming Bills.

Huge offseason though, cannot understate how important this Cycle is.

TrowaTrowaNew Member
Feb 5, 2011, 10:18 PM

"Boik14 wrote:

Great post brother. Whether we like Sparano and Ireland or not, this is at the very least a big step up from the days of Cameron, Saban and Wanny. I posted a similar post in club within a thread. There is no question that we get at least some talent out of the draft which is more then we can say about previous regimes and do better then many from a talent evaluation standpoint. There is some stuff within the game we can improve on such as clock management, playcalling/being more aggressive, etc but Sparano is not bad at all. Hes young and learning.


Exactly. There is so much to be happy about with this team. It's not all sunshine and lollipops of course. But nothing ever is. I just believe that there is more good than bad. We're only a few pieces away from being a contender.

padre31padre31luxury_box
Feb 5, 2011, 10:27 PM

"Trowa wrote:

Exactly. There is so much to be happy about with this team. It's not all sunshine and lollipops of course. But nothing ever is. I just believe that there is more good than bad. We're only a few pieces away from being a contender.


Problem is Trowa, we have no edge on anyone else in the division, there is not one specific area on the team that is a difference maker in the game, for example the Jets have the Defense and Special Teams, the Pats have Brady and the Bills run the spread.

We sort of muddle along, we have to do better at something to make a move upwards.

jetssuckjetssuckNew Member
Feb 5, 2011, 11:14 PM

"Boik14 wrote:

Great post brother. Whether we like Sparano and Ireland or not, this is at the very least a big step up from the days of Cameron, Saban and Wanny. I posted a similar post in club within a thread. There is no question that we get at least some talent out of the draft which is more then we can say about previous regimes and do better then many from a talent evaluation standpoint. There is some stuff within the game we can improve on such as clock management, playcalling/being more aggressive, etc but Sparano is not bad at all. Hes young and learning.


You've seen him improve as a coach?

And why is it that you state that he's learning? Because Ross publicly condemned his offensive philosophy and promised us change? Because honestly I fail to see he's learned at all..... and the units (Offense and ST) that he has his hands in are an absolute mess and under his direction, just getting worse.

Now we may have some nice pieces, but that's thanks to a handful of good moves by Ireland and the open wallet of Ross.... but in this fluff piece the OP posted, he fails to point out that we had some really nice pieces in place during the Wanny years and failed to capitalize due to wanting to retain consistency and pinning our hopes on blind faith...

Which is exactly what the OP is asking us to do....... when in fact we are heading into year 4 of a regime that has posted back to back losing seasons, have no offensive identity, a brand new staff full of guys that are mostly huge question marks because we had no drawing power to get anybody that was actually on the ladder moving up..... and nothing more than a promise from the owner that our stuck in another era HC will change his ways.

I say that we can't afford this kind of complacency as fans and should be at this point be demanding results. And instead of blowing sunshine up our asses to pretend that everything is rosy, we should be collectively standing in front of the stadium this season with our arms in the air saying "show me".....right now......let's see what you got and if it's not a hell of a lot better, we're going to the beach".

Now I'm not advocating giving up, throwing in the towel and burning the stadium to the ground...... but calling for ppl to have patience with Sparano and company is not only absurd, it's just asking for another 2 or 3 years of mediocrity. And the worst part of it is, some of you are so beat down from the recent past that mediocrity seems to be enough for you. Which is the kind of complacency in this franchise that led to 1-15

Bottom line is we as fans need to be putting these guys on the spot, not on a pedestal...

It's "show me or gtfo" time.........not time to pretend everything is ok and be patient.

JS

padre31padre31luxury_box
Feb 5, 2011, 11:18 PM

To sum it JS:

"A coach made it past yr #3 and did not win a SB!! Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war!!!!!!!

jetssuckjetssuckNew Member
Feb 5, 2011, 11:32 PM

"padre31 wrote:

To sum it JS:

"A coach made it past yr #3 and did not win a SB!! Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war!!!!!!!


That's BS Pads...... and seriously over looking the problems we have and the fact that there is absolutely no indication that the guy running the show has a freaking clue as to turn any of it around. You know as well as I do that Sparano's offensive philosophy just straight up stinks......

A coach made it past year 3 for no other reason than the owner failed to do his job and bring in an upgrade at HC..... he damn sure hasn't earned anything. Not sure what you see, but I see a 7-9 coach.

JS

Fin-OmenalFin-OmenalNew Member
Feb 5, 2011, 11:33 PM

"padre31 wrote:

To sum it JS:

"A coach made it past yr #3 and did not win a SB!! Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war!!!!!!!


The coach lost home games to buff, Detroit, and Cleveland. Then had his team quit in NE. To make matters worse we had players calling him out publicly.

He doesn't deserve to be here, but he is.

padre31padre31luxury_box
Feb 5, 2011, 11:38 PM

"jetssuck wrote:

That's BS Pads...... and seriously over looking the problems we have and the fact that there is absolutely no indication that the guy running the show has a freaking clue as to turn any of it around. You know as well as I do that Sparano's offensive philosophy just straight up stinks.

A coach made it past year 3 for no other reason than the owner failed to do his job and bring in an upgrade at HC..... he damn sure hasn't earned anything. Not sure what you see, but I see a 7-9 coach.


Panic seldom works.

padre31padre31luxury_box
Feb 5, 2011, 11:43 PM

"Fin-Omenal wrote:

The coach lost home games to buff, Detroit, and Cleveland. Then had his team quit in NE. To make matters worse we had players calling him out publicly.

He doesn't deserve to be here, but he is.


William's bitching? He is the only cat who complained about Sparano as an example of how honest that is, Jason Taylor joined into that chorus, but keep in mind Williams stays at Taylor's NY apartment when we played the Jets.

The yr before he was signing Sparano's praises..odd that.

And you did not engage a single one of Trowa's points, not one, if one wishes to not like the Coach or the Regime that is fine, however facts are stubborn things, you point out that we lost those 4 games, do tell, how much of a roll did Chad Henne have in 3 of those losses?

-Lions
-Browns
-Bills

This is where I disagree with Trowa, I no longer trust Chad Henne to be our starting Qb, Sparano and Daboll maybe can fool themselves, if they do I'll hope for the best, for myself..no thanks, seen enough checkdown passes with 2 minutes or fewer left with no timeouts in the middle of the field to tell me what I need to know.

jetssuckjetssuckNew Member
Feb 6, 2011, 12:14 AM

"padre31 wrote:

Panic seldom works.


Don't confuse common sense and facing reality as panic

JS

padre31padre31luxury_box
Feb 6, 2011, 12:30 AM

"jetssuck wrote:

Don't confuse common sense and facing reality as panic


Odd, Trowa dealt in common sense and reality in his OP, and yet the meat of his thread starter remains unegaged.

Now, in 2007 if someone had talked about "4yrs to turn it around" I would have rejected it out of hand, however after seeing how they do things the only conclusion that is logical to me is it will take 4 yrs, maybe 5, until we reach annual playoff run levels, this yr if we manage to acquire a Starting Qb.

Don't like it, but have the perspective that we are in one tough division and wishing and hoping or panic will not change that fact of life for the Dolphins.

jetssuckjetssuckNew Member
Feb 6, 2011, 12:31 AM

"padre31 wrote:

William's bitching? He is the only cat who complained about Sparano as an example of how honest that is, Jason Taylor joined into that chorus, but keep in mind Williams stays at Taylor's NY apartment when we played the Jets.

The yr before he was signing Sparano's praises..odd that.

And I'd take both of these NFL stars opinions over that of a coach that needs to be propped up to even attain mediocrity. You take away Mike Nolan and this was a 4 win team this past season.... Ricky may be a flake but he what he said made absolute sense. Sparanos has a failed philosophy, if it wasn't we would have been promised a total makeover..

And you did not engage a single one of Trowa's points, not one, if one wishes to not like the Coach or the Regime that is fine, however facts are stubborn things, you point out that we lost those 4 games, do tell, how much of a roll did Chad Henne have in 3 of those losses?

-Lions
-Browns
-Bills

This is where I disagree with Trowa, I no longer trust Chad Henne to be our starting Qb, Sparano and Daboll maybe can fool themselves, if they do I'll hope for the best, for myself..no thanks, seen enough checkdown passes with 2 minutes or fewer left with no timeouts in the middle of the field to tell me what I need to know.

How many ppl on this forum do you really think were unaware of anything that the OP pointed out? It was nothing more than a fluff piece to get ppl to stop pointing out the chinks in the armor and join him in his pom pom rally. We went from mediocre to crap and back to mediocre.......well almost mediocre. And if we don't see a 180 turn in the offensive philosophy of this head coach, we're going to once again waste a good defense and head down another death spiral.

And how about admitting that Sparano did a crap job of developing the QB that you so frequently like to use as Sparano's scape goat? What's amazing is that you fail to see that Henne was shaped by Sparano and his mentor Penny (who you thought could save the day last year), to be the checkdown artist you so detest. That's what QB's do when the HC is coaching scared and driving for FG's...

And no I'm not endorsing Henne...... his only chance was to get someone in here better than Sparano to try and salvage him. But still, if I'm Ross I force the fist pumper to ride the wheels off of Henne, do or die..... and let the next HC fix the QB situation. Someone with a clue....

JS

jetssuckjetssuckNew Member
Feb 6, 2011, 12:39 AM

"padre31 wrote:

Odd, Trowa dealt in common sense and reality in his OP, and yet the meat of his thread starter remains unegaged.

Now, in 2007 if someone had talked about "4yrs to turn it around" I would have rejected it out of hand, however after seeing how they do things the only conclusion that is logical to me is it will take 4 yrs, maybe 5, until we reach annual playoff run levels, this yr if we manage to acquire a Starting Qb.

Don't like it, but have the perspective that we are in one tough division and wishing and hoping or panic will not change that fact of life for the Dolphins.

How many 3rd year coaches these days go 1-7 at home and retain their job? That's a bigger reality than anything the OP stated...... like I said, you could have made the same case during the Wanny years about having some really good pieces in place.

We're a 7-9 team..........coached by a guy that can't manage 3 time outs a half. But hey, it beats being 1-15. Woo Hoo!

Oh wait, no it doesn't...... it just means we'll be picking in the middle instead of at the top.

Throw a party for mediocrity if you want to.... I may show up but I'm not bringing pom poms

JS

khatkhatNew Member
Feb 6, 2011, 12:47 AM

I think we'll see a different team in 2011. The players love Sparano, that has to be a good thing. I think he was too loyal to his assistant coaches. His ass is on fire now and I think we'll see a more explosive team because of that.

padre31padre31luxury_box
Feb 6, 2011, 12:51 AM

"jetssuck wrote:

And I'd take both of these NFL stars opinions over that of a coach that needs to be propped up to even attain mediocrity. You take away Mike Nolan and this was a 4 win team this past season.... Ricky may be a flake but he what he said made absolute sense. Sparanos has a failed philosophy, if it wasn't we would have been promised a total makeover.

How funny, 7-9 "things are looking up!" in 09 even though the Defense was decrepit, 7-9 "Failed philosophy!" when the Defense was outstanding.

I think that is what Rooney was speaking upon.

How many ppl on this forum do you really think were unaware of anything that the OP pointed out? It was nothing more than a fluff piece to get ppl to stop pointing out the chinks in the armor and join him in his pom pom rally. We went from mediocre to crap and back to mediocre.......well almost mediocre. And if we don't see a 180 turn in the offensive philosophy of this head coach, we're going to once again waste a good defense and head down another death spiral.

Apparently many did not based on the tenor of the pessimism, Sparano will manage to get the offense back on track, of that I have little doubt, the real issue who will be the Qb? We can find some passable Vet Qb who knows how to run a 2 minute drill and how not to create dummy turnovers when the game matters and do fine, but that is not the best way to go.

And how about admitting that Sparano did a crap job of developing the QB that you so frequently like to use as Sparano's scape goat? What's amazing is that you fail to see that Henne was shaped by Sparano and his mentor Penny (who you thought could save the day last year), to be the checkdown artist you so detest. That's what QB's do when the HC is coaching scared and driving for FG's.

Or

Maybe Henne won't cut it? That does happen JS, all of the time in the NFL, young Qb's washout, that is life the real key is to not stop trying to develop one.

And no I'm not endorsing Henne...... his only chance was to get someone in here better than Sparano to try and salvage him. But still, if I'm Ross I force the fist pumper to ride the wheels off of Henne, do or die..... and let the next HC fix the QB situation. Someone with a clue....


For all of the panic over the losses to the Browns, Bills, and Lions, no one really examines "why" they happened, sure folks will bitch and moan and point fingers, very few get down in the dirt of what happened.

My gross conclusions are this:

-Henne lost his poise and I think he lost the team as well.
-Wake needed help rushing the passer, he was gassed or doubled or whatever, no one else stepped up, that must be addressed.
-lack of a running game caught up with us, the Bills simply run blitzed us and Henne had no answers and got flustered.

There is only so much scheming that can be done to make up for a dirth of effectiveness in the players, that and I suspect Sparano misjudged some things and players tbh about it, maybe I recall more about that time period then you JS.

Boik14Boik14subscriber
Feb 6, 2011, 01:04 AM

"jetssuck wrote:

You've seen him improve as a coach?

And why is it that you state that he's learning? Because Ross publicly condemned his offensive philosophy and promised us change? Because honestly I fail to see he's learned at all..... and the units (Offense and ST) that he has his hands in are an absolute mess and under his direction, just getting worse.

Now we may have some nice pieces, but that's thanks to a handful of good moves by Ireland and the open wallet of Ross.... but in this fluff piece the OP posted, he fails to point out that we had some really nice pieces in place during the Wanny years and failed to capitalize due to wanting to retain consistency and pinning our hopes on blind faith...

Which is exactly what the OP is asking us to do....... when in fact we are heading into year 4 of a regime that has posted back to back losing seasons, have no offensive identity, a brand new staff full of guys that are mostly huge question marks because we had no drawing power to get anybody that was actually on the ladder moving up..... and nothing more than a promise from the owner that our stuck in another era HC will change his ways.

I say that we can't afford this kind of complacency as fans and should be at this point be demanding results. And instead of blowing sunshine up our asses to pretend that everything is rosy, we should be collectively standing in front of the stadium this season with our arms in the air saying "show me".....right now......let's see what you got and if it's not a hell of a lot better, we're going to the beach".

Now I'm not advocating giving up, throwing in the towel and burning the stadium to the ground...... but calling for ppl to have patience with Sparano and company is not only absurd, it's just asking for another 2 or 3 years of mediocrity. And the worst part of it is, some of you are so beat down from the recent past that mediocrity seems to be enough for you. Which is the kind of complacency in this franchise that led to 1-15

Bottom line is we as fans need to be putting these guys on the spot, not on a pedestal...

It's "show me or gtfo" time.........not time to pretend everything is ok and be patient.

Yes, I have seen him improve as a coach. I see him coaching players up regularly as well. I stated there are things he needs to work on but your post reads like a sulking baby who didnt get his way.

Ross is already showing himself to be a quick-trigger owner. Hate to tell you, him and everyone else but this team is following the EXACT same pattern as the Cowboys under Parcells. Surprise everyone year one, regress years 2 and 3 during which your true rebuild took place and year four you contended again. I said it was a 4 year project when the trifecta arrived and maybe a handful of people believed me. This offseason is crucial but I prefer Ross keep his meddling ways out of the coach and GM's way. And if you look closely the offensive philosophy Daboll uses has some of its roots in what Henning does as well....dont expect the philosophy to change so much as the situations in which certain plays are called, more formations added and a few different looks. Most of the NFL runs a similar offense anyway..its about execution.

You state its because of Ross's wallet and Ireland that we're improving but why then is Jake Long continuing to evolve? Vontae Davis? Sean Smith? Cam Wake? Hartline? Bess? Langford? They cant all be because of the position coaches! We have seen how bad head coaches can ruin a perfectly good talent. Sparano hasnt done that. Your criticism of Sparano's every move while leaving out his accomplishments from a player development standpoint and in getting us to the point where we now win most of the games against the teams we should beat, wreaks of bias in my opinion.

I'm not complacent. Im not loving the fact we arent doing what the Steelers and Pats do every year but Rome wasnt built in a day. The fact of the matter is we have how many players left from the prior regime? Ronnie (temporarily?) Ricky (again, could be temporary), Carey (also may be temporary given his cap hit if there is a cap), Crowder and Bell. Thats called taking over a bare cupboard. Maybe you dont realize it takes 53 players to win a title but thats only 5 that we started with. It doesnt happen in 3 years unless you are exceptionally lucky which we havent been.

"Fin-Omenal wrote:

The coach lost home games to buff, Detroit, and Cleveland. Then had his team quit in NE. To make matters worse we had players calling him out publicly.

He doesn't deserve to be here, but he is.

But he is because he deserved it more then anyone else Ross could actually get. After Ross's viagra wore off he realized Harbaugh was even less proven then Sparano and while it was tempting, it says something that Ross changed his mind and gave Sparano another year and two more on the contract. He could have done what the Giants did in 06 to Coughlin and let him coach on the final year of his deal as a lame duck. There is precedent for it being done now even though its rare. How'd that work out? Stability above everything else is about creating an environment where players and coaches cant be complacent but the franchise, from ownership down believes in its people to get things right.

Those losses were without question, unacceptable. But as the OP said, this is a young team learning how to win. Thats hard for a lot of people to accept and a lot of it falls on the QB and some on the coaching but thats part of the learning curve. And learning exists in sports just like in life.

padre31padre31luxury_box
Feb 6, 2011, 01:07 AM

"khat wrote:

I think we'll see a different team in 2011. The players love Sparano, that has to be a good thing. I think he was too loyal to his assistant coaches. His ass is on fire now and I think we'll see a more explosive team because of that.


I'm not so sure khat, Sparano was confident that he would have his guys ready for the Patriots Finale and they played like it was the last day of High School, and on every unit, Offense, Defense, Special Teams, Sparano badly misjudged his team.

If I were Coach, there would be wholesale changes.

NaboCaneNaboCaneNew Member
Feb 6, 2011, 01:42 AM

The past is made up of the decisions made by those who made them; the players chosen and signed, the coaches and front office managers chosen to carry out their duties to the team.

You can look at it from many perspectives; you can even pick and choose what to look at and ignore what doesn't fit your argument.

But one thing is certain about the past: it is set...it's done and over with.

Now...the future.

The future "isn't" anything.

It is not set; it is not done.

It will consist - you guessed it - of the decisions made by those who will make them; the players chosen and signed, the coaches and front office managers chosen to carry out their duties to the team.

You can say that you believe things will be one way or another, and there's no right nor wrong. A belief is just that; it does not require justification nor proof. It does not require others to believe as you do.

However...if you say that you are certain things will go one way or another - then you'd better have a little something more than faith and a positive outlook.

You should be able to demonstrate why you believe as you do. Not for anyone else's satisfaction - unless you're arguing that "certainty" on your part with others who don't share your optimism...as it were.

Einstein once said that one definition of insanity would be to do the same things and expect a different result.

So let's examine:

  • Front office: (before) Jeff Ireland;

  • Front office: (after) Jeff Ireland;

  • Okay.

  • Head Coach: (before) Tony Sparano;

  • Head Coach: (after) Tony Sparano;

  • Um...okay.

  • Offensive Coordinator: (before) The senile and recalcitrant Dan Henning;

  • Offensive Coordinator: (after) One of only two guys in the league last season with an Offense worse than that of the senile and recalcitrant Dan Henning's;

  • Okay...whoa, wait a minute now...

  • Receivers Coach: (before) Karl Dorrell, under whose tutelage the entire Receiving corps regressed and underperformed, and who lost the faith of the one Receiver on his squad talented enough to have gained 1000 yards despite the total cluster**** the Offense became as the season wore on;

  • Receivers Coach: (after) Steve Bush. You know...Steve Bush; the team's former Offensive Quality Control Coach. What? Yeah, you know, the job Sparano gave to his totally inexperienced son after making these brilliant coaching changes. What? No, Bush has never done this job before either.

  • Uh...are you sure? REALLY?!

  • Quarterback Coach: (before) David Lee...who was so awful in his job he had players in open revolt by the last game of the season...so God-awful that he took Chad Henne from good college QB from a major program to the trembling husk with a towel over his head we saw on the sideline last season;

  • Quarterback Coach: (after) Karl Dorrell. You know...because he did such a bang-up job this season with the Receivers. What? No, he's never done this job before either.

  • Oh C'MON! You're just making this **** up now!

  • Special Teams Coach: (before) John Bonamego...who holds the rare distinction of being a Coordinator fired before mid-season by an NFL team;

  • Special Teams Coach (after) Darren Rizzi...who stepped in after Bonamego was made to walk the plank, and did a goo...he did a bang...well, he did the job. What? No, he had never done this job before either.

  • You want some of this vodka? 'Cause if not im'a kill it.

So...in summary. Reason for opitmism?

Sure.

On THE BIZZARRO PLANET.

OzzyOzzyluxury_box
Feb 6, 2011, 01:51 AM

"NaboCane wrote:

So let's examine:

  • Front office: (before) Jeff Ireland;

  • Front office: (after) Jeff Ireland;

  • Okay.

  • Head Coach: (before) Tony Sparano;

  • Head Coach: (after) Tony Sparano;

  • Um...okay.

  • Offensive Coordinator: (before) The senile and recalcitrant Dan Henning;

  • Offensive Coordinator: (after) One of only two guys in the league last season with an Offense worse than that of the senile and recalcitrant Dan Henning's;

  • Okay...whoa, wait a minute now...

  • Receivers Coach: (before) Karl Dorrell, under whose tutelage the entire Receiving corps regressed and underperformed, and who lost the faith of the one Receiver on his squad talented enough to have gained 1000 yards despite the total cluster**** the Offense became as the season wore on;

  • Receivers Coach: (after) Steve Bush. You know...Steve Bush; the team's former Offensive Quality Control Coach. What? Yeah, you know, the job Sparano gave to his totally inexperienced son after making these brilliant coaching changes. What? No, Bush has never done this job before either.

  • Uh...are you sure? REALLY?!

  • Quarterback Coach: (before) David Lee...who was so awful in his job he had players in open revolt by the last game of the season...so God-awful that he took Chad Henne from good college QB from a major program to the trembling husk with a towel over his head we saw on the sideline last season;

  • Quarterback Coach: (after) Karl Dorrell. You know...because he did such a bang-up job this season with the Receivers. What? No, he's never done this job before either.

  • Oh C'MON! You're just making this **** up now!

  • Special Teams Coach: (before) John Bonamego...who holds the rare distinction of being a Coordinator fired before mid-season by an NFL team;

  • Special Teams Coach (after) Darren Rizzi...who stepped in after Bonamego was made to walk the plank, and did a goo...he did a bang...well, he did the job. What? No, he had never done this job before either.

  • You want some of this vodka? 'Cause if not im'a kill it.

So...in summary. Reason for opitmism?

Sure.

On THE BIZZARRO PLANET.

That does it!

Can someone please scrape me up off the ground.

http://images.thephins.com/signaturepics/sigpic83_3.gif

TrowaTrowaNew Member
Feb 6, 2011, 02:59 AM

"padre31 wrote:

Odd, Trowa dealt in common sense and reality in his OP, and yet the meat of his thread starter remains unegaged.


Thanks for trying to defend me, but I didn't expect much better from this thread. Like I said in the title, I'm done trying to change peoples minds. Some folks just aren't happy unless they're miserable. I hate it for them. But I'm not going to let them drag me down. They can call this a fluff piece. They can go on about me shaking the pom poms and that's cool. There are reasons to be upset with this team and they have every right to be upset. And as you said, it would be nice if people could make support their opinion with common sense and reality instead of conjecture and insults. But all in all I got about the response I expected.

djphinfandjphinfansubscriber
Feb 6, 2011, 03:01 AM

Its a four year project, complete overhaul of a team, almost expansion like, but in this case, their fate is gonna be determined during their 4th year..They do have respect to earn this season..

jetssuckjetssuckNew Member
Feb 6, 2011, 04:29 AM

"padre31 wrote:

How funny, 7-9 "things are looking up!" in 09 even though the Defense was decrepit, 7-9 "Failed philosophy!" when the Defense was outstanding.

I think that is what Rooney was speaking upon.

Far less excuses can be made when 7-9 happens two years in a row. Surely you understand that? And that defense had nothing to do with Sparano, surely you understand that as well...

Apparently many did not based on the tenor of the pessimism, Sparano will manage to get the offense back on track, of that I have little doubt, the real issue who will be the Qb? We can find some passable Vet Qb who knows how to run a 2 minute drill and how not to create dummy turnovers when the game matters and do fine, but that is not the best way to go.

lol....and you base this on what? Is there some new gimmick offense that will appear on the horizon that will save the day as did the WC before he "developed" it into ashes? Another Penny to come riding in on a white horse? Another ridiculously easy schedule that will again lull the fan base into thinking the coach actually has a plan?

Seems you don't have much of a foundation to base your claims of hope on

Or

Maybe Henne won't cut it? That does happen JS, all of the time in the NFL, young Qb's washout, that is life the real key is to not stop trying to develop one.

Still won't admit that your boy Sparano did a pathetic job trying to develop Henne...... oh that's right, it's someone else's fault. Poor Tony was a victim of circumstance....... surely it couldn't be his piss poor offensive philosophy that had a hand in it.

For all of the panic over the losses to the Browns, Bills, and Lions, no one really examines "why" they happened, sure folks will bitch and moan and point fingers, very few get down in the dirt of what happened.

My gross conclusions are this:

-Henne lost his poise and I think he lost the team as well.
-Wake needed help rushing the passer, he was gassed or doubled or whatever, no one else stepped up, that must be addressed.
-lack of a running game caught up with us, the Bills simply run blitzed us and Henne had no answers and got flustered

.

Sparano made a mess of the OL....... abandoned the running game and instead relied far too heavily on his young QB, to supplant that running game, by asking him to throw 40+ a game. And held onto his favorite, Cobbs, instead finding someone with more to offer...... there's your answer to the running game.

And Henne lost his poise and the team due to being undermined at every turn by the fool who's task it was to develop him

There is only so much scheming that can be done to make up for a dirth of effectiveness in the players, that and I suspect Sparano misjudged some things and players tbh about it, maybe I recall more about that time period then you JS.

And maybe like Sparano and company, you were so hungover from fantasizing over re-inventing the wheel with Pat White, that you were as oblivious as they were as to what the hell was really going on.

This nonsense about panic is just another excuse....... I look forward to 2012. It will all be over by then..

JS

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