Think about our schedule with some perspective. We've already beaten 3 of last year's playoff teams and had 1 other beaten- NY (and we can basically include Pitt as a playoff team as well). We didn't come close to that in 08 even though we were 11-5. Considering our opponents to date were a combined 67-45 last season, I think 4-3 with the 3rd youngest team in the league, a horrendous showing from our Special Teams, and a 2nd year QB is pretty damn good!!
i am so psyched about our second half schedule its sick. just split the next two gms and i will be thrilled
It's not how to attack. It's ball placement that is the issue. The window is going to be tight because usually the second safety means an extra man is in the secondary. I don't think he is timid about WHERE to go. I think he's timid about WHEN to go.
They had the 7th ranked offense in 2008, without Henning. His offenses at Carolina ranked 30th, 15th, 13th, 22nd, and 24th. I'm pretty sure Panthers fans are more concerned at the fact that Matt Moore is the worst QB in the league, their WR corp blows, Jonathan Stewart blow,s and Deangelo Williams hasn't looked all that great either, mostly due to seeing 8-9 defenders in the box, and poor O-Line play. I doubt they wish they had Henning again. Wait, scratch that, I know they don't want Henning back because I live in Panthers country, and have a lot of Panthers fans as friends.
I'm sorry but I don't buy #2. Until this game, Henne was the #2 rated QB in the NFL based on TD percentage in the redzone (at around 36% TDs per pass). IMO Henning is TOOOOO conservative here and completely takes the ball out of Henne's hands when we're near the endzone, which is unwarranted IMO. We conceive FGs, and the 3rd and long run call while in obvious FG range is a clear example. Henne has the least amount of pass attempts in the league in the redzone the last I checked. That's on Henning, not the QB. Regarding #1: if we can't run the ball, then why the heck are we prioritizing it over giving Henne & Marshall more opportunities to score!? Either way, that's on Henning.
Sparano had a lot to do with it also, and needs to be fired himself if he thinks this philosophy is going to bring us a Super Bowl.
agreed. he needs to get comfortable. i hope its this yr instead oif next. he has the arm to fit it into tight windows though the accuracy leaves him once in awhile. next offaseason he needs to practice accuracy drills
Can't agree here. The difference is very clear when the OC decides to open it up and move the ball more aggressively with his calls (see TD drive) and when he is playing to kill clock or minimize risk (see run-run-run). Yes, some of HOW he can attack defenses is dictated by who we have, but he still opens and closes the throttle and it's plain to see the difference. I think Henning does it at the 'right' times. Opens it up when we need to take control, plays it safer when it's smart to do so. That's smart football, just not entertaining enough for most fans (me included at times).
I believe we can beat Balt..... and that our DBs can match up against their WRs b/c they're not the burner types that give us fits. If we can shut down their ground game as we've been doing and force Flacco to beat us, then I think we can go 5-3. ???????
Yes... but ball placement, trjectory, and knowing which throws to rifle and which to arc still left lots of yards (Hartline pass needn't have been rifled... could have led him with a soft touch arc) and TDs (possibly Fasano, twice location and flat trajectory bullets from Henne made it harder for Fasano to catch ball) on the field.
What? Have you looked at this roster? We’re built to be a high scoring team. The third best WR and second best slot WR in the NFL, a TE who’s supposed to be top 12, an OL that does very well at pass protection, and two RBs who can catch. This team ought to be scoring in the 30s consistently, not sitting on 2 point leads like it’s the final drive of the Super Bowl.
I believe that Henne calls two plays in the huddle. You see him screaming "kill, kill" a lot of the times, so that makes me believe that he gets two plays to choose from under the center.
You don't want to 1 v 1 Marshall? With the way the board acts, I figured you wanted to take a shot. I guess I don't understand what you're talking about... Bess is extremely talented. He makes plays. Who's talking about checkdowns? Wishful thinking? Ricky made three clutch plays at the end of the game. You said you hadn't seen him change a game since 04. I proved you wrong and then you complain I'm giving an example from last year? You said talent, not playmakers. The offense does have above average talent. With the exception of the interior line, TE, and QB, we have talent/playmakers at skill positions.
I agree..... but at the same time he needs to trust that Marshall is one of the elite WRs in the league who can allow us to score more points early on etc etc. It's stressful for an offense to have compete 60 minutes/game all season long at a such a high level. The offense needs some games where they can relax a bit and let the defense dismantle an opponent who's trying to play from a multiple score deficit. It's difficult to create turnovers etc when we're not putting a ton of pressure on offenses to force plays etc. We need to amp up the aggressiveness a bit early on to create some of this breathing room.
While I am certainly happy with the win. I am still concerned with the inability of the Dolphins to score more than one touchdown against a defense as bad as the Bengals. The play calling once the Dolphins get inside the Red Zone is terrible. Also, would someone please explain to me why in the heck the Dolphins went to the, "Wildcat", offense in the fourth quarter? The team was moving the ball just fine in their base offense. Henning going to the ,"Wildcat", made no sense at all. The reason for the win today was because of the play of the defense. This is one game the Dolphins won in spite of the lousy play calling of Dan Henning.
well.... we won so we obviously made "some" plays...... although I agree we're short on talent in some areas that definitely need to be upgraded.
I did. I made a beer run and came back with a beautiful six-pack. Though I almost settled for a field goal instead.
While you're mostly right, we do have two big issues - our execution sucks. There's always something going wrong to kill a play or a drive. It's a drop or it's an inaccurate ball or it's a penalty or it's batted at the line. Secondly, our running backs, while able to catch the ball, are completely unable to do anything with it after the catch. I don't know why, but this team runs the worst screens in the NFL and has for years. Even on checkdowns in the flat, plays get stopped almost immediately after the catch because Ricky and Ronnie just aren't getting it done in the open field.
Exactly. People are still living off of last year. Look at the personnel and tell me how our personnel is set up to be a running team? Our O-Line? Top 3 in pass blocking this year, mediocre in run blocking. Our RB's? Both are weapons in the passing game. Sadly, our incompetent OC doesn't realize it. Funny how Ronnie was leading the league in yards from scrimmage before his knee injury when we actually used him in the passing game in 2007. I'd take Cam Cameron back as an OC in a heartbeat. Is it our WR's? No, because we have 2 very good WR's, and Hartline makes plays also. Fasano is decent, though we do need to improve there. Is it the QB? Nope. Henne is a gunslinger, not a checkdown champion like Pennington. Too bad our incompetent OC doesn't realize this, hence why we're last in the NFL in passing attempts down the field. Get with the times people, this is not a power running offense anymore.
Hartline's pass was rifled to allow him to catch the ball on the run and tack on yards. Plus it was downfield, not a 5 yard out. An arch on it ends the play where it's caught or even worse- leaves room for an INT. IMO It was a perfect pass, and there's zero excuse for dropping it at the NFL level. Nobody needed to make excuses for Elway's or Favre's lasers down field that had even more zip on them.
Clark, here is my point. If you had to start a team today...... Where would Davone Bess rank in your WR pool for a slot receiver? Where would Brian Hartline rank in your WR pool for a number 2 receiver? Where would Anthony Fasano rank in your TE pool? Where would Ronnie Brown rank in your RB pool? Where would Ricky Williams rank in your RB pool? ......and most importantly Where would Chad Henne rank in your QB pool? If you add all of that up I think you will see a similar picture. It's an average offense at the skill positions.
CHARLOTTE – For years, Dan Henning was hammered by Carolina Panthers fans for being far too conservative in his play calling. Well, look at him now. Henning runs one of the most difficult offensive schemes to defend in the NFL as offensive coordinator of the Miami Dolphins, despite lacking terrific offensive personnel outside of star running backs Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams. The Dolphins have so many gimmicks now it’s hard to keep up with them all, but it’s not unusual for Henning to line up a running back at quarterback and run a double reverse before having a wide receiver throwing deep to his quarterback, who was initially lined up as a receiver. Huh? Yeah, that’s exactly what a lot of defense are left thinking. To put things in perspective, Brown has thrown six passes this season -- although he will not play Thursday night due to an ankle injury. So what happened, did Henning undergo a metamorphosis after getting fired by the Panthers after the 2006 season and sitting out a year? Hardly. The reality is Henning has a brilliant football mind, but his hands were a bit tied when it came to his creativeness in play calling since everything had to go through conservative coach John Fox. How often has Fox allowed his coaches to call a double reverse pass? That’s something that isn’t an issue for Henning in Miami. When Dolphins vice president of football operations Bill Parcells asked Henning to come out of retirement last year, he gave him full control of play calling. And while Dolphins coach Tony Sparano admits he’ll lend some input during the week, he basically stays out of Henning’s ever- thinning white hair on game day. “I have all the trust in the world in Dan on game day to let him do his thing,” Sparano said. “One of the things I learned as a play caller is the head coach getting in the way sometimes or too many chefs in the kitchen, so to speak, that can be a problem. I like to stay out of the way of Dan as much as possible.” Henning wasn’t available to be interviewed this week, but his body of work speaks for itself. One of his go-to plays has become the “Wildcat” in which Brown or Williams lines up at quarterback for a direct snap. It’s something Henning used here in Carolina back in December of 2006 in a game against Atlanta. With Jake Delhomme injured and backup Chris Weinke barely able to throw the ball, the Panthers lined up DeAngelo Williams at quarterback. He took about a dozen direct snaps and ran into the line, repeatedly picking up first downs. It wasn’t pretty, but the Panthers won the game 10-3. The Panthers ran it a few more times the following week in the season finale against New Orleans and won again to finish 8-8, but Henning was fired a few weeks later, made to look the scapegoat for, truth be told, a struggling offense that was riddled with injuries. When Henning returned to coach the Dolphins last year, he teamed with quarterbacks coach David Lee and began working on making the Wildcat a fixture in the team’s offense. The Dolphins unveiled it early last season in a Week 3 game against rival New England. When Brown lined up at quarterback, the Patriots were confused and Brown wound up running for three touchdowns and throwing for another in a 38-13 rout of the Patriots at Gillette Stadium. Afterward, New England defensive lineman Vince Wolfolk said, "It was shocking. We really didn't know what they were doing." From then on the Wildcat has become a mainstay of the Dolphins offense and has advanced into some plays that look like they’re drawn up on a playground. “Dan is a heck of a football coach,” said Delhomme, who keeps in touch with the guy who helped put him on the NFL map in 2003. “Sometimes things happen. I think John has a ton of respect for Dan as a coach… He's a good football coach, a very smart man. Certainly, I do miss him, but that's coaching. Sometimes things just don't mesh at certain times, but that's coaching.” When asked if he’s surprised by the offense Henning now leads, Delhomme said, “I think it's personnel. I keep saying, it's good plays, but they have to be executed correctly.” Looking back, Sparano is amazed at what the Wildcat has grown into in Miami, as well as around the league. Even the Panthers have run it on occasion this season after not doing so their previous two seasons under Henning’s replacement Jeff Davidson. “I wasn’t sure if it would last one play at the time,” Sparano laughed when thinking back to his team’s Wildcat debut. “We rolled it out there against New England and you kind of had your fingers crossed that it was going to be just the right alignment and you were going to get to see what you wanted to see. But the thing has taken on a life of its own right now in this league. It’s interesting. Everybody looks at each other’s stuff and it’s interesting to see some of the people running it.” The good news for the Panthers is the Dolphins will be without Brown, who sprained an ankle in Sunday’s win over Tampa Bay. Although Williams has run out of the Wildcat formation, Brown is the guy the offense revolves around. “We have to go in in some situations with the thought of not being in it as much or if any at all,” Sparano admitted. “Ricky has been back there and handled some of those situations, but some of younger players have not.” Still, defensive tackle Damione Lewis isn’t buying into it. He said Tuesday after practice he planned to go home and watch game film of the Dolphins until about 11 p.m. because there are so many things to prepare for and having a short week to do so makes it even more difficult. “Since their offense is not very conventional it’s tough to prepare for,” Lewis said. “It’s looks that we won’t see again all year. It’s going to be a lot of film study. Guys are going to have to go the extra mile to get a feel for them… They have so many different things they do out of the Wildcat it’s going to be a long week of film study.” http://www.carolinagrowl.com/index....-with-a-much-larger-playbook&catid=1:articles Miami coach Tony Sparano and assistant David Lee get plenty of credit for making the wildcat a much-copied NFL sensation. Offensive coordinator Dan Henning had little trouble making it work — perhaps because he first used direct snaps to running backs when directing Carolina's offense in 2006. It's a story that's often forgotten when the formation's rise to prominence is discussed. “Dan added his two cents into the mix when we started talking about it a little bit and drawing up for our preseason stuff,” Sparano said. “He did mention at that time that it was something (the Panthers) did.” It's with that backdrop that the Dolphins (4-5) and Panthers (4-5) meet Thursday night in a critical game for their renewed playoff hopes. The main component of Miami's wildcat, running back Ronnie Brown, won't play because of a foot injury. But that only makes the Panthers more nervous in a short week. What will Henning, fired by Carolina in 2006 amid criticism he was too conservative, cook up to make up for Brown's absence? Will Ricky Williams line up in that formation? What about rookie Pat White? Will they not use it all? “I have all the trust in the world of Dan on game day to let him do his thing,” Sparano said. “One of the things I learned as a play caller was that the head coach can get in the way sometimes. People in your ear, too many chefs in the kitchen, that can be a problem. I like to stay out of the way of Dan as much as possible.” That wasn't the case with the Panthers. Conservative coach John Fox limited what Henning could do. Many felt Henning was made the scapegoat after a miserable 2006 season — even after his inventive way to win a game late that season. Jake Delhomme was hurt and backup Chris Weinke was hampered by an injured throwing shoulder. Henning lessened Weinke's load by occasionally putting DeAngelo Williams behind center against Atlanta. The then-rookie picked up first downs on seven of eight third-down carries. The Panthers threw seven passes all game and won 10-3. A month later, Henning was gone, and the Panthers have used the wildcat sparingly since. “He's a good football coach, a very smart man,” Delhomme said. “I do miss him, but that's coaching. Sometimes things just don't mesh at certain times.” After a year out of football, Henning returned to work for buddy Bill Parcells, unveiling double-reverse passes by running backs that Fox never would have signed off on as the Dolphins won the AFC East last season. The Panthers, with Jeff Davidson calling plays in their run-first approach, won a division title, too. Both teams got off to 0-3 starts this year before winning four of their next six to put them back on the edge of the playoff picture. “Mirror images, both had double-digit wins last year and they're just trying to get back to .500,” Delhomme said of the first Thursday game in Carolina's 15-year history. “We're doing some decent things and we've got to see if we can carry it over.” Carolina veered from its play-it-safe approach a bit Sunday, using a no-huddle offense that produced two touchdown passes to Steve Smith in a 28-19 win over the Falcons. Delhomme went turnover-free for the third straight game after 13 interceptions in his first six. But the Panthers lost left tackle Jordan Gross to a broken ankle, causing them to shuffle the offensive line. Delhomme hinted that might lead to ditching the no-huddle. Sparano said maybe Brown's injury will mean no wildcat, too. Or, with only three days of preparation time, maybe both teams are already running misdirection plays. “You have to recover from a game pretty quickly,” Dolphins linebacker Jason Taylor said. “I'm not 25 anymore.” Joey Porter is expected to line up with Taylor at linebacker Thursday after he was a healthy scratch in Sunday's uncomfortably close 25-23 win over Tampa Bay. But how much he'll play is uncertain after replacements Charlie Anderson and Cameron Wake combined for two sacks. The Panthers will play their second game without weakside linebacker Thomas Davis, lost for the season with a torn knee ligament. The Panthers were helped Sunday when Michael Turner left with a second-quarter ankle injury after already rushing for 111 yards. Now Carolina faces the NFL's fourth-ranked rushing offense without Brown. Ricky Williams rushed for 102 yards in his place Sunday and is averaging 5.3 yards a carry despite being 32. He's taken some snaps in the wildcat, but Brown's injury could mean more time for White. “It's good to have that kind of backup at the running back position, so we aren't going to change our package,” quarterback Chad Henne said. It might be tweaked a little bit, though. Henning, who declined interview requests this week, may have a few surprises for the team that didn't give him much freedom, then sent him packing. “Dan Henning, he was good for us because he knew how to take the personnel and craft plays around what he had,” Panthers receiver Muhsin Muhammad said. “That's what he's doing in Miami. He crafted this style, trick plays, wildcat and all this different stuff.” http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2009/nov/18/panthers-wary-of-dolphins-old-coordinator-henning/ I think its a accumulation of things that have got us to this point. The first mistake we made was firing Henning. We all Forget how much Dan Henning lobbied for Steven Davis and Jake Delhomme in 2003. He was the driving force that brought both of them there. Thats how the war room works in Carolina. Everyone gets an input. He never ran a wide open offense but he was great at feeding the beast and finding ways to do that. It really didnt matter if that was Davis,Smith, or Moose he was going to find a way to get you the ball. The second problem is that after firing Henning we went to Davidson who was really not lighting the boards up in Cleveland. Yes Weis was high on him but lest be frank. The Pats under Weis won with Defense and a Smart QB. So being a prodigy of that is not all a great thing. With this hiring we some how found a way to not have a wide open playbook and not to feed the beast. Davidson rarely picks on a teams weakness or tries to get his star players open. Its left to them to get open by talent not mismatches. Lastly our QBs has suffered not so much as not having a vet but not having a competent QB coach. I cant even spell his name and to tell you the truth he dose not deserve my time to try. He has effectively ruined 4 QBs. Derick Anderson,Brady Quin, Jake Delhomme, and Matt Moore. Now that quite a list.... http://www.carolinahuddle.com/forum...g-letting-go-the-vets-is-a-big-problem-6.html I have hardly ever posted on here, just mostly read the posts but I want to add something to this because I'm just as upset about our Offense. I remember the Henning days and watching the Davidson days now, there is VERY little difference between the playcalling. My wife is a Dolphins fan and I watch with her when my boys are not playing and Henning is putting together GOOD offensive stratagies each week. Things we never saw here when he was here. He is taking advantage of the talent in Miami. But Davidson stratagy looks the same as before he arrived. In short John Fox needs to let the OFFENSIVE CORDINATOR be just that!!! I blame Fox for our offense period. Fox needs to realise that Moose, Ricky, Davis and the Fat Cats are not in Carolina any more and adjust to the TALENT we have here. http://www.carolinahuddle.com/forum/47722-actual-evidence-for-firing-jeff-2.html
Because he's mostly to blame, being he is the playcaller. It's also because he's been mediocre to terrible since he's been here, and was mediocre in Carolina as well. I've seen his offense for 8 years now, I know the type of playcaller he is, and it's an ineffective one, at best.
Wrong! Our execution doesn't suck. We scored 6 times today. That's far from sucky. What sucks is our conservative OC doesn't allow us the best opportunity to convert all of our quality drives into TDs.
ricky, hartline, bess, henne, marshall they all made plays to win the game, even fasano had his moments, tough to ask that question when we rolled up 354 yards on offense
we have two pro bowlers on offense...marshall and long. after that we have a very good slot guy in bess, an improving but inconsistent QB, a good ROT, two average RBs, a good pass blocking intgerior OL but poor run blocking interior oline. what in heaven makes you think our personnell should be scoring 30 points a game? we would be the 2009 saints if we did that
Yeah but they're not going to throw a jump ball to Marshall when he's double covered, like he always seems to be.
1. Obviously Henning wasn't good for them being they consistently finished bottom half in the NFL in total offense during his tenure, and their 7th ranked offense in 2008 was better than any offense Henning put out. 2. Post says nothing about Henning being a good OC. Only that getting Davidson was a mistake, and that he's a terrible OC. Didn't see any other post in that thread mention Henning being a good OC. 3. I can cherry pick 1 or 2 opinions contradicting this post too if you'd like. He says Henning is calling the same plays as in Carolina. Probably explains why they were mediocre to bad offensively during his tenure in Carolina, and mediocre to bad during his tenure here. Good offensive strategies? Safe to say he hasn't seen very many Dolphins games, as good offensive strategies usually don't result in being 23rd in PPG. They usually don't result in an inability to score TD's. And they usually don't result in all the embarrassing playcalls he's called since being here.
We are in max protection on every passing play. Our O-line? How about our O-line, two running backs and TE. That's what YOU don't realize until you want to criticize Henning for having only 2 routes out on a play action pass. That sure was a STAT MONKEY moment. We lost every game but ONE! Is it too difficult to determine that we were behind in EVERY game and the other team was just chewing the clock ALLOWING US runs, screens, and checkdowns to the back. Hartline makes plays. Is that like a "She's cute in the face" moment? http://www.nfl.com/videos/miami-dolphins/09000d5d81b14344/Patriots-defense-INT-TD http://www.nfl.com/videos/miami-dolphins/09000d5d81b139bb/Patriots-defense-INT http://www.nfl.com/videos/miami-dolphins/09000d5d81b135fd/Patriots-defense-INT http://www.nfl.com/videos/miami-dolphins/09000d5d81b135d6/Patriots-defense-sack-5-yd-loss http://www.nfl.com/videos/miami-dolphins/09000d5d81b1422c/Patriots-defense-sack-7-yd-loss http://www.nfl.com/videos/miami-dolphins/09000d5d81b142d3/Patriots-defense-4th-down-failed That's all I needed to see...........
If I could fantasy draft a team, I wouldn't have many Dolphins period. I agree with Fasano, I agree with Hartline, and I agree with Henne (which is obvious, as I'm not a big fan of his). Let's be honest. If we had Peyton Manning, we're not having this discussion. Ronnie has been a huge disappointment this year. Ricky isn't a top 5 back anymore, but he's above average. He runs hard and well when he gets his shot, IMO. Not great, not terrible. I would say he's above average. Bess is one of the best slot receivers in the NFL. Wes Welker is the only one better.
This answers just about every question someone should have about offensive production..........and it suddenly got quiet in here.
Again there's simply no speed. A top TE and a speedy RB would do wonders. Admittedly though they do place a heavy amount of pressure on the WRs to get open considering how many guys they leave to protect. It is effective though, that I have no doubt. This offense could score 30 on teams like the Bengals, Steelers, Jets, and pretty much all defenses with some small personnel changes or strategy changes. They're probably one top threat away. A Vincent Jackson, that type of guy.
1. Good point. Hadn't even mentioned the max protect, and having only a couple people running routes. That being said, even when we're not in max protect, our O-Line does a great job in pass protect. not so much in run blocking. While I'm at it, there's also the play actions on 3rd and long. Oh, and from this game, no RB on a 3rd and 2. Senile Dan at his finest. 2. Ronnie was dominant. And that allowing us to get yards based on being 1-15 is what I'd expect from someone who didn't watch the games. 4 of the 7 he played in were close games, 3 of them being us losing by 3. He had 606 yards from scrimmage in those 4 games. Fact of the matter is, Henning has not used Ronnie in the passing game, even though that's one of his biggest strengths. No surprise coming from a Senile OC. 3. He sure does. Made plays for us last year, hence why he was the starter at the beginning of the season. Made some plays this year, though has been inconsistent. Heck, he's a big reason for our win today. 4. No, it's a Fasano is a decent pass catcher moment. Video 1 - Interception was all on Marshall. Not sure what you're point is? Video 2 - He didn't respect the LB and made a bad a decision. Still not getting your point. Video 3 - Again, didn't respect the LB's ability to cover and got burned. Still not getting your point. Video 4 - Everyone covered, coverage sack. Still not getting your point. Video 5 - Laughable decision by Henning to have a FB block a LB one on one, and got Henne killed. Similar to that same terrible decision the week prior putting Polite one on one with JT, same result. Still not getting your point. Video 6 - A screen with no blockers. Henning has run maybe 3 successful screens since he's gotten here, but I'm sure that's all on execution, and not the fact that he's senile. 6 videos in, and still haven't gotten your point, especially based on the part of my post you quoted from me. Henne isn't a checkdown QB, yet Senile Dan is trying to turn him into one. If we're lucky, he'll retire before he ruins Henne's development completely.
Why does it? Henning's offenses don't produce points, and big numbers, hasn't here, didn't in Carolina, and fantasy is all about big numbers.
Oh no........ I didn't ask about fantasy. I asked about drafting a team today. Where would our players rank on YOUR big board?
