4-12 wouldn't do it. Let's do a quick look at the Luck race. Indy will probably win 2 games. Seattle will win about 3-5 games. KC will win about 3 games. St. Louis will win 1 or 2 games. CK I know you're high on Luck, I think we could turn an offense around for him in one off-season. One FA guard, a 2nd round RT, a RB, and a 3rd round receiving TE. Have to be optimistic about that.
I agree with Desides that 4 wins is a high water mark. A lot of people keep saying, look at the 2007 roster versus this roster, of course we're better. But that's hindsight working in your favor. The 2007 roster didn't look like the 2007 roster in 2007. Remember when Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila was a valid backup pass rusher? Remember when Cameron Worrell was a special teams maven that could serve as a 'solid' backup safety? Remember when Paul Soliai was awesome in his first preseason as a pro and helped limit preseason running backs to only about 3.0 yards per carry? Look out on the field today. Look at who was playing out there. Tell me what you saw. I saw Reshad Jones, Marvin Mitchell, Jason Trusnik, Marc Colombo, Nolan Carroll, Lex Hilliard and Phil Merling. All of these guys will be lucky if they make an NFL roster in 2012, let alone when we're looking back on them in 2015. You can sub out the 2007 QB situation with Trent Green's brains being one hit away from "scrambled eggs" and Cleo Lemon/John Beck behind him, to Chad Henne taking so many hits he's just as likely to get hurt as Trent was, and Matt Moore/Pat Devlin behind him. Same difference. Sub the injury prone but exciting Ronnie Brown for the injury prone but exciting Daniel Thomas. Sub Reggie Bush for Samkon Gado. No, please, sub him, someone, if you have the power...I think Samkon would be better right now. Disturbing traits on this team in how they find ways to lose, how they show no willingness to 'get up' for games on behalf of pride or their coach...which I kept pointing out they actually showed last year in Week 17. Bad teams get injured. Bill Walsh used to say that if you're not a football player that is on the attack and is attacking your opponent, you're the kind of football player that gets attacked and you're going to be in the training room. We have a lot of guys in the training room. Bad conditioning, totally unable to finish games, no pride, their strongest links are playing down to the talent of their weakest links instead of their weakest links playing up to the level of their strongest links. The team and its players as humans have acclimated to their environment and they are playing to the level of the team around them, which is bad. Suck for Luck is on. It can't be helped. They really only need to tank a couple of games for it to be a very real possibility, considering their schedule. They have to play a lot of teams that are just plain better than they are, and this team has shown that it is incapable of playing purely for pride. They were put in that situation a year ago and look what happened, Week 17. Now they're already in that situation by Week 6. The only hope they have in the Meadowlands is if they play out of pure hatred/jealousy of the Jets...trying to be spoilers. I hope not. I want them to lose.
Spot on. After watching Henne get hurt on a play that was obviously with 2 guys not on the same page, with our secondary looking lost, and just overall lackluster effort from all but a few, it eerily reminded me of the 1-15 season. As in deja vu reminded me of that season. I've seen that movie before, and don't want to watch the crappy sequel that is currently playing in theaters right now, but unfortunately we already paid the price of admission. I can never root against the Dolphins, however I realized after last weeks loss against the Browns, each win is going to hurt us. Is the #1 pick going to right the wrongs? Of course not. However it will take care of the most important position in football for the next 15 years (hopefully).
We'll see tomorrow. I think things could turn around a little with Curtis Painter in at QB. It's not that I buy on his talent but I do buy on the talent he's surrounded with on that team, and I think their system is geared heavily toward the things that Peyton Manning does in terms of pace and calls at the line. All that stopped when Kerry Collins ran the system, and when you strip the offense of that stuff then I think what you have left is really a highly uninteresting offensive system, very Henning-like. Curtis Painter can add some of those layers back to the system, or at least so I speculate. It might not be pretty right away, but if they stick with it, in that division they should be able to get some wins. I'm just wonder, what REALLY makes you assume the Colts are going to have a worse record than we will? Do you think they're a worse team? Why? Are you sure that's not the Miami homer in each one of us speaking? The Colts have a much easier schedule than we do, they should be able to luck into more wins than we will even if they're not more talented than us. I'm just curious. That's a team that still has guys like Reggie Wayne, Austin Collie, Dallas Clark, Jeff Saturday, Dwight Freeney, Robert Mathis, etc. Their QB situation isn't even necessarily worse than ours. And their RB situation is probably better, as is the OL. I guess you could argue that their defense is worse than ours but that team also remembers what it's like to be a winner.
Quite frankly, rooting against the Dolphins is the same in my eyes as rooting for them. Their BEST chance, for the short term and long term, is to lose as many games as possible this season.
I think the best way to settle this and flat out dedicate the team to losing would be Cameron Wake being traded. He goes and that defense is really in a tough situation. I can see some players going onto an early IR on the defensive side especially. I know Desides is certainly against it, but if you're going to lose, lose. Don't leave any chances.
I'm not all about selling Cam Wake at fire sale value, which is usually below-market. Nor Brandon Marshall. I think Brandon makes a much more attractive asset for trade in a situation where we're trying to trade up with a team that has a pick higher than us, has a QB they could continue on with, but also could move on and grab an Andrew Luck, Matt Barkley, Landry Jones or even RG3. Think about that situation. Say the Vikings or Rams are choosing #1 overall. Do they sell out on Ponder/Bradford for Luck? Maybe. But also maybe you can talk them out of that by packaging picks/players together. Wouldn't a Pro Bowl #1 caliber WR be a tempting asset to acquire if you're one of those teams, especially the Rams who have zero receiving talent (just about)? Or maybe those teams say screw this, we're taking Luck/Barkley/Jones/Griffin, and we're going to sell Ponder/Gabbert/Bradford...might you want to acquire one of those? Wouldn't it be tempting for them to surround Luck/Barkley/Jones/Griffin with talented weapons like Marshall? I think you keep both players. And I would TEND to keep Randy Starks. But like I said last week I'd look for the opportunity to bench/trade a Yeremiah Bell...Marc Colombo...Vernon Carey...etc.
So then what does it matter if you're rooting FOR them? If they're gonna lose, they're gonna lose no matter how you root. Wouldn't you rather root FOR your team and lose than root against your team and lose? If we end up in position for Luck, then we end up in position for Luck..... but if I die in a car accident 4 months from now and never get to see another season, I don't want to go out having rooted against my team.
I agree that which way I cheer has no effect on the team's standing. What will happen, will happen. Whether you root for them to win the games or lose the games is a personal choice about what would make you feel good as a fan, or whatever you call yourself. I want what is best for the Dolphins, and I am convinced that every loss gets them closer to what is best for them. Therefore, every step closer to that goal that they take, makes me feel good about where they are heading. It wouldn't really matter if I don't live to see tomorrow because what they did today made me feel good that they're on the right path. Similarly, you can choose to cheer for them to win as much as they can this year, and when they win you'll feel good, but you could still die before they go to the Super Bowl as a result of their winning. So why cheer for wins then? Why not just wait until you see whether they get to the Super Bowl? And then why not wait to see if they win it, before cheering?
It's making my head hurt. Will be so much easier if we just go 2-14. I won't be rooting against them, just not cheering. I'm watching to see how rookies play at this point for the future. I would like one of those wins to be on MNF vs the Jets though. Sending the Jets in a downward spiral would be a nice consolation in a ****ty season. After that I don't really care, just indifferent.
There are no guarantees. Luck could stay for another year college, get hurt, wilt under the pressure of the expectations he is going to be under, refuse to play on the east coast, drop off the grid and live in a commune, etc... One of the other QBs could really step in up at the next level and be the true best QB in the draft. Marino was what? The fifth QB taken his draft? No one had Rogers above Smith. Brady was a 6th rounder. I cannot see cheering for Dolphin loses. Why be a fan?
I'm a huge fan of this team... I've watched Dolphin games since I was a little kid with my dad. I've endured the same **** we all have. I'm going to watch every game this season no matter the record, just like in 2004 and 2007. And if being bad and losing games can help us get the highest possible draft pick, which will in turn allow us pick of the litter, then I'm OK. The season is over and we're now competing for the future. I want to win... I just recognize the value of losing today to win tomorrow. And Maybe Luck does bust (Or Barkley, Jones, RG3, whoever we get) but I want Miami to do something not done since 1983.... Invest in the future. And maybe that will be enough to lure a good coach to Miami (Jon Gruden is my choice) and some good personnel guys too. At this point, my Superbowl is MNF against the Jets. That's really the only game I want badly.
The roster is looking worse and worse, it's true. The team is bad, plays badly, is conditioned badly, prepares badly, and has the bad luck that follows those sorts of teams around (including injuries). I genuinely hope they continue losing to seal Sparano and Ireland's fates, and be in position to draft a franchise QB. You were right about hits to Henne crumpling him.
Agree, but can't they at least be interesting to watch ? I mean they are just even awful to watch, they got to be the most boring team ever.
I wouldn't be against trading Wake at his real value. At least a mid first rounder. However that will not happen. You can't trade Marshall. Especially if you end up with a rookie QB like Luck. Having a target like Marshall can only help him develop, drops or not.
That's the thing though, drafting high isn't as important as drafting well. Henne has had one WTF throw this year. His pick against the Chargers. He's had some other throws that he missed, but he's made some great throws too. While he hasn't done enough to win, he's not the reason we have lost. He's been solidly average. The team is not very good, it's not even average. It doesn't matter who your QB is when your team isn't even average. Marino couldn't win a superbowl with teams that were average. Luck doesn't mean superbowls. If Ireland stays it doesn't matter who coaches, or QBs IMO. I'm so over the front office. He's hit on a few draft choices, but he's missed on some huge ones. Would Dez Braynt or Earl Thomas make this team better than Misi and Odrick right now? How about almost anyone over White or Merling? Those were first and second round picks. Hows that O-line looking after all of the attention we've given it? Free agency, trades, basically talent acquisition as a whole... the team sucks. Look at this thread, Henne was getting beat up. Any QB would have been. I'm going to go into each game hoping and cheering for a win. There won't be many, but I cannot watch a game and wish for a lose. Why watch? Just grab the box scores and do something else with your weekend. I know some will say, "but if we lose the more likely it is that we see real change." Look, the team is what it is. If Ross cannot see what's going on now, nine more loses won't change that.
I would replace possible with necessary! Seems like 5 potential Franchise QBs could be had....Luck, Barkley, Jones, Griffin and Moore. I dont want or wish to go 0-16 for the sake of going 0-16 when thats not necessary. I will be happy when our first Victory is secured before I begin to really think about draft positioning.
