Well, Wayne Huizenga has apparently said that he thought going .500 (8-8) was something to aspire to for the Dolphins this year. Obviously, Coach Sparano has surpassed that handsomely by posting a surprisingly high 0.688 winning percentage (11-5). But those familiar with Tony Sparano's head coaching career numbers from his time in the college ranks may not be as surprised. While college numbers should be taken with a grain of salt, as it is much easier to rack up wins in college than in the NFL, Tony Sparano's head coaching record while with the New Haven Chargers (Div II) was 41-14-1, for an impressive winning percentage of .732 over five years. In NFL terms that would be 11.7 wins per NFL season (who said the best predictor of future success way past performance?). While some coaches, such as Nick Saban and Butch Davis (or even Pete Carroll), have been masters of their domain in the college ranks, they have also struggled to match their success in the NFL. It's a good sign that Sparano's ability to coach a team has translated well to the NFL level. Of course, it has only been one season, and time will tell if Sparano is all-that and a bag of chips (for instance, we will see Tony's true coaching abilities if Chad Pennington ever goes down). Nonetheless, I think what we have here is a good football coach whose technical X's and O's, personnel management, and intangibles will make him a solid, consistent NFL coach for years to come. Note, though, that Tony never won a title for New Haven, despite making the playoffs twice in 5 years. Let's see how his teams perform in the post-season at the NFL level. Thoughts?
I think hes the closest we will ever have to another Shula....and I dont throw that around lightly. I truly think he is THAT GOOD.
The next two years bring tougher schedules and possibly the development of Henne as the future when Penny gets old or goes down with shoulder issues. I'm personally hoping we have seasons as good as the early 70s. We have solid quarterbacking, a good pair of RBs, a developing speedster at WR and a decent defense. The tools are there. Go Dolphins!
Objectively (lookout here it comes) Tony Sparano was very very lucky this season, we had a few key injuries, and guys who rarely played 16 games, played 16 games at a high level, Pennington and Y Bell come to mind. In the personnel moves department, one of the keys to our success: 1. Dallas gave away our starting ILB and Te 2. The Jets gave away our Starting Qb 3. Davone Bess cost us -0- 4. Special Teams Daemon Erik Walden was a cut from the Chiefs 5. Any Alleman was a cut from the Saints. Now where Sparano and the Staff excelled was in using cast offs to win a Division Crown, that is one of the signs of a very very Good Head Coach, Sparano didn't whine about "my guys are injured or ineffective". And unlike Cam, Sparano had the nuances down after the 3rd game, we've had no Game Clock episodes, we've had no failure to throw the red flag where the Refs could see it (lil Nicky) and we've had no "If I bring another guy in, Henne will be ruined" ala WannyStache. Tony Sparano is a winner, now it is up to the System we have in place to keep him winning, if we lose assistants, we have to have replacements in mind, if we lose a Coordinator, we have to find guys to replace them as well. How much time was wasted messing around with the Gailey's the Mularkey's and Linehan's of the world? Bottom line, Sparano should be fine long term, I'm not ready to pull out the Next Shula tag...yet...but of all the Head Coaches we've since 1995, he comes the closest to Shoes in style and effects, when he told Denny during the game "That's twice"...maybe a younger Shula would have done that..
I'll have you know that my favorite player was John "Bull" Bramlett. He gave me linebacking tips, and grabbed me in a bear hug and picked me up after I told him to bring it. Anyway, it was Bull that was traded for Nick Buoniconti, so I lost my favorite guy, but we sure made out on the deal.
Thanks Marty, I've been thinking about next season...alot...I'm dying to see if we keep the team more or less intact and just tweak it, which is what the Browns did, or if we try to upgrade some positions even more Do we keep our old Secondary intact? Draft a #3 CB who can cover all over the field, something we haven't had since Will Poole blew out his knee? Rely on Donald Thomas next season, or draft more interior linemen? This offseason will be fascinating, and give us an insight into how our Front Office thinks, we can find better athletes at some spots, but are they willing to do that? And would Sparano give his chop on those moves? We've tasted success, Strategy was successfully implemented, now what is the Strategy for next season? Many of our key guys (Porter, W. Allen, Goodman, Roth, YBell, Holiday, Crowder) are still Nick Saban players, IMO, "us" fans overlook that a bit too much.
yea, he arrived with it from Denver, but he had another one, "Meanest man in football" we traded him to NE where he made the probowl. He was actualy drafted into baseball first but got thrown out for getting into trouble.
I agree that we'll see his coaching talent challenged more when key cpgs go down (like Belichick had this year). That said, establishing a good offseason conditioning program, and not coaching and playing 'scared' helps avoid injuries on gameday. Guys who do not prepare their bodies, or who play tentatively on the field often end up injured. Also, if you have a corporate executive whose division becomes more productive and profitable, we don;t say they were 'lucky' their workers performed better... we say they obviously managed them better and thus got more productivity out of them. Tony Sparano is great at inspiring and motivating players to be their best. That is a huge part of being a great head coach. So, when these players begin 'overperforming', I immediately say "Great job, Tony." To this I would say... 1) No one thought these were Pro Bowlers on their way here, so, again, they were good parts of a team puzzle which Tony got the most out of. Also, credit to the front office here. Their good job helps Tony do his job. The 'team' effort here includes the front office. 2) Chad Pennington could have signed with anoyone he wanted. You know, when a hot chick decides to become someone's girlfriend, other guys often look at him and say "Why did she choose (him(? What's so great about him?" We never say, "Oh, she must have randomly chosen him, total luck." Free agents as smart as Chad sign with clubs where they like the coaching staff, system, philosophy and people. Especially a guy like Chad, who went through years of having an unsupportive head coach who then trash-piled him. I absolutely believe Chad weighed Parcells, Ireland and Sparano (plus Sparano;s choice of Henning as OC) into his decision to come here/ It was not a coin flip. When you build something good, other people want to get invovled with you. I credit the regime and Tony for being an appealing place to work for Chad. 3) Credit Front Office... but by the same light, then, blame them for landing Wilford in Sparano's l;ap as the #1WR. Also credit the coaching staff for having the recognition and balls to play the UDFA over the $6 million veteran, and for having the coaching ability to help a rookie adjust this quickly to the NFL. Again, a coaching sdtaff that SParano picked (with the exception of David Lee, QB coach, who preceded Tony). 4) Tons of players are cut all the time, and it being the norm I can;t say it provided some extraordinary mitigating circumstance that lessens the normal coaching situation Sparano was in. We could simply credit the Front Office for finding him.... but why were they looking in the first place? Because week after week Tony said that the Special Temas players were not performing well enough, and he CUT people, and then said if they wouldn;t do the job they'd find someone who WOULD. The Front Office found a great ST player, but Tony SParano was the one who decided if he was satisfied with his players and clearly asked the Front Office to keep culling the Special TYemas guys. Cam Cameron, by contrast, lived with his dregs and then began using starters. Tony said he wouldn;t do that as it would eat into the starters 'pitch count' and wear them down, and that STs players had a role and WOULD fill it or be gone. Thus Walden. 4) See #3. Replace "Special Teams" with "Interior Line". Again, the Front Office was Room Service and Sparano was the once placing the orders from the menu in terms of what he needed to bolster, personnel wise. There are constabtly players available, I don;t see that as unusual, especially since ANY club could have picked them up. Also, we were sage enough to NOT pick up players like Ty Law when they seemed appealing (turned out to be a good decision as Andre Goodman turned it on down the stretch and Culver played well in Nickel AND Special Teams). Agreed. Continuity is SO important, especially on Offense. I hope Henning stays a few years. I mean, there is no substitute for 40 years of coaching experience. That's unbelievable knowledge. Assuming we can keep our co-ordinators long enough (and maybe until Pennington wants to become one? lol) I think Sparano and Ireland will keep this team winning. We are one more talent-influx away from being perennial contenders to go to the Superbowl, if all else stays the same. Remember, all these young players (including this upcoming year's 1st round and two 2nd round picks) will be improving over the next two years. The future is bright.
The Pats let themselves get old Bpk, all the Walter Payton conditioning in the world won't make up for that. Disagree, you need reproducable results, Sparano is a sharp, hard working guy, the problem is, in the NFL, "last year" means -0-...it's all about this year. Most NFL trades turn out poorly, that is a part of the reason so few are made, most of the time they end up like JT in DC for a #2...someone just gets hosed, so when two veteran starters come from a 4th round pick, you take notice. Chad P only knew Parcells and Henning, we were coming off of 1-15..even the Vikings would have been a better destination, he went with what he knew. Wilford must have looked really terrible in the preseason, he never really had a shot at playing, and we had a choice between Armstrong, Foster and Bess, we went with Bess...nice job of talent evaluation. I disagree with that, the real ST reshuffle didn't start until about week 4, and we didn't find Walden until week 9 maybe(?) and he was a midseason cut by the Chiefs, so we found an already cut guy who had played well for a time, then was cut, that would mean they watch film constantly. Not to mention Andy Alleman.. Our FO has the nose for the Scrap Heap talent Randy Mueller never quite had, I agree, that is a HUGE factor this season, Ireland and company have found "Rembrandts at yard sales" Strangely, in Dallas, they never quite did, they generally relied on the Draft and poaching practice squads, not street Free Agents. Heck, maybe Derek Smith leads us in tackles this Sunday? Culver had a key stick tackle against the Jets, but "looking at the menu" requires finding these guys, like the GM from "Major League" calling Charlie Sheen on the prison pay phone, were do you find these guys, unless they have some programme of film study or Scouts at semi pro games. I agree with that, Dorrel is a fmr Head Coach at UCLA, but Henning just calls a masterful game, let Karl learn under the Maestro. We don't know yet, even Randy Mueller had one great season as the Saints GM, we need reproducable results before we can say either way. Depends, we don't know what the Staff is seeing, we don't know what they feel is the ceiling for guys like Roth or Channing.. BTW, what has me psyched long term is the idea of we are not taking Street FA's and magically turning them into NFL players, the reason for the transformation is simply solid fundamental coaching, and accountability, THAT is reproducible. Andy Alleman ran a 4.69 40 at the Combine, this from a Guard, he has the talent, he just needed to be coached and take the coaching to heart, and he has, let's not forget, he had a grand total of 3 starts for the Saints, he is still a very young player, and he stepped in late in the year and just has played "well"...credit Sparano and Tony Maser...the Pats used to do that all the time with less then well thought off Olinemen.
Sparano has done enough this season that he should be our coach for years to come. We can't make the same mistake the Jets made with Mangini. First let me state that I think Sparano is twice the coach Mangini is or ever will be, but still. Mangini had a great first season and then struggled for two. Not a good reason to fire him, IMO. If Sparano's Dolphins were to struggle for a season or two as happened with Mangini, I would hope our ownership would not have the same knee jerk reaction. Even good coaches can have sub par seasons and with our schedule next season, Sparano's work will be cut out for him. But by his own admission, he doesn't shy away from challenges, he looks forward to them.
Sweetness was amazing. Running hills til the cows came home. Man, it was a pleasure and an honor to watch a man who took that much pride in what he did gird up on Sundays and run between the sidelines. Insofar as the Pats growing decrepitude, that's Belichick and Pioli's shared responsibility. That said, 11-5 ain't bad. Obviously the goal is reproducible results, but that doesn't mean a guy doesn;t get credit for an amazing overperofrmance of expectations in a year. It certainly puts a great onus on him proving it is repeatable, I agree. Still, credit where it's due... (now prove you can do it again). lol. Fortunately, Sparano looks forward to such 'challenges'. Tell me about it. AJ Feeley, Joey Harrington, Daunte Culpepper. ugh. I'd even argue that the Jared Allen trade and Roy Williams trades will not be worthwhile in the long run (unless the Vikings win a Superbowl this year). Certainly, but if he came in and met with the head coach and didn't like what he heard, he wouldn't have signed, imo. I would love to know what Karl Dorrell had to say as the season progressed about Hagan (for whom he had high praise in July and early August) versus Bess. The changing opinions would have been interesting to hear as time passed. I guess we signed Wilford before Dorrell was hired? It makes more sense to me if Karl 'inherited' Wilford as a guy he might not have seen coachability in than if Karl helped select and approve him, then could make nothing useful of him. So, not sure which part you disagree with, then. SParano said from early on that he would change personnel til he found someone who would get the job done. The Front office listened and kept flipping stones for as long as it took until Tony Sparano was satisfied. This is a key to our success. In many failed franchises the Front Office makes its own moves independently of the Head Coach *despite* the coach not wanting those players. Here, they work together and often the Front Office is being responsive to the coach's needs. They have done a great job this year. Well, the base talent level in Dallas set the bar a bit higher, perhaps? Or perhaps that would have been a hard approach to sell to Jerry Jones' ego? He loves big ticket items, or ones with cachet. It doesn;t say much to be picking your clothes out of the 'garbage dumpster' if you have vanity. Me, I don;t give a crap as long as they're good clothes. Davone Bess is a damned mink coat someone was stupid enough to throw away. Let's make a bet! Living in the shadow of UCLA, almost literally, I know a little of Dorrell. I'll reserve judgement on how good an NFL co-ordinator he'll be until I see it. I wasn;t impressed with him as UCLA's coach. He really has FAR less pedigree than Henning, and I don't think two more years uner Henning will be enough to change that. Also, I think the position a person played influences how they scheme their offense, and I'd rather see a former trenches guy (O-lineman) or former QB as an OC than a former wide receiver. I can;t see his style appreciating the blood and guts, three yards and a cloud of dust aspect of power football enough. Here's some local blogging about Dorrell while he was here: http://firekarldorrell.blogspot.com/ Anyways, color me unenthused about the idea of going from Henning to Dorrell any time before 2020 (in that amount of time, Henning would be able to impart enough wisdom to make Karl a reasonable facsimile of Henning himself). We'll know a lot more when we see what this staff does with Goodman, Crowder, Bell, Carey et al. Tony seems to love his players, but still be willing to make tough cuts to 'upgrade', and to concede salary cap value issues to Ireland/Parcells. We'll see which direction this roster heads. . It made me gleeful to hear Sparano *again* mention how critical it is, even at the END of the season, to be reinforcing fundamentals. I LOVE this man. Alleman has some upside, though I don;t know how much. I have had very little chance to watch him closley in his blocking work. He moves well, that's the best thing I can say about him. He doesn;t seem strong enough at the point of attack, though, for this team to run inside with any power. Donald Thomas may or may not turn out to be what everyone thinks, so I'd look for us to draft a hybrid Guard/Center who is stronger and less mobile to be the swing guard/compete with Thomas and Satele. It's obvious we need to bolster the depth at the inside O-line spots. Anyways, overall, glad to have a great, engaging discussion with you, padre. B.
Sparano was put in a very good position here in Miami. Ultimately, he came into a head coaching job for a team that had nothing to lose. Sitting at the bottom of the AFC east, Sparano would have had to muster only 5-6 wins this year to keep most people happy. Obviously he managed to do more than that. But what helped the most was, and it is a bit hard to say this, the fact that Jason Taylor and Zach Thomas were gone. For the first time in many years, we actually got to see what life was like after ZT and JT. Our coaches didn't have to keep some form of the old defense due to ZT and Jt, instead they really got to go to the drawing board and make their own defense. Which is what they did, and thats why porters been so successful this year. We saw it developing in preseason, our defense creating an image for itself that had nothing to do with Thomas or Taylor. It's also good that they're gone because the younger guys looked up to them, so much so that they would almost look down on the coaches if JT did. (a BIG part of what happened to cameron last year was that he never had respect from the vets, and thus he never got respect from anyone.) With those guys gone, Sparano walked into a lockerroom that belonged to him and he took control from the start. He was tough, he was smart, and he will be for years.
The pinnacle element that stands out to me, was Huizenga's decision to pursue the wisdom of Parcells, and virtually steal him from the clutches of Atlanta, before they signed him. That savvy move not only landed Parcells, but the pre-primed and pre-groomed collection of football minds, who were sitting atop his shortlist for staffing the team, netting us not only the pure coaching brilliance of Sparano, but the tremendous wealth of Ireland's uncanny nose for personnel, which ultimately unearthed the bounty of quality players who now bear the colors of aqua and orange, rather than red and black. Obviously crucial to Sparano's success has been this influx of quality talent, that seemingly has walked into the locker room, before his beckoned call, if not shortly following it. Take nothing away from his rightful achievement shared as COY, as Parcell's clearly appears to have been spot on in his selection, and yet to be fair, we need to temper that with the assumption, that Parcells has likely prepared Sparano to succeed, at least as efficiently as this entire organization has been.
Nice, level-headed assessment. To be honest I expect both Ndukwe and Alleman to be gone next year, or at least on the bench. (Is Alleman better than I think? We may find out on Sunday.) One of the impressive things about Sparano to me is that he has adjusted what was supposed to be a power-running team to the fact that we don't have a powerful interior OL. The biggest break Sparano had was (i) we got Pennington (ii) he didn't get hurt. One thing that probably hurt Sparano in the COTY voting was that he had a smart, proven veteran at QB while Smith had a rookie (though a very good one).
So Bill Parcells has nothing to do with it? This isn't being a dick, just an honest question. I've ready a lot recently of Parcells in the locker room, helping with the players, etc. Was from Akin Ayodle most recently. I think you need to give a guy more than one season before you give him such high acolades. As a Jets fan we learned that the hard with the "Mangenious" going 10-6 in his first season. Really I'd like to see what Sparano and Ireland do once Parcells retires or moves on to his 74th organization. But at least give him two or three years before saying he's closest thing you'll ever have to Shula.
Yeah, I was going to bring up Mangini myself. By the way, this is a really great thread. I've learned a lot. Thanks especially to Bpk and padre31. And John Bramlett? I thought I was pretty good for remembering Griese and Csonka and Buonticonti, but anyone who has first hand knowledge of the Phins B.S. (Before Shula) really has my respect.
As I've watched Miami play this year, I've been nothing less than blown away by the performance of our head coach. In some ways it's surreal - I can remember the rookie mistakes made by his predecessors, such as hankie-gate with Nick Saban, and Cam Cameron's clock mismanagement. It's gotten to the point where I don't even think about it - and posts like this have to remind me that yes, Sparano is indeed a rookie head coach. That said I don't know if I'm impressed with Sparano because of how talented he is, or if it's because we've been so bereft of coaching talent for so long. Without the benefit of hindsight (after all this season is still going on), it's a challenge to try and compare him to our other coaches. That's said, I'm up for a challenge, so let's look at his competition in the coaches that came before him. Jimmy Johnson - I like Jimmy Johnson, and under his reign the defense was rebuilt for 10 years with players like Zach Thomas, Jason Taylor, Sam Madison, and Brock Marion. Still, Jimmy could never find a running back to pair with the aging Dan Marino, a problem made all the more painful by watching John Elway ride Terrell Davis off into the sunset (and repeat Super Bowl titles). Jimmy also seemed like he was "half-in and half-out" during his tenure here - meaning I got the feeling his heart wasn't completely in coaching. I wasn't surprised to see him leave us when he did. Dave Wannstedt - In the past I've been a bit of a Wannstedt defendant, because I think he gets a bit of a bad rap during his tenure here. Wannstedt finally brought in a franchise back in Ricky Williams, though it was 3 years too late. He also had a winning record in his tenure here, including a division title. Wannstedt's drafts are the stuff of legend, with names like Eddie Moore, Wade Smith and Taylor Whitley highlighting (lowlighting?) his drafting prowess. The Stache really could have benefitted from Jimmy Johnson staying with the team in some kind of consulting role, similar to the arrangement we now have in place with Bill Parcells. Jim Bates - To me Bates was always an obvious intern coach, more suited for a coordinator role. I thought he did what he could in that mess of a 2004 season, but it was clear by that point the team was in serious trouble, and needed to be blown up. Nick Saban - Enter Nick Saban, fresh off winning a National Championship at LSU. History is littered with guys who make great college coaches, but fail at the professional level. More than any of our other coaches, it seemed like Saban believed his own hype. Also, like a lot of college coaches, Saban treated his team as if they were students enrolled in a university, rather than professional athletes. Admittedly, he showed himself to be better at evaluating talent than Wannstedt, but it seemed like all of the talent he hit on came from the SEC. He was also completely unproven at the NFL level, and we should have never handed him complete control of the franchise, as he had done nothing to earn that sort of confidence. If we had talked to fans of Michigan State or even LSU, they would have warned us about Nick's wandering eye - it should not have come as a surprise when he bolted for Alabama. Cam Cameron - With the franchise now in disarray, we turned to Cam Cameron. His tenure has been discussed here at length, though I'm of the opinion we've been a little unduly hard on him (such as the "Ginn family" quote which has been beaten to death). Cameron appeared to be overmatched in all phases of the game. He was a reactionary guy - both on and off the field. It felt like Cam was always reacting to the situation at hand, rather than visualizing where things were going. He also appeared unconfident, both in his press conferences and on the sidelines. He was really overmatched for the situation. This belies the basic question: What about Tony Sparano? It's obvious that Sparano is more dedicated than Jimmy Johnson, and more adept than Dave Wannstedt. He's got a proven guy in Jeff Ireland helping to build the team, which means he isn't going to try and be the franchise savior like Nick Saban. (I also don't see him bolting after 2 years like Nick, either) He's also proven to be more adept at all phases of the game, much more so than Cam Cameron. In other words, it's clear to me we have the best coach this franchise has seen since Don Shula. When I look at Tony Sparano, I see a lot of Hank Strahm in his demeanor. He's not a fiery guy, in the typical sense of the word, but he's got that demeanor about him - call it swagger, confidence if you like. He always seems to be in control of the situation - and always focused. Heck, he even ignored the Gatorade bath last week because he was completely in tune with the game situation. It's clear that the players respect him, and that he is in charge. It's nice to know we've got a clear winner on our sidelines. He's legitimate. I hope he's with the franchise for a long time to come.
IT's really hard to say. We'll get a better idea next year when the schedule is tougher but even then some coaches have stretches of success with stretches of failure. Even Parcells guys like Coughlin. He was great for a while in J-ville, then they steadily declined. Even in NY it took him a while to get going and be successful. I love Sparano's style though and can easily see him being successful as a HC.
I hope so Marty. Wouldn't it be great! He has pulled this team together so well, it's almost scary. Shula gave him praise and that's all I need to believe in his abilities. I am a Shula homer, always will be, but I do love Sparano and will support him like I always have Shula. This is all just so wonderful. I'm so excited.
First....How about them HOKIES!!! However, even with being a fan of the BEST COLLEGE in the USA. I think comparing Tony to Shula or any coach in their first year as a HC is too much of a stretch. That is not saying that you have not pegged him early...just that it is hard to think any new coach right now will be as good or close to SHULA. The man was great within his time on bad days. I think Tony is the best HC we have had in since SHULA, just like I think Chad P. is the best QB since Marino for the Fins. But I just don't know about his long term ability as a HC. The BIG TUNA played the largest role in turning this team around. Let's see how it goes for say the next 15+ years ()... After all...the BIG TUNA will not be here more than 4 years. Tony should have plenty of time to plead his case as one of the greatest HC that Miami has ever had, after the TUNA has left the building. I hope Tuna is here for 3 more full seasons. Then retires or goes to the NFC w/o taking all of his pieces from here with him.
Mangini is a better coach than you give him credit for. Two winning seasons out of three in the NFL? That ain't not bad. Especially playing in a division with the Cheatriots. He was made a scapegoat for what turned out in hindsight to be a pretty bad personell decision in Brett Favre. You guys wanted 2007 Favre and you got 2005 Favre. It was a gamble that didn't pay off. But Mangini still managed 9 wins with a QB that lobbed up 22 interceptions. If you guys don't get the right coach on your first couple tries you'll be longing for the days of Mangini in no time.
@ 2007 Favre vs. 2005 Favre. I'm going to wait a couple years until I crown Sparano the next Shula though. As parcells says "Lets not put him in Canton yet". Amazing year? Yes. The next Shula? We'll see.
The only reason why I bother to compare Sparano to Shula is the coaching style, Sparano didn't come down to Miami with the magic offense, nor was he some Buddy Ryan defensive guru, he simply inspired our guys to play to their potential, which is what Shula did consistently.
If you sat back and watched the final five Jets games, you'd know what I was talking about. The first four I'd put more on the coaching than Favre, the Miami game, of course the one you witnessed in its entirity, was Favre more so than Mangini. Mangini was lucky with an easy schedule in 2006, much like Sparano in 2008. I think Sparano becomes the better coach, but we'll see in time.
What makes Sparano successful in my opinion, is that he is neither razzle dazzle or pure hard nosed football. He welcomes innovation on both sides of the ball while still drilling and teaching the fundamentals. Not to mention the players WANT to play and win for him.
