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Could these be my father's Dolphins?

Discussion in 'Miami Dolphins Forum' started by The_Dark_Knight, Nov 1, 2016.

  1. The_Dark_Knight

    The_Dark_Knight Defender of the Truth

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    When most anyone hears of "my father's this, that or the other" folks tend to think back only 20 years or so, so with the question posed, most thoughts would probably wander back to the days of Marino, Duper, Clayton and the "Killer Bs", but in this instance, we're talking about MY father's Dolphins....Griese, Csonka, Morris, Kiick and the No Name Defense. So COULD these be my father's Dolphins? Well to quote Harvey Keitel as "Mr Wolf" in Pulp Fiction, "let's not start sucking each other's ***** just yet..."

    First, let's look at the comparison offensively:

    The legendary '72 Dolphins' offense was spearheaded, not by it's quarterback, but it's two powerful running backs, Larry Csonka and Mercury Morris, both 1000 yard rushers when a season was only 14 games rather than the 16 game schedule we have now. The quarterback play by Bob Griese and Earl Morrell wasn't really anything stellar with only a 55% completion percentage and a mere 2000 yards passing but a respectable 97 QBR.

    Looking at the last two games in which Miami has established this offensive dominance, it's ben Jay Ajayi, not Tannehill that's carried the offense with back to back games rushing 200+ yards. Because of Ajayi's dominance, Tannehill has only thrown the ball for 204 and 252 yards...60% completion percentages and respectable 99 and 97 QBR

    Too early to anoint this team as MY father's Dolphins but I do see many similarities which gives me hope!

    The next two games will determine if we are on that path
     
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  2. keypusher

    keypusher Well-Known Member

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    Incidentally, the team had an 86 passer rating, and Earl Morrall had a 91 rating, both tops in the league that year. Now 91 is just average. Also, Morrall averaged about 15 passes a game. Football was a very different game in 1972.

    http://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1972/index.htm#all_passing

    http://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1972/passing.htm
     
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  3. gunn34

    gunn34 I miss Don & Dan

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    I hope we stay on this path because I don't believe Thill can lead or carry a team.
     
  4. firedan

    firedan Well-Known Member

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    Good point for the offense but this is not your fathers defense for sure.
     
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  5. rafael

    rafael Well-Known Member

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    The hallmark of your father's defense was that it played smart. I remember seeing a quote from Arnsparger after the '72 season claiming that the defense had only made two mental errors that whole season.
     
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  6. KeyFin

    KeyFin Well-Known Member

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    I am excited to see where this team goes through the season, but it has only been two games. It's not time to anoint anyone as a legacy or make comparisons to the greatest team of all time- that's insulting to the greats of the past. The most that early 70's squad lost in a season was 4. Then from 1981 to 2003, we had one losing season total (6-10 in 1988). That's your father's Dolphins.

    Heck, as a franchise, we had four total losing seasons from 1968 to 2003. Then we had 7 more across the next 12 years. So you can see why earlier generations would be frustrated- we took a long tradition and turned into a joke of a team with locker room fights and fist pumps.
     
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  7. Bpk

    Bpk Premium Member Luxury Box

    What's your father's name? Did he yell at the tv during phins games? Slippers guy?

    I see your dad as a guy named merle or norm. He yelled at the tv. if we lost to the jets he'd throw a slipper at the tv and make you go pick it up and bring it back to him.

    that's bonding.
     
  8. Bpk

    Bpk Premium Member Luxury Box

    stop talking about merle or norm. talk about your own father.

    carlito.
     
  9. gunn34

    gunn34 I miss Don & Dan

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    The truth of the matter is this isn't the same team any of us fell in love with. Personally I became a fan two years before Danny showed up. The team you became a fan of probably doesn't have any of the same people on it. It depends how long you have been a fan.

    I was watching a show recently called 'Adam ruins everything' (great show by the way) and he did one on football. It was quite interesting and informative (although done kind of corky). One of the analogies he talked about when it came to sports fans is how the team is nothing like it was when you first liked them. He used a sandwich to make his point. You loved the ham and provolone sandwich with lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and yellow mustard on white bread. This was the team I became a fan of. Through-out the years, the ham was replaced with bologna, the cheese is now Swiss cheese, the mustard is mayo and the lettuce, tomato and onion have been replaced with kale, pickles and banana peppers. Even the bread is a moldy rye.

    We can look at any part of the sandwich and sports franchise and place a position for each. For me the meat was Danny, the Bread was Joe Robbie etc... Nothing is the same about this team. Even the colors and logo are different.

    Are these my father's Dolphins, not a chance, they're not even my Dolphins I grew up and loved. I wonder why I even root for them the past 10 years and counting, but I do. It makes no sense to continue to travel down this road, but we all do. Some people have had marriages that haven't been this troublesome, and people got divorced over them, but here we are. If I buy sporting apparel, it'll be of this team. Passwords, paint choices, animal names, kid’s names...the list goes on, but one thing is sure. These are not my father's Dolphins, may not be the ones I started supporting, but I want them to be my kids Dolphins.
     
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  10. Tin Indian

    Tin Indian Rockin' The Bottom End Club Member

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    Football was a very different game then compared to now. I grew up on those teams from the early 70's. In 72 it wasn't as much Csonka and Kiick as Csonka and Morris. Passing was really not something that teams did very much of. If you look at some of the game stats you wont even see 10 passes in some of them. The rules just did not favor it until around 77 or 78 when the pass interference penalty became more defined and Offensive linemen could actually extend their arms in pass blocking. I digress.

    The team from that time was built on rushing the football, passing when you needed and strong defense, but that was the game then. Not only is this not quite our fathers Dolphins it isn't even our fathers football!
     
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  11. dolphin25

    dolphin25 Well-Known Member

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    exactly so people cannot knock Griese or Morrel for not throwing for 4000 yards :)
     
  12. Tin Indian

    Tin Indian Rockin' The Bottom End Club Member

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    Exactly right. It s pointless to compare stats between eras. Marino would make all these guys out there look silly with the numbers he could put up with today's rules. By the same token it would have been far more difficult to do the same just 6 years before he came in the league. It's one if the reasons I kind of think the most underrated QB of all time could very well be Fran Tarkenton. Look at the numbers he posted in his era. Crazy.
     
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  13. The_Dark_Knight

    The_Dark_Knight Defender of the Truth

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    While the win against the Jets wasn't necessarily the prettiest of wins, we stuck to the running game...even with the negative yards and by persevering, the gains came along with the win.

    I said the next 2 games would determine if we're on the path of being my father's Dolphins. One down, one to go.
     
  14. Galant

    Galant Love - Unity - Sacrifice - Eternity

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  15. Tin Indian

    Tin Indian Rockin' The Bottom End Club Member

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    It's kind of funny were talking about this and Armando puts that article up. He does make some interesting parallels in the running back corp. You really just need to get some carries out there for Drake and he could be Morris, he has the speed.

    The defense being dominant like the No Names is a different thing altogether though. It's an interesting read!
     
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  16. The_Dark_Knight

    The_Dark_Knight Defender of the Truth

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  17. The_Dark_Knight

    The_Dark_Knight Defender of the Truth

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    OK, I started this thread at the beginning of the month and was hoping it would have a bit more traction than it did and this will be the last time I "bump" this thread. Afer man handling the Bill and the Steelers with our newly discovered power running game, I said the next 2 games would determine whether or not these could be my father's Dolphins. Well we defeated the stout Jets and their stifling run defense...no on to San Diego and their stifling run defense.

    There are those who are saying the strategy we used against the Jets won't work against the Chargers, citing the run defense of the Chargers. Well, let's take a closer look at that.

    The Chargers do indeed have a stout run defense, rated 5th in the NFL against the rush, allowing an average of 3.8 yards a rush and only 85.3 yards a game rushing. Pretty impressive, right?

    Well the Jets rush defense is rated 4th in the NFL allowing an average of 3.5 yards per rush and 81 yards a game rushing....and we see what the "Jay-Train" did to that defense.

    Adam Gase has given the Dolphins an identity and an attitude....a POWERHOUSE rushing offense. For the past 3 games, Miami hasn't to adjust to our opponents per say; opponents have had to adjust to us. It reminds me of a story I saw once on the Green Bay packers during their heyday in the 60's.

    In a TV interview, one of the Packers remembered one of their games in which their opponent on defense was citing as saying, "they're running the power sweep again"...to which he replied on the field, "yep we are...now try and stop us". Thus far this has been what Miami has done..."Ajayi's going to run the ball again"..."yep, now try and stop it"

    It's been a while since Miami hasn't had to adjust their game plan to try and keep from losing a game...but other teams have had to adjust theirs instead.

    In my original post, I stated that the next two games would dictate whether or not these could indeed be my father's Dolphins. Today is Judgement Day. Thus far, Miami has been 4-0 when rushing for 100+ yards. Forget Landry, forget Still, forget Parker and even Sims. Today we need to be watching the running game spearheaded by Ajayi, Williams and Drake, especially with Landry and Stills listed as questionable.

    Bottom line; if we run, we win...PERIOD...and these indeed...could VERY well be MY father's Miami Dolphins!

    Phins Up Baby!!!!!!
     
  18. Finster

    Finster Finsterious Finologist

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    I get your excitement, heck I'm excited too, for the first time in years, so I really do get that, I just think it's a huge stretch to start comparing them to the historic Dolphins, I mean we had a good ground game with the R&R express, and are we even there yet?

    When I think of the SB Dolphins, I think 2 1000yd rushers in a 14 game schedule, a QB that is able to make something happen with extremely few att, and a D that you can't outsmart or outwork, and I don't think that just having a good run game is enough to make that comparison.

    Like I said, I'm excited too, I'm with you there and therefor understand how we got here, however, I think it's a hair too soon to be comparing this 4-4 team to the perfect Dolphins, which is why I think this thread hasn't had more traffic.

    It's good to be excited about where we're going though, that much is for sure.
     
  19. The G Man

    The G Man Git 'r doooonnne!!!

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    Yes.
     
  20. The_Dark_Knight

    The_Dark_Knight Defender of the Truth

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    These ARE my father's Dolphins!!!!!!! Perhaps not the Perfect 1972 Miami Dolphins...but more like the 1971 or 1973 teams.

    Old school has returned to Miami!!!!
     

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