Hey, comparisons, how about these: From Football Outsiders: Passing: minimum 98 passes,41 players C. Henne D. McNabb M. Hasselback B. Gradkowski J. Delhomme B. Favre D. Anderson M.Moore and J. Clauson So of 41 players Henne is in a group of nine that has more INTs than TDs and though there are some hallowed names in this group would you pick any of them to lead the Dolphins to victory this season? Or any future season for that matter? Henne is who he is and after playing the very best game of his career he turns around a plays the worst game of his career. Is he better than Sanchez or worse, who cares! He is the QB on the Miami dolphins and in his third season he still can't "See" the open man. Now I'm not a GM, guru, HC, pro scout, game planner, or tea leaf reader but my cristal ball says Henne should only have the next four games to prove he can have at least one game where he hits the open man in stride for several TDs plus throw no INTs or he is cooked, well done. I can "SEE" that with my eyes closed and my glasses off. BTW I don't need to hire a pro (or listen to one disect something) to know what my eyes tell me! If I were that good I'd be a real GM running with the big boys not debating the issue with other fans here! I'm with you padre! AS for our WR's as bad, or not so good, as you seem to say they are they get open! So whats Henne's problem for getting them the ball, Hmm?
This is the sentence of the year describing our offense!!!!! It needs to be put on a banner in front of the stadium. Yeah, our offense is a modern day Frankenstein!...... only Frankenstein scared people. LMAO. **People need to stop looking at these guys individually and start looking at them as ONE UNIT, b/c that's what they actually are. As individual players--- Marshall & Bess are great; Hart & Fasano are maybe slightly above average; R&R are average to good; Moore & Wallace are in the basement & the door is locked. As a unit--- they have no speed, lack explosiveness & big play ability, offer little YAC or chunk yardage, offer little depth, and all the things you mentioned above. If you had to start from scratch with making an offense (or its skill players), this is not what you'd want to end up with b/c there's FAR TOO MUCH potential still left on the table to be met. I actually think this is BY FAR the biggest team need. So as a "unit", it has to be looked at in terms of: "How we can improve this unit to achieve what it's lacking." 1. The simplest way I come up to address as many deficiencies as possible with one player is to bring in a great #2 who offers all these things (including improving our depth b/c Hart would become the #4). Prioritizing a RB 1st would be nice, but that wouldn't cover as many deficiencies IMO. And this isn't something we can afford to hit or miss on or treat it like a "Patrick Turner 3rd round pick". We need to prioritize it and do it right the first time. IMO this is such an immense need of epic proportion that I'd almost want to trade up for AJ Green, trade back in the first for Blackmon, or take Julio Jones if we can't do either. Or grab Mike Sims-Walker in FA whom I bet would crap a brick at the opportunity to play as a #2 opposite Marshall rather than the #1 opposite Mike Thomas. Marshall looks like less than what we paid for b/c defenses can afford to smother him, so imagine what a less talented Walker looks like in the same situation in Jax. 2. A COP back with some wheels and great hands. Obvious need. 3. A TE who can threaten the field and allow us different looks/packages on offense. Obvious need. 4. Bringing in Mankins as most of us want. People think it annoys me when they call me stuff like president of Henne's fan club etc etc....... but it actually makes me laugh at their ignorance. It's plain as day to see everything you mentioned and how much of a problem that poses for an offense...... so when people say all the problems stem from the QB, I just chuckle inside and feel bad that they can't see the big picture. Does that mean that Henne is the future? No. However we can't tell what he is until this mess is straightened out.
No offense, but you've been wrong about Pennington & Thiggy.... so how can you of all people say "there are several excellent prospects"? I love how you think franchise QBs grow on trees. What----- just because they're mentioned as being 1st round picks? That means nothing. Hearing this type of mentality is like listening to fingernails on a chalkboard. Some of you guys speak of this so nonchalantly as if to say "hey, no big deal.... we'll just use our 1st on a QB, and POOF, we'll have our new franchise starter". Anyone who's looking at the draft as an easy way to upgrade Henne knows absolutely nothing about the draft or NFL football. I'm sorry to be blunt, and I'm sorry if I've offended anyone, but it's true. First round QB picks mean NOTHING concrete. Lending your TV to a crack addict and expecting to get it back is probably more reliable. It doesn't mean they'll be NFL ready, and it certainly doesn't mean they'll even be a starter. Heck, probably close to half of 1st round QBs have held a clipboard more than they've seen the field. There's a reason teams are so apprehensive about using 1sts on QBs. THAT'S BC IT'S EXTREMELY RISKY and a potential waste of a valuable pick. Botching a 1st round pick can really set a team back. You don't use a top 14 pick on a QB unless you KNOW he's your man. Why do you think so many teams who need QBs pass on them early every year? It's b/c there's a very LONG list of busted QBs who scare people to take QBs high. Henne has done NOTHING to show that he's an outright bust that would call for such an extreme measure of using a precious 1st on his replacement. Grabbing a 4th to challenge he and Brandstater would be fine. I'd hate to see you owning an organization 23rd, because you'd honestly be running it into the ground. Not being mean..... just being truthful.
Exactly. Even if Luck were our only option, all 23rd is doing is getting people's hopes up. Besides, we're not even close to reaching desperation level to where a team cracks and gives up a precious 1st on a QB. Example: How many 1st round QBs have we taken since we took Marino in the first? 8 years or so of QBs before passing the reigns to Henne. It wasn't like we didn't need a QB. Teams are scared to take 1st round QBs for a reason--- b/c they are far from being a given.
Nah TP. You've got it all wrong. What 23rd is trying to say is that we're going to draft the next Matt Ryan. We're not going to draft the next Kyle Boller, Jamrcus Russell or Brady Quinn. We're going to draft Aaron Rodgers, we're not going to draft Alex Smith, JP Losman or Trent Edwards. We're gonna take Phillip Rivers, not Tim Couch, David Carr or Matt Lienart. We'll grab Peyton Manning, and pass on Ryan Leaf, Akili Smith, David Klingler, Heath Shuler & Joey Harrington. It's that easy. We don't want Steve Young or Eli Manning, or Kurt Warner, Those guys take too long to start playing well. We need a guy who steps off the bus throwing touchdowns like that kid from Pittsburgh U. And then all of our problems will be solved. Our WRs will become faster, our OL will block better, our RBs will regain form, our OC will spend a night at a Holiday Inn Express and emerge with a bevy of new schemes and formations to dazzle and befuddle our helpless opponents. Damnit I wish I was one of the naive fans. It's such an easier existence.
There is SUCH and enormous difference between someone who is crafty and can use a double move or so forth to get open down field occasionally compared to a WR who can flat out run by a defender w/o any moves. There is a huge difference between Henne chucking it deep to Hartline with a defender on his hip than heaving it to a 4.3 guy who can separate while the ball is in the air and run under it. HUGE DIFFERENCE. Please watch Big Ben and Wallace some time... or Vick & Jackson... or Jacoby Ford. Respectfully, this shouldn't be debatable. When we see Haden a step behind Hartline, we're not throwing it deep. When we see Haden a step behind Mike Wallace, you can make that throw b/c by the time the ball gets there, it's no longer a step difference; it's 2 or 3 steps difference at least. A deep pass to Hartline needs precision placement for the most part b/c there is little margin for error. If you throw it too far, he doesn't have the wheels to catch up to it, and if you throw it a hair short or online (based on his speed), then a DB who is faster and has greater recovery speed can still make a play. (we saw this when Haden broke up the pass to Hartline in the endzone. If that's Mike Wallace, it can be led a touch more and it's an easy TD) HOWEVER, a deep pass to Jacoby Ford doesn't need precision placement. If you overthrow him slightly, he has an extra gear to where he can make up MUCH more ground that Hartline can..... and if you throw it on target (IE: lead him perfectly), then his 4.26 speed will prevent a DB from recovering where as leading a 4.5 Hartline isn't guaranteed to prevent anything. It's simple mathematical stuff. * 4.5 Hartline running downfield at X MPH requires a ball to be thrown a certain way to hit him in stride when he's at the 50 yard mark. If the DB is running a 4.4, he has a better opportunity of recovering by the time the ball reaches the 50. You can't lead Hartline too much b/c you risk the chance of overthrowing him as well as risk the chance that you allow the DB even more recovery time. * 4.3 Mike Wallace running downfield at a faster MPH requires less focus on when and how the ball is thrown. If the DB is running a 4.4, then he's not catching Wallace at the 50. The QB doesn't have to worry about leading Wallace as much b/c the DB isn't catching him and Wallace has speed to burn to run under it. When you need to be more accurate with your placement (to Hartline) you risk underthrowing as many passes as you'll overthrow (which can lead to costly INTs). When you don't need to be as accurate with placement b/c your WR runs a 4.3, then you'll be underthrowing less passes.... and the ones you overthrow will have a better chance of being caught for a huge gain. Not to mention if the pass is off line left or right, Wallace has more rebound speed to position himself to make the catch rather than watching it fall at Hartline's feet.
Added: I'd rather get a WR who fits Henne's needs and strengths instead of getting a QB who's better suited for Hartline's. That's the answer to it all. Doesn't mean we need to get rid of Hartline..... it means we can get a perimeter WR who matches up to Henne's arm better while using Hartline to his strengths. Brian is quick & crafty and he plays over the middle well. IMO he should be in the slot doing things that these hybrid slot guys like Collie & Shipley do. He can rotate in with Bess & come in on 4 WR sets. He can also rotate in when Marshall and the #2 need breathers. IE: Marshall comes out--- the #2 becomes the 1 and Hart becomes the #2. If the #2 comes out, Hart fills in. He'll still be seeing the field a lot, and IMO Brian would be much more valuable to us as a jack of all trades type guy than being stuck in the #2 role. Not tooting my own horn, but this is the kind of "thinking outside the box" that this regime needs to be doing.
I'd love to add Deangelo Williams, James Jones & Brad Smith in place of Ronnie, Ricky, Moore &/or Wallace. Then we could draft Ryan Williams or Noel Divine as a backup RB in the 3rd or trade down with our 1st and grab them in the 2nd if necessary. We could use our first on the best available CB. Or, if there is a franchise RT or top flight ILB to replace Carey or Crowder. We have plenty of cash for FA, only two guys who needed significant raises (Soliai/Wake). We've got a young crop of talented players who can grow and improve together, I think we're in a good spot.
Ricky Ronnie and Ingram would still leave us lacking that COP back type explosion and threat out of the backfield IMO. I'm not saying I'd do this.... but our entire team would be immediately upgraded with: A. The healthy people back B. The youth being a year more seasoned C. Grabbing Mankins in FA D. Trading up for AJ Green (if we couldn't grab a stud #2 in FA) E. Making sure we get a Kendall Hunter type from our 3rd round pick (trading up if necessary) F. Grabbing a complimentary TE (in FA would be better) who doesn't have to be a great blocker but offers enough in the pass game to allow us to have different formations & packages. I wouldn't necessarily do it this way..... but just making the point that having only 2 draft picks and 2 FA acquisitions could vastly improve our offense (and team success) IMO.
Yup. There are a few ways to do it based on what we can accomplish in FA, but I completely agree on the strategy. There shouldn't be any reason why this offense isn't seriously upgraded by tweaking a few positions and adding a couple players who compliment or balance the rest of the offense out.
I agree with your RB assesment, but it's tough to say I'd rather have Ronnie back and let Ricky go... But that's probably my opinion. Ronnie is younger and has more potential. Ricky is pretty much a straight runner. We need a C.J. Spiller/Reggie Bush type.
It's always the QBs fault right? Because we all know receivers don't make mistakes, they dont miss judge the ball in the air and under or over run it. Right? we all know they read the defense perfect everytime and get clean off the line. They don't get held by DBs ever..they never bobble the ball into the defenders hands or drop a ball because its a little high or low...they don't push off on the DBs and draw offensive P.I. calls..I just don't understand why all QBs cant be perfect with support like that. And by chance the reciever does make a mistake(pfft right) the QBs should read their minds and know exactly where to throw the ball....right? disclaimer: I am not saying the QBs shouldn't get blamed, just not all of it Sometimes I wonder if people actually watch other games besides the Dolphins or just sportscenter highlighs.
