by Big Dave

That is the knee-jerk reaction among some of the fans. Really, it is hard to backhand the fans for that attitude as they have had to endure an inferior passion on the field this decade. Still, when Sparano issues a "must win" game after just one game, you would expect the team to jump out of their jock straps and put on a gutsy performance.

That gutsy performance never materialized as most of the members of the team came out with no urgency whatsoever. Their flat performance contributed to a loss that was very reminiscent of the loss that Dan the Man had to endure to the Jaguars for his last memory in the NFL. Do not let the 31-10 score give you the illusion that this was not a severe blow out. If not for the class of Cardinals head coach, Ken Whisenhunt, it could have been an easy 50 point game for the Cardinals. 

Does the "must win" command from Sparano mean that the season is lost? Between you and I, I believe that Sparano was not expecting a playoff appearance from this team. They are young and are rebuilding. If you did not notice a lot of middle tier free agents were added. That is a band aid folks. This team will have to be rebuilt throught the draft and hopefully some of these band aids will develop into the players that Parcells hopes will rebuild this team back into a team worthy of being a part of the Shula Dynasty. 

I believe this team was tested by Sparano and they failed the test. It is on them. Sparano may bark a lot in practice but he is Parcells' choice to lead this team. Parcells did not make Sparano our head coach on a "knee jerk" decision but on his observance over many years of loyal coaching.  Sparano was doing what Coach Saban did a few years ago and telling the team that if they want to be a part of the Dolphins future success then they'd better put it out on the field. The players are not only playing for the 2008 season, but for the future success of this franchise. Whoever does not get aboard the Parcells/Sparano bus will be left behind. If Parcells cannot use a player on possibly another 1-15 team, what good will he be to another team next year once he is let go?

That is something to think about. Keep in mind that Sparano will be the head coach next year. He will make mistakes this year, but he has Big Brother watching over him at every practice and game. Parcells is still coaching, but his largest focus is his friend Tony Sparano. So, that being said, Sparano has not lost the team. If anything, some of the players have lost the support of Sparano on Judgement Day.

Is Chad Henne Ready To Start?

If you watched Henne in the 4th quarter of last week's game you had to walk away from it impressed. In fact, the Dolphins coaches came away impressed as well, because Henne made the throws that Pennington has been unable to make. Let's not forget that Henne's receivers were more open, because of the nearly 30 point lead the Cardinals had. Still, you came away knowing that Parcells has done something that no other coach has been able to do since Don Shula: found his starting quarterback in the draft. And Parcells did it in his first year.

Yes, I believe he is ready to start, but I also do not believe his offensive line is not ready for him to start. Right now the Dolphins offensive line has been very poor at run blocking. Most teams would love to have a Ricky and Ronnie running back duo, but they are getting mugged in the backfield. Ricky is just grabbing the ball and plowing forward not even worrying about a hole. That is the mentality he needs to have if he is going to gain any yardage.

The offensive line has done a better job at pass blocking than run blocking, and that is strange considering run blocking comes easier to an offensive line. Unfortunately, the offensive line has a way to go before they are efficient at pass blocking. 

I think it would be a mistake to start Chad Henne right now. Let Pennington break in this offensive line. Penny has the smarts to find the open receiver. It will most likely take a month before this offensive line starts to show good chemistry between them. Remember that only our center is playing the same position as last year. This is going to take some time.

One thing to think about is that the Dolphins have a bye week following tomorrow's Patriots game. Sparano may seriously consider switching his quarterback during this time. Pro Football Weekly is reporting that the Dolphins are kicking that idea around. With Pennington due to make the bulk of the money in the second year of his recently signed contract, it would be a surprise at this point to see him in a Dolphins uniform next year. 

OT: Cats?

If you know cats, you will get a good laugh at this cartoon. I am a dog person myself, but this cartoon really nails my wife's cats.

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I think most of you have seen the movie Animal House at some point. To let you know how old I am, that movie came out my senior year of high school. In fact, our senior class made "Animal House" our Yearbook theme. I guess you now know why this country is in the shape it is in;)

In one scene of the movie, a group of college kids were pledging for a fraternity and had to endure a spanking as one of their tests of manhood. The older brother would say, "Assume the position." After each spanking the pledge would say, "Thank you sir, may I have another". To the delight of the older brother, he would give him (Kevin Bacon) another one each time he asked. 

Audo Clip: "Thank you sir may I have another?

After years of constant losing, I felt this way during last week's Jets/Dolphins game. With the hope that VP Bill Parcells brings, I felt that the punishment that I was enduring during that game was part of the process of gaining that elusive prize for us. In "Animal House" the pledgling was working towards an invitation into the fraternity. With us, we know that Parcells will give us a winning team even if it means firing his best friend and head coach Tony Sparano. I do not think it will come to that. While I think Sparano made mistakes last week by not activating WR Ernest Wilford, having Ricky or Ronnie in on every single offensive play, allowing his offensive coordinator to give up on the running game too soon, and not kicking the field goal on 4th down, I really like his attitude. He has Parcells' attitude of not tolerating losing.

Do we have a larger practice squad?

Once the preseason is over, the roster is usually pared down to 53 players. After that the practice squad becomes a team of 8 players that the Dolphins can use to develop and during the week in practice. That practice squad usually is a revolving door of players. The strange thing is that after the first game we saw Sparano cut a couple of players off of the 53 members of the team and bring in players that were cut from other teams. For those of you hoping for a playoff appearance this year, I hope this brings it home to you that the Dolphins are in a major rebuilding job. Half of this team did not wear a Dolphins uniform last year. Our favorite players, Zach and JT are playing with other teams.  One was cut from the team and the other was traded. Thankfully neither are on a rival AFC East team. While Zach was tempted by Bellichick to play for the Patsies, he did not want to alienate his Dolphins fans ... talk about an unselfish guy.

The first cut the Dolphins made this week was to waive FB BOOMER GRIGSBY. Yep, the fullback that beat out Reagan Mauia (the wall-breaker) was cut. I guess you saw it coming as the Dolphins started the game with a tight end at the fullback position against the Jets. By cutting Grigsby that left us without a fullback and one that knows the offense. To replace Grigsby the Dolphins added FB CASEY CRAMER. The good thing about this move is that Cramer has started for two teams and one of those were the Carolina Panthers where our Offensive Coordinator was the OC there. Cramer knows the offense, so, my guess is that this is a good move. Cramer is also a good special teams player and has a blocked punt for a safety on his resume. The Dolphins are also hoping that they have their 3 TE as well as being our fullback in Cramer as they used him in practice this week at times at TE.

The second cut the Dolphins made this week was to waive TE SEAN RYAN. Ryan beat out Justin Peele for the 3 TE position, but the Dolphins have two good tight end in DAVID MARTIN and ANTHONY FASANO. Since they are hurting along the offensive line after losing starting RG DONALD THOMAS for the season with a foot injury. Losing Thomas was a huge blow to an offensive line that was beginning to jell on the right side.

The Dolphins added Ted Ginns former Ohio State LT KIRK BARTON. I guess former Cam Cameron was right when he said that when we drafted Ginn that we added his family as well;)  Barton is here to back up LT JAKE LONG. Barton fell in the draft this year due to a torn miniscus that he suffered in the Senior Bowl. After making the Bears roster only to be cut earlier this week after the first game, the Barton is hoping to stick in Miami as he is a huge Dolphins fan. Who was his childhood hero? Zach.

So, in the meantime, it will not hurt for you to do your Kevin Bacon impersonation and "Assume the position". With that you can respond, "Thank you sir, may I have another?"  Maybe Parcells and Sparano will allow you to be a member of Omega House. 

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Is Sparano giving away his gameplan?

The Star Ledger reported this week that Ricky has won the starting job over Ronnie and will see at least 20 carries. Does this blip of information sound like a Bill Parcells plan to disclose information to the opponent by telling them how many carries his starting back will take? Of course not. If Sparano is anything like Parcells, he will keep the media and fans guessing. My guess is that Ricky will start but Sparano will go with the "hotter" back for the majority of the carries. Each will get plenty of carries.

Who will have the better game? Favre or Pennington?

That is actually a good question. My guess is that it will be Favre because the Jets will be forced to pass often to win this game. Miami's first team defense shut opponents running games down this preseason and Favre is not afraid to air it out. I think the Dolphins front 7 will hound him into a couple of mistakes, but Favre has a nice arsenal of receivers to get the ball to. He will find a way to connect. Pennington should have a good game as well as he is focused on proving Jets fans wrong for letting him go. Last year Jets fans showed their class by cheering loudly after he was injured in a game. Pennington does not have the receivers that Favre has, but he is smart enough to get the ball to them. Let's hope that he gets the ball to his surest handed receivers such as Ginn, Camarillo, and Bess so that we do not have to endure the display of drops that we've had to endure since Orande Gadsden retired. Pennington will air the ball less than Favre because the Dolphins should play to their strength and that is the running game. At this point our offensive line is better at run blocking rather than pass blocking and we have two dynamite backs that are both fast and power runners. I really like our chances in this game if we can limit the mistakes. 

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The Dolphins work out WR Chad Jackson.

This is another Parcells move to get information ... and upgrade a position of weakness. If Jackson impressed the Fins he will get a contract offer early next week (or sooner). Jackson was a highly touted receiver coming out of Florida and ended up being a 2nd round pick for them. Chalk it up as another failed 2nd round pick on a wide receiver for the Patsies ... maybe. The Patriots do not have to pay top dollar for a good receiver as they have been able to find talented receivers who will take less than market value in order to win. There is no need for them to develop receivers. Chad Jackson is a talented and good sized receiver, AND he also possesses the Patriots offensive gameplan between his ears. How many times have we seen Parcells add an opponents' ousted player to get good information out of them ... and use him in the game as well. Currently, adding Chad Pennington to the team not only gave him a starting quarterback but also knowledge of the Jets offensive and defensive gameplan. Pennington knows the Jets weakness on defense as he played against them head-to-head just weeks ago. So, tell Bellichick that you do not need Spygate when you add thier ousted players;)

How did Parcells get the nickname "Tuna" and ... "Bill"?

"I think it goes back to my first time with the Patriots. There was an old commercial from Starkist with Charlie the Starkist Tuna, so my players were trying to con me on something one time, and I said, 'You must think I'm Charlie the Tuna,' you know, a sucker, and that's kind of how it started. We started with it that year and they used to wear those little tuna helmets, you know, tuna pictures on their helmets. That's where it all started."

"Early in his teenage years, after the family had moved to nearby Oradell, Duane Parcells had a lookalike at school named Bill. After a number of people mistook Parcells for the other boy, Parcells took Bill as a nickname, then as his first name."

 

"Gamblers" 2008 Season Preview

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Got Something For The Old Man ....
Written by Dave Blake    
Thursday, 04 September 2008

 
If you read the forum over at our F2FA Jets Insider site you would think that Brett Favre is going to roll all over the Dolphins on Sunday. I do not deny that he still has that quick strike ability and several good receivers to throw to. In fact, his receivers can outcatch our receivers 7 days a week ... but Favre has to get them the ball. They cannot catch the ball if the ball doesn't get there.

If you have been watching the preseason any then you will know that this is not Jim "Vanilla" Bates defense that likes to rush four and sit everyone back in coverage. Coach Sparano's 3-4 defense is very aggressive and Parcells has revamped the defense with large linebackers that are strapped with no-quit motors. While we will miss Jason Taylor and Zach Thomas this year, Matt Roth and Joey Porter have been relentless at the outside linebacker positions. Channing Crowder is playing like a man possessed and is thriving in the middle of this defense ... much better than he did in the 4-3 inside linebacker position.

In the middle of our defensive line is DT Jason Ferguson whom the Cowboys traded us. They were happy to get rid of his salary as they had a young starting DT of their own. Ferguson has clogged up the middle of our defense just as Tim Bowens used to do ... and he's given us a nice push up the middle on the quarterback. Spelling him is last year's draft pick Paul Soliaua. Vonnie Holliday and surprising 3rd round rookie Kendall Langford man the outside Defensive End positions.

Defensively our front 7 should be about as good as any front 7 in the NFL. They will be aggressive and in the face of the quarterback. Expect to see Brett Favre on his rear end a lot on Sunday wondering why he did not stay retired.

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QB Josh McCown Traded To Carolina

So much for the JOSH MCCOWN quarterback experiment in Miami. FOX Sports' Alex Marvez is reporting that the Dolphins have traded him to the Carolina Panthers. This is another black eye to the free agent offensive talent evaluation process that also brought in WR Ernest Wilford who has not shown much of anything that he did at Jacksonville. What is tough about this is that we signed McCown to a 2 year, $6.25 million contract with a $2.5 million signing bonus. Carolina is on the books for his 2008 salary ($1.95 million), but they can cut him after this year and not have to pay the escalated 2009 contract that he would have earned if he proved himself. The Dolphins are stuck with his signing bonus for this year.

You have to admire the Dolphins for pulling the plug on McCown.They have the cajones to cut him as he was not working out despite their investment in him. Unfortunately for McCown, he was not given much of a chance to shine in the preseason as he only had 30 offensive plays. Why? Because he was not getting it done in practice. Even he saw the writing on the wall, but he took it with class.

Of the four quarterbacks that I saw, McCown impressed me the least. Mentally, Beck still cannot handle a good pass rush, but he has some talent which should be further evaluated on his lofty high 2nd round draft status of only a year ago. Also, I am sure that while Beck was on the trade block that Parcells did not get the price that he was asking for him. Do not think that the Dolphins are done either. I would not fall out of my chair if the Dolphins traded Beck, too. Beck is not a Parcells type of quarterback and will be given the heave-ho at some point in his career.

Just be thankful that the Dolphins got something for McCown rather than having to outright release him. It looks like it is only a 7th round pick, but I'm just glad that I do not have to worry about getting the names McCown and NcNoun mixed up;)


How Many Games Will It Take to Reach our Preseason Win Total?

I have always been the perennial optimist when it comes to the Dolphins. Unfortunately, even with the hope that VP Bill Parcells brings to this team, I am very cautious when I try to figure out how things will look by the end of the season. We have very competitive divisional rivals and none of them are gimme games. In fact, you could say that your Dolphins are the weakest team in the AFC East .... at least on paper.

When did this slide happen? ESPN ranked the Dolphins fans at 28 based on the lack of sellouts and noone on the season ticket waiting list. This did not happen during the Don Shula years as there was hope every year that the Don and Dan the Man could get to a Super Bowl on will alone. Don't get me wrong, the Don did not do so well at the end of his coaching career as he lost that tough edge. I feel this slide actually happened the year that we traded Dave Wannstedt for Dan Marino. Owner Wayne Huizenga allowed Porkface to talk him into hiring Wannstedt as his head coach. Wannstedt forced Marino to retire even after Marino asked for just one more year. Wannstedt did to Marino what JJ could not do.

So, with our 14-10 win over the Saints behind us and riding a 3-1 preseason, how many games will it take to win 3 games? Here is how I see it:

Loss - Jets
Win - @ Cardinals
Loss - @ Patriots
Loss - Chargers
Loss - @ Texans
Win - Ravens
Win - Bills

I say 7 games. I do not see us beating the Jets even though it is at home. I see Brett Favre as a key to this Jets team this year. Can we ever beat the Texans? Not this year. And so, with that said, I am still crossing my fingers with the hope that we'll be 3-0 entering the bye week. Why? I am a Dolphins fan.

Go Fins!




I got my Dolphins DirecTV Remote Control

Did any of you order your Miami Dolphins DirctTV remote? Man, I love mine. In fact, I took it to work yesterday to show it off to the other guys who have the NFL Ticket for their teams. They're all jealous and got on the DirecTV site to order theirs, too. Unfortunately, the Bucs fan at my J-O-B asked me if mine had serial number 0001. LOL.





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A couple of times last week you heard the game announcers state that Ricky had a large hole to run through on the right side. You know that I am talking about RG Donald Thomas. What is so surprising about our rookie is that he was a 6th round draft pick that was successfully evaluated. He was the second of 3 6th round draft picks sandwiched in between RBs Jalen Parmele and Lex Hilliard. I have to say that it is very refreshing to have a 2nd day draft pick worth having around. His run blocking is reminiscent of Jamie Nails, but let's just say that he needs to work on his pass blocking. Right now that is his weakness.

Anyways, I guess the success of a 6th round offensive lineman will happen when you draft a large offensive lineman the size of Jamie Nails and place him beside wiley veteran RT Vernon Carey. Together they are making beautiful music on the right side.

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By: pawfectgent

The unfortunate news of JTs' injury this wknd reminds me of just how things have changed, including our perceptions of players and the team in general.

A statement JT made during his recent 1-to-1 with Warren Sapp struck me as indicative of what the offseason has meant in terms of philosophy, direction and desire for this team. When asked about missing camp, his reply was 'I know what my body needs to get in shape'.

The simple meaning of a statement like that is "I don't want to go through the Rookie-oriented, hot-as-the-Summer-Sun 'suicides and 'gassers of minis and OTAs. Just let my proven-veteran skill set enjoy my offseason and come in when I need to".

Now, first off, I still have my aqua 99 jersey, which I will wear proudly when he goes into the ROH, but minis and OTAs and camp is as much to get a TEAM in shape as it is the Players themselves. I was for the DWTS thing actually, but missing camp? Having been 1-15?

It's getting to know your teammates and how they think and react.

It's being at the right place and time because you've practiced it in Davie.

It's learning it by rote until it is natural and comfortable...and effective on Gameday.

Shula's regime was hard work, hard work and more hard work. It gave us respectability and we were always decent-to-good-to-excellent. We were never mediocre, even though we occasionally were pedestrian. It was a product of Paul Brown, no-nonsense old school rigidity and toughness coaching.

Since that regime, which is the only one aside from JJ's that ended with a Playoff game, we have seen a diminishing series of returns.

It is becoming evident that trend is over.

This team is being returned to old-school, team-first, Shula-Brown-Landry-Halas-Lombardi hardcore. There is no place for individual BS. Everyone works as hard as they can to get better. Anyone not on that page is gone.

Favoritism is never appreciated by the masses.

It sounds almost ridiculous to say a player of that caliber could be detrimental in any way, but in terms of philosophy, I believe it. Everyone has to earn their lunch from the crack of dawn to sunset. Entitlement has no place in Team Sports. Not if you are to win consistently.

A quick scan of the current 70 players to have made it this far finds 23 "D"s under 'How Acquired'. These are players that were drafted by us. Of them, the greybeard of the bunch is Vernon Carey ('04). We are young and stand with open minds, ready to be molded into a physical, punishing machine on all three sides of the Ball. JT was drafted by us, too, and we hit the mother lode.

However, the local philosphy has changed, and it's for our betterment, if not for JTs' to escape what he claimed he didn't want to be a part of. I hope he heals fast and enjoys his remaining career. I will be yelling and cheering like everyone else when 99 goes into the ROH. However...

Watching the results of this new dogma for the last few games has not lessened the sadness I felt that JTs' path is now different than ours, but it has reaffirmed my satisfaction with OUR path.



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Fins vs Chiefs Tonight!

Be sure to come by the Phinfever Chat Room tonight during the game. We usually have someone there to give you the play-by-play and helpful insight into what's going on the field. Rich has been doing it the past couple of weeks and you all know that he has one of the best insights into the game. Game time is 7:30pm est tonight.

Here are some interesting happenings from this week:

Want a live feed? Check out MyP2P Forums as they may have a free sop cast available.

The Dolphins all ready have two rookies that have won starting positions. 3rd round pick Kendall Langford has won the starting LDE position. Usually it takes a rookie time to develop at DE, but Langford may end up being a real steal. What he does is push last year's starter, Matt Roth, back to LOLB. Roth recorded the only sack of the game last week and he did it from the OLB position. Roth played OLB at times at Iowa, so, it is something that I thought the Dolphins would do more with him the past couple of years. He'll be used mostly to rush the quarterback as he is tenacious. Joey Porter moves to the right side. Hopefully we will see a resurgence in our pass rush this year, but losing Jason Taylor really hurts us.

The other rookie who has won a starting position is 6th round pick Donald Thomas. He owns the RG position and it is refreshing to see a late second day draft pick actually make an impact on the team.

The Dolphins cut free WR David Kircus yesterday. They also said they are not interested in signing WR Joe Horn right now. I think it's a good thing as Horn made a jerk of himself with the Saints this year. I am sure that Parcells will not be interested in the 36 year old receiver if he has to deal with a 'tude. Also, the Dolphins have not received permission from the Cardinals to talk to WR Anquan Boldin. He has demanded a trade as that huge contract they gave to Larry Fitzgerald did not sit well with him. if we could get him I would think this would be a very good move for us. Unfortunately it would cost us a 1st or 2nd round draft pick and he'd be expensive. We have room under the cap to sign him if it went that far.

QB John Beck is on the trade block and the Dolphins want a 4th round pick for him. The Cowboys are rumored to be interested by they are rumored to want to only give up a late 2nd day pick for him. The way QB Chad Henne has looked makes us all know that Henne is the future.


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