In the past few months, we’ve already covered the logistical nightmare that the Dolphins schedule poses for the team.   Examples include having only 7 home games instead of 8, a brutal travel schedule, backloaded home games (so that Bills and Patriots visit Florida during perfect December weather, instead of muggy September), etc. But now it’s time to dig into the REAL nightmare.   Never mind the travel and scheduling.   It’s now time to look at the power of our opponents.  And there is no good news. We studied the Top Scoring offenses last year.  For the record, the Dolphins were at the low-middleRead More →

Back in March, I wrote about the nonsense that goes into the NFL creating and releasing its schedule.   Then in March, I continued my tirade. I just wanted to write a quick post today to follow up, and emphasize my point, since I saw the NHL released its schedule today. That’s right.  Less than two weeks after watching the Penguins win the Stanley Cup, the NHL is already back at work, releasing its schedule.   That’s 82 games per team x 31 teams…a huge and complex number of games, including working in a new expansion team and an odd number of teams.   ALLRead More →

There’s an interesting story out of Michigan about an anonymous donor who spent more than half a million dollars of his own money to send the entire Michigan Football team to Rome, Italy.   Is there any doubt that it was Stephen Ross?  We all know that Michigan is his favorite sports team, so it would not surprise me one bit. Speaking of Ross, his RISE initiative won some kind of award for trying to fight racism in sports.  Because every Dolphin fan in the world will be happy with a 4-12 team every year, as long as the locker room is filled with butterfliesRead More →

Man, and you thought MAY was a slow month for football. Just to give us another column to comment on, I’m writing here with a few tidbits to get us discussing things. First of all, the Miami Herald today had an interesting interview with Offensive Coordinator Clyde Christiansen.   What I zoned in on was Clyde and Adam Gase disagreeing on TD celebrations.   Clyde said he has an old-fashioned point of view (like me), but Adam Gase is far more lax.  Clyde is concerned about the penalties, but Gase apparently says “Who cares.   Let them celebrate.  Let them get a penalty.   We’ll makeRead More →

A few new administrative rule changes are going into effect in 2017, and like most of what the NFL tries, some are good and some are bad. First the bad rule change, and the one where many of you will disagree with me:   The NFL is relaxing its touchdown celebration rules.   Snow angels, using the ball as a prop in a celebration dance, and group celebrations, for example, are all now allowed. So why is this bad?   It all lacks professionalism. When you do something well at work and accomplish a weekly goal, do you hug your laptop?  Do you get togetherRead More →

Here’s the big news: ____________________ Nothing.  That’s right.   And it’s always better that way.  Nothing good can come from the first few days of Organized Team Activities and the initial rookie camps.  ACLs can happen.  Major contract disputes can happen.   Drug revelations can happen.  But nothing good. So no news is definitely good news. You know it’s a slow month for news when the most newsworthy item is a third-string substitute player signing his deal.   Thanks, Damien W. First-round pick Charles Harris is holding out on signing his contract, but apparently it’s just a matter of time, and all reports indicate thatRead More →

After failing to get more money from any other team while trying his hand at free agency, Damien Williams was offered a restricted deal from the Dolphins, but Damien has not yet accepted it. There are many reasons why he won’t sign.   Well, let’s face it:  there’s only ONE reason.   He wants more money. The Dolphins wisely will not give him more, perhaps realizing finally that role players are a dime a dozen.   If I were Williams, I’d sign for anything Miami offered, knowing my days are numbered. he doesn’t seem to see the writing on the wall.   He didn’t noticeRead More →

Well, the draft is over and done with, and the undrafted players have already latched on. After the dust has settled, the Dolphins–with the worst linebacking corps in the NFL–added one linebacker.  One.  Not a typo. So here’s who we have: Charles Harris OLB Raekwon McMillan LB Cordrea Tankersley CB Isaac Asiata OG Davon Godchaux DT Vincent Taylor DT Isaiah Ford WR We’ve already discussed Harris, who could be great or he might not ever see the field for a while.  Every single year we hear how the latest Dolphins defensive coordinator is going to limit Cameron Wake and not let him play as much.Read More →

With a desperate need for run defense, the Dolphins drafted a guy who is weak against the run. Even the most vocal proponents of DE Charles Harris admit that he is a liability against the run, so why draft him? Well, for one, he is a dominant pass rusher.  So was Dion Jordan, but let’s not go there.  Please, we pray, that we don’t have to go there.  But pass rushing was not an abundant need for the Dolphins.  However, depth at the DE position was needed, so Harris fills in there nicely.    I just don’t like the idea of using our first-round pickRead More →

Okay, so the chat function is sucky as always, but let’s use the comments field below to talk while the Draft is going on. On the clock…some unlucky kid is going to Cleveland to blow out his knees.Read More →

Since we’re in yet another discussion about the merits of Tannehill, or lack thereof, I thought I’d give this argument its own forum. I still say his weakness is in reading a pass rush and avoiding the defenders who are coming right at him.   The intangible weakness is a lack of leadership and a lack of fire.   I want to see RYAN TANNEHILL screaming at his men to fire them up, not Jarvis Landry and Marqueis Gray.  If you think about the players with the hearts and souls of Dolphins, you think Landry, Cameron Wake, Reshad Jones.   I cannot add Tannehill on theRead More →

Well, the schedule is out, and as I’ve been saying, the NFL goes out of its way to help the more popular teams while doing nothing positive for the also rans.  And the Dolphins have been also rans lately. Early in the season, when the Miami weather is at its hottest and most humid and gives the Dolphins the biggest advantage over the opponents, we only get one game.   And that is against the Buccaneers, who play in the only city more hot and muggy than Miami.  The Dolphins have no weather advantage over Tampa Bay. Then comes a string of 3 LONG roadRead More →

As I predicted, the NFL has forced Miami to go on the road for its Thursday Night Game.  That means the Dolphins will get two days of rest before having to travel.  New year, same nonsense.  To make matters worse, the opponent is Baltimore, who pretty much owns us. We already know that the London game is week 4, depriving us of a home game.  Thanks a lot, Stephen Ross. It appears the Dolphins bye week will NOT come after the London trip. Looks like we close the season on December 31, with a home game vs. the Bills.  I don’t like the how leagueRead More →

One-time dolphin foe Aaron Hernandez is dead.   The prison says it was suicide.   His lawyers say No Way! Seems like a cowardly way to go out, if it were suicide.   But it smells fishy, given how combative and violent he was.  The Dolphins have had their share of violent and non-violent felons too, from Mercury Morris to Cecil Collins to Lawrence Phillips.   What makes millionaires turn so silly? Your thoughts? Meanwhile, the Patriot have signed former Dolphins RB Mike Gillislee, although the Bills still have the right to match the offer.   I was really high on Gillislee when we hadRead More →

Not to be outdone by Stephen Ross allowing Joe Philbin to allow Mike Sherman to hire Sherman’s own son-in-law, who had no coaching experience, today Ross allowed Adam Gase to hire Gase’s own father-in-law as a special Dolphins consultant. Joe Vitt is a journeyman coach with a losing record when he had a few stints as an interim head coach.  That part makes you scratch your head about what he has to offer. However, he does own a Super Bowl ring for being an assistant linebacker coach for the Saints when they won their Super Bowl.   I don’t give Vitt any credit for theRead More →

Well, in piecing a few things together, I know the NFL always releases its schedule on a Thursday evening in late April. It doesn’t appear to be tonight.  And it can’t be two weeks from now, because that is the draft.   So it has to be next Thursday, April 20.   Now this could change.   The NFL is notorious for giving very very little notice of its schedule releases, so it still could be tonight at 8 pm.    But that is getting more and more doubtful. As I’ve been reporting this month, the NFL seems to be clueless about how important this releaseRead More →

As I’ve pointed our before, the NFL is missing a golden opportunity to create some buzz, if only they would release the 2017 schedule. Instead, we plod along with nothing to talk about except the 15,000 different mock drafts that are out there. Oh, and as reader Sean pointed out, Kenny Stills did an arm-wrestling tournament in Vegas that was against the NFL’s gambling protocol.  Expect a minor fine to be forthcoming. In other news, LeSean McCoy of the Bills called Kiko Alonso a bum.   I can just picture the Patriots sitting back with their rings and watching this nonsense unfold. Man!   It’sRead More →