For once, I can only blame Adam Gase and his play calls for a small portion of this loss.
Jay Cutler is even less at fault.
Instead, the Dolphins’ superstars, not Cutler or Gase, decided to play for the Chiefs today. Cameron Wake had penalties. Jarvis Landry gave the ball to the Chiefs. Kenny Stills gave the ball to the Chiefs. Kong Suh did nothing (unless you count jumping offsides). Torry McTyer let a pick-6 go through his arms. Punter Matt Haack decided to kick the ball 20 yards. Twice. (All right, those last two are not one of our superstars, but just another example of a player choking the game away that is no fault of Gase.)
It was a one-sided loss that could have easily been 50-13 instead of only 29-13. But it also could have been a 17-13 Dolphins win if not for turnovers and penalties. Odd game.
The Dolphins moved the ball surprisingly easily. But when it counted, they fumbled it away twice, and then tried a third time, but Cutler recovered his own whiff. Deep in the red zone, Adam Gase, on a drive when Kenyan Drake was knifing through the Chiefs at will, decided to keep passing to a journeyman tight end right off the practice squad named Derby. We failed each time.
Speaking of failure, the statistics surrounding Adam Gase’s genius as a QB guru and offensive wizard are getting noticed more and more. My readers already know this. But the networks are finally reporting it each week. The Dolphins are 6-9, and probably will end up 6-10. That is a failed season. But still, Adam Gase will not change things up. The stats show that Miami leads the NFL in number of plays with a 5-WR set (nobody in the backfield). We lead the league on average pass attempt length on 3rd and short. Lead the NFL on pass plays. Lead the NFL on pass plays thrown on third down. I could go on and on.
The bottom line: Gase calls too many pass plays. Please spare me the nonsense about we “have” to throw because we are down in games. We don’t run it enough early. We don’t run it enough late. We don’t run it enough when we’re winning big, and we sure don’t run it enough when losing and desperate for points.
You know what would shut me up about this? If the Dolphins passing game was good for 30 points a game, I would shut up. If the Dolphins had no legitimate running backs, I would shut up. If Adam Gase’s offense was successful, I would admit that he is right and I am wrong. But guess what? I am right and HE is wrong. 6-9 is wrong, and there is your proof.
But the whole world sees Gase’s plays and his philosophy fail. We see his system fail, and then we see him double down on it. How in the world are we throwing more passes per game than Cleveland or Cincy or the Jets or some of the other scrub teams.
Apparently, Landry and Gase had a screaming match during the game, which probably means Landry will be cut and get to join the Patriots. Gase does not allow players to question his almighty genius. Just ask Jay Ajayi and Byron Maxwell, both of whom were punished by Gase by being traded to playoff teams.
At least he is giving Jakeem Grant much more playing time, and Grant has given us 2 TDs in 3 weeks. Keep it up into next year.
Matt Burke and his defense could do nothing to stop Alex Smith. The best weapon Burke had was when KC ran handoffs instead of passing it. Alex Smith ate us alive. The NFL’s other young coaches, like Sean McVay of the Rams, for example, are succeeding because team management forced the young coach to hire veteran offensive and defensive coordinators, like Wade Phillips. Sean McVay can sit back and know his defense is in capable hands because ownership forced him to hire a veteran. Stephen Ross, on the other hand, allowed novice Adam Gase to put his defense in the hands of two friends, two inexperienced, so-so coaches, two years in a row. Gase put his offense in his own hands two years in a row. The results are what they are.
Agreed on the running plays, at the half drake had 9 carries for 51 yards at over 5 yards a carry there’s no excuse for him not to have close to 15 first half carries. That would at least open up the pass more. And I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again if Miami doesn’t re sign Landry I might have to take a break from routing for this team for a little. Anyways happy holidays.
Saw another interview with Adam Gase today, and as usual, he frustrated me. They asked him about Leonte Carroo, and Gase said that Carroo does everything they ask of him and he looks great in practice. But “we didn’t get a chance to use him as much as we wanted.”
You are the head coach, ass-wipe. YOU MAKE the chances for these guys. You don’t wait for the opponent to request it.
Gase watched DeVante Parker half-ass it all year long before finally giving Jakeem Grant a chance, and Grant has paid off. But Gase still didn’t give Carroo a chance. By the way, isn’t it laughable that the staff still uses Parker’s alleged sore ankle as an excuse for him dropping passes and lack of effort?
I have been saying most of the year that we need experienced coaches up and down this team starting with OC and DC but also all the position coaches. I don’t expect much to change for another three years, I’m thinking Ross gives Gase five total years. I also can’t see us being very good because as you say Gase just isn’t maturing like you would expect.
The sad thing is that Jon Gruden is gonna come out and coach again next month, and Ross will be too stubborn to nab him.
I’ve been saying this a while now. Gase does not like to run the ball…not unlike Philbin and his crew of clowns. For the first half of the season it looked like he’d rather keep pumping those failed bubble screens to Landry than running the ball. He won’t be here after next year is my guess. I know very few coaches are great out of the gate and need some time to get their bearings. This one lost his QB to start the year. But there are troubling signs that he is taking on way too much responsibility with being the OC and the play caller (especially when you look at our number of penalties and turnover differential…both almost dead last in the league). I didn’t like this arrangement last year (even at 10-6) and I sure don’t like it this year. If Tanne is not healthy next year, Gase still insists on calling plays, and keeps Burke, he’s gone by 2019 unless a good QB gets drafted. Maybe he’ll get a another crack at being HC in about 10 years when he matures a bit more.
I think a healthy will be a marked improvement over Cutler and Moore, but time will tell if that improvement results in more wins. Any team suffers when they lose their starting QB. Look at Indy and Houston this year. that being said, sometimes a team gets stronger, because the backup was better all along and the stupid coach didn’t realize it. Like when Sam Bradford got hurt and Case Keenum had to take over. Or when Drew Bledsoe got hurt and some guy named Brady had to take over. Sometimes a QB injury gives a backup a chance to star, but not in Miami’s case.
Admin this is a sore subject for me! How long have I (and others) been berated for pointing out that Moore was never going to be a starting qb? Four years? Five maybe? How many real qbs have we drafted in that span? None really. We signed some scrubs to the practice team and had them around when we needed arms to throw in preseason but never a serious qb to challenge or develop into the starters role. Contrast that with NE who always seems to have another qb to trade for real value or to step in and win, win, win. Not the Dolphins! Like everything else we’re so comfortable with Matt Moore when we should have known he was not ever a starting caliber qb nor valuable to trade. We kept him because it was comfortable and we handicapped ourselves the way other teams don’t. If we had been cycling through QBs maybe we would have found a few good ones but with Moore we simply found out what the coaches should have known five years ago!
Some good news is the team is in active negotiations to re sign laundry and if they can’t get a deal done they will franchise tag him in till they do get one done. Finally Miami is not letting talent walk out the door.
yes, that is good. It’s something I never worried about either. He wasn’t/isn’t going anywhere.
Although it was a jolt to my confidence when he fumbled his very first catch-and-carry in the Chiefs game. That one fumble set the tone for a disastrous game. We were moving the ball down the field pretty easily and were primed to score. Instead, Landry gave all the momentum in the world to KC, and our defense was too disheartened to try
I was so worried he would somehow end up on the patriots. Keeping him and the team apparently losing faith in Parker as a number 1 reciever for next year is a good sign.