Uncategorized (Page 4)

If the Dolphins win their next 4 games, they will be #1 seed in the AFC. Let’s start with that positive note…although it is extremely improbable. The Dolphins have a 2-game lead on the Bills. Another positive to cling to as I have to–unfortunately–dive into this next part. One of my favorite quotes is from the writer Dante, who was speaking about gamblers playing dice. He basically said that when the game is over, the loser stands alone, replaying all the plays in his mind, and all the “what ifs” hurt. That’s where I begin. What if Bradley Chubb doesn’t take his helmet off? WeRead More →

Just keep telling yourself that it’s not the Dolphins’ fault that the NFL has some weak teams. It’s not our fault that no Dolphin win came against a winning team. In general, we are beating the teams we are supposed to be beating, and that is a great step forward. In the past, we weren’t doing this. We would let the bad teams keep the game close or even win the game outright, leaving us with a sinking feeling, especially in December. Step one of correcting that is complete, as the Dolphins won a laugher at Washington. Our backups played a majority of the game,Read More →

We might as well throw the 8-3 record out the window. December is here. This is the time of year when us Dolphins fans begin by saying, “We control our own destiny.” “If we win, we’re in.” Etc. By mid-December, that changes to, “Well, we can still make it as a wild card.” And finally, that evolves into “We need help from other teams.” Except for our Tank for Tua year when we had no chance from the get-go, it’s been the same for a long, long time. So forgive me for being a Grinch here, albeit a realistic Grinch. Let’s start with the overallRead More →

Every win counts. Even wins when Tua looked like a confused rookie instead of the NFL’s #1 quarterback. The defense saved the day on numerous occasions, highlighted by Jalen Ramsey’s two interceptions, making himself and Tyreek Hill the best couple of trades and the best money spent in Dolphins history. As Xavien Howard slowly declines into an average-at-best CB with a lot of holding calls against him, Ramsey is shining. Combine that with the defensive line stuffing the Raiders’ run game, and it was lights out. The Raiders caught us sleeping on one TD drive, but that was it. We needed the defense to beRead More →

Thanks to the Bills’ utter choke vs. Denver, the Dolphins inched a little bit closer to possibly winning the AFC East. We do not want a wild card. We want the division and a home playoff game for once. We’re now 2 losses ahead of the Bills in the loss column, but they’ve played more games and they beat us head-to-head. We unofficially, we’re up by one game. A lot of football is yet to come. Luckily, we can make up more ground with 3 easy games coming up, before we get into a tough December. The goal is to be 2 full games aheadRead More →

Looking past the German game for a moment, we have a good record and did some remarkable things so far this year. We only lost 3 out of 9 games, so let’s focus on that positive. We have 8 games to go, and only a few of them are against formidable opponents, meaning that even if we lose to Dallas, Buffalo, and the Ravens, we could easily end up at 11-6. Assume the Bills lose another game in the next 8 weeks, and the AFC East is ours! Now I cannot avoid the inevitable, and I must write about how Tyreek Hill handed a freeRead More →

As disappointing as the Eagle game was, we can take solace in a few things: First, the officiating was biased at a never-before-seen level. I’m not talking about an iffy interference call that could go either way when slowed down frame by frame. Rather I mean the blatant facemask that the refs refused to call, plus the “roughing” call when Wilkins tapped Hurts with his palm. Plus, there are dozens of pictures circulating out there showing all the times the Eagles held onto Jalen Phillips, and the officials must have accidentally been looking the other way. The refs changed the entire complexion of the game.Read More →

Cast your vote for the most egregious error the refs made tonight. Was it Christian Wilkins getting penalized for putting his palm on Jalen Hurts? Was it ALL the officials looking the other way while Cedric Wilson had his head torn off on a facemask? Was it the refs missing all the offside Eagles on the tush push, plus the fact that they were not set for a full second? Or maybe the fact that the refs called no penalties on the Eagles at all? Take your pick. The league needs to grade, review, penalize and fire the officials who cost teams a game, whichRead More →

The interesting news of the day is that Jalen Ramsey began practicing today. He won’t be playing this weekend, but it’s good that he’s out there working. We don’t want to rush things and get him hurt again, so we’ll see where this goes. Our D has been the weak link this season, so hopefully he lives up to the All-Pro hype, if and when he takes the field. Next up, we travel to the NFC Champion Eagles. I hear a lot of talk about the Eagle defense, and I know they are formidable, but I don’t know if they are THAT good. I thinkRead More →

It’s been a very long time since any Dolphin rookie has made so much buzz around the NFL. I dare say we’d have to go back to 1983 and a certain man who wore #13. D’von Achane is THAT good. It’s mind-blowing to realize that he AVERAGES more than 12 yards per carry. That’s an insane number. He looked fine all day Sunday, so I’m unsure when or how he got injured. But these things happen, and the next man up has to rise. Jeff Wilson is eligible to play this weekend, but in all likelihood, he won’t be ready. So expect Mostert, Ahmed, andRead More →

A lot of blame to spread around, but let’s start with the main culprit, Vic Fangio. His garbage defense gave up 48 and 34 points to good offenses in Buffalo and the Chargers. Horrible play calls and even worse use of personnel. Kader Kohou was undrafted for a reason, and he was utterly exposed Sunday. Not Kader’s fault, as he played hard the whole time. It was 100% Fangio’s fault for never helping the kid. Cam Smith sat on the bench while Fangio allowed Kohou to hand the Bills 34 of their 48 points. Fangio is just awful. So much potential and so much hope,Read More →

We’ve all seen the hype all week long. The Dolphins have something to prove. Are we a fluke offense or a juggernaut? A test will be today. HOWEVER, I personally fee that the Bills have more to prove. THEY are the ones being tested. Their defense has begun the year facing offensive offensive juggernauts NY Jets, the Raiders, and the Commanders. They beat sure-thing Hall of Famer quarterbacks Sam Howell, Jimmy Garropolo, and Zach Wilson. Oh, wait a minute. They LOST to Zach Wilson. My point is, as good as Buffalo can be, I have confidence in a Dolphin win because Tua is not SamRead More →

The loss of Jaelan Phillips could be a huge loss. However, we held the Pats down pretty well without him, so maybe Van Ginkel steps up again. Josh Allen is a million times better than Mac Jones, so it’s difficult. Waddle’s return will be helpful to further tire out the Bills defenders.Read More →

So much to write about, but yet I can’t add much more than what has already been covered. I heard Mike McDaniel’s explanation about why he took a knee instead of going for the NFL points record. He said he didn’t want to run up the score nor embarrass his opponent, etc. But…earlier when it was 56-13, McDaniel called for a long bomb, Mike White to Robbie Chosen.* That went for a TD and McDaniel certainly was running up the score by calling such a play. Miami led by 43 points with a few minutes left, and he ran up the score. I think thatRead More →

I was watching the Steelers/Browns game the other night (Thank God a million times over that Stephen Ross ended his infatuation with Deshaun Watson). On some plays, the Steelers used six offensive linemen, essentially having two left tackles. They ran sweeps that way, and had good gains every time. It got me thinking about if/when Terron Armstead is ready to come back. Kendall Lamm has played beautifully at left tackle for two games, and he deserves to keep playing. I don’t think we should immediately bench him when Armstead comes back. Instead, I hope McDaniel sees the value in both of these guys and comesRead More →

Mike Gesicki did everything he could to defeat his old team, and he came up inches short. Last week, I commented on how Justin Herbert allowed himself to be tackled on 4th down with the game on the line, when instead he should have just heaved the ball up and hope. Fumbled on purpose. Anything! You’re about to lose, so why not try something desperate? That’s exactly what Gesicki did. The game was over, and he knew it, so he had nothing to lose by lateraling the ball to a guard. Brilliant play. The stars were aligned for the Dolphins, however, as we barely tackledRead More →

My nightmare scenario is that Mac Jones feeds us a steady diet of crossing passes to Mike Gesicki, followed by occasional long balls to Devante Parker. Meanwhile, like last week, we can’t stop the run again, and Ezekiel Eliot eats us alive. I can see our defense having another bad game. The one good thing though is that Mac Jones isn’t 1/10th as good as Justin Herbert. It’s baffling to me why some media rate Jones so high. He’s a deer in headlights when you pressure him, and an interception machine like Josh Allen when you pressure him, It will be interesting to see whatRead More →