Peyton Manning was never going to play for Miami. Ever. The man wouldn’t even meet with our Owner, or our beloved GM Jeff Ireland. What exactly happened with Matt Flynn may never be known. Did we lowball him, assuming he’d accept because of his comfort level with Joe Philbin? Were we unsure of his ability? Or did Flynn not like seeing our #1 wideout disappear before his very eyes just before his visit? Or is the “vibe” at Seahawks headquarters that much better than in Davie? All we really know is that the Dan Marino hangover continues, while the blotches of empty seats grows wider.
The SoFlo Sea Mammals had the 22nd ranked offense in football last season, and over 20% of it was shipped to the Windy City for two 3rd rounders. This is an offensive unit that could be facing a wildly anemic season, leaving our solid defense on the field for far too long, and keeping us far from the playoff hunt. Matt Moore with Brandon Marshall had a decent rating, but threw for 192 yards per game, putting him in the bottom three starting QBs in the league. There is a small but proud faction of Dolfans who believe Moore can be “the guy” moving forward. We respectfully aren’t buying, and we don’t think the bulk of Dolphin Nation is either.
So here we are, the #6 scoring defense in football, and an offense that kind of sucked, and looks primed to suck a little harder this upcoming season. Is someone like Michael Floyd going to be the guy to turn this all around? We had a perennial All Pro at wideout already, and we were still puttering up and down the field. The truth is, you generally go as far as your quarterback will take you. We’ve been shopping at the bargain bin for too long at the worst position to do so.
Is Ryan Timothy Tannehill a sure thing? No. He’s not as experienced at the position as you’d like, having started out at wide receiver at Texas A&M. But he is a hugely intriguing quarterback prospect. That’s understating it. He’s a physical freak. Drafting him could put the Sea Mammals at the forefront of a dual threat quarterback movement that will include Cam Newton, Robert Griffin III and Jake Locker. What’s more, our new offensive coordinator Mike Sherman knows Ryan like the back of his hand. Though injecting a rookie quarterback into an offense can be a clunky process, we think it would be excellent to begin with that head start. No football man on Earth knows more about Tannehill’s weaknesses and strengths than Sherman.
When’s the last time someone electric was under center for the Dolphins? My God it’s been for ages. Is there a chance of misfiring? Of course. But if he’s available Tannehill absolutely presents the opportunity to catch lightning in a bottle. Not to mention if there’s one position where you take a chance on hitting the jackpot it’s at quarterback. We would accept an anemic offense for now, so long as this phenomenal talent was being groomed. We would accept the time it takes to get a kid ready for live action in this league.
But are we honestly going to go into battle with a vast sea of empty seats, Ross parading B-list celebrities up and down the sidelines, and no end in sight for the Marino hangover that’s haunted us for so long?
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GO DOLPHINS, and feel free to follow us on Twitter @TheBottlenose
Tags: Dolphins, Miami, Ryan tannehill, tannehill
Solid Dolphins Getting Beached by Joe “Queasy Does It” Philbin
11 NovThe 2014 Miami Dolphins are the 6th highest scoring team in the AFC, just a notch behind the juggernaut Steelers. The Dolphins field the #1 defense in the AFC. So how is it that the Dolphins face Buffalo this Thursday with their playoff hopes most likely hanging in the balance? We have to regretfully place blame on the shoulders of Joe Philbin.
In an alternate universe the Dolphins have been playing to win, and have put away six straight foes. We’re 7-2, and atop the AFC East thanks to our week 1 upset of the Patsies. In that alternate universe we’ve been playing to put games away, instead of handing the ball back to Pro Bowl quarterbacks and crossing our fingers.
Alas, this is the only universe we know. It’s a universe where our coach doesn’t believe in going for the jugular. He plays not to lose, and therefore tends to do so when the going gets tough. It is a universe where we claim Ryan Tannehill is “the guy”, yet don’t trust him to close the door on our opponents. And now it’s a universe where we’re once again in the muddled pile of Wild Card hopefuls we’ve grown so accustomed to over the years.
Detroit faked two punts this weekend, and went for it on a 4th and 6. While our masterful end game was to run Daniel Thomas and Damien Williams into the teeth of the #1 rushing D in football, they closed out the contest by trusting their signal caller, who slung passes on 11 straight plays, ultimately leading them to the end zone. They played to win. They did. They’re in first place.
And until Joe Philbin has some moment of clarity, or DirecTV starts offering Sunday Ticket Alternate Universe, such heights will probably elude us.
GO DOLPHINS, and feel free to follow us on Twitter @TheBottlenose, or our lighter side is available at @VaguelyFunnyDan
Tags: Dan Ewen, Dolphins, fired, harbaugh, jim harbaugh, Joe Philbin, Miami, Miami Dolphins, NFL, philbin, Ryan tannehill, tannehill, the bottlenose