Ray R
Club Member
Dynasty?
I try to avoid hyperbolae when I give my opinions. I tend to be very optimistic and I don't think my optimism needs any extra boost. There are reasons I am satisfied that this is going to be a dynasty and none of it has to do with flash or bravado.
A little of my fan history might be useful at this point. Growing up in Cincinnati, Ohio I was a Cleveland Browns fan because at that time they were the only NFL team in Ohio. When Paul Brown started up the Bengals in Cincinnati, I became a Bengals fan. This is when I noticed how really important coaching was. The Bengals were not doing well and a coaching change was made. A coach called "Tiger Johnson" took over for Paul Brown. Another Bengals coach was under consideration, but got passed over. He was hired by the San Francisco Forty-niner's. His name was Bill Walsh. The Bengals got worse and Bill Walsh made history. Another coach was brought in for the Bengals. His name was Forrest Greg. He had played offense and defense for the packers and Vince Lombardi said he was the best player he had ever coached.
At this time the QB for the Bengals was a man named Ken Anderson. He was an excellent QB, but had been getting killed by a poor offensive line (starting to sound familiar). The press asked Coach Gregg what he was going to do about the QB situation. He responded "no one can throw lying on his back". That year two lineman were drafted; Max Montoya and Anthony Munoz. Two years later the Bengals were in their first Superbowl.
By now I was paying more attention to the head coach than the players. A few years later Roethlisberger took off as a QB during his third year with the Steelers. I tried to find why his game had improved so much. What I found out was that Ken Anderson had become his QB coach. Now I realized that the sub-coaches played a big part of how a team performs. Yes, I had known coaches were important, but these three changes drove that point home in a way I never forget.
So far these Coaching changes really opened my mind:
1) Bengals not keeping Bill Walsh.
2) Bengals getting Head Coach Forrest Gregg.
2a) Learned how really important that front line is.
3) Ken Anderson went to the Steelers as a QB coach and Ben Roethlisberger blossomed.
Players that set my standards for great play:
1) QB - Ken Anderson (Tough, great arm strength & accuracy & touch. He had a quiet personnel demeanor and he was smart - his college degree was in mathematics)
2) OT - Anthony Munoz (Possibly the best OT to ever play in the NFL)
I moved to North Carolina in 1992. When the Panthers came in I became a panthers fan. Up to this point, geography defined my fandom. I really liked what I saw from John Fox. He was fairly consistent. It made the team more successful than it slowed them down them. I was disappointed when he was released but happy he found a home in Denver. I wasn't sure about our letting him go but felt the front office knew more than I did. That is when I learned that the front office isn't always right. They brought in Ron Rivera. I think Ron is as good as Fox was, but it took some time for him to get established. In the meantime Fox was immediately successful in Denver. A year later the Broncos were pressured into using Tim Tebow as QB 1/3 of the way through the season. Tim was not polished, but tough as nails and he had a lot of guts and he had a lot of heart. Fox and his staff completely changed their offense and went to the playoffs with him. I still remember their beating Pittsburg at playoff time. Some things never change. A few years later Fox was released and he went to Chicago. The Broncos felt he wasn't aggressive enough on offense. The next year they went to the Superbowl with a weaker offense but an overwhelming defense. Too bad the front office hadn't given Fox those pieces they brought in for defense.
It was at this time I found out about Adam Gase. He had been Tim Tebows' QB coach. Latter as the Broncos Offensive Coordinator with Peyton Manning as QB (with a recovering arm that had lost strength, requiring neck surgery from which he was still recovering), Gase and Peyton amazed everybody. From the information I have been able to gather, Gase and Manning were positive match's for each other. They fed off each other. Gase had interviewed with the forty-niners for their Head Coaching position. There was talk in the papers that Gase was offered the job, but would have to take Jim Tomsula, the backstabber that had helped run off Jim Harbaugh, as his defensive coordinator. Gase refused the job and went to Chicago as the offensive coordinator under John Fox. Turning down that Head Coaching job showed real integrity and wisdom on Gase's part.
By now I knew this Gase guy was someone I had to watch. I'm glad I did. He took Chicago, a team with generally poor talent, with the exception of two pre-Madonna's who didn't play much, and formed a competitive offense. He got 2nd string players playing like first string players and 3rd string players playing like second string players. He got Cutler to play at his best. Wow. This guy Gase is the real deal!
When the Dolphins picked Gase, I wasn't surprised and neither were the rest of the NFL front offices. This is when I became a dolphins fan. This is the first time I picked a team because of the coaching and not the geographical location. I have not been disappointed. I see this organization is getting better, even with those really absurd situations that occurred this year. I don't want to hear the gripes from 5 or 10 years ago. They have no meaning for the current team. I had plenty of disillusionments with the Bengals and the Panthers.
This team has a good owner, an excellent QB and, as decimated as the team was for talent, they were in better shape than Chicago had been. I have see consistent, focused drafting and free agent hires. Even with the dismal season we had last year, the rookies started showing up. If you can't see this happening you are limiting yourselves from the experience of watching a dysfunctional team turn around into a real competitor. A team that will continue to be a competitor for a long time. This team IS becoming a Dynasty. If it will take some people two or three Superbowl's to see this, that's their problem, not mine!
I don't mind opposing opinions, and when they are backed up with fact's as opposed to other opinions. This is one way I get information and one of the reasons I got on this Forum. It's the unsupported opinions and reaching back 5 or 10 years to justify a complaint and the trolling that bother me.
I hope this gives you some insight into my viewpoints that you find useful.