RealDriscoll
Still Perfect.. and You're Not.
If you asked me who the best players on this team were going into the season I would have answered Ronnie Brown and Chad Pennington without hesitation. Here I sit 10 weeks into the NFL season and both players are on the injured reserve after finding out that Brown would head to the IR after it was discovered that he has Lisfranc fracture. For those who are worried that Ronnie Brown’s career as a Miami Dolphin is over I would say not so fast. Ronnie has a $5million option next season if the league does indeed go uncapped and that is small price to play for the Dolphins to keep their Wild-Cat trigger-man and the teams’ best player. Another option would be the franchise tag but I would be lying if I said I wasn’t concerned about Browns’ health. Two of the last season Ronnie’s season has been cut short due to a pretty significant string of injuries. This injury isn’t as severe as the one he suffered just two seasons ago but this shouldn’t affect Brown’s long term success in the league. Right now there is no question he carries the label of injury prone.
What do you do to replace your best offensive player? You do not go out and sign a veteran like Edgerin James rather you go with the philosophy of next man up. This is time for young players such as Lex Hilliard and Kory Sheets to prove that they belong. All pre-season everyone was calling for Lex Hilliard to make the roster and he did so he will see some carries and if he can run like he did in the pre-season than there will be a lot of happy DolFans.
Last year was a marvelous season for our franchise and it was achieve due to the teams’ ability to stay healthy and avoid the dreaded injury bug. This year this has not been the case as in addition to losing Brown and Pennington we lost our most consistent Defensive player in Will Allen; let’s not forget that Matt Roth was injured for the first half of the season. Now our promising young Defensive Tackle, Paul Soliai, our special teams’ ace, Erik Walden, and our starting tight end, Anthony Fasano all find themselves battling injuries.
What’s next? The truth is we will find out more about young players such as Chad Henne, Lex Hilliard, Kory Sperry, Joey Haynos, Sean Smith, Vontae Davis, and Chris Clemons as they are seeing increased playing time due to injuries. In my honest opinion Chad Pennington, Matt Roth, and Anthony Fasano are in their final year as a Dolphin unless they are willing to resign at a bargain price ala Channing Crowder. This season will serve as a major evaluation of where this team is in terms of talent. The off-season is months away but upgrading at Wide Receiver, Nose Tackle, Outside Linebacker, Inside Linebacker, and Tight End will be priorities. But let’s look at this thing outside of the Aqua and Orange goggles. The Dolphins are not going to be a playoff team this season but that doesn’t mean they are not a good team. Look at a team like the Saints for example as they failed to make the playoffs last season but this year they are unbeatable.
This is the part where I am going to call out Ricky Williams; Ricky Williams has been good if not brilliant the last two seasons but he was playing the role of supporting actor; now it is time for Ricky to be the star, the same star he once was before he quit on the team, the fans, and the city of Miami. He has played well but well enough to redeem the outstanding asking price that cost us two 1st round draft picks and an additional 3rd rounder? I don’t think so. Has he played well enough for this franchise and it’s fans to forgive him for quitting in favor of an illegal substance and a life outside of the NFL? I don’t think so. In life sometimes you get 2nd chances and Ricky Williams must be a cat because he seems to have nine lives. The spotlight will be on Ricky and this time he cannot crack under the pressure. We need to be that feared power-runner he once was; we need him to be that back who could handle the ball 30-40 times a game; Ricky you’re time is now. In a perfect world Ricky will continue running like he has all season because in my honest opinion he has out-played Ronnie Brown thus far. Ricky, here is you’re chance to win us all back.
I love Ronnie Brown as a player but in hindsight this could be the best thing for the development of Chad Henne. Chad Henne would get us down the field than be pulled in favor of the Wild-Cat formation; without Ronnie I expect the Wild-Cat to hibernate for most of this season. We could see more of Pat White but until he starts making plays he is not needed. We need to improve our base offense and with a solid offensive line and a solid running game it is time for Chad Henne to show us what he is all about. Ronnie's injury brings new opportunity to Chad Henne and Ricky Williams to be the leaders of this team. Run Ricky Run....
What do you do to replace your best offensive player? You do not go out and sign a veteran like Edgerin James rather you go with the philosophy of next man up. This is time for young players such as Lex Hilliard and Kory Sheets to prove that they belong. All pre-season everyone was calling for Lex Hilliard to make the roster and he did so he will see some carries and if he can run like he did in the pre-season than there will be a lot of happy DolFans.
Last year was a marvelous season for our franchise and it was achieve due to the teams’ ability to stay healthy and avoid the dreaded injury bug. This year this has not been the case as in addition to losing Brown and Pennington we lost our most consistent Defensive player in Will Allen; let’s not forget that Matt Roth was injured for the first half of the season. Now our promising young Defensive Tackle, Paul Soliai, our special teams’ ace, Erik Walden, and our starting tight end, Anthony Fasano all find themselves battling injuries.
What’s next? The truth is we will find out more about young players such as Chad Henne, Lex Hilliard, Kory Sperry, Joey Haynos, Sean Smith, Vontae Davis, and Chris Clemons as they are seeing increased playing time due to injuries. In my honest opinion Chad Pennington, Matt Roth, and Anthony Fasano are in their final year as a Dolphin unless they are willing to resign at a bargain price ala Channing Crowder. This season will serve as a major evaluation of where this team is in terms of talent. The off-season is months away but upgrading at Wide Receiver, Nose Tackle, Outside Linebacker, Inside Linebacker, and Tight End will be priorities. But let’s look at this thing outside of the Aqua and Orange goggles. The Dolphins are not going to be a playoff team this season but that doesn’t mean they are not a good team. Look at a team like the Saints for example as they failed to make the playoffs last season but this year they are unbeatable.
This is the part where I am going to call out Ricky Williams; Ricky Williams has been good if not brilliant the last two seasons but he was playing the role of supporting actor; now it is time for Ricky to be the star, the same star he once was before he quit on the team, the fans, and the city of Miami. He has played well but well enough to redeem the outstanding asking price that cost us two 1st round draft picks and an additional 3rd rounder? I don’t think so. Has he played well enough for this franchise and it’s fans to forgive him for quitting in favor of an illegal substance and a life outside of the NFL? I don’t think so. In life sometimes you get 2nd chances and Ricky Williams must be a cat because he seems to have nine lives. The spotlight will be on Ricky and this time he cannot crack under the pressure. We need to be that feared power-runner he once was; we need him to be that back who could handle the ball 30-40 times a game; Ricky you’re time is now. In a perfect world Ricky will continue running like he has all season because in my honest opinion he has out-played Ronnie Brown thus far. Ricky, here is you’re chance to win us all back.
I love Ronnie Brown as a player but in hindsight this could be the best thing for the development of Chad Henne. Chad Henne would get us down the field than be pulled in favor of the Wild-Cat formation; without Ronnie I expect the Wild-Cat to hibernate for most of this season. We could see more of Pat White but until he starts making plays he is not needed. We need to improve our base offense and with a solid offensive line and a solid running game it is time for Chad Henne to show us what he is all about. Ronnie's injury brings new opportunity to Chad Henne and Ricky Williams to be the leaders of this team. Run Ricky Run....
