lazareth
get your chief on...
I think it’s clear why Joey Harrington was named the starting quarterback. For this week, maybe next week, and beyond that -- at least, until whenever the Daunte Culpepper we get is the one we expected.
This is still Culpepper’s job. Long term, that is. The Dolphins still believe he is the real deal. But there’s no doubt his lack of mobility as he fully recovers from a serious knee injury that has not allowed him to excel as he has in the past.
I kept waiting for the old Culpepper to re-appear. And so, it seems, did Nick Saban. You can ask why Saban didn’t make this move earlier, why he couldn’t see that Culpepper needed more time? But the truth of the matter is this: Culpepper took part in every training camp practice session. He was cleared by team doctors to play.
There was every reason, based on his preseason performance, to believe that he had a real chance of being the player we all wanted him to be, the player the Dolphins needed him to be. But when the games started to count for real, it was clear that Culpepper’s legs weren’t yet as strong as his desire to compete.
What made the decision even more difficult for Saban is that Culpepper is such a leader on this team. Maybe the most respected leader on offense. What’s more, he had shown some signs of getting better from Pittsburgh to Buffalo to Houston. But the mobility just wasn’t there, and Saban had to make one of those decisions that you lose sleep over, but a decision that was best for the entire team.
the rest of his piece here:
http://www.miamidolphins.com/newsite/news/andycohen.asp?contentID=4797
This is still Culpepper’s job. Long term, that is. The Dolphins still believe he is the real deal. But there’s no doubt his lack of mobility as he fully recovers from a serious knee injury that has not allowed him to excel as he has in the past.
I kept waiting for the old Culpepper to re-appear. And so, it seems, did Nick Saban. You can ask why Saban didn’t make this move earlier, why he couldn’t see that Culpepper needed more time? But the truth of the matter is this: Culpepper took part in every training camp practice session. He was cleared by team doctors to play.
There was every reason, based on his preseason performance, to believe that he had a real chance of being the player we all wanted him to be, the player the Dolphins needed him to be. But when the games started to count for real, it was clear that Culpepper’s legs weren’t yet as strong as his desire to compete.
What made the decision even more difficult for Saban is that Culpepper is such a leader on this team. Maybe the most respected leader on offense. What’s more, he had shown some signs of getting better from Pittsburgh to Buffalo to Houston. But the mobility just wasn’t there, and Saban had to make one of those decisions that you lose sleep over, but a decision that was best for the entire team.
the rest of his piece here:
http://www.miamidolphins.com/newsite/news/andycohen.asp?contentID=4797
