I remembered that conversation this morning because that’s what should have happened in the very first conversation between the Dolphins and Jeff Fisher. If, as both Michael Silver of Yahoo! Sports and now Adam Schefter of ESPN report, Fisher wanted full control over the 53-man roster and Dolphins owner Stephen Ross was unwilling to take such control away from G.M. Jeff Ireland, that shouldn’t have been an eleventh-hour dealbreaker. It should have been a non-starter.
Really, what else would there have been to discuss if Fisher definitely wanted full control and Ross, who had already promised it contractually to Ireland, wasn’t inclined to give Fisher full control? This isn’t one of those last-minute details like where Fisher’s parking space will be. It’s a fundamental cook-the-meals-shop-for-the-groceries term that should have been resolved before any further negotiations occurred.
Perhaps Fisher led the Dolphins to believe in the early conversations that the issue of total control wouldn’t kill the deal, using Miami’s interest to get the best possible terms from the Rams. After all, with Fisher’s agent’s son serving as the point man for the Rams, Kevin Demoff wouldn’t have been able to cough up whatever Fisher wanted unless there was someone else who was willing to give Fisher what he wanted. Otherwise, it would have appeared that Marvin Demoff had gotten his son to roll over.
Regardless, the blame ultimately falls to Dolphins owner Stephen Ross. Either Ross failed to make it clear from the get-go that Ireland’s power never would be given to Fisher, or Ross failed to insist on an immediate commitment from Fisher as to whether the power issue would ultimately prevent Fisher from choosing the Dolphins.
Bottom line? This isn’t an issue that should have been resolved on Friday. It should have been resolved in the first communication between the Dolphins and Fisher. And it’s yet another high-profile failure by Ross, whose best play at this point could be to sell the team.
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.co...ould-have-killed-fisher-to-miami-far-earlier/
Really, what else would there have been to discuss if Fisher definitely wanted full control and Ross, who had already promised it contractually to Ireland, wasn’t inclined to give Fisher full control? This isn’t one of those last-minute details like where Fisher’s parking space will be. It’s a fundamental cook-the-meals-shop-for-the-groceries term that should have been resolved before any further negotiations occurred.
Perhaps Fisher led the Dolphins to believe in the early conversations that the issue of total control wouldn’t kill the deal, using Miami’s interest to get the best possible terms from the Rams. After all, with Fisher’s agent’s son serving as the point man for the Rams, Kevin Demoff wouldn’t have been able to cough up whatever Fisher wanted unless there was someone else who was willing to give Fisher what he wanted. Otherwise, it would have appeared that Marvin Demoff had gotten his son to roll over.
Regardless, the blame ultimately falls to Dolphins owner Stephen Ross. Either Ross failed to make it clear from the get-go that Ireland’s power never would be given to Fisher, or Ross failed to insist on an immediate commitment from Fisher as to whether the power issue would ultimately prevent Fisher from choosing the Dolphins.
Bottom line? This isn’t an issue that should have been resolved on Friday. It should have been resolved in the first communication between the Dolphins and Fisher. And it’s yet another high-profile failure by Ross, whose best play at this point could be to sell the team.
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.co...ould-have-killed-fisher-to-miami-far-earlier/
