Did the Dolphins make a mistake by not moving to the AFC South?

[Danny]

We never had the chance to move.....the teams don’t decide if they want to move to another division

 

[cullenbigcstill]

The geographical rivalries would make more sense, plus shorter travel to away games for the season would be a plus.

Dallas has the same issue as we do, so it is what it is.

It's probably never going to change so what's the point to worry about what ifs.

it wouldn't have changed the fact of our last 20 years in W-L records too much, Jags, Titans, and Texans have had some very good teams during that span.

Also, it wouldn't have affected us much in a positive way considering the coaches and teams we had during that time frame.

We probably would never had the greatest trade in league history with Houston being in our division lol.

 

[tay0365]

No mistake, this is a much better division, where if your good, you deserve what praise you get, rather then a weaker division that might get you more playoff appearances, but no big rivalries, no excitement around the NFL, nothing special.

If you want to be special, never be afraid of your competitors, and want to move away.

 

[The Gov]

I'd rather rip my eyes out and pour bleach in my sockets in boredom versus seeing us play the Colts, Texans, and Jags twice apiece each season tbh.

We are in the perfect division.

 

[tay0365]

Nobody cares about the rivalries, except ticket salesmen for the snowbirds.

This is not true, many, many fans have huge hate for teams in their division, the rivalries made the NFL, and fan bases were the ones that drove it there.

 

[Bridgeburner]

So you're saying there should be a latitude mandate.

So you're saying there should be a longitude mandate?

 

[Fin-Loco]

Legit question, do you guys think the Dolphins should have moved to the AFC South when they had the chance? Trust me, I love the rivalries we've developed with the other AFC East teams over the years, I just wonder if our franchise would have had more success in the last 20 years playing the AFC South (and not having to worry about these snow games as much).

Unless you have a valet job at Doc Brown's country club, what difference does it make?

 

[BrowardDolfan]

You could equally argue that you can't get anymore south than Miami. In fact no team is further south than Miami, but the Jets, Bills, Patriots, Ravens and Pittsburgh are further east than Miami.

Agreed. So let's break up the Pitt-Cleveland rivalry, break up the Baltimore-Cleveland rivalry because hey - better geography? Give me a break.

The NFL knows tradition is key in sports and keeps the money flowing. Dallas would have been out of the NFC East a LOOOONNNNGGG time ago if this was a major factor.

 

[BrowardDolfan]

So you're saying there should be a longitude mandate?

Absolutely. Why have one and not the other?

Of course, I'm being sarcastic. Actually, I'm saying no mandate. Stop the proposed insanity. Keep as many rivalries as possible because that is part of what sports is all about. Chickening out because you're afraid of the cold is an extremely weak reason for wanting to undo over 50 years of history.

 

[Fin-Loco]

Agreed. So let's break up the Pitt-Cleveland rivalry, break up the Baltimore-Cleveland rivalry because hey - better geography? Give me a break.

The NFL knows tradition is key in sports and keeps the money flowing. Dallas would have been out of the NFC East a LOOOONNNNGGG time ago if this was a major factor.

I agree. The rivalries are what keep the game fun and will continue to grow the fun as the year's roll by. Look at the history between us and the other AFCE teams in just our short 56 years as a team. Imagine another 30 years from now.

 

[gregorygrant83]

Agreed. So let's break up the Pitt-Cleveland rivalry, break up the Baltimore-Cleveland rivalry because hey - better geography? Give me a break.

The NFL knows tradition is key in sports and keeps the money flowing. Dallas would have been out of the NFC East a LOOOONNNNGGG time ago if this was a major factor.

Well if you go back and read my post I never said the Dolphins should move to the south, so you might want to turn that down a bit. I said taking the stance that MIami should be in the east because they are further east and on the east coast is technicaly incorrect, because there are 5 other afc teams further east. If you're making the stance based on geographic location, I was responding to your post that said this not my stance, than putting the Dolphins in the south would make more sense. I said this because Miami is the 6th team furthest east in the AFC and the furthest south team in the entire league. I personally would like to see the league get rid of the divisions altogether just have 16 teams in each conference. I would have teams play every team in their conference once and then 2 non-conference games. I would then have you just alternate home and away year to year with your afc opponents. I don't see the point of the divisions and would hate to see a division winner with a losing record get in and get a home game while a 11-6 or 10-7 team might be out in the wildcard race. Doing it my way would allow teams to still play their traditional rivals once a year, but they would also go head to head once with every other AFC team, which would make strength of schedule much more equal.

 

[Bridgeburner]

Absolutely. Why have one and not the other?

Of course, I'm being sarcastic. Actually, I'm saying no mandate. Stop the proposed insanity. Keep as many rivalries as possible because that is part of what sports is all about. Chickening out because you're afraid of the cold is an extremely weak reason for wanting to undo over 50 years of history.

No one said the things you're saying. You're all over the place in your opinions and trying to setup strawmen to argue against. You also completely ignore that new rivalries would develop.

 

[utahphinsfan]

For us old-timers, staying in the same division made much more sense. Those rivalries are nostalgic and have been developed and intensified over the years. Geographically it made sense, but not from a historic rivalry standpoint. I've hated those 3 other teams for an awfully long time and look forward to playing them each year...

I'm a somewhat old timer and was all for a move based solely on Geography. Sod Tradition!

Miami to the S, Indy to the N, & BMore to the E.

 

[utahphinsfan]

Should Seattle move to the NFC North? Should the LA Rams move to the NFC South? LA Chargers to the NFC South?

Miami is on the Atlantic Ocean. You can't get any further East. Or maybe the NFL should institute a latitude mandate when setting up divisions? LOL

I have a better idea. Build a team that can win in any type of weather. Last I checked, both teams play in it and the majority of Dolphin players have played in it in college or high school. Being that Tua is the QB, my suggestion for Ross would have been to pony up the big bucks and keep the team in the Buffalo area for the full week of practice. Get Tua used to playing in those conditions as much as possible.

Proximity matters. Miami is closer to TN, Jville, & Houston than they are the northeast.

 

[Michael Scott]

While we would have had more success, and we’d easily win that division this year without a shadow of a doubt (Titans are trash)….. the AFC East is our home. Bills, Jets, Patriots are our rivals. I wouldn’t want it to be any different, regardless of the level of difficulty schedule-wise.