Do you guys really have good expectations for this team? | FinHeaven - Miami Dolphins Forums

Do you guys really have good expectations for this team?

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samikit13

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I've been a fan of Miami since 86 and have pretty much always had good expectations for the Dolphins only to be disappointed at the end of the year. Seems like no matter what there is always something missing with this team year after year. It's extremely frustrating as a fan to have hopes and to be let down so often. So this year, and until proven I'm wrong, I'm going into this season thinking they will not make the playoffs. And Philbin is not head coach material and is going to handicap this team. Combine that with the insane amount of road games the first 9 games of the season and it has the makings of another 8-8 season. I know a lot of you are going to dislike this post but you have to admit that it's hard to fault me for expecting another non playoff season when that's all we've seen the last 15 years... minus a couple playoff years.
 
We may not meet expectations but I still rather go into every year excited and be disappointed in the end, then to start the season already negative about the season. The future is so unpredictable I find no reason to go into a year with negative attitude because no matter what anyone says it is possible we could make the Super Bowl. While it's unlikely we make the Super Bowl it is not out of realm of possibility, every year some teams surprise, and some teams disappoint so I will just wait things out.

I personally think we have upgraded almost across the board as far as team talent unless Tannehill doesn't take the next step (which yearly progression gives no reason at the moment to believe he won't) I see playoffs more likely than not (just personal opinion). As long as the offensive line holds up he has WR's that are more QB friendly, and defense better built to not slow down at the end of the year.
 
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It could be groundhog year again, but this is the time of year to dream, learn background information of some of our new players and root for long shots making the team. One thing is for sure, since 1986 we spent 15 years looking for a QB. We have our QB for the foreseeable future. We finally have the front office and the coaching staff working together, and we have players that fit the scheme vs talented players mis-cast in positions or roles they are not suited for. I am cautiously hopeful that Philbin will a glorified head coach organizer and let the coordinators run the show. Hopefully, Philbin is learning just like Tannehill and many of the young players. So yes, I am optimistic even though it could be another groundhog year.
 
Been a fan since 80s as well, it amazes me the QBs we've trotted out on the field since dan left. The dominant defenses we had with Zach and Jason were wasted. This season I expect a nice jump in tannehill's production this season, as well as a 9-7/10-6 record.


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Up until last year I was always optimistic. I felt burned out as a fan before last season for the first time ever. I have new found confidence in the team now. If they can acquire Mathis, I really think they can win 10-11 games. I'd be all for it. I wanted Suh, they got him. I wanted Cameron, they got him. I wanted Parker, they got him.

It's never gone so smoothly before. It's time, for the love of God, to finally take the next step.
 
Can't blame you OP for being skeptical. I think the best we can all do is simply wish for them to get it right this time. I certainly don't have expectations though -- I think that's an easy trap to fall into, just because we got Suh and a few solid players this offseason doesn't give us a beeline for the playoffs.
AFC East is going to be tough, bad QB's or not. We saw just how bad we did last year against Buffalo in that first game, and that was with EJ Manuel. Same with the Jets, we gave Geno Smith his best career game, at HOME.
 
Hope springs anew, baby. There's nothing wrong with getting your hopes up.

I'm trying very hard to be cautiously optimistic, but the offseason thus far has made the "cautiously" part difficult. if the O-line holds together, this team very well might surprise the hell out of a lot of people.
 
samikit13 said:
I've been a fan of Miami since 86 and have pretty much always had good expectations for the Dolphins only to be disappointed at the end of the year. Seems like no matter what there is always something missing with this team year after year. It's extremely frustrating as a fan to have hopes and to be let down so often. So this year, and until proven I'm wrong, I'm going into this season thinking they will not make the playoffs. And Philbin is not head coach material and is going to handicap this team. Combine that with the insane amount of road games the first 9 games of the season and it has the makings of another 8-8 season. I know a lot of you are going to dislike this post but you have to admit that it's hard to fault me for expecting another non playoff season when that's all we've seen the last 15 years... minus a couple playoff years.
Click to expand...

If the O-line holds, the sky is the limit for this team...this team potentially could be scary.
 
whizafriz said:
Can't blame you OP for being skeptical. I think the best we can all do is simply wish for them to get it right this time. I certainly don't have expectations though -- I think that's an easy trap to fall into, just because we got Suh and a few solid players this offseason doesn't give us a beeline for the playoffs.
AFC East is going to be tough, bad QB's or not. We saw just how bad we did last year against Buffalo in that first game, and that was with EJ Manuel. Same with the Jets, we gave Geno Smith his best career game, at HOME.
Click to expand...

Ya there's been a few ugly ones the past few years. But in that Buffalo game, we were a few dropped sure-TDs (ball in the breadbasket) away from a totally different outcome, even with as bad as the team played overall. And in that Stej game, the D had regressed so far from week 9 it wasn't even noticeably the same team on that side of the ball.

I'd say there's plenty reason for optimism this season. The offense has a full year experience in the system and has the lingo down...they're not trying to learn it from scratch like last year, where much of the terminology and concepts weren't ingrained at that point.

Even aside from Suh, there are plenty to be hopeful about.

Lamar absolutely thrived in this offense last year, and he's steadily improved since he's been here...I don't expect that to change.

The youngsters in some of the defense positions are steadily improving, and a few are showing flashes not shown in previous offseasons (Taylor specifically, even Aikens and Thomas).

The WR corps should be called "All-State." Hands hands hands. Potential game-changing TE to go with that as sugar on top.

But you're absolutely correct, the AFC East is a defensive monster at the moment...arguably sporting the top 3 DL in the league. The one thing that "should" separate us from Stej / Jills is the QB position (just the other day the Jills didn't complete one pass, from their 3 potential starting QBs, in the first series of their 11 on 11 work). I'm more concerned about the Stej though...if Geno can make even a few less stupid decisions (I don't think he's as bad as some of his performance at this point), they should show well with all those guys they have.

With the addition of Suh/Mosley and some of the secondary guys, we're much deeper on D and that should pay dividends later in the season.

The O could put up an equal performance to 2014 and we'd be 10-6 IMO...of course it all remains to be seen, but I'm counting on an exciting 2015.
 
We'll win a playoff game this year. I'm not down on Philbin like alot of folks. THe last three years have not been amazing, but it's certainly been the best stretch since the Dave Wannsedt years and i prefer the current direction of the team over those teams. I truly think we are heading into years of prosperity.
 
I am cautiously optimistic since we seem to have fixed most of the big problems. Our LBs did not perform well last year, but the middle of the defensive line was a bigger problem. The center of the defensive problem is fixed on paper. The receivers underperformed last year. The receiving corps all have better natural pass catching skills than last year's group. On paper, they should perform better with the same level of protection. If the offensive coaches can squeeze even a marginal improvement in protection from the guards, then watch out for our passing game.
 
I have high expectations for the team. They have a good quarterback who could prove to be the best QB in the AFC East this year. I believe we have made big changes at receiver, which I view as mostly if not completely positive. There is still room for a lot of improvement on offense, but focus on the key to success and its inevitable that a good passing game will take a team a long way. Then look at the defense. This unit should show improvement. Before injuries overtook this unit, there were folks around the league who thought this defense was one of the best. They shut out the Chargers. The recipe is there for this defense to be a dominant force, but there does continue to be issues with depth.

Lastly I want to talk about Joe Philbin. He strikes me as the kind of guy who likes to lead quietly and by example. Spin that however you like. I look at his body of work so far and see someone who helps little but hurts little. One can hope that he is just smart enough to get out of the way of his coordinators and let them do what they do best. Am I right? Also consider that his coordinators have stated publicly that Joe Philbin IS the reason they choose to be here. So every year I give Joe Philbin a new slate and aim to judge him solely on what he's done this year. So far, Joe Philbin has done alright. I feel this team is coached well in the offseason regardless of whether that comes from coordinators and assistants or it comes from the head.

My expectation on this season is 12-4 if the Dolphins escape injuries to key players. I believe they go 10-6 if the defense succumbs to injuries but Tannehill still has key red zone targets to go to. The only way I see Miami missing the playoffs is bad luck injuries on both sides of the ball, which is to say that more than one or two things have to go terribly wrong.
 
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Philbin is the albatross around the team's and RT17's neck. If not for Joe, I'd be a lot more optimistic cuz I think this team can hold its own against any and all of the other 3 divisional opponents.

However, given that, the telltale sign that this is a troll job is the word "really" in the OP, defying you to disagree.... good reason to take this thread with a grain of salt :idk:
 
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