Guys we gave up on too soon | Page 8 | FinHeaven - Miami Dolphins Forums

Guys we gave up on too soon

Digital said:
Well watching Welker it was obvious he was extremely quick and had a knack for finding the soft spot in zones, and was a skilled open-field runner. But, he was young and obviously a bit undisciplined and rough around the edges. He was the typical young guy who flashed, but not yet the polished finished product. I was actually very high on him when this all happened, and was devastated when we let him be stolen by a divisional rival. Then disgusted and nauseated when he went on a very vocal anti-Dolphin rant phase for a few years. Still, I can't help but wonder how much of that was to convince his new teammates of his loyalty. And, I always wonder how things might have been different with him in a Dolphins uniform for all those years.
Click to expand...
I remember being annoyed with that trade. I knew welker was up and coming. I figured he would thrive with Brady of course, but he was always able to get open for us.
 
DolfanISS said:
This board was very excited about Lamar Gordon. “Rick Does It Again” threads were all over the place. Finheaven really thought we fleeced the Rams. Gordon was terrible, absolutely terrible. Teams must have relaxed when Marshall Faulk went out making him look respectable.
Click to expand...

I was here for the Gordon thing, one of the first times I was around on here, and I don't think I remember much buzz. It was a pretty desperate move, everyone knew that, and we overpaid for one of many guys the Rams drafted to try and supplement Marshall Faulk, all of which did nothing until they spent a high pick on an obviously top shelf prospect in Jackson.

Honestly though, judging Gordon behind that line is probably more unfair than judging any back who ran for us last year. For probably half the season there wasn't a genuine hole to be found until guys like Leonard Henry and Brock Forsey surprisingly broke a few like halfway through the year. Sammy Morris ended up making himself the guy that year (though he was hurt to start the season) because he was a big guy who had surprising grace and athleticism. Gordon came in on a desperate team in disarray with a short camp and a hurricane that rescheduled the first game (and the team played like it), and got hurt like two weeks later on a hit I still never saw but heard he had no chance on. He probably wasn't any good but the guy was pretty darn unfortunate in that aspect. His one chance to be the guy was spent in lousy, lousy way.
 
SaskFinFan said:
Wes was gone no matter what. New England had a poison pill in the contract that was offered to him. Do I wish he had stayed? Hell ya I wish he had.
Click to expand...

Sadly, if Dolphins had a good quarterback, Wes would have more production at wide receiver but he was good in special teams so it sucked to see him leave to a division rival to play with Brady and have much more production at wide receiver
 
I don't know where this notion that Welker wasn't productive as a Dolphin when the Patriots stole him away. Yeah he didn't have a massive season before leaving the Dolphins but his production on a joke of an offense in 2006 was in the same area as name receivers Marty Booker and Chris Chambers who were both former Pro Bowlers who started the year as offensive centerpieces...heck Welker even led the team in catches. This is a guy who was brought in a few games into his first season as a returner specialist who wasn't even really getting run with the receivers at all his first year, and scarcely the second. His tenacity was already apparent from his return game, and he showed he could be an impeccable, tough, and sure handed route runner in 2006. He was clearly a player on the ascendancy and there was no reason to think that he wouldn't continue to improve and produce at a higher level.

If you couldn't imagine how an impeccable route runner who grabbed 67 balls from a gimpy Daunte Culpepper, broken Joey Harrington, and NFL Europe caliber Cleo Lemon could catch 110 balls on the best coached team in the league with a top shelf QB in a system that showed they could produce even with second rate talent at the receiver position, that's on you. Because I could fully imagine it happening and expected it. (Similarly, I don't think many people account for a decrease in production when a 110 catch guy leaves a situation like Manning or Brady-led offense).

Fact of the matter is after that going from the Saban debacle to the Cameron era was one of the lowest points of this franchise. We even traded the fricking punter. Most new NFL head coaches will get rid of a lot of talent they imagine they'll replace with "their" guys but ultimately fail and get fired, and Cameron was one of the absolute worst examples of that. Letting go of Welker was just one of a number of controversial and ultimately unsuccessful roster moves he made. Ultimately Welker was the only one really on the ascendancy, but letting the rest of them go wasn't a good move at the time. It resulted in a team so laughably bad it makes me sad I ever lived through it.
 
Sirspud said:
I don't know where this notion that Welker wasn't productive as a Dolphin when the Patriots stole him away. Yeah he didn't have a massive season before leaving the Dolphins but his production on a joke of an offense in 2006 was in the same area as name receivers Marty Booker and Chris Chambers who were both former Pro Bowlers who started the year as offensive centerpieces...heck Welker even led the team in catches. This is a guy who was brought in a few games into his first season as a returner specialist who wasn't even really getting run with the receivers at all his first year, and scarcely the second. His tenacity was already apparent from his return game, and he showed he could be an impeccable, tough, and sure handed route runner in 2006. He was clearly a player on the ascendancy and there was no reason to think that he wouldn't continue to improve and produce at a higher level.

If you couldn't imagine how an impeccable route runner who grabbed 67 balls from a gimpy Daunte Culpepper, broken Joey Harrington, and NFL Europe caliber Cleo Lemon could catch 110 balls on the best coached team in the league with a top shelf QB in a system that showed they could produce even with second rate talent at the receiver position, that's on you. Because I could fully imagine it happening and expected it. (Similarly, I don't think many people account for a decrease in production when a 110 catch guy leaves a situation like Manning or Brady-led offense).

Fact of the matter is after that going from the Saban debacle to the Cameron era was one of the lowest points of this franchise. We even traded the fricking punter. Most new NFL head coaches will get rid of a lot of talent they imagine they'll replace with "their" guys but ultimately fail and get fired, and Cameron was one of the absolute worst examples of that. Letting go of Welker was just one of a number of controversial and ultimately unsuccessful roster moves he made. Ultimately Welker was the only one really on the ascendancy, but letting the rest of them go wasn't a good move at the time. It resulted in a team so laughably bad it makes me sad I ever lived through it.
Click to expand...
One of the saddest, most pathetic moments for me that sums up that era and the Welker trade was the prime time game where we had just traded Greg Camarillo for Benny Sapp and a play so embarrassing to us happened w NE backed up on their 1 yard line. Brady lobs about a 10 yard pass to Weller who somehow is behind everyone except Sapp, who proceeds to allow himself to be stiff armed in the face for 80 yards down the field en route to giving up a 99 yard TD. Little Wes Welker. It was such a pathetic effort by Sapp. And a great effort by Welker. And just summed us up to T.
 
KBEE said:
Joe Theisman would have been a nice bridge between Griese and Marino.
Click to expand...

Very awkward situation. Theismann was a famous college player and it seemed obvious he was incredibly underrated in that draft. But Griese was in his prime and Theismann was adamant about not waiting behind Griese. So nobody had much hope anything would work out. It was just a matter of where Theismann went and if Miami received any compensation.

During his Redskins career it was never a matter of we shoulda kept him. Now, if he had been drafted in '77 or '78 instead of '71 it would have been a totally different story.

Leon Gray and Gary Fencik were the two names that came to mind immediately in this category. It's obvious not too many old timers still post here when those players haven't been mentioned by page 8. These were multiple first team All-Pro types. Unfortunately the rosters were small and Miami had depth at the two positions, especially offensive line when Gray was released. Everyone knew that was a heck of a player who we had to let go. He starred with New England quickly and for a long time. Fencik was not as obvious as a budding star but he was very smart and a big hitter. Jake Scott had been traded weeks earlier. The secondary was hardly a strength to the degree of offensive line when Gray was released. That 1976 season turned out miserable anyway. Then within a year or two when Fencik was starring for the Bears we realized not only was the season a waste but we gave away a great enforcer safety for nothing.
 
Our main problem w lot guy is we change coach and they change offense and defense.
 
Sirspud said:
I don't know where this notion that Welker wasn't productive as a Dolphin when the Patriots stole him away. Yeah he didn't have a massive season before leaving the Dolphins but his production on a joke of an offense in 2006 was in the same area as name receivers Marty Booker and Chris Chambers who were both former Pro Bowlers who started the year as offensive centerpieces...heck Welker even led the team in catches. This is a guy who was brought in a few games into his first season as a returner specialist who wasn't even really getting run with the receivers at all his first year, and scarcely the second. His tenacity was already apparent from his return game, and he showed he could be an impeccable, tough, and sure handed route runner in 2006. He was clearly a player on the ascendancy and there was no reason to think that he wouldn't continue to improve and produce at a higher level.

If you couldn't imagine how an impeccable route runner who grabbed 67 balls from a gimpy Daunte Culpepper, broken Joey Harrington, and NFL Europe caliber Cleo Lemon could catch 110 balls on the best coached team in the league with a top shelf QB in a system that showed they could produce even with second rate talent at the receiver position, that's on you. Because I could fully imagine it happening and expected it. (Similarly, I don't think many people account for a decrease in production when a 110 catch guy leaves a situation like Manning or Brady-led offense).

Fact of the matter is after that going from the Saban debacle to the Cameron era was one of the lowest points of this franchise. We even traded the fricking punter. Most new NFL head coaches will get rid of a lot of talent they imagine they'll replace with "their" guys but ultimately fail and get fired, and Cameron was one of the absolute worst examples of that. Letting go of Welker was just one of a number of controversial and ultimately unsuccessful roster moves he made. Ultimately Welker was the only one really on the ascendancy, but letting the rest of them go wasn't a good move at the time. It resulted in a team so laughably bad it makes me sad I ever lived through it.
Click to expand...

I'm so happy I was a young teenager when that disaster took place.
 
Awsi Dooger said:
Very awkward situation. Theismann was a famous college player and it seemed obvious he was incredibly underrated in that draft. But Griese was in his prime and Theismann was adamant about not waiting behind Griese. So nobody had much hope anything would work out. It was just a matter of where Theismann went and if Miami received any compensation.

During his Redskins career it was never a matter of we shoulda kept him. Now, if he had been drafted in '77 or '78 instead of '71 it would have been a totally different story.

Leon Gray and Gary Fencik were the two names that came to mind immediately in this category. It's obvious not too many old timers still post here when those players haven't been mentioned by page 8. These were multiple first team All-Pro types. Unfortunately the rosters were small and Miami had depth at the two positions, especially offensive line when Gray was released. Everyone knew that was a heck of a player who we had to let go. He starred with New England quickly and for a long time. Fencik was not as obvious as a budding star but he was very smart and a big hitter. Jake Scott had been traded weeks earlier. The secondary was hardly a strength to the degree of offensive line when Gray was released. That 1976 season turned out miserable anyway. Then within a year or two when Fencik was starring for the Bears we realized not only was the season a waste but we gave away a great enforcer safety for nothing.
Click to expand...

Was Fencick THE 46 the defense was named after?
 
Digital said:
My biggest fear about this year's draft class is that Robert Hunt turns out to be Billy Turner 2.0 with all-world body and great physical ability ... but bad technique and never can master it.
Click to expand...

Sadly, that's what I see happening
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom