Dolfan1000
Hall Of Famer
- Joined
- Aug 14, 2004
- Messages
- 6,263
- Reaction score
- 3
WELL... BEST. WEEKEND. OF. MY. LIFE.
This may be a little late, but I just returned from Miami where I had the pleasure of attending the game on Sunday... and the best part? I had the pleasure of sitting and watching with my brother, a die hard BRONCOS fan who has been trash talking all week.. all year even. Needless to say, I enjoyed every minute of it.
To start, the seats were great. Dont remember the section, but Basically the 50 yard line on the Broncos bench side. I arrive at about 11 expecting heavy traffic coming off the turnpike, but I was in the building way sooner then I expected. Of course I gave to the Hurricane Relief fund... I would have loved to know whose wife I talked to/donated with but they didnt have name tags and I forgot to ask.. A really nice woman. Anyway... The parking lot was unbelievable. All the tailgating.. the footballs being thrown around... the Fin jerseys.. It was like heaven. I got to my seats and the punters/kickers were warming up. I got a good look at Olindo taking some practice shots from the infield dirt and he was giving Denney lots of advice. Donnie Jones seemed like a pro out there (Im talking about during warmup here...), and he was really doing a good job and Olindo seemed to be happy with him- giving him lots of little pats on the helmet and whatnot. As for the Browncos kickers, Sauerburn is on steroids.. There is no doubt about it. His arms are enormous, and I saw him very well as he walked over to the stands where I was standing watching warmup, and starting talking to a family (it seemed like his wife and kids but I couldnt tell for sure). Anyway, he has some leg but seemed to wear down as the game went on. As for Elam/Ernster had some problems from the dirt during warmup- especially Ernster (which obviously carried over and proved to impact a huge play in this game). SO that was the exciting kicker warm ups!!
As I was standing watching at the bottom of the section, I was among a sea of Bronco fans (about 20 of them), because obviously if you come from out of town you will make it into the stadium early to see everything... Fins fans only started really piling in when there was about 10-15 minutes left until kickoff. Anyway, this one guy in a JERRY RICE Bronco jersey running his mouth like crazy.. saying how the Fins stand no chance, blah blah this is just a warm up for their true test etc. and finally it got on my nerves. Im not the type to start trouble in this situation, but I needed to defend my boys. I did so, and clearly outsmarted him with everything I said and he obviously didnt have the football knowledge I did (Im not being ****y, just honest..I mean, you know when a guy says "We'll see what happens after the game".. then he basically has nothing to say to counter your argument. Anyway, so he tells me to come see him after the game and if the Fins win, he will personally jump down on the field and kiss Saban's bum (Never did end up seeing him.. I wonder if he did it
)
Finally, the warm ups begin for the full squad. A ROARRR FROM THE CROWD as the Fins run onto the field. It was a great moment- I had a tear in my eye.. Waiting for this day for so long... it finally arrived. We did some stretching/running, and then did this clapping/team spirit type thing that I got to see a little bit of during the Dolphins Insider Practice Hilights... but it was reallly fun to watch live. The Broncos must have looked at us like we were crazy, but we were jumping around and clapping and even the coaches were getting into it (Not Nick mind you... lol) My Dad, who is a fan but doesnt really keep up with the offseason aspects was wondering what the hell we were doing and said we looked like a college team. My answer? Thats Saban for ya. We were prepared. I could smell it in these guys. I knew we would win the game.
So the field is cleared and the cheerleaders come onto the field. I knew it was almost gametime. My heart was pounding. Sweat was dripping off my Dolphins visor (IT WAS HOT! OUCH!) I see them blowing up the inflatable door they run out of. I hear "Please give a warm South Florida Welcome to Coach Mike Shanahan and the Denver Broncos.." BOOOOOOOO! BOOOOOOOOOO! The Boos clearly were louder then the cheers (duh, right?) but it felt great. And then... the fireworks are set up... Will Smith's Miami song can be heard on the PA.. I look up to the big screen and see an intro video with Fins hilights and in the background Nick's Kickoff Banquet Speech... "We want people to HATE playing our team. We are going to be so DOMINANT, so PHYSICAL in the way we attack them.." I was pumped as hell.
"DOLFANS, LETS WELCOME COACH NICK SABAN AND YOUUUUUR MIAMI DOLPHINS!" Boom! Fireworks! Flags! It was an absolute crazy scene...They announced the offense separately and my favorite moment was when they announced Seth McKinney and the building just got sort of quiet (hmm poor Seth..) Nah, Im kidding, my real favorite moment was the reaction from Ronnie when he stepped onto the field. He was PUMPING UP THE CROWD.. Asking for NOISE.. He wanted to hear us screaming his name. It was a side of him I never saw, and I was thrilled to see it.
The game itself was unbelievable. Some of my observations:
-There was one loudmouth Brownco fan sitting in front of me.. wearing an Elway jersey.. who just looked like an idiot. I mean, he was the type of fan that starts to jaw when a flag is thrown, it turns out the flag is against them, and he continues to cheer- still not realizing the Browncos were penalized and not the Dolphins! Classic. It was very entertaining.. especially when we kicked their arses. His good buddy next to him was a Fins fan, and me and him had a good time singing our Dolphins song again and again and again.. and again.
-Chambers had a TD on that endaround. No way that he should have stepped out of bounds. I watch it again and again and have no idea why he ended up so close to the sidelines. Not a big deal, but a mental thing that needs to be addressed.
-I love Wes Welker. Period. Fumble or not- this guy is a return man. After his 3rd tremendous return, my dad turns to me and goes- We finally have a return man! He just realized this now?
-Marty Booker really stepped up, and I was happy for him. He went through a hard time last year, but his talent is still there. He is adjusted. He loves Miami. He loves the system. I have a feeling he will have a very big year. Its time people in Miami realize we got a pro bowl talent at WR for some DE that has disappeared in Chi-Town.
-Boston was one negative in my opinion. Fumbled a quick out. Dropped another 20 yard pass that hit him in the hands. Maybe the jitters. Maybe not completely healthy. Who knows. But I do know that he looks trimmed down, he looks fast, and he could be a useful weapon to have and to put out there with Chris, Marty and Wes.
-The Line needs to work on the runblocking. Sorry. The guy behind me yells "HIT THE HOLE RONNIE!".. to watch another fan close by responds "WHAT HOLE?" Its sad, its funny, but its true. There was NOTHING. If Im Linehan and Saban, I run the ball quite a bit on pitches to the outside, on draws and on plays like we saw with Sammy Morris (It was a very cool play- fake the pitch to Ronnie and hand it off to Sammy up the middle) Anyway, until the run blocking improves, I want Linehan to run the ball more creatively. He did a bit of it, but I would like to see more. However, I realize Ronnie is probably more of "run up the gut power guy", so I do expect them to utilize him in that way as well.. but until McKinney can get penetration, lets try and do some different things. Pass protection was excellent. Gus was hardly touched. OH, AND YIKES THAT BROWNS.. umm I mean BRONCOS D-LINE! Shanahan expects Warren to make the PRO BOWL? He was OK against the run (playing against McKinney.. duh) but he got zero penetration.. and neither did Ebenezer Ekuban. Trevor Pryce was not his usual self either. Props to the O-Line. Even their "stud" LBs could not penetrate and make much of an impact. DJ was their best player, beating the line a few times to make plays in the backfield, but I HARDLY noticed Al Wilson OR Ian Gold. And I watched carefully.
-The run game.. not much to say really. Ronnie was OK in the first half... he played like a rookie RB usually does. Doesnt hit the hole fast enough.. dances in the backfield.. hesitant.. etc. etc. This is normal. By the 2nd half, he was picking his spot, running, and putting his shoulder down when he needed to break a tackle- something he excelled at at Auburn. There was definite improvement, and he is going to get better and better every week. Lots of guys dont remember that Kevin Jones of the Lions took almost 5-6 weeks of game action to really achieve his level of play. Ronnie played fine and I was happy just to see him getting some game experience with the line. His best asset during the game? Blitz pickups. That can be said for him, Minor and Sammy. Excellent. Sammy looked good on that run for TD- Im thrilled we kept him on board because he really knows how to get the tough yards.
OK Im going to be quick with the D because I LOVED EVERY PART ABOUT IT. I loved the fact that we showed about a gazillion different formations, and the fact that that many players were saying after the game that we have about ten gazillion more and the opposition has seen NOTHING yet. I believe it. I mean, it seemed like we blitzed a lot because we got in Jake's face, but we really didnt. I mean, I would probably say we blitzed more in every preseason game then we did in this game. Thats how you have to play a team like Denver, who relies on establishing the run game and then using bootlegs and playaction. Stopping the run is most important, and put them in a position where they have to pass. THEN you blitz and THEN you get in Jake's face and force him to make mistakes. Most teams dont ever realize this, so the Browncos eat them alive with bootlegs and then deep throws to Lelie. Saban was not fooled. He was prepared and knew exactly how to play them and when they would do what they did.
Specifically, the entire front seven looked studly. Kevin Carter- he is a LARGE man who consistently got in Plummer's face. He missed several opportunities for sacks, but they dont call Jake the Snake for nothing. He juked his way out of a couple SURE sacks from not only KC, but also JT, Junior and Holliday. What about Keith TRACTOR TRAYLOR you ask!? Love him. He played tremendous. Old? Maybe. Fat? Oh ya. But a FORCE!? You BET! He gives us what Timbo once did- a big body to stop the run. Im thinking of a moment I saw where Keith made a huge play and was lying on the ground... he could NOT get up. He was just lying there with his hands raised as if to say.. "Umm.. a lil' help guys?" It was priceless. Great game for him. Vonnie Holliday was great against the run. And what can I say about my man JT? I wont even try and put his performance into words, because I cant. But I will say this- for the first time in a while, it looked like he was having FUN out there. He was pumping up the crowd, playing in people's faces and just plain being the JT we know. One play that sticks out. He was lined up against a TE. Plummer made some sort of call at the line, put a guy in motion and its like a light clicked in JT's head and he knew the play.. because when that ball was snapped he just went directly for where Tatum Bell ended up taking the handoff and he just stuffed him for a loss. Amazing.
I love our linebacker depth all of a sudden. Zach was a BEAST. He showed fire. He was the key player down on that goal line stand. He stopped Tatum Bell, basically on his own, TWICE! Kudos to him for proving the doubters wrong. Too small for this system? Puh-leeze. Getting old? Bite your tongue! Junior may have played when Moby Dick was just a minnow ( props to JT for that quote in today's Herald..) but he looked like a kid out there. Why? I think its because he was being spelled every now and then by Channing and Donnie Spragan. He looked energized whenever he was in the game. He still misses the QB way too often when he blitzes, but his sacks will come. I love his personality. Oh, and I even saw him covering the TE about 20 yards down the field at one point- he broke up the pass (obviously). Great stuff. And then theres Channing.. what a pick! My dad, like I said, doesnt follow the offseason movement as much as us diehards, but he was very impressed with "that big kid from Florida", as he kept calling him. He seems to know the defense very well, calling the D at times, and filling in at several positions at the LB position is a huge asset for the coaching staff. He made one great play when Tatum tried to run it right at him, and he just creamed him. Channing got up and did some funky celebration move- no idea what it was! But it really got me pumped. He wins the award for craziest celebrations on the field- many of which look like foreign tribal dances. I also really like Spragan, a big body in there, and Jason Glenn is quickly becoming one of my favorite ST guys. He was pumping up the crowd whenever he could, and he just always seems to be around the ball. Another great Saban pick up. An d then you also have Eddie Moore, the former 2nd round pick by WannSpeil (who I happen to like) and the big surprise from last year- Derek Pope. Now are you kidding me!? That is DEPTH.
The secondary had me worried this offseason, and we may have gotten less talented at CB, but the scheme and front seven are FAR better- and the impact is huge. Sam really played with some swagger out there. I liked it. Id still like to see him be more of a playmaker, but I think that will come. Let him concentrate on making the sure tackles/coverage for now, and we should be fine. Reggie Howard, to be honest I didnt notice him much- which I guess is a good thing? I didnt find the Denver WRs to be all that impressive, but Reggie did a pretty good job. Again, just let him be consistent and the big plays will come. I love the intensity that Travis Daniels brings to the table. Congrats on his first INT! Eddie Jackson made one nice special teams play- hes a fiery guy who has speed. One quick question though- did we only dress these 4 corners? Did Kiwaukee Thomas even dress or was he inactive? I didnt notice Thomas, McGill or Manny Wright in there at all... also Jess Chatman. Were they all inactive? I had no internet access so I couldnt keep up to date on these types of things. I loved the way our safety combo played. I was impressed with Tebucky's tackling (which I think he was known to be pretty decent at) and Lance finally looked comfortable. Holding Lelie to just 17 yards is a huge accomplishment, and we made Rod Smith look old. Saban's imprint was definitely all over this secondary.
I loved the special teams coverage. Wes was great on returns all night, except for that one fumble which was a great play by Denver. Some ST standouts were Glenn, Eddie Jackson and Brian Gilmore.
Other little tidbits:
-Will Muschamp is just a nutcase on the sidelines. I mean, you had to see this guy after the goalline stand- HE WAS JUST GOING CRAZY JUMPING ALL OVER ZACH THOMAS!! Its great to see. Im not sure what Richard Smith's responsibility is as far as calling the D, but I know I saw a lot of Muschamp sending signals out to the D. He is our coordinator of the future, and I love his attitude. He also has done a good job with our safeties.
-I love that Dolphins fight song. Who cares if its corny!? Every time we scored I sang until my throat was raw and red... the Bronco fans around me were clearly irritated and thats what makes it so unique yet so effective. Keep it no matter how many people hate it. It gives our stadium its identity.
-KUDOS TO NICK SABAN!! Coach, I had a tear in my eye after this game. I never felt this good about the Fins. Who knows if we keep playing at this level?.. But the bottom line is I do feel good about this team and so should Dolfans everywhere. Because I know that on Sunday we were better coached and better prepared for this game then the Broncos- and that says a lot about Nick. We all knew him to be a great football mind, but he looks to me like a great motivator, who has this team of veterans buying into his system. And you know what- its funny but it took only one game for the world (ESPN/FOX/CBS/People I talk to..) to realize that we are a team on the rise for the simple fact that we have Nick at the helm. And I dont know about the rest of you, but that makes me smile. Never should we have to live through a Wannstedt era again.
BEST WEEKEND OF MY LIFE!
GO FINS!
This may be a little late, but I just returned from Miami where I had the pleasure of attending the game on Sunday... and the best part? I had the pleasure of sitting and watching with my brother, a die hard BRONCOS fan who has been trash talking all week.. all year even. Needless to say, I enjoyed every minute of it.
To start, the seats were great. Dont remember the section, but Basically the 50 yard line on the Broncos bench side. I arrive at about 11 expecting heavy traffic coming off the turnpike, but I was in the building way sooner then I expected. Of course I gave to the Hurricane Relief fund... I would have loved to know whose wife I talked to/donated with but they didnt have name tags and I forgot to ask.. A really nice woman. Anyway... The parking lot was unbelievable. All the tailgating.. the footballs being thrown around... the Fin jerseys.. It was like heaven. I got to my seats and the punters/kickers were warming up. I got a good look at Olindo taking some practice shots from the infield dirt and he was giving Denney lots of advice. Donnie Jones seemed like a pro out there (Im talking about during warmup here...), and he was really doing a good job and Olindo seemed to be happy with him- giving him lots of little pats on the helmet and whatnot. As for the Browncos kickers, Sauerburn is on steroids.. There is no doubt about it. His arms are enormous, and I saw him very well as he walked over to the stands where I was standing watching warmup, and starting talking to a family (it seemed like his wife and kids but I couldnt tell for sure). Anyway, he has some leg but seemed to wear down as the game went on. As for Elam/Ernster had some problems from the dirt during warmup- especially Ernster (which obviously carried over and proved to impact a huge play in this game). SO that was the exciting kicker warm ups!!
As I was standing watching at the bottom of the section, I was among a sea of Bronco fans (about 20 of them), because obviously if you come from out of town you will make it into the stadium early to see everything... Fins fans only started really piling in when there was about 10-15 minutes left until kickoff. Anyway, this one guy in a JERRY RICE Bronco jersey running his mouth like crazy.. saying how the Fins stand no chance, blah blah this is just a warm up for their true test etc. and finally it got on my nerves. Im not the type to start trouble in this situation, but I needed to defend my boys. I did so, and clearly outsmarted him with everything I said and he obviously didnt have the football knowledge I did (Im not being ****y, just honest..I mean, you know when a guy says "We'll see what happens after the game".. then he basically has nothing to say to counter your argument. Anyway, so he tells me to come see him after the game and if the Fins win, he will personally jump down on the field and kiss Saban's bum (Never did end up seeing him.. I wonder if he did it
)Finally, the warm ups begin for the full squad. A ROARRR FROM THE CROWD as the Fins run onto the field. It was a great moment- I had a tear in my eye.. Waiting for this day for so long... it finally arrived. We did some stretching/running, and then did this clapping/team spirit type thing that I got to see a little bit of during the Dolphins Insider Practice Hilights... but it was reallly fun to watch live. The Broncos must have looked at us like we were crazy, but we were jumping around and clapping and even the coaches were getting into it (Not Nick mind you... lol) My Dad, who is a fan but doesnt really keep up with the offseason aspects was wondering what the hell we were doing and said we looked like a college team. My answer? Thats Saban for ya. We were prepared. I could smell it in these guys. I knew we would win the game.
So the field is cleared and the cheerleaders come onto the field. I knew it was almost gametime. My heart was pounding. Sweat was dripping off my Dolphins visor (IT WAS HOT! OUCH!) I see them blowing up the inflatable door they run out of. I hear "Please give a warm South Florida Welcome to Coach Mike Shanahan and the Denver Broncos.." BOOOOOOOO! BOOOOOOOOOO! The Boos clearly were louder then the cheers (duh, right?) but it felt great. And then... the fireworks are set up... Will Smith's Miami song can be heard on the PA.. I look up to the big screen and see an intro video with Fins hilights and in the background Nick's Kickoff Banquet Speech... "We want people to HATE playing our team. We are going to be so DOMINANT, so PHYSICAL in the way we attack them.." I was pumped as hell.
"DOLFANS, LETS WELCOME COACH NICK SABAN AND YOUUUUUR MIAMI DOLPHINS!" Boom! Fireworks! Flags! It was an absolute crazy scene...They announced the offense separately and my favorite moment was when they announced Seth McKinney and the building just got sort of quiet (hmm poor Seth..) Nah, Im kidding, my real favorite moment was the reaction from Ronnie when he stepped onto the field. He was PUMPING UP THE CROWD.. Asking for NOISE.. He wanted to hear us screaming his name. It was a side of him I never saw, and I was thrilled to see it.
The game itself was unbelievable. Some of my observations:
-There was one loudmouth Brownco fan sitting in front of me.. wearing an Elway jersey.. who just looked like an idiot. I mean, he was the type of fan that starts to jaw when a flag is thrown, it turns out the flag is against them, and he continues to cheer- still not realizing the Browncos were penalized and not the Dolphins!
Classic. It was very entertaining.. especially when we kicked their arses. His good buddy next to him was a Fins fan, and me and him had a good time singing our Dolphins song again and again and again.. and again.-Chambers had a TD on that endaround. No way that he should have stepped out of bounds. I watch it again and again and have no idea why he ended up so close to the sidelines. Not a big deal, but a mental thing that needs to be addressed.
-I love Wes Welker. Period. Fumble or not- this guy is a return man. After his 3rd tremendous return, my dad turns to me and goes- We finally have a return man! He just realized this now?
-Marty Booker really stepped up, and I was happy for him. He went through a hard time last year, but his talent is still there. He is adjusted. He loves Miami. He loves the system. I have a feeling he will have a very big year. Its time people in Miami realize we got a pro bowl talent at WR for some DE that has disappeared in Chi-Town.
-Boston was one negative in my opinion. Fumbled a quick out. Dropped another 20 yard pass that hit him in the hands. Maybe the jitters. Maybe not completely healthy. Who knows. But I do know that he looks trimmed down, he looks fast, and he could be a useful weapon to have and to put out there with Chris, Marty and Wes.
-The Line needs to work on the runblocking. Sorry. The guy behind me yells "HIT THE HOLE RONNIE!".. to watch another fan close by responds "WHAT HOLE?" Its sad, its funny, but its true. There was NOTHING. If Im Linehan and Saban, I run the ball quite a bit on pitches to the outside, on draws and on plays like we saw with Sammy Morris (It was a very cool play- fake the pitch to Ronnie and hand it off to Sammy up the middle) Anyway, until the run blocking improves, I want Linehan to run the ball more creatively. He did a bit of it, but I would like to see more. However, I realize Ronnie is probably more of "run up the gut power guy", so I do expect them to utilize him in that way as well.. but until McKinney can get penetration, lets try and do some different things. Pass protection was excellent. Gus was hardly touched. OH, AND YIKES THAT BROWNS.. umm I mean BRONCOS D-LINE! Shanahan expects Warren to make the PRO BOWL? He was OK against the run (playing against McKinney.. duh) but he got zero penetration.. and neither did Ebenezer Ekuban. Trevor Pryce was not his usual self either. Props to the O-Line. Even their "stud" LBs could not penetrate and make much of an impact. DJ was their best player, beating the line a few times to make plays in the backfield, but I HARDLY noticed Al Wilson OR Ian Gold. And I watched carefully.
-The run game.. not much to say really. Ronnie was OK in the first half... he played like a rookie RB usually does. Doesnt hit the hole fast enough.. dances in the backfield.. hesitant.. etc. etc. This is normal. By the 2nd half, he was picking his spot, running, and putting his shoulder down when he needed to break a tackle- something he excelled at at Auburn. There was definite improvement, and he is going to get better and better every week. Lots of guys dont remember that Kevin Jones of the Lions took almost 5-6 weeks of game action to really achieve his level of play. Ronnie played fine and I was happy just to see him getting some game experience with the line. His best asset during the game? Blitz pickups. That can be said for him, Minor and Sammy. Excellent. Sammy looked good on that run for TD- Im thrilled we kept him on board because he really knows how to get the tough yards.
OK Im going to be quick with the D because I LOVED EVERY PART ABOUT IT. I loved the fact that we showed about a gazillion different formations, and the fact that that many players were saying after the game that we have about ten gazillion more and the opposition has seen NOTHING yet. I believe it. I mean, it seemed like we blitzed a lot because we got in Jake's face, but we really didnt. I mean, I would probably say we blitzed more in every preseason game then we did in this game. Thats how you have to play a team like Denver, who relies on establishing the run game and then using bootlegs and playaction. Stopping the run is most important, and put them in a position where they have to pass. THEN you blitz and THEN you get in Jake's face and force him to make mistakes. Most teams dont ever realize this, so the Browncos eat them alive with bootlegs and then deep throws to Lelie. Saban was not fooled. He was prepared and knew exactly how to play them and when they would do what they did.
Specifically, the entire front seven looked studly. Kevin Carter- he is a LARGE man who consistently got in Plummer's face. He missed several opportunities for sacks, but they dont call Jake the Snake for nothing. He juked his way out of a couple SURE sacks from not only KC, but also JT, Junior and Holliday. What about Keith TRACTOR TRAYLOR you ask!? Love him. He played tremendous. Old? Maybe. Fat? Oh ya. But a FORCE!? You BET! He gives us what Timbo once did- a big body to stop the run. Im thinking of a moment I saw where Keith made a huge play and was lying on the ground... he could NOT get up. He was just lying there with his hands raised as if to say.. "Umm.. a lil' help guys?"
It was priceless. Great game for him. Vonnie Holliday was great against the run. And what can I say about my man JT? I wont even try and put his performance into words, because I cant. But I will say this- for the first time in a while, it looked like he was having FUN out there. He was pumping up the crowd, playing in people's faces and just plain being the JT we know. One play that sticks out. He was lined up against a TE. Plummer made some sort of call at the line, put a guy in motion and its like a light clicked in JT's head and he knew the play.. because when that ball was snapped he just went directly for where Tatum Bell ended up taking the handoff and he just stuffed him for a loss. Amazing.I love our linebacker depth all of a sudden. Zach was a BEAST. He showed fire. He was the key player down on that goal line stand. He stopped Tatum Bell, basically on his own, TWICE! Kudos to him for proving the doubters wrong. Too small for this system? Puh-leeze. Getting old? Bite your tongue! Junior may have played when Moby Dick was just a minnow (
props to JT for that quote in today's Herald..) but he looked like a kid out there. Why? I think its because he was being spelled every now and then by Channing and Donnie Spragan. He looked energized whenever he was in the game. He still misses the QB way too often when he blitzes, but his sacks will come. I love his personality. Oh, and I even saw him covering the TE about 20 yards down the field at one point- he broke up the pass (obviously). Great stuff. And then theres Channing.. what a pick! My dad, like I said, doesnt follow the offseason movement as much as us diehards, but he was very impressed with "that big kid from Florida", as he kept calling him. He seems to know the defense very well, calling the D at times, and filling in at several positions at the LB position is a huge asset for the coaching staff. He made one great play when Tatum tried to run it right at him, and he just creamed him. Channing got up and did some funky celebration move- no idea what it was! But it really got me pumped. He wins the award for craziest celebrations on the field- many of which look like foreign tribal dances. I also really like Spragan, a big body in there, and Jason Glenn is quickly becoming one of my favorite ST guys. He was pumping up the crowd whenever he could, and he just always seems to be around the ball. Another great Saban pick up. An d then you also have Eddie Moore, the former 2nd round pick by WannSpeil (who I happen to like) and the big surprise from last year- Derek Pope. Now are you kidding me!? That is DEPTH.The secondary had me worried this offseason, and we may have gotten less talented at CB, but the scheme and front seven are FAR better- and the impact is huge. Sam really played with some swagger out there. I liked it. Id still like to see him be more of a playmaker, but I think that will come. Let him concentrate on making the sure tackles/coverage for now, and we should be fine. Reggie Howard, to be honest I didnt notice him much- which I guess is a good thing? I didnt find the Denver WRs to be all that impressive, but Reggie did a pretty good job. Again, just let him be consistent and the big plays will come. I love the intensity that Travis Daniels brings to the table. Congrats on his first INT! Eddie Jackson made one nice special teams play- hes a fiery guy who has speed. One quick question though- did we only dress these 4 corners? Did Kiwaukee Thomas even dress or was he inactive? I didnt notice Thomas, McGill or Manny Wright in there at all... also Jess Chatman. Were they all inactive? I had no internet access so I couldnt keep up to date on these types of things. I loved the way our safety combo played. I was impressed with Tebucky's tackling (which I think he was known to be pretty decent at) and Lance finally looked comfortable. Holding Lelie to just 17 yards is a huge accomplishment, and we made Rod Smith look old. Saban's imprint was definitely all over this secondary.
I loved the special teams coverage. Wes was great on returns all night, except for that one fumble which was a great play by Denver. Some ST standouts were Glenn, Eddie Jackson and Brian Gilmore.
Other little tidbits:
-Will Muschamp is just a nutcase on the sidelines. I mean, you had to see this guy after the goalline stand- HE WAS JUST GOING CRAZY JUMPING ALL OVER ZACH THOMAS!! Its great to see. Im not sure what Richard Smith's responsibility is as far as calling the D, but I know I saw a lot of Muschamp sending signals out to the D. He is our coordinator of the future, and I love his attitude. He also has done a good job with our safeties.
-I love that Dolphins fight song. Who cares if its corny!? Every time we scored I sang until my throat was raw and red... the Bronco fans around me were clearly irritated and thats what makes it so unique yet so effective. Keep it no matter how many people hate it. It gives our stadium its identity.
-KUDOS TO NICK SABAN!! Coach, I had a tear in my eye after this game. I never felt this good about the Fins. Who knows if we keep playing at this level?.. But the bottom line is I do feel good about this team and so should Dolfans everywhere. Because I know that on Sunday we were better coached and better prepared for this game then the Broncos- and that says a lot about Nick. We all knew him to be a great football mind, but he looks to me like a great motivator, who has this team of veterans buying into his system. And you know what- its funny but it took only one game for the world (ESPN/FOX/CBS/People I talk to..) to realize that we are a team on the rise for the simple fact that we have Nick at the helm. And I dont know about the rest of you, but that makes me smile. Never should we have to live through a Wannstedt era again.
BEST WEEKEND OF MY LIFE!
GO FINS!
