Lets say everything pans out

[ashleigh1855]

secondary comes together, right side of oline is solid and good qb play, are some people still gonna be negative and say 6-10?
well hell im not i believe were gonna figure it out and play winning football cause im a diehard fan. By the way i dont post much just bored and i appreciate all the usefull info and links you guys bring on here

 

[SCLSU Mud Dogs]

If we figure it all out

-Find a good balance between run and pass
-Get solid quarterback play
-Have good sack production on the opposite side of Cameron Wake
-Stay relatively injury free
-See Ochocinco at 2009 form
-Our secondary forces turnovers
-Players like Charles Clay, Brian Hartline and Daniel Thomas improve from last season

Then we will be a playoff team.

However, that's just way too many question marks for us to legitimately have a shot at competing for a playoff spot. If all of the above does come true, we will be a very good football team. But in all likelihood, Ochocinco is 34 years old, injuries happen to every team each year, our quarterbacks will probably play pretty well but not at a super productive level, Odrick is good but can he get after the quarterback as a defensive end and does anyone really expect Brian Hartline to give us much more than he already has?

 

[Built2Win]

we win we lose we 8 and 8

 

[gofins60]

During the last 2 seasons we were able to win some games with our mediocre offense and decent defense, but our defense also lost quite a few games in the 4th quarter. Hopefully, our new offensive scheme will allow the Fins to score more points than in the past. And, I'm glad Nolan is gone... I was sick of seeing above-average defensive play for three quarters and then watching them roll over and play dead in the final minutes. If Coyle (new DC) can improve the 4th quarter defensive playcalling, then Miami might be playing meaningful games in December again!

 

[Fins1971]

but our defense also lost quite a few games in the 4th quarter. I was sick of seeing above-average defensive play for three quarters and then watching them roll over and play dead in the final minutes. If Coyle (new DC) can improve the 4th quarter defensive playcalling, then Miami might be playing meaningful games in December again!

Agreed on the 4th quarter woes.

We were outscored in the 4th quarter 12 times to 3 times that we outscored the opponent. That is not good.

We were outscored 116-68 in the 4th quarter last year. 5 games we didn't even score in the 4th. Another 5 all we could muster is one fg for the quarter.

Of the 313 points allowed by defense 116 in the 4th quarter is 37% of the total. You would like that number to be below 25%.

Of the 329 points scored by offense only 68 came in the 4th quarter. That is less than 15% of the total points scored.

That is both sides of the ball letting us down when the game was on the line.

If you take points allowed by defense in 3 quarters and project the same stats for the 4th we would have had the 3rd best scoring defense in the league 262 points (16.4)
If you take the points allowed by defense in the 4th quarter and project the saem stats for quarters 1-3 we would have the 31st best scoring defense. 464 (29)

Why do we have this drastic dropoff in the 4th?

 

[ashleigh1855]

i agree way to many points given up in 4th, i just think if we dont turn the ball over and 1 or 2 players step up charles clay and rashad jones imo we should be right there

 

[SF Dolphin Fan]

Honestly, I think the key is the pass rush especially in a division where Tom Brady eats defenses alive if he has time to throw. Not sure we have enough help opposite of Cam Wake, but Olivier Vernon and Jared Odrick could emerge.

 

[BlueFin]

Anything is possible in this league, history proves that over and over again. The question is, is it probable?

The answer is no. Too many if's to think its likely to happen. I see mediocre year this year, learning a new system, getting a young quarterback used to the NFL'S speed etc etc etc............

Next year.....look out!

 

[MiamiDolphin618]

Our defense has to emerge as an elite unit for us to be contenders. That means (as some above posters mentioned) playing at a high level for all 4 quarters. I think the conditioning they are going through now will help them a lot in that regard. However, there are still question marks. As SF eluded to, the pass rush is critical. Can Odrick create consistent interior pass rush? Can Vernon make defenses respect him on the other side? Can Reshad Jones learn the nuances of the safety position and emerge as a playmaker? Lots of question marks...but if even some of those come true I think this defense could keep us in a lot of games.

 

[finomenal]

secondary comes together, right side of oline is solid and good qb play, are some people still gonna be negative and say 6-10?
well hell im not i believe were gonna figure it out and play winning football cause im a diehard fan. By the way i dont post much just bored and i appreciate all the usefull info and links you guys bring on here

It's not negativity at this point (at least for some of us). It's about facing reality. The team has been inept for years. There's a lot of young players on this team, and it'll take some time to put it all together. Of course you try to win as many games as possible every year, but this year for me is all about seeing progression. They need to show us proof that there will be sustained success in the future.

 

[nerfball]

The team lost some tough, close games last season. It's not like this is the 1 win team from several years back. They aren't THAT BAD. People need to get a grip. They had a good run game last season, despite the right side of the line. The defense was good, but missed on chances to get turnovers and put games away and lost leads late. I think most of what was wrong with the team last year is correctable and they did improve through the draft this year. We will see.

 

[Fins1971]

Our defense has to emerge as an elite unit for us to be contenders. That means (as some above posters mentioned) playing at a high level for all 4 quarters. I think the conditioning they are going through now will help them a lot in that regard. However, there are still question marks. As SF eluded to, the pass rush is critical. Can Odrick create consistent interior pass rush? Can Vernon make defenses respect him on the other side? Can Reshad Jones learn the nuances of the safety position and emerge as a playmaker? Lots of question marks...but if even some of those come true I think this defense could keep us in a lot of games.

I think the offense has to help the defense by moving the ball and scoring TD's in the 4th. There were 6 of our 10 losses that had we scored TD's instead of FG's we probably win all of them and make the playoffs. When you score a TD in the 4th it puts alot of pressure on the other team to match. thats when your defense can capitalize and force turnovers.