Miami Dolphins fans ache over another season headed in wrong direction

[AL R]

It is only a game, right? So if the Miami Dolphins lose on Sunday, life goes on, no harm, no foul. The only people really, truly affected are the people directly involved with the team, right?
No.

Sports, like it or not, is woven into the fabric of this country because we are a competitive people and we pick sides on just about everything and then compete both within and without the country to see if we can be the best.And even when we're not directly involved in the competition Americans are often invested in the competition. That investment never reaches heights that determine life and death, but certainly the investment can, as you will soon understand, determine the quality of our lives and deaths.

That is what is so sad about the Miami Dolphins of the past dozen years or so. Once upon a time, Miami's professional football team was a source of pride.No matter come what may, Miami could count on the Dolphins to represent us and speak to the nation for us. In good times and bad.We had hurricanes in the summer. But we had the Dolphins in the winter.

We had immigrants and some natives didn't like that. But natives and immigrants sat next to each other in the Orange Bowl cheering for the Dolphins.We had racial riots and parts of our city were set on fire. But the Dolphins gave us reasons for parades. And the pride they instilled would sometimes set the community aglow.We had drugs and crime and economic downturns and political scandals. But, dammit, we had the Dolphins. And Don Shula. And Larry Csonka. And Paul Warfield. And that undefeated season. And the No-Name defense. And those Super Bowl wins. And Dan Marino. And we sure as heck made the playoffs every year.

We might have had trouble six days a week. But on Sunday we had God. And the Dolphins. We could count on both. Then the decline came. It wasn't that the team was no longer great. We could handle not winning a Super Bowl every year. It was just that they were no longer a source of pride.We had instead what can best be described as a source of ridicule.We had coaches quit in their heart before the season was over, as Jimmy Johnson did in 1998 and again in '99.We had 62-7.

We had great businessmen make poor decisions as Wayne Huizenga did by letting Johnson pick Dave Wannstedt, followed by the hiring of Nick Saban and Cam Cameron and, even Bill Parcells.
We had not just poor draft picks but historically bad picks like Yatil Green and John Avery and Pat White and others.We had that 1-15 season and the drafting of the Ted Ginn family and the failing forward fast.And then we got a new owner and we didn't get any better. We got worse. We didn't get Jeff Fisher because the new owner valued Jeff Ireland more. And we got that plane trip across country to hire Jim Harbaugh as head coach while the current head coach sat in his office in Davie.

We got Gator Day at Sun Life the day Tim Tebow pulled a comeback. We got orange carpets and celebrity ownership. We got fist pumping field goals. We got extensions for coaches that needed to be fired. And then we got a late-season firing of one head coach whose contract had been extended and and an early-season firing of another head coach whose contract had been extended.We are told the organization is "first in class." But the standings say they're fourth in a four-team division.

And why do I say all this? Because all those terrible things, all those disappointing years, all those daggers to the hearts of the men and women who invested time, tears and treasure in the Miami Dolphins come at a cost.
The Dolphins have lost a generation of fans.

Around the country, the kids that grew up idolizing Shula and Marino are having their own kids now. And those kids idolize .... who?Who is the face of this franchise?
In South Florida, the Dolphins ruled once upon a time. But that reign has ended. The Heat has won three titles the past decade and been to five NBA Finals. Children don't grow up singing the Dolphins fight song anymore because the idea of "Miami Dolphins No. 1" is unrealistic.And the generation that came before, the one that inhaled Dolphins football with every breath, is disappointed -- again. And it is passing away.

I'm not making this up. Let me introduce you to Capt. (Army retired) Kurt F. Ziebis. He is a civilian contract and fiscal law attorney in the office of Staff Judge Advocate for III Corps and Fort Hood in Texas. He was reared in South Florida and graduated from the University of Miami law school.

He grew up a Dolphins fan. His father before him was a Dolphins fan. I've never met him face to face. But like many Dolphins fans, Kurt has emailed me over the years to ask questions, send suggestions, and sometimes just vent about his Dolphins.
He sent this email Monday: "My Dad lost his third battle with cancer a couple weeks ago. He passed away at home in Colorado about 20 minutes before my plane landed in Denver. I was able to see him last month and spend good time with him, even though he was clearly deteriorating. One of the last things we did together was watch the Jets beat the Dolphins in London on TV. My God, how he loved the Dolphins, Mando."He was cremated in his favorite suit, and along with family photos and mementos, we placed one of his Dolphin hats in with him -- my mom insisted. His funeral announcement included two team logos: Mets, and Dolphins. I guess they can sue me for copyright violation if they want to. "Anyway, it's just so sad that he never got to see them at the top again. He was such an ardent fan, all his life. I look at this team today and I wonder if I'll pass before they are relevant again. But here we are again, Week Nine, and the Dolphins are out of it. Looking for a new coach. Probably needing a new QB as well. Same old, same old.

"I wanted them to be better for my father, it was one of his last remaining joys -- to watch them on Sunday Ticket. I'm sure they don't give a damn about Armin Ziebis, but he sure gave a damn about them. Right up until the end." These Dolphins, once great and a source of pride and joy, have hurt themselves badly the past dozen years or so.I hope they realize they've also hurt their fans.

http://miamiherald.typepad.com/dolp...another-season-headed-in-wrong-direction.html

 

[Daytona Fin]

I'm right there with you Mr. Ziebis, may you rest in peace.

 

[Bob512]

Great story and a fascinating read many of us can relate to! Thanks for sharing......

 

[Sherif]

Thumbs up for Armin Ziebis not the Dolphins.

 

[Lilseb93]

"Around the country, the kids that grew up idolizing Shula and Marino are having their own kids now. And those kids idolize .... who?Who is the face of this franchise?
In South Florida, the Dolphins ruled once upon a time. But that reign has ended. The Heat has won three titles the past decade and been to five NBA Finals. Children don't grow up singing the Dolphins fight song anymore because the idea of "Miami Dolphins No. 1" is unrealistic.And the generation that came before, the one that inhaled Dolphins football with every breath, is disappointed -- again. And it is passing away."

This is really accurate. I didn't know that many Dolphin fans growing up around my age. I know a lot of Dolphin fans who are like 30 and up though. All through HS, the Heat reigned supreme. Even today, I hold the Heat to higher standards while I expect the Dolphins and Marlins to suck every year.

 

[Aqua and Orange]

I used to really get down about the Dolphins losing, and yes on game days I am as passionate about the team as anyone, but at the end of the day it's actually a pretty fun thing to root for the Dolphins if you have a sense of humor. Like, it gets pretty damn fun to watch the team ignore huge holes in their roster and then they look on with open mouthed horror as somehow that bites them once the season starts. It's kinda silly to see an owner who is at once so absent in physical form for team activities, yet so power hungry he still won't cede final hiring and firing say to someone more qualified, intelligent, and oh I don't know...THERE. It's funny as hell once the team goes on a huge losing streak to fall out of contention early, and see the team make a bunch of "we can turn this thing around promises, as if the words "Dolphins" and "playoffs" have anything to do with one another than sharing two syllables. That we spend every offseason getting a "field stretching WR" only to continue our 15-year old penchant of going down the field 6 yards at a time. I smiled before our game with the Patriots this year, turned to my wife, and said, "the Dolphins are on national television. If they lose by anything less than 20 points, I'll do our laundry for 5 weeks." Best of all, it is NEVER lost on me that I will tear my hair out, swear up and down, and bite my fingernails as I watch the games like some sort of crack addict, only to look in the mirror and realize I am wearing a shirt with an aqua and neon orange dolphin with no pupils in its eyes flying through space in front of some sort of Galaxy-ending supernova behind it.

Look, we have no ability to change anything on this team. As fans we support them, we are included in their celebrations and defeats in our own circle of friends, but boneheads who we will likely never meet are the people pulling the strings. Either you can stress out, ruin your week, and take on the feeling of failure from decisions you had nothing to do with, or you can open up your door, realize it's a beautiful day outside, and join me in laughing your ass off at the aqua colored hamster running as fast as it can on its wheel, unable or unwilling to change enough to actually get somewhere.

As this story should show you, life is short. The guy in the story above had many people in attendance at his funeral: friends, family, loved ones...and not one player, coach, or personnel member of the Miami Dolphins.

 

[AL R]

I used to really get down about the Dolphins losing, and yes on game days I am as passionate about the team as anyone, but at the end of the day it's actually a pretty fun thing to root for the Dolphins if you have a sense of humor. Like, it gets pretty damn fun to watch the team ignore huge holes in their roster and then they look on with open mouthed horror as somehow that bites them once the season starts. It's kinda silly to see an owner who is at once so absent in physical form for team activities, yet so power hungry he still won't cede final hiring and firing say to someone more qualified, intelligent, and oh I don't know...THERE. It's funny as hell once the team goes on a huge losing streak to fall out of contention early, and see the team make a bunch of "we can turn this thing around promises, as if the words "Dolphins" and "playoffs" have anything to do with one another than sharing two syllables. That we spend every offseason getting a "field stretching WR" only to continue our 15-year old penchant of going down the field 6 yards at a time. I smiled before our game with the Patriots this year, turned to my wife, and said, "the Dolphins are on national television. If they lose by anything less than 20 points, I'll do our laundry for 5 weeks." Best of all, it is NEVER lost on me that I will tear my hair out, swear up and down, and bite my fingernails as I watch the games like some sort of crack addict, only to look in the mirror and realize I am wearing a shirt with an aqua and neon orange dolphin with no pupils in its eyes flying through space in front of some sort of Galaxy-ending supernova behind it.

Look, we have no ability to change anything on this team. As fans we support them, we are included in their celebrations and defeats in our own circle of friends, but boneheads who we will likely never meet are the people pulling the strings. Either you can stress out, ruin your week, and take on the feeling of failure from decisions you had nothing to do with, or you can open up your door, realize it's a beautiful day outside, and join me in laughing your ass off at the aqua colored hamster running as fast as it can on its wheel, unable or unwilling to change enough to actually get somewhere.

As this story should show you, life is short. The guy in the story above had many people in attendance at his funeral: friends, family, loved ones...and not one player, coach, or personnel member of the Miami Dolphins.

I agree but it becomes a part 'of your life' or did especially when the franchise had success as Armando points out. My mom would say when I was a kid 'it's just a game' yes it is but it's funny how planning Sunday's focused around the game. I spent times with my dad watching and learning the game and went to a few games with him and as soon as I could afford it got season tickets, spent numerous years with family, friends, business associates going to and or watching the games. Sunday family dinners were part of the season and when we had kids the cycle repeated itself and to be honest with you those times spent with them that revolve around 'just a game' were some of the best times.

The question is because of what the franchise has become has the cycle of fans been broken? I'm afraid it either has or is extremely close to that point.

 

[Roman529]

Sounds like Armin Ziebis was a true fan right until the end. I still remember our SB VIII Victory in January, 1974 over the Vikings. I was almost eight years old. I was living in Italy where my dad was in the military, and had to listen to the game on Armed Services Radio as the game wasn't televised world-wide like it is today. I remember my best friend's older sister Lorry was babysitting me that night. I can't remember much about the game other than we dominated the Vikings. I just figured the Dolphins would always be great, but the rest of my he 70's were dominated by the Steelers, Cowboys and Raiders.

I was so sure we would finally win another Superbowl in the 1980's. We had our chances to beat the Redskins in the 1982-3 SB, but John Riggins had to break that tackle to put the game away. The next year we drafted Marino. I was pretty sure we would win a SB once we got Dan Marino. I was in high school when the Niners beat Marino in his second season. Marino never played in another Superbowl and it's been nothing but WAIT TILL NEXT YEAR ever since. :rolleyes2:

 

[Roman529]

......bump.

 

[buzzardmountain]

I used to really get down about the Dolphins losing, and yes on game days I am as passionate about the team as anyone, but at the end of the day it's actually a pretty fun thing to root for the Dolphins if you have a sense of humor. Like, it gets pretty damn fun to watch the team ignore huge holes in their roster and then they look on with open mouthed horror as somehow that bites them once the season starts. It's kinda silly to see an owner who is at once so absent in physical form for team activities, yet so power hungry he still won't cede final hiring and firing say to someone more qualified, intelligent, and oh I don't know...THERE. It's funny as hell once the team goes on a huge losing streak to fall out of contention early, and see the team make a bunch of "we can turn this thing around promises, as if the words "Dolphins" and "playoffs" have anything to do with one another than sharing two syllables. That we spend every offseason getting a "field stretching WR" only to continue our 15-year old penchant of going down the field 6 yards at a time. I smiled before our game with the Patriots this year, turned to my wife, and said, "the Dolphins are on national television. If they lose by anything less than 20 points, I'll do our laundry for 5 weeks." Best of all, it is NEVER lost on me that I will tear my hair out, swear up and down, and bite my fingernails as I watch the games like some sort of crack addict, only to look in the mirror and realize I am wearing a shirt with an aqua and neon orange dolphin with no pupils in its eyes flying through space in front of some sort of Galaxy-ending supernova behind it.

Look, we have no ability to change anything on this team. As fans we support them, we are included in their celebrations and defeats in our own circle of friends, but boneheads who we will likely never meet are the people pulling the strings. Either you can stress out, ruin your week, and take on the feeling of failure from decisions you had nothing to do with, or you can open up your door, realize it's a beautiful day outside, and join me in laughing your ass off at the aqua colored hamster running as fast as it can on its wheel, unable or unwilling to change enough to actually get somewhere.

As this story should show you, life is short. The guy in the story above had many people in attendance at his funeral: friends, family, loved ones...and not one player, coach, or personnel member of the Miami Dolphins.

Well said!

 

[utahphinsfan]

Look, we have no ability to change anything on this team. As fans we support them, we are included in their celebrations and defeats in our own circle of friends, but boneheads who we will likely never meet are the people pulling the strings. Either you can stress out, ruin your week, and take on the feeling of failure from decisions you had nothing to do with, or you can open up your door, realize it's a beautiful day outside, and join me in laughing your ass off at the aqua colored hamster running as fast as it can on its wheel, unable or unwilling to change enough to actually get somewhere.

Agree. I'll sit and follow online and when it starts to get irritating or I can sense the Dolphins are about to fold like Worlds worst poker player then its time to do something else. Against, The Pats, there was College pigskin & Sleepy Hollow to fall back on. I really did not give two hoots about the game v the Bills. My only regret was not going to see Spectre that day.

I agree but it becomes a part 'of your life' or did especially when the franchise had success as Armando points out.... The question is because of what the franchise has become has the cycle of fans been broken? I'm afraid it either has or is extremely close to that point.

A Few yrs back, I was discussing football w/ a buddy (Eagles fan); we both arrived at the conclusion that our favorite teams are part of our lives but do not define us. I used to work w/ a guy who was & still is a cowgirls apologist. His life from Aug to Feb is defined by Jerry's kids. Lets just say I only talk to him in the spring & summer. Otherwise, his irrationality really annoys me and life is too short for that.

Are the phins as a fan base & franchise as "damaged" as say the Cubs? I don't think so.

The point I'm guess trying to make is; Don't let one thing define you, have other hobbies, what is on TV is entertainment... treat it as such.

 

[Hayden Fox]

The Fins do frustrate and seem like they catch no breaks.

However, I have thought about this article for a bit. I am so opposite of Mando and the guy that angry that is writing him.

I look at this way. I am so blessed to have the time and resources to watch the Fins each week. I am so blessed to have traveled to South Florida to see the team this year. My wife and I had a blast. I got to meet some awesome Fin fans and make friendships. Watching the Fins and predicting what they should do is a hobby of mine.

Yes, the team is not where we want it. However, one day it will turn around. I personally think it is a matter of time. The team is closer than many realize.

To the man that lost his father recently. That is sad. However, I would say this to him. How lucky was he that had such a great relationship with him. I have friends that never knew their father. They never had football Sundays together. They never had a chance to talk to their dad's about a "terrible loss".

I actually think this article kind of comes across as superficial. Yes, yes, yes…this team needs to do better. However, in the end it is a game. It is a place to let go of a competitive release. However, when it is over, most of us here, have it pretty good.

 

[phins_4_ever]

Dolphins fans have masochistic tendencies. We always hope for the big finish, get beaten into a pulp, feel the pain of yet another beating but we always come back for more.

I think we live a very unhealthy lifestyle.

 

[datruth55]

That story breaks my heart cause I've wondered the same thing so many times about my father. He's such an avid Dolphin fan and made me one too...he's 74 now and I wonder if he'll ever see a good Dolphins team again. Our relationship isn't great but we always have South Florida sports to talk about...lately there hasn't been much talking between he and I, there's not a whole lot of sports in South Florida worth talking about. Unfortunately Barry Jackson said it best...the decade of losing continues and there's no end in sight.

 

[Hayden Fox]

Still thinking about this article. I don't feel sad as a fan...whoa is me stuff. I am angry. I think many here are more angry then the team at times. I am tired of being a punchline. I want to be relevant.

So I feel lucky to be able to watch games, opine here and see how things go with the rest of you guys. However, I am angry that things can't get squared away.