DKphin
Active Roster
Chris Shashaty is spot on in this article
https://phins.com/chris/column_120109.htmlOne thing about head coach Tony Sparano that makes him the tonic this franchise needs is that he holds his people (and himself) accountable for their work. This goes equally for players and coaches.
The latest case in point is OG Justin Smiley, whom Sparano recently benched in favor of Nate Garner. The reason? Lack of performance.
This brings us to the coaching staff. At the end of last season, Sparano canned offensive line coach Mike Maser because he felt Maser wasn't an effective teacher or communicator. Was Maser capable? Absolutely. But the guy wasn’t getting the job done, so Sparano let him go.
This year, defensive coordinator Paul Pasqualoni could be the coach on the hot seat.
Why is that?
His defense is a below average 19th overall....12th against the run (and heading south with the loss of NT Jason Ferguson) and 23rd against the pass. Only five teams have surrendered more passes of 20 yards or longer, and they are dead last in 4th quarter points allowed and in yards per completion.
In all fairness, Pasqualoni has been hamstrung with a rebuilt secondary. That's partly on GM Jeff Ireland and his personnel people, especially with regards to the ill-advised Gibril Wilson signing and letting Renaldo Hill go.
But Pasqualoni is accountable as well because he has exacerbated the problem by leaving rookie corners Sean Smith and Vontae Davis alone in one-on-one coverage versus the best wide receivers in the game.
Predictably, the results have been disastrous.
With the loss of Ferguson, wouldn’t the Dolphins be better off in a 4-3 set where Randy Starks, Tony McDaniel, and Paul Soliai could be used at DT in a manner more conducive to their talents? With the exception of Soliai, none of the remaining tackles are true nose guards, and Soliai isn’t yet consistent in the role.
In a 4-3, Taylor would move up to his old weakside DE job where he does good work; this would help get Wake on the field more at OLB. Quentin Moses is capable of playing DE in the 4-3, while Kendall Langford and Phillip Merling could rotate on the strongside.
At LB, Channing Crowder has played the Mike position many times in the past as Zach Thomas’s understudy. Wake and Porter would be the logical choices at the Sam and Will positions, though Porter probably isn’t fast enough. But Charlie Anderson is, with Ayodele, Moses, and Reggie Torbor in reserve. And while Wake isn’t consistent yet versus the run in a 3-4, wouldn’t he do better in a 4-3 where he isn’t as exposed?
Thus far, Pasqualoni’s reluctance to make these (or any) meaningful changes is perplexing. It has also been ruinous. He just doesn’t have the guys right now to make the 3-4 work.