Take a look at the other coaches who were hired the off-season as Saban and take a look at their records this year:
Mike Nolan-6-8
Saban-6-8
Romeo Crennel-4-10
I would say that Saban and Nolan are on their way up and will lead their teams to the playoffs after spending the past two offseasons drafting the guys that fit their system and bringing in the guys they want from the FA pool.
All three of these guys are quality coaches. I find that there are just too many impatient and unrealistic fans, however. The NFL is not a Madden video game. You just can't expect a franchise to realistically turn things around overnight. Of course, there are examples when this happen, but I would suggest that luck has a lot to do with it. Take the NO Saints for example. Sean Payton has done a wonderful job and I would not suggest that he is not a contributing factor to the team's success. But look at the conference and division that he coaches in.
There are plenty of examples of fine NFL coaches that have had poor seasons. Look at Cowher, Bellichek, Fox and on and on. According to the logic of some on this site, Bill Cowher should be fired because the Steelers are not a lock to make the playoffs or Fox should get the axe because the PAnthers are on the brink.
To compare Saban to Wanny is just ridiculous. Saban is a much better evaluator of talent, is a better coach, teacher, and has instilled a much more competitive mentality in this team.
I'm disapointed in this year;s record but given the inuiry problems with DC -the most important position- it is not much of a surprise that the phins won't make the playoffs. The reason that the Dolphins started so poorly can be attributed to poor QB play and a defense and O-line that was out of rhythm. But I don't fault Saban for either of these things.
Miami needed to see what DC could bring to the table. The injury was such that the medical staff said it could not be aggravated, and DC actually looked physically strong. Saban knew that JH was not the answer and took a gamble that DC could perform well enough despite the injury.
The O-line was a work in progress the entire season. The injury issues at RG really set this group back. It already was lacking in talent- again, this was not Saban's fault- but the injuries and moves made it difficult to gel. Saban was required to make these moves at the expense of short term success but necessary for long term success and stability.
The defense that Saban has brought in is extrmeely complex. For the first half of the season, the players looked confused, however, the upsside is that once they understood the defense they began to dominate. AGain, short term growing pains but long term gain.
Fans need to be patient with this team and Saban. I think he is turning this team in the right direction. He's a tireless worker that brings intagibles to the team that were never apparent under Wanny. Be patient and remember: It's a Process.