ColoradoFinfan
Scout Team
Mile High - Where in Fort Collins are you? I'm at Horsetooth and Shields. Lived in Fort Laud up till 13 yeas ago. Fort Collins since. Never will become a Bronco fan, travel back for games.
---- SI Team of Decade: Fins #17
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muddpuppy13
Practice Squad
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this list is crap completely based on super bowl seasons even if the team didn't win puts teams like carolina and chicago ahead of us even with less winning seasons. to me you have to consider a super bowl run with a loss as bad just going to one super bowl then having five losing seasons makes you better then a team that had 6 winning seasons and no super bowl makes no sense. don't get me wrong im not being a homer i don't consider the phins one of the great teams of the decade and neither did the list but we have been better then chicago or san deigo both teams have had a squad and couldn't do it so wtf.
emeraldfin
Gary Speed RIP
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Surprised with 17 considering the sharp decline until Parcells arrived. Never taught we would be at .500 either.
Could always be worse, could be Buffalo :D
Could always be worse, could be Buffalo :D
You made 2 of your 3 playoff apps under Wanny.
Dredd1050
A STRONG MAN SHEDS BLOOD BEFORE TEARS
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And? How'd that turn out? He had a SB calibur defense and ran the offense like it was 1935.
Then, when he needs to run it in NE at the goal line, to get into the playoffs, with the leading rusher in the nfl....he passes 3 consecutive times!!
"There isn't anything Trent can do that Jay can't" I believe was the quote when asked why he settled on Jay Fiedler as Dan Marino's heir as opposed to Trent Green.
Those are just a few glimpses into the nightmare that was "The Wanny Era". Playoffs or not.
I would've even taken your beloved, national TV nose picking Joe Walton!
When did he have a SB caliber defense? That SB caliber defense gave up 86 in their previous playoff losses under Jimmy Johnson.
people forget after Dan retired and you lost Jimmy the expectations for Miami were very low in 2000 and he led you to the div title for the first time since 1994.
Was he a great coach? obviously not but he's not as bad as you guys like to think just like Fiedler wasn't as bad as you guys thought he was.
Dredd1050
A STRONG MAN SHEDS BLOOD BEFORE TEARS
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Dave Wannstedt was a bad coach with a good team. His pattern was the same with Chicago. He hung his hat on Cade like he did Jay and was 0-2. Fiedler was an avg-below avg starter. Throw all the regular season stats you want at me. He lacked that "clutch" ness that was needed to get a team to the next level. And that defense was SB calibur. That D bailed out Fiedler and that O countless times after they would turn it over deep in their own territory. Believe me, from a laymen, who did not watch every game I can understand that the statistics is all you can look at. I, however, watched every game and know that they may have had a SB appearance with Trent Green in place of Jay Fiedler.
How did that good team fare w/o Wannstedt? Remember they hadn't won a div title since 1994 and they won one w/ Wanny. Again, I'm not syaing he was a great coach but he wasn't nearly as bad as you think. I think dolphin fans tended to overrated their talent on those teams. Those Ds were incredibly overrated and always folded in big spots.
Mile High Fin
Pro Bowler
I lived in Homestead in the early 80s (elementary school). Then moved to South Carolina (5-10 grades), then moved to Denver (11-12 grades).
Went to CSU 1990-1994. Moved away after, but came back in 1999.
We lived near Horsetooth & Shields for 7 years (off Casa Grande just north of Horsetooth), but moved a couple years ago near Windsor (Highland Meadows area).
Have been a Dolphin fan since my childhood in Florida. Broncos are a DISTANT second.
I took the wife and 2 sons to Miami at Denver game last November - club seats no less. Fun watching us kick their butts.
Dredd1050
A STRONG MAN SHEDS BLOOD BEFORE TEARS
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But to say they folded is unfair as well. They were beat to "you know what" at the end of seasons and even at the end of individual games. What we saw as fans was this D bailing out the O and winning games time and time again. Wanny coached to kick FG and have a very, very good D win ball games. The problem was, the O would hurt the team, they would turn the ball over deep, they would make negative gains on 3rd downs that would put them out of FG range. This was a game to game happening all during his era. As a fan of the Miami Dolphins who has watched (no lie) every single contest since 1998 (I've been a fan much longer than that, but that's when I got DTV), Dave Wanstedt WAS that bad of a coach. He wasn't Kotite bad, but he was just as bad as I think he is.
I don't think it's unfair at all, that D always folded in big moments and big games.
I ask again- what about the few years before he took over? What about '98 and '99?
Mile High Fin
Pro Bowler
I'll jump in.
The Fins D from 5-10 years ago was indeed what I'd consider "SB-caliber".
It was a legitimate Top 5-6 Defense...
Now, some fans would overexaggerate and consider it the #1 or #2 or #3 Defense of the early 2000s, but I think it's realistic to rank it 4/5/6 range.
And that is enough, in my opinion, to consider it "SB-caliber".
I don't think you have to have a Baltimore-type Defense to be considered "SB-caliber". That's a no-brainer.
Many teams win the SB with a top 5-6 Defense.
Did they have a bad game on occassion? Sure. That's why I only rank them 4-5-6, instead of 1-2-3.
Heck, even the Ravens Defense, Steelers Defense, etc have an occassional bad game. Look at every year they DIDN'T win the SB (yet still had a stellar Defense). When all the pieces come together (offense, defense, coaching, and a little luck), then a stellar defense can help you win a SB. Baltimore's won 1 SB in a DECADE of having a GREAT DEFENSE. Probably the #1 overall Defense of this decade (with Pitt a close second). So, 9 of 10 years having the Top 1-2-3 Defense (hands down) was NOT enough, yet I'd consider that Defense "SB-caliber".
It comes down to your definition of "SB-caliber". I personally think a defense in the Top 5-6 in the NFL qualifies. Maybe you only consider a Top 2-3 to qualify. To each his own.
How can a SB caliber defense play as poorly as they did in all those playoff losses? They had nice rankings and usually were really good until the game started getting meaningful but that D could not perform when the games were biggest.
If they had the '84 Phins O then I guess they could have been considered SB caliber but your D wasn't keeping you in games. You can blame the O all you want but you weren't losing close games, you were getting crushed. For example, in '04 when Chad had his torn rotator cuff our O put up 3 points in Pitt but our D kept us in the game and we lost in OT- w/ those Miami D's of the late 90s-early 00s Pitt wins that game by 20+.
SuperMarksBros.
Formerly Fiedler for MVP
fixed
I love that a jets fan tries to educate us on our own team. What have the jets ever done to inspire this level arrogance in their fanbase? there is no basis for your "insight." Your team has never been successful so you will never be able to accurately gauge what makes a team successful. Which is why you don't understand our dissatisfaction with wan and fiedler.