RealDriscoll
Still Perfect.. and You're Not.
The title of my thread is something we could spend countless hours debating but what I have seen from this football team makes me believe whether we make the playoffs or not this season the future is very bright in Miami. As fans we seek immediate satisfaction and success but it is very important to remeber that these players in their first or second years in the league need time to develope. Just because someone was a great collegiate player means squat in their translation into the NFL BUT in the same breathe it is important to understand that just because a person doesn't find success in their rookie campaign that they can be labeled as a bust. Let's look at the foundations of this team for starters. Bill Parcells is as good of a football mind that has ever walked this planet and the two drafts we have had under his watch have been remarkable. the best we have see in Miami in a very long time; The days of Ted Ginn Jr. and Jason Allen are over and now it's players such as Jake Long, Vontae Davis, and Chad Henne. Tony Sparano is as intense as they come and sure he makes some gay-day mistakes but so do all NFL coaches. The guy is a natural born leader who dedicates himself to this team and the goals they set. Watching his press conference after last Sunday's loss to the Tennessee Titans makes me understand how important this is to Tony. Him hugging Jason Taylor on the sideline was one of the best Dolphin moments in a long-time. With the trifecta of Bill Parcells, Jeff Ireland, and Tony Sparano things have did a complete 180 in Miami and another solid off-season in terms of free agency and another solid draft and this team is an immediate contender for an AFC Championship next season.
Let's start with our young Quarterback Chad Henne; The guy was thrown into the fire when the teams' leader and starting Quarterback Chad Pennington was injured against the San Diego Chargers. Chad Henne has accounted for a record of 7-4 and he has made his mistakes along the way but what can tell you a lot about a young Quarterback is how they respond from those mistakes. After Henne makes a mistake he comes back and makes a bigger throw and we have all seen the poise this guy possesses. Henne has a real big-time NFL arm; We have not seen someone who can make throws that Henne can since that guy who wore #13. Coming into the 2008 NFL Draft I had my Quarterbacks ranked 1) Chad Henne 2) Matt Ryan 3) Joe Flacco. Some may favor Matt Ryan and Flacco but I have seen them plateau in a way and I see much more upside in Chad Henne because Henne is producing without any viable receiver threats. Derrick Mason, Roddy White, Todd Heap, and Tony Gonzalez would all be primary targets in Miami and right now Henne has Ted Ginn Jr. Pat White is catching a lot of heat but he hasn't been given a real chance to prove himself. He will play a vital role in the evolution of the "Wild-Cat" and Spread offense. White should be given the ability to throw the rock around a little in the future as well. I watched this guy very closely when he was at West Virginia and he is one of the best athlete I have ever seen. We have to find a way to utilize this guys talents rather than have him just handing off the ball.
A lot of money was invested in this offensive line and to me they have shown the ability to dominate games. for example the Colts game; They have had their share of up and downs and have battled injuries but give this line time to gel and I think we are looking at a top 3 unit in the league. Jake Long is an elite Left Tackle who is well on his way to his 2nd straight Pro-Bowl. There are very few Right Tackles as accomplished as Vernon Carey. The trio of Guards in Justin Smiley, Donald Thomas, and Nate Garner is very solid and Jake Grove was a major upgrade to Samson Satele. In short work Joe Berger has shown promise as depth player for our interior line. Give rookie Andrew Gardner time to develop and he will be a starting Right Tackle in the future.
We found a gem in Loushaka Polite as this guy is the best blocking fullback in the league. He lays bone-chilling hits on defenders and plays a vital role in the success of Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams. Speaking of Ricky Williams this guy is having an amazing year. Like Henne stepped up taking over for Pennington, Ricky has done the same for taking over for Ronnie Brown. Ricky has broken the 1,000 yard mark and has proved to be a TD machine. The front office better start talking contract with Ronnie brown because he is a top 5 Running-Back in his league. He has had some injury problems the last couple of years but this latest injury has nothing to do with the torn ACL from two seasons ago. Ronnie is the director of the Wild-Cat offense which has become much more than a gimmick for our team. The little I have seen out of Lex Hilliard I have liked. Seems to run with great power and balance.
Receiver is a position we need to address in the off-season. Davone Bess, Brian Hartline, and Greg Camarillo are great supporting receivers but we need a #1 premier receiver. Davone Bess is a Wes Welker type of slot player who will be that guy he can make key3rd catches. he is currently ranked 2nd in the NFL with 34 3rd down catches; We all know Greg Camarillo is a pass catching machine but the guy who has impressed me most is Briant Hartline. I could see this guy being a viable #2 in this league. He is the best Ohio State Wide Receiver on this team.. Yep i said.. Ted Ginn Jr. is flat out terrible. He is scared of any contact and beside of those two kickoff returns against the Jets has been useless and really regressed as a football player. I would shop him for a 4th or 5th round pick in the off-season because he is unreliable and scared of contact. Patrick Turner is a guy who needs time to develop but does have great size. I see this guy being in the mix next season. While many people are targetting Miles Austin, Vincent Jackson, and Brandon Marshall as sexy free agent acquisitions we all must understand that these guys will not hit the market so keep an eye on Antonio Bryant.
Dan Carpenter has been another gem that our front office has found. This guy is extremely clutch and accurate. The Defensive side of the ball has the share of young talent as well and let's start with our D-LINE. The rotation at end of Randy Starks, Phillip Merling, and Kendall Langford is brilliant. Starks is having a pro-bowl year and is one of the best 3-4 defensive ends in the game. Merling and Langford are developing and with two seasons under their belt I see them being very good players next season. Merling has play making ability. Tony McDaniel was a great trade in terms of depth as this guy play all three positions on the D-Line. Paul Soliai has answered the call of being a contributor on this defense. He must improve his condition to be an every down player but he is great for depth or to play in a rotation. I wouldn't mind us signing Jason Ferguson to another contract for one or two years.
We need better, younger Linebackers to continue to head in the right direction. Joey Porter and Jason Taylor are playing well, well enough that we should lock up JT for another year, but we need to start thinking about our future as well. I have been impressed with Charlie Anderson but am baffled why this guy doesn't see the field more. the guy who stands out is Cameron Wake; Wake is one of the best bull-rushers I have seen in this league and as he gets more experience he will be a lethal pass-rusher. We have alreay see two games, Jaguars and Patriots, where Wake has made a play to seal the deal. He needs to get better against the run but what a find by the front office. Channing Crowder has gotten better especially in pass coverage and he is a good player to have around. Akin Ayodele is servicable but we need to replace him and players such as Brandon Spikes of Florida and Rolando McClain of Alabama are real possibilities come April's draft.
Our young corners are going to special given time. Sean Smith is that long rangey player who has great ball skills but surprisingly has been outplayed by Vontae Davis. Sure he has beaten a few times but this guy has picked off 4 passes, two from a guy named Tom Brady. He is a physical corner who really helps in run support. Yeremiah Bell has hade an okay season but Gibril Wilson has been a disaster. he finds himself out of positions and always lost finding the ball. I think his time in Miami could be short lived especially with youngsters such as Tyrone Culver and Chris Clemons showing promise of being good players. The guy to keep an eye on next season is Will Allen. Allen could make the move to free-safety and make an impact. Allen is the teams' best defensive back so getting him on the field with our youngsters is important.
I think this team has a legit shot to win their last two games and they could see the post-season but the important thing to know is that in a year or two this team will be much more than an Wild-Card playoff team
Let's start with our young Quarterback Chad Henne; The guy was thrown into the fire when the teams' leader and starting Quarterback Chad Pennington was injured against the San Diego Chargers. Chad Henne has accounted for a record of 7-4 and he has made his mistakes along the way but what can tell you a lot about a young Quarterback is how they respond from those mistakes. After Henne makes a mistake he comes back and makes a bigger throw and we have all seen the poise this guy possesses. Henne has a real big-time NFL arm; We have not seen someone who can make throws that Henne can since that guy who wore #13. Coming into the 2008 NFL Draft I had my Quarterbacks ranked 1) Chad Henne 2) Matt Ryan 3) Joe Flacco. Some may favor Matt Ryan and Flacco but I have seen them plateau in a way and I see much more upside in Chad Henne because Henne is producing without any viable receiver threats. Derrick Mason, Roddy White, Todd Heap, and Tony Gonzalez would all be primary targets in Miami and right now Henne has Ted Ginn Jr. Pat White is catching a lot of heat but he hasn't been given a real chance to prove himself. He will play a vital role in the evolution of the "Wild-Cat" and Spread offense. White should be given the ability to throw the rock around a little in the future as well. I watched this guy very closely when he was at West Virginia and he is one of the best athlete I have ever seen. We have to find a way to utilize this guys talents rather than have him just handing off the ball.
A lot of money was invested in this offensive line and to me they have shown the ability to dominate games. for example the Colts game; They have had their share of up and downs and have battled injuries but give this line time to gel and I think we are looking at a top 3 unit in the league. Jake Long is an elite Left Tackle who is well on his way to his 2nd straight Pro-Bowl. There are very few Right Tackles as accomplished as Vernon Carey. The trio of Guards in Justin Smiley, Donald Thomas, and Nate Garner is very solid and Jake Grove was a major upgrade to Samson Satele. In short work Joe Berger has shown promise as depth player for our interior line. Give rookie Andrew Gardner time to develop and he will be a starting Right Tackle in the future.
We found a gem in Loushaka Polite as this guy is the best blocking fullback in the league. He lays bone-chilling hits on defenders and plays a vital role in the success of Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams. Speaking of Ricky Williams this guy is having an amazing year. Like Henne stepped up taking over for Pennington, Ricky has done the same for taking over for Ronnie Brown. Ricky has broken the 1,000 yard mark and has proved to be a TD machine. The front office better start talking contract with Ronnie brown because he is a top 5 Running-Back in his league. He has had some injury problems the last couple of years but this latest injury has nothing to do with the torn ACL from two seasons ago. Ronnie is the director of the Wild-Cat offense which has become much more than a gimmick for our team. The little I have seen out of Lex Hilliard I have liked. Seems to run with great power and balance.
Receiver is a position we need to address in the off-season. Davone Bess, Brian Hartline, and Greg Camarillo are great supporting receivers but we need a #1 premier receiver. Davone Bess is a Wes Welker type of slot player who will be that guy he can make key3rd catches. he is currently ranked 2nd in the NFL with 34 3rd down catches; We all know Greg Camarillo is a pass catching machine but the guy who has impressed me most is Briant Hartline. I could see this guy being a viable #2 in this league. He is the best Ohio State Wide Receiver on this team.. Yep i said.. Ted Ginn Jr. is flat out terrible. He is scared of any contact and beside of those two kickoff returns against the Jets has been useless and really regressed as a football player. I would shop him for a 4th or 5th round pick in the off-season because he is unreliable and scared of contact. Patrick Turner is a guy who needs time to develop but does have great size. I see this guy being in the mix next season. While many people are targetting Miles Austin, Vincent Jackson, and Brandon Marshall as sexy free agent acquisitions we all must understand that these guys will not hit the market so keep an eye on Antonio Bryant.
Dan Carpenter has been another gem that our front office has found. This guy is extremely clutch and accurate. The Defensive side of the ball has the share of young talent as well and let's start with our D-LINE. The rotation at end of Randy Starks, Phillip Merling, and Kendall Langford is brilliant. Starks is having a pro-bowl year and is one of the best 3-4 defensive ends in the game. Merling and Langford are developing and with two seasons under their belt I see them being very good players next season. Merling has play making ability. Tony McDaniel was a great trade in terms of depth as this guy play all three positions on the D-Line. Paul Soliai has answered the call of being a contributor on this defense. He must improve his condition to be an every down player but he is great for depth or to play in a rotation. I wouldn't mind us signing Jason Ferguson to another contract for one or two years.
We need better, younger Linebackers to continue to head in the right direction. Joey Porter and Jason Taylor are playing well, well enough that we should lock up JT for another year, but we need to start thinking about our future as well. I have been impressed with Charlie Anderson but am baffled why this guy doesn't see the field more. the guy who stands out is Cameron Wake; Wake is one of the best bull-rushers I have seen in this league and as he gets more experience he will be a lethal pass-rusher. We have alreay see two games, Jaguars and Patriots, where Wake has made a play to seal the deal. He needs to get better against the run but what a find by the front office. Channing Crowder has gotten better especially in pass coverage and he is a good player to have around. Akin Ayodele is servicable but we need to replace him and players such as Brandon Spikes of Florida and Rolando McClain of Alabama are real possibilities come April's draft.
Our young corners are going to special given time. Sean Smith is that long rangey player who has great ball skills but surprisingly has been outplayed by Vontae Davis. Sure he has beaten a few times but this guy has picked off 4 passes, two from a guy named Tom Brady. He is a physical corner who really helps in run support. Yeremiah Bell has hade an okay season but Gibril Wilson has been a disaster. he finds himself out of positions and always lost finding the ball. I think his time in Miami could be short lived especially with youngsters such as Tyrone Culver and Chris Clemons showing promise of being good players. The guy to keep an eye on next season is Will Allen. Allen could make the move to free-safety and make an impact. Allen is the teams' best defensive back so getting him on the field with our youngsters is important.
I think this team has a legit shot to win their last two games and they could see the post-season but the important thing to know is that in a year or two this team will be much more than an Wild-Card playoff team
