Unlike the wild NFC South which we looked at last week (New Orleans Saints, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers and Tampa Bay Bucs), the AFC East has been a division with defined roles. Recent history shows us the New England Patriots win the division, the Jets run their mouths and usually show up to play, the Bills get their fans hopes up in unique ways each year before crash landing and usually finishing in last place and the Dolphins of late try hard to grind out wins through the season, just trying to finish .500. So in the interest of drama let’s run down the AFC East teams in reverse order to see if anyone can unseat the Patriots in 2012.
Miami Dolphins
In the second half of 2011 the Miami Dolphins turned around their season after a brutal 0-7 start and posted a 6-3 mark over the final nine games. The strong finish left them with the unenviable record of 6-10, narrowly missing the 7-9 mark they had posted in the previous two seasons. Following the season head coach Tony Sparano was dispatched with the Dolphins citing that they required new leadership to turn the franchise around.
Changing leadership personnel is often a valid reason, I am not sure it was the leadership at the head coaching position that was the problem. The Dolphins played like a team in a playoff hunt down the stretch in 2011 refusing to quit on what was surely a lost season.
During the season, injuries forced career back-up quarterback Matt Moore into the lineup. He performed decently tossing 16 TD’s versus 9 INT’s and leading the Dolphins to a 6-6 record. Although he was “forced” into the line-up, the man he replaced, Chad Henne, is hardly a more distinguished quarterback than Moore. Henne proved this while guiding the Dolphins to back-to-back 7-9 seasons in 2009 and 2010, starting a total of 27 games and never completing over 62% of his passes or throwing more TD’s than INT’s. Henne also had the benefit of a serviceable run game to aide him, while Moore had to make due with a run offense that fell all the way down to 29th in the league last season.
The run game, which ranked in the top-10 in 2009, fell off off so dramatically because Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams had moved on and were never adequately replaced. The Dolphins acquired Reggie Bush during the offseason and forced this part-time back into the starting role. Bush for his part was not terrible and posted numerous 100 yard performances, but 2nd round draft pick Daniel Thomas, who split carries with Bush, was downright awful. Miami went into the season knowing they had to be a run-based offense as a result of their quarterbacking situation, yet brought two inadequate backs to the table without other options.
Somehow I don’t blame this on the head coach. In fact some feel Sparano should be given credit for the production he did get out of Bush, who many felt would flop as a feature back.
The woes at the quarterback and running back positions highlight the struggles the Dolphins have experienced in the last few seasons. They are trying to compete against the likes of the New England Patriots and the New York Jets without a full deck of cards. Instead of firing Sparano for failing to reach the playoffs in the last three seasons I think he should be commended for racking up 20 wins with the Chad Henne / Matt Moore duet and a dwindling cast of stars behind them.
When Sparano was hired as the Miami Dolphins head coach he came as part of a package deal with general manager Jeff Ireland, both from the Dallas Cowboys, and both hired by then VP of football operations, Bill Parcells. Parcells had much influence in that first season but appeared to lessen his role in the GM department as his tenure wore on. That first season is when the Dolphins achieved all of their success under GM Jeff Ireland. The Dolphins nailed their top pick in the draft with tackle Jake Long and made a series of key signings to bolster a roster that had a single win the season before. With the season underway Sparano broke out the infamous wildcat to change the course of numerous games throughout the year, and the Dolphins found themselves in the playoffs. Since that early success the draft picks have been spotty and the impact free agent signings rare.
That last point is something that was hit home by Steelers safety Ryan Clark during the offseason when he tweeted that no one wants to sign with the Dolphins. When you consider the evidence, while grossly unprofessional, this statement may not be very far off.
When the Dolphins threw their hat into the Peyton Manning sweepstakes they failed to even secure a visit from Manning, who surely spotted from far away this was a franchise he did not want to be associated with. Still needing a QB they pursued Matt Flynn of the Green Bay Packers to unite with new head coach Joe Philbin, also of the Green Bay Packers. Flynn instead chose Seattle and Miami was left hanging.
Their solution for the signal caller position was to retain Matt Moore and add competition through the signing of David Garrard who sat out all of 2011 recovering from injuries (they followed this up by drafting Texas A&M QB Ryan Tannehill but few believe he will start from day one). Beyond Garrard the Dolphins were only able to sign a handful of other unhearalded free agents who likely struggled to find employment elsewhere.
It has not just been free agents who have avoided Miami either. Jeff Fisher appeared to be the Dolphins top choice to replace Sparano this offseason but he instead choose to coach the inept St. Louis Rams, which should send a message to the Dolphins. If you remember as far back as last offseason, owner Stephen Ross was pursuing head coaching candidates while Sparano was still under contract, but was unable to convince anyone to join his organization.
The news of this pursuit, which was widely reported, left many with the feeling Sparano was a dead man walking in his current position and has contributed to the reputation the Dolphins have been gaining as a business one does not want to work for.
There appear to be more problems than just at the head coaching level in Miami – their roster is depleted, and is without any true stars. Their one true impact player on offense, receiver Brandon Marshall, was traded away this offseason for a pair of 3rd round picks. Marshall has been involved in several off-field news bulletins in his career, including an incident at the time of the trade this offseason which may have been why Miami felt inclined to rid their organization of him. This is a defensible position, until you factor in the recent signing of Chad Ochocinco, who brings similar baggage with him but with less than half the production.
With the change at the receiver position, Miami players will now be looking for a new leader. Eighth overall pick, Ryan Tannehill, appears to be the Dolphins one true hope for success this season. However, Tannehill was the 3rd QB chosen in the draft and only had one full season at QB in college; both of these facts cast his chances for early success in a negative light.
All of this paints an ugly picture for new head coach Joe Philbin, and there is no way I can really twist it around to look any brighter. Even Philbin himself comes with some questions marks. He has never before been a head coach at any level and he has spent his entire NFL coaching career with the Green Bay Packers. He has been the offensive coordinator for the Packers for the last four years, which means he was privileged enough to work with Aaron Rodgers. This is the real reason he was hired as the Dolphins head coach; he got to work with the best QB in the league. I hope the Dolphins took a hard look at their recent past before making this hire. Cam Cameron was previously hired as their head coach for the 2007 season. He had been offensive coordinator for one of the hottest offenses in the NFL once upon a time, and had also gotten to work with one of the brightest young QB stars in the NFL, Phillip Rivers. Cameron did have previous head coaching work, but was short on experience at the NFL level. He ended up lasting one season with the Fins.
I don’t want to blast Philbin, he may well be the best hire for the team, but the coach can only make so much of a difference. When Jim Harbaugh took over San Francisco last season he inherited a deep roster that was improperly utilized by their former head coach along with a solid draft of youth in the mix.
When training camp opens for coach Philbin he will realize he has inherited a roster full of holes with talent in certain areas but lacking any true stars at the key positions. He also may realize that the former head coach got everything he could have out of this group of players. If he can get the Dolphins to a 6-10 record in 2012, it would be something he can be proud of.
