(Photo by Doug Benc/Getty Images)
The Miami Dolphins played against the Indianapolis Colts at home on Sep. 21, 2009. The game, which was featured on Monday Night Football, produced the following results: Ronnie Brown scored two touchdowns for the Fins by rushing for 136 yards on 24 carries.
The other result was Peyton Manning surpassing Johnny Unitas as a team leader in victories for quarterbacks. He also surpassed Vinny Testaverde on the NFL's all-time yardage list. Manning has 46,232 yards, compared with Testaverde and his 46,223 yards.
The aforementioned historical occasions pale in comparison to the Miami Dolphins squandering all of their advantages to hand the game over to the Colts. What happened was a disgrace that has people wondering "what is going on?"
The people in the streets have said that "the first game doesn't count" and "this was close, but we will win the next time." It is these comments and what was witnessed that have this writer asking questions.
He found the answers in an article written by John Friel for Bleacher Report: "No Catch of the Day: Miami Dolphins Could Have Handed the Indianapolis Colts a Loss."
Chad Pennington is no Dan Marino, since he either does not have the qualities of a leader that is expected of a quarterback or he is afraid to use them.
It is this ambivalence or lack of action that was used to the advantage of the Colts under the stronger leadership of Peyton Manning.
Ted Ginn, Jr., who was the subject of an article written by me on October 2008 (please see "Tedd Ginn, Jr. and Miami Dolphins Cannot Be Written Off") did a poor job in receiving the balls thrown to him by Pennington. What was Ginn thinking about? He was not concentrating on the game.
The fact that timeouts were used inappropriately, as well as lack of coverage for some of the Dolphin players, contributed to the debacle.
The Fins miscalculated on time, as well. Of course, the way practice is conducted is not conducive to winning games or even the Super Bowl.
The fact that players have been changed does not contribute to a winning team. After all, do not fix a good thing if it works.
The next game is going to be against the San Diego Chargers and it is hoped that the Dolphins can turn around the situation.
The alternative would be the Dolphins becoming the second team in the NFL with no wins during the current season, which would undo all of the accomplishments of the previous season.
We're going to send you the most entertaining Miami Dolphins articles, videos, and podcasts from around the web.
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