Chad Henne: 3 Reasons He Can Start for the Miami Dolphins

I've made it clear that I love Colin Kaepernick. If he becomes a Dolphin (a big if), he probably won't start right away. Some have said that Carson Palmer should be a Dolphin and Donovan McNabb makes good sense.

I've recemtly had to reconsider Chad Henne. He's really gotten a lot of scrutiny. Some of this is fair, some unfair. It is dangerous to commit to a quarterback who, in one moment looks absolutely unstoppable, and in the next appears to be a first-year rookie. I know I wanted to fire Henne several times last season. The comparisons to Peyton Manning are, well, interesting. I think Manning was much more accomplished coming out of college. Manning needed a team built around him and when Dungy accomplished this, he became a Super Bowl champion. 

Is Chad Henne a quarterback to build around? I really don't know. It's hard to tell. From one perspective, they have competitive receivers, really competitive receivers. Tom Brady would love these receivers because their strengths are the catch and run. Henne struggled to take advantage of the strengths of his receivers. Why? 

From my perspective, Coach Henning. 

I'm glad Henning is gone. I was never a huge fan of his play calling. Henning communicated that the team's failure was the player's fault. Articles from the Sun Sentinal (Dec 25, 2010) affirmed that Henning couldn't see how the timing of his play calling was awkward, conservative, and easy to scheme against. He seemed so scared of Henne making a mistake that Henne's development was stunted. It was easy to know what Henning's offensive approach would be if they went up by three points, hold the lead. This rarely struck fear into the Dolphins opponents defense. I know the offensive scheme disappointed me as a fan. 

Henning seemed to be afraid to let Henne grow and yet Henne was their best option when the running game tanked. Of course a young quarterback is going to throw interceptions! The Jets are attempting to weather the growth of Sanchez while placing great talent around him. That has led to two AFC championships. I'd take that. While Coach Sparano supported Henning, it got old. So very old. I hope Coach Daboll doesn't play as scared. Watching Henne check down to his running backs instead of throwing down the field was frustrating when Brandon Marshall and Davone Bess are on opposite sides of the ball. 

So, what is it about Henne that I find so affirming?

1. He shows the necessary leadership of a competitive Quarterback: Henne wanted to know the new offense, so pursued Daboll and then wanted to hold practices to teach the offense. Awesome proactive leadership. I don't know who is going to show up, but his desire to be well prepared is such a spectacular sign of Henne's desire to succeed. I haven't heard stories about other quarterbacks showing such leadership. I know Henne and the Dolphins got in trouble for Daboll's and Henne's meeting. But you have to love the enthusiasm and desire. 

2. He didn't have a running game in the 2010 season: Ronnie and Ricky were supposed to drive the Miami Dolphins train, freeing Henne to make big plays. That obviously did not happen. Henne simply showed that he was a young quarterback, not ready to be the focus of an offense. The 2011 season will show us if he learned anything from that season. His offensive line couldn't open holes due to injury. Ronnie and Ricky disappeared. That changed the scheme of the offense, an offense that Coach Sparano did not have in mind. This coaching staff deserves the opportunity to build the offense they had in mind. An offense that showed signs of life throughout the season. I will be evaluating the offensive line play in my next e-article. 

3. His upside is still evident: His stats show it. The yards, touchdowns and interceptions paint the picture of a quarterback still in process. He needs an offensive line to give him an opportunity to play, a running game to give him balance, and an offensive system to help him develop his strengths. Aaron Rodgers needed five years to win a Super Bowl. Henne is a decent scrambler, he can pass well inside and outside of the pocket.

I would hate it if the Dolphins had to drop another second round pick at quarterback. 

Last season, Henne played like his collegiate self. My hope is that Henne has a desire to mature, learning how to improve his game, thus molding his game into a  Pro Quarterback. Having the maturity to adapt to his surroundings will make him better. But will it make him into a champion?

Give Henne some time, he's investing his best in the Miami Dolphins.