Miami Dolphins Need to Overhaul Coaching Staff and Roster Yet Again

If Monday night's loss to a previously 0-8 Tampa Bay team showed anything, it's that the Miami Dolphins are a bad football team coached by bad coaches.

They don't play smart football, they don't play a full 60 minutes of good football, they don't make big plays and they just don't have leaders who pull them through adversity on the field.

And this is not about Richie Incognito and Jonathan Martin, because if they're not on the field, then I frankly don't care about them. That side of things will play out however it does, but the focus should be on the team that's out there on the gridiron.

For starters, Miami needs to fire head coach Joe Philbin and every single other member of that staff. Mike Sherman is the worst coordinator in the league. Kevin Coyle isn't much better. 

They also need to fire general manager Jeff Ireland, who has consistently fielded underwhelming teams, and after Monday night's abysmal loss, it doesn't look like things are trending in the right direction yet again.

But the roster has its share of issues. Let's start on offense.

The Dolphins need to find four new offensive linemen to start around Mike Pouncey, because they are absolutely horrendous in both pass protection and run support.

They need to acquire a competent tight end who can both catch passes and block well, which none of Miami's three current tight ends can do.

Lamar Miller and Daniel Thomas are both below-average backs and should be replaced. Miller is worth keeping as the No. 2 option if they find a good starting-caliber back.

They combined with Charles Clay to run for just two yards against the Bucs, an all-time franchise low.

The passing game has been inconsistent as well. 

Mike Wallace was a bad signing, which has been compounded by Sherman's inability to use him effectively. Something needs to be done to put him in a position to succeed.

It's still hard to effectively gauge Ryan Tannehill because of how bad his offensive line has been. He's shown the ability to make plays at times, but he also looks jumpy and misses easy throws too often.

He has turned the ball over far too often, with more turnovers than touchdowns this season (and last year as well).  

Defensively, there are a few major issues as well. The Dolphins massively overpaid for linebackers Philip Wheeler and Dannell Ellerbe, as neither have lived up to even half of their contracts.

The rookies have not fared well, either.

Even when healthy, cornerbacks Jamar Taylor and Will Davis have had zero impact on the field. Same goes for linebacker Jelani Jenkins.

Dion Jordan, the third overall pick in the 2013 NFL draft, has for some reason been used extremely sparingly even though he has been productive. His lack of snaps is head-scratching, to put it nicely.

Philbin does not look like the kind of coach who can fire up a team on a weekly basis. Losing five games in six weeks (not counting the bye) is simply unacceptable in the NFL. Losing to an 0-8 team is even worse.

He's simply one of those guys who might be a decent coordinator (although he didn't call the plays in Green Bay), but he just isn't cut out to be the head guy. If and when he gets fired, I'd be surprised if anyone else hires him as the head coach, which says it all.

The issues in the locker room are an obvious problem but have been way overdiscussed, so I'll leave those out of this article. 

Sherman and Coyle have not drawn up game plans to maximize the talent they have, and Sherman especially has been unable to make in-game adjustments.

This is not the crew that will continue building and improving Miami. They will not lead the Dolphins on a playoff run, let alone have any real shot at the Super Bowl in the next season or two.

They need to go. Ireland, who has systematically failed to build a winning (or even improved) team over and over again, should be run out the door.

Big changes should be coming yet again to the Dolphins.

They need a new coaching staff, new management and new players at key positions.

All Miami fans can do is hope that one day, somehow, this organization will get it right.