Dolphins' Mishandling of Offensive Line Epitomizes Joe Philbin Era

Throughout the Miami Dolphins’ gut-wrenching 28-13 loss to the Baltimore Ravens, the common theme that has plagued Miami’s franchise since hiring Joe Philbin popped up once again. The familiar taste left in the wake of another flat performance at home was due to Philbin’s overly rigid nature and stance on which players will see the field.

Since defeating the San Diego Chargers 37-0, the Dolphins have dropped three of the last five contests, with the latest reducing their playoff chances well below their previous odds of 36 percent. The Dolphins’ players had to know what was on the line against Baltimore, and yet they could not capitalize upon a great first quarter performance.

Eventually, the Ravens flexed their proverbial muscles as they noticed Miami was allowing right tackle Dallas Thomas to block defensive stalwart Elvis Dumervil without extra help. The ensuing carnage crippled the Dolphins’ offense, as Dumervil ended with 3.5 sacks, and Terrell Suggs logged another partial sack against Thomas.

Thomas, who was developing at right guard until left tackle Branden Albert was lost for the season, has been put in a position where he simply cannot win. He lacks the lower body strength (or, lead in his bottom, as those in the scouting community say) to handle speed to power rushers like Dumervil and Suggs. Thomas is routinely driven right back into quarterback Ryan Tannehill because he’s just not cut out to play tackle.

And yet Philbin is adamant he is playing the most qualified guys.

"

Philbin,asked if he had better option than Dallas Thomas,answers how he answers lineup questions for 3yrs:We played who gives us best chance

— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) December 7, 2014"

It’s hard to understand what Philbin is watching exactly when we hear him make comments like that, and on Sunday, Thomas is literally preventing the offense from executing because Tannehill is being pressured within a mere two seconds of the snap. It’s also not as if Miami doesn’t have other options to step in for Thomas at right tackle.

In the midst of Miami’s offensive line makeover, it signed free-agent tackle Jason Fox from the Detroit Lions to serve as a backup swing tackle. In 205 snaps for the Lions in 2013, Fox allowed just one sack and two quarterback hurries, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required). That means he allowed pressure on just .014 percent of his snaps as a right tackle last year.

Let’s compare that to how Thomas has played thus far in 2014. In his 192 snaps at right tackle prior to Sunday’s game against the Ravens, Thomas allowed two sacks and 11 hurries. Expect those numbers to jump significantly after his embarrassing performance in Week 14.

Also on the bench is rookie Billy Turner, who was selected in the third round of the 2014 draft. So far, he’s yet to see the field and has often been deactivated before games, despite Miami’s ineffective offensive line needing help. If Philbin had a reputation for developing young players effectively with this strategy, he’d get the benefit of the doubt here, but he does not.

Under Philbin, Miami has been unwilling to play nearly all young players, except ones that had to fill major holes (Ja’Wuan James and Jarvis Landry). Instead, Miami has relied on veterans that have been prone to injuries throughout recent years (Cortland Finnegan, Knowshon Moreno and Louis Delmas), theoretically giving the Dolphins a better chance to win now.

What’s not helping Philbin’s case is the emergence of the second-year players that were forced on the field only due to injuries to projected starters. Just think about this for a second; the Dolphins fully planned on having Jelani Jenkins and Dion Sims in a very minor role until Dannell Ellerbe and Charles Clay had injury troubles.

That same strategy has held edge-rushers Dion Jordan and Chris McCain, cornerback Jamar Taylor, receiver Rishard Matthews and Turner to see very few snaps during the regular season. Without repetitions, these players cannot prove themselves or get better, and yet Miami has stuck with ineffective starters like Philip Wheeler, Delmas, Brian Hartline, Daryn Colledge and to an extent, Finnegan.

Developing young talent and putting them into a position to succeed is exactly what a quality coaching staff does. Simply put, Philbin and his coordinators would be utterly failing if their finals were being held on Sundays.

Offensive line coach John Benton deserves major credit for his work with Miami’s limited talent at the position, but his magic can only go so far when Bill Lazor refuses to change Tannehill’s launch point, utilize rollouts or put him under center.

The Dolphins have a talented roster, which is a credit to former general manager Jeff Ireland and current man in charge Dennis Hickey. What Miami is lacking is the leadership and system in place that will get the most out of the talent.

Miami’s lack of leadership in the locker room is an issue Philbin himself created in the first place. After the 2012 season, Philbin and defensive coordinator Kevin Coyle requested Ireland replace linebackers Karlos Dansby and Kevin Burnett. The result was predictable as the available talent was simply not as good as the former duo, and Miami has paid dearly for Philbin’s power move.

On offense, the Dolphins are also lacking explosive playmakers. Well, Brandon Marshall and Chad Johnson were once in Dolphins’ uniforms, and at least Marshall would be huge upgrades for a unit lacking any type of consistency.

This isn’t meant to use hindsight to bury Philbin, but all of these issues come back to his stubbornness and inability to work with the type of athlete the Dolphins desperately need to win. That’s not to say Miami needs locker room cancers, but a good leader of men will be able to handle some of the more difficult or vocal athletes with care and still maximize their on-field ability.

"

Joe Philbin struggles with every alpha male on his team. He can't coach them. Can't reach them. Not sure that ever changes.

— Omar Kelly (@OmarKelly) December 8, 2014"

Philbin’s inability to lead Miami through rough stretches on the field has bitten the franchise in each of the past two seasons. Dolphins fans don’t need a reminder about their 2013 collapse, and this last month hasn’t started well for Philbin either.

Failing to respond to tough situations comes back to coaching. As Bleacher Report NFL Insider Jason Cole mentioned nearly two months ago, Philbin doesn’t have the respect of the Dolphins locker room, and it showed again Sunday.

"

Jared Odrick went off on Philbin on the sidelines https://t.co/0RaNUHBdBu

— Dolphin Nation (@DolphinNation) December 7, 2014"

Dolphins defensive tackle Jared Odrick was caught yelling at Philbin in the midst of Miami’s fourth-quarter meltdown, and per Dave Hyde of the Sun-Sentinel, said the “coaches always have a way out” in the locker room after the game. It is yet another sign Philbin has lost control of the talented Dolphins roster.

Outside of a few weeks, Miami has been unable to create a strong, consistent game plan and then go out and execute it on Sunday. Players deserve some heat for this, but the overarching theme is a good roster that plays down to opponents and seems to sleepwalk through large stretches of the game. Many times this is because there are little to no adjustments being made besides during halftime.

"

Philbin: Baltimore "coached better and played better. Controlled line of scrimmage better, put better pressure on quarterback than we did."

— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) December 7, 2014"

Barring an unexpected 3-0 run to the end of the season, the Dolphins will likely miss the playoffs again. The stretch of mediocrity will only continue with Philbin at the helm, as he’s shown no growth as a leader or tactician in his tenure. Some coaches are best served as coordinators, and he seems to be under that umbrella.

As unappealing as another coaching change is for some, owner Stephen Ross needs to consider finally cleaning house. Landing an elite coach must be a priority for this franchise to reach the heights the fanbase deserves.

As billionaire Michael Dell once said, never be the smartest man in the room. Miami's biggest issue is that Philbin seems to think he is always that man and hasn't learned from his mistakes yet. 

All stats used are from sports-reference.com.

Ian Wharton is a Miami Dolphins Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report, contributor for Optimum Scouting, and analyst for eDraft. 

Follow @NFLFilmStudy