Miami Dolphins: Thankful Season Wasn't Lost on a Bad Call [Part 1 of 2]

The loss of a playoff possibility is always a bitter pill to swallow. Dolphin fans can be thankful that the season wasn't lost on the "Immaculate Deception" game against the Steelers earlier in the season. Truth be told, this team is not ready for the playoffs, PERIOD. There is something wrong in "Henne land." This fact becomes painfully evident, as you watch the Dolphins final drive against the Bills with 40 seconds left, when the Dolphin faithful strive to see a leader bravely attack the secondary with daring heroics and throw deep passes into double coverage. Instead they got, the typical Henne play- the check down.

Let me say that again. Instead of trying to win the game, the Dolphin faithful received the ol'....

CHECK DOWN.

It's hard to pinpoint the exact problem: Sparano? Henning? Henne? How big a piece of the pie should they be forced to stomach when the title of the ingredients reads RESPONSIBILITY?

My opinion is that Sparano, based on the team he inherited, probably deserves another year. There are still some winning ingredients in the mix here, and it wasn't that long ago that the team was floundering at 1 & 15. They were fish out of water and flopping their way to one lone victory. Did I say winning ingredients? Yes, I did. The defense is coming around- with some slight improvement, they could really dominate next year. The youth is there, the building blocks, Karlos Dansby, Vontae Davis etc. I would really like to see the team nurture a player with potential like Sean Smith. Instead of the itchy trigger finger, lets get some of these players to play at the top of their potential with patience and coaching. The defense is there!

The offensive line was a let down this year, but once again, with a little tweaking, not a major overhaul, this line could live up to the potential it had going into this season. In short, I believe it is an area of concern for 2011, but it is not an area of weakness. What about the other areas? Does this team have the building blocks on offense to become a winner as early as next year? The answer is a resounding YES! The receiver core can boast one of the biggest names around [Marshall] and one of the more nifty slot receivers in the game [Bess]. Brian Hartline needs to improve only slightly to become a true gamer, and the same could be said for TE Anthony Fasano. The Dolphins have two smart and talented veteran runners on the team [Ronnie Brown, Ricky Williams] and though I don't think these guys can carry a team anymore, I would hardly view them as liabilities. They are proven players.

The Dolphins don't always play to their strength and talent: Let me be specific. Lousaka Polite. Or, as I like to call him, LouCsonka Polite. What is this guy's 1st down percentage on 3rd and short and 4th and short over the last few years? Last I heard, wasn't it 90 something percent? Why are we not pounding this guy up the middle nearly every time we have a third and one, fourth and one? In that same game against the Steelers, we had a 4th and one at about the 50, in a close game, midway through the fourth quarter. I shook my head in disbelief that we didn't roll the dice with our fullback and our 90 SOMETHING PERCENT, but we kicked the ball [like we usually do] and well, you know what happened.We have become in love with our kicking game. Look no further than yesterday's Bills game where we tried a low-percentage field goal down 17-7 on a fourth and about five at about the 35 yard line. The decision to kick IMMEDIATELY took the pressure off the Bill's defense who were starting to reel a bit at that point in the game. I know it was a bad call. If Carpenter makes the kick, it's still a bad call. The Dolphins need to attack more. The high loss/high gain maneuver is just what you need down 10 late in the game. Not the damn check down!!

Furthermore, before the point becomes totally lost, has anybody stopped to consider that Polite might not be a bad option on third/forth and two? How about third/forth and three? How about first and ten? Maybe a guy that doesn't go down on the first hit should get the ball WAY more times. What are the Dolphins thinking of not giving this guy some vig? We will probably trade him to the Patriots for a draft pick, and he will have 600 yards and 8 touchdowns for them. Is anybody feeling me here? Get Lousaka Polite the ball some more!

Henne and Henning have got to go. Henning's rinky dink and dunk doesn't cut it anymore. The game has changed. The secondary has to be attacked. Far more 20 and 30 yard passes need to be executed, Henne must be waiting for the perfect opportunity or something, but the deep pass attempts are surely amongst the lowest in the league and with this era of Pass Interference incorporated, you just have to really put pressure on the opponents secondary. Sadly, it's time for Henne to do the ultimate check down and become a backup quarterback.

A new quarterback, a new offensive coordinator, more Lousaka Polite and more deep passes will bring the Dolphins a playoff birth in 2011.