Third preseason game

Caught quite a bit of the second and third quarters.  Playing against the Ravens' second-stringers, the offense put up one TD in a half.

Defense?  Their scrubs were better than our scrubs.  Our first string played their second string even.

I realize that preseason isn't the real thing, but I just don't see much of an indication that this team is going to better last year's record.  Tanny, Amendola and Drake seem set for good years statistically, but how much will our offense be on the field?  The run defense is going to rank at the very bottom of the league based on what we've seen to date.  Start every RB you have going against us in fantasy.

Oh and our backup QB's are awful, but we already knew that.  Saying that you wouldn't draft Mason Rudolph in the third because you already had Fales and Osweiler is looking really dumb. Yes, he hasn't set the world on fire in Pittsburgh yet, but he will improve. These two guys basically look like they got nothing. If Tanny goes down it is 2007 all over again.

Ravens started their 3rd string QB against us.

Miami’s front office is lost. We don’t have a plan for the futire. We should have gone all out for a starting QB and let Tannehill and the draftee battle for the starting position. Until the QB position is sorted out we have nothing.

I am actually more concerned about the D than the offense. We are dreadful up the middle, the LB's are small and can be overpowered. Neither of the safeties can cover me. We still can not cover a TE.

Minkah looks like a beast. The dude is always around the ball. He is being wasted at slot corner. Put him at FS and sit TJ.

Our DE's are great, but teams will try and take them away and play man on man on the rest of the d.

I still see this offense struggling to put up points. One good TD drives per game and 3-4 FG's. I really think gase's play calling and dink and dunk mentality will hold this team back. We might be better off trying the ground and pound method, ball control, TOP, keep your D off the field. But the QB guru/genius will not do that.

Kenyan Drake is looking good. That said, we don't have much after him. Ground and pound would be the way to go. The middle linebacker is a bust. McMillan might be the worst MLB in the NFL. He's certainly the slowest. I'd wager he couldn't beat a 60 year old in a wheel chair down the field!

This team is a bottom 5 of the league team right now.

Ugh.

Watched the first half so far...and it is not good. Our first stringers played against their second and third stringers...and we looked outmatched. The Adam Gas era will ultimately be remembered for sloppiness, and it showed in that first half: Tannehill fumbling the ball with no one near him, Alonso going to the wrong sideline (!!!), Kilgore missing blocks, Godchaux missing tackles, the LBs and DBs taking poor angles, dumb penalties...it was a complete shitshow. Hey, at least the starting offense FINALLY scored a TD.

Look, I understand the whole "it's only preseason" argument. But let's be realistic...all the bad things we're seeing this summer are the same exact things we've seen in Gase's first two years. Nothing has changed. Yeah, the offense may end up being a little better if they actually throw the ball to Gesicki when the games count, but does anyone really think we've solved the third down and red zone issues that have plagued the Gase era? I don't. And the defense? Ugh! It could be disastrous. The DTs are terrible, the LBs are worse, and the DBs mostly look lost. Yeah, maybe we'll get a few more sacks out of Quinn...but beyond that, I think this could be a bottom 3 defense - it's that bad. Put it this way: Chase Allen looks like the team's best LB right now - and it's really not close. That's a scary thought.

On the bright side, Drake looks great, Vince Taylor looks like a beast and Fitzpatrick seems like the real deal. And Quinn appears to be 100% healthy and back to form.

But yeah, hard to see this team doing better than 6 or 7 wins at most.

JMP wrote:But yeah, hard to see this team doing better than 6 or 7 wins at most.

You really think this team can win as many as 7 games?!?! Since when did YOU become an optimist?

In addition to all those other issues, the backup QB situation is apparently such a mess that NOBODY currently on the roster deserves to be in that spot, which means it's Tannenbaum Trade Time since I don't think Gase will be able to lure anybody out of retirement this time around. I'm telling you, do not be surprised if he gives the Jets next year's first for Bridgewater. I sure won't be. And the justification will be something along the lines of, "Hey, the fans wanted us to take a QB in the first round of this last draft, right?"

Backup QB: Fales is clearly #2, because Osweiler is godawful and Gase won't choose Petty over one of his two boy-toys. Fales is bad, but the one thing I like is that he's aggressive...seems like he looks to throw deep first, and he always keeps his eyes downfield.

But yeah, if Tannehill gets hurt again we'll have the #1 overall pick next draft.

I do think 6-7 wins is likely, because as bad as things are there is at least a little talent, particularly on offense with Drake and (hopefully) Gesicki.

JMP wrote:Backup QB: Fales is clearly #2, because Osweiler is godawful and Gase won't choose Petty over one of his two boy-toys.  Fales is bad, but the one thing I like is that he's aggressive...seems like he looks to throw deep first, and he always keeps his eyes downfield.  

But yeah, if Tannehill gets hurt again we'll have the #1 overall pick next draft.

I do think 6-7 wins is likely, because as bad as things are there is at least a little talent, particularly on offense with Drake and (hopefully) Gesicki.

I don't like rooting for injury. I think Osweiller gets the nod because Gase is familiar with him. That seems to be his m. o.

DolFan 316 wrote: I'm telling you, do not be surprised if he gives the Jets next year's first for Bridgewater. I sure won't be. And the justification will be something along the lines of, "Hey, the fans wanted us to take a QB in the first round of this last draft, right?"

I'm strangely OK with it, since Bridgewater is probably better than anyone this bunch would draft with that pick.

Man, the second half of that game was UGLY. It's mind-boggling how bad our depth is. Most of those guys will be looking for work soon, of course, but it's amazing that they made it this far.

Looking at the roster:

With Parker and Grant both possibly out week 1, we'll definitely need to keep a 6th receiver...something I didn't think was going to happen initially. Unfortunately, the receivers battling for that last spot all look like practice squad players at best - Carroo, Morgan, Ford, Owusu and Scott. I like some of the things Owusu has done this offseason, but he dropped a TD against the Ravens and that left a bad impression on me. I don't get the hype about Ford...he looks like any bottom-of-the-roster receiver - nothing special at all. The others, including Carroo, are wastes. I like Scott because he's a Cane, but he's soft and really nothing special aside from his speed. Ford will probably get the nod because he was drafted, but if I was in charge I'd be looking to add a vet receiver that gets cut - preferably someone with height.

The other position where we will likely have to keep an extra player is DT. Looks like Phillips, Taylor, Spence, Godchaux and Langford will all make it. Langford has surprisingly played well. Spence and Godchaux have both looked terrible IMO, and personally I would just cut Spence if there's not a big cap hit. I didn't like the signing at the time, and IMO he's done nothing this preseason. DT is definitely a major weak spot, but hopefully Taylor can continue to beast once the regular season starts - he could be a bright spot. Phillips has also played well...cough *contract year* cough.

HalCHorn wrote:

DolFan 316 wrote: I'm telling you, do not be surprised if he gives the Jets next year's first for Bridgewater. I sure won't be. And the justification will be something along the lines of, "Hey, the fans wanted us to take a QB in the first round of this last draft, right?"

I'm strangely OK with it, since Bridgewater is probably better than anyone this bunch would draft with that pick.

I'd actually be fine with that as well. With a great GM, I'd say hell no, but with this group, at least we know Bridgewater would amount to something.

Forget the Bridgewater dreams. It would be GREAT, but Gase has tied himself to Tannehill and won't bring in anyone that might threaten him. Gase will roll with Tannehill and whichever boy-toy he trusts more...probably Fales. Gase's stance on the QB position was made crystal clear during the draft, when he refused to draft a QB in one of the deepest QB classes of all time. Ride or die with Tannehill - that's it.

JMP wrote:The other position where we will likely have to keep an extra player is DT.  Looks like Phillips, Taylor, Spence, Godchaux and Langford will all make it.  Langford has surprisingly played well.  Spence and Godchaux have both looked terrible IMO, and personally I would just cut Spence if there's not a big cap hit.  I didn't like the signing at the time, and IMO he's done nothing this preseason. DT is definitely a major weak spot, but hopefully Taylor can continue to beast once the regular season starts - he could be a bright spot.  Phillips has also played well...cough *contract year* cough.

so i was wondering about this too. how and why did Spence just get handed a starting job? Godchaux and Phillips are competing to see who starts next to him. i thought Spence was brought in as depth with a chance to compete with Godchaux (and possibly Taylor) to start next to Phillips?

mercury22nathan wrote:

JMP wrote:The other position where we will likely have to keep an extra player is DT.  Looks like Phillips, Taylor, Spence, Godchaux and Langford will all make it.  Langford has surprisingly played well.  Spence and Godchaux have both looked terrible IMO, and personally I would just cut Spence if there's not a big cap hit.  I didn't like the signing at the time, and IMO he's done nothing this preseason. DT is definitely a major weak spot, but hopefully Taylor can continue to beast once the regular season starts - he could be a bright spot.  Phillips has also played well...cough *contract year* cough.

so i was wondering about this too.  how and why did Spence just get handed a starting job?  Godchaux and Phillips are competing to see who starts next to him.  i thought Spence was brought in as depth with a chance to compete with Godchaux (and possibly Taylor) to start next to Phillips?

It's pretty clear to me from what I've seen that Phillips and Taylor should be the clear-cut starters...honestly, those two are way ahead of everyone else, IMO. Godchaux is just a guy, and Spence, again, has shown nothing. Phillips and Taylor both flash legit playmaking ability - something none of the other DTs possess - and they should be the lead dogs in the rotation.

DolFan 316 wrote:
I'm telling you, do not be surprised if he gives the Jets next year's first for Bridgewater. I sure won't be. And the justification will be something along the lines of, "Hey, the fans wanted us to take a QB in the first round of this last draft, right?"

I'm strangely OK with it, since Bridgewater is probably better than anyone this bunch would draft with that pick.

I actually think Bridgewater will stay with the Jets this season. Why not? He hits FA next year and then gets to choose his next team.

In that scenario, assuming a failed 2018, Miami should go after him and finally cut ties with Tannehill. IF this season goes badly.

I would cut Caroo instantly, and consider putting Parker on PUP.

We do have SOME talent on this roster, it doesn't seem to be cohesive. How patient is Ross going to be? Given enough time, it's possible this staff puts together a winner.... but that's not what teams are doing these days. It's 2-3 seasons at best and that's your shot.

white1 wrote:I actually think Bridgewater will stay with the Jets this season.  Why not? He hits FA next year and then gets to choose his next team.

It's not up to him if he's traded, though. And from the Jets' POV it's better to trade Bridgewater than to let him leave after one season for nothing.

In that scenario, assuming a failed 2018, Miami should go after him and finally cut ties with Tannehill.  IF this season goes badly.

Agreed about Bridgewater, but Tannehill's contract is structured in such a way that dumping him before the start of next season would be... a bit problematic. Doable given sufficient maneuvering, but can Tannenbaum really be trusted with that? In addition to Tannehill's dead money if he's let go before the 2019 season, the Fins also have Suh's remaining dead money to account for next year. The combined dead money for both would be over $26 mil.

https://overthecap.com/player/ryan-tannehill/717/

https://overthecap.com/player/ndamukong-suh/1816/

I would cut Caroo instantly, and consider putting Parker on PUP.

Caroo was a goner IMO until Grant got a concussion. Now there's actually a chance he'll be on the opening day roster at least simply because there aren't enough other halfway decent options at WR with Parker and Grant both out.

We do have SOME talent on this roster, it doesn't seem to be cohesive.  How patient is Ross going to be? Given enough time, it's possible this staff puts together a winner.... but that's not what teams are doing these days.  It's 2-3 seasons at best and that's your shot.

As it should be. Remember, this was a bad team the first four seasons of its existence. Then Shula was hired, made the playoffs in year One (when it was harder than today, reached the Super Bowl in Year Two and went unbeaten in Year Three. Even JJ got them back into the postseason in Year Two after a near-complete roster overhaul. And just look at how quickly the Rams and Jags turned things around last season after being horrible for ages. It really doesn't take longer than 2 seasons to determine if the right coach has been hired or not.

It's not up to him if he's traded, though. And from the Jets' POV it's better to trade Bridgewater than to let him leave after one season for nothing.

Okay, so the Jets would SURELY have made us pay through the nose (being a division rival and all) but still...

Fact remains. The Saints have Pro Bowler and likely HOF QB Drew Brees and still had the vision to add a young, starting caliber QB as backup.

We have Tannehill and did.... nothing.

Good to know I still have the ol' reading comprehension skills I had no idea Bridgewater had been traded to the Saints until I read White1's post and so I checked it out and sure enough...

Oh well. I guess we just better hope Tannehill never gets hurt again. And that the Fins don't do this...

https://www.profootballrumors.com/2018/08/cardinals-mike-glennon-trade-interest

Sad to say, Glennon is still probably better than the trash we have at backup QB. I still say Petty has been the best Fins QB this preseason. And he is not even in the conversation for a job.

I don't want them to pick anyone up. If Tannehill goes down, I want to lose out, and lose out hard. A lot of 10 interception games, 77-0 kind of scorched earth shit.

Degarmo wrote:I don't want them to pick anyone up.  If Tannehill goes down, I want to lose out, and lose out hard.  A lot of 10 interception games, 77-0 kind of scorched earth shit.

Isn't it so refreshing and liberating to be able to say what you feel without worrying that you'll be punished for it?

I kinda feel the same way TBH. This is a 5-6 win team WITH Tannehill. Without him they're the 2016-17 Browns. A last-ditch desperation trade for another QB won't change that in the slightest. Then again, it would be so Finsy to get the top pick in a draft everyone is saying is rotten at QB.

I think a Cam Cameron style season will mark the end of the current "regime".  So, if that's what it's gonna take, then fine, burn it down.

Ross is such an asshole though.  He's been promised something by Goodell to ruin the Dolphins and keep a nice and easy path for the Pats to waltz to 5-to-6 wins each year in their division, and he's doing a marvelous job of just making what looks like dumb moves.  I'm not saying he's an evil genius or anything, but you don't need an IQ over 100 to figure out that if your drafts suck continuously, and your coaches suck continually, then you get rid of everyone and hire someone to oversee the organization who has a track record of knowing what the fuck they're doing.  He's not doing that, so it's by design, or he's a dumbass.

He's never done that.

The Parcells thing, maybe it would have worked in the long run, but Wayne set that up.  Ross took over and Parcells was like, "Screw this guy," and got out of Dodge.

I know, I'm being esoteric about Ross and his "conspiracy" or whatever, but I know what he's done in his life.  Football, as a business, is about talent acquisition.  If you don't have that, then you change, IF you want to win.

I don't think he does, and everything he's done to the stadium and the like are for Roger Goodell.  I think he's sucking up to him for Super Bowls, and so that he'll continue with his bargain.

We beat the Pats a few times in that stretch, so, maybe the deal's on sketchy ground.

Or he's just a god-damned moron who should have never been allowed to own an NFL team.

Maybe it's just that last part.

Maybe.

DolFan 316 wrote:Good to know I still have the ol' reading comprehension skills I had no idea Bridgewater had been traded to the Saints until I read White1's post and so I checked it out and sure enough...

Oh well. I guess we just better hope Tannehill never gets hurt again. And that the Fins don't do this...

https://www.profootballrumors.com/2018/08/cardinals-mike-glennon-trade-interest

Saints smart.

Dolphins dumb.

What more needs to be said?

If something does, well, put it this way: Our last two third round picks were Baker and Tankersley. Tell me you wouldn't trade either one of them for Bridgewater right now.

I CAN'T EVEN ENTICE YOU WITH CONSPIRACY THEORIES 316?

What is this world coming to, indeed .