I Guess It Falls To Me Again...

This will be my last Miami preseason game in Miami.

I saw the score and it is bad. I am recording it now but it looks like a waste of space. I hope Gase get his shit together or he will be the next Cam Cameron.

Just watched the game. It kind of looked like 2015 all over again. Right now, this Dolphins team is...well...not good.

The OL, even with Tunsil and Bushrod starting, were absolutely manhandled early on by a pretty weak Cowboys' DL. The OL eventually settled down a bit, at least in pass pro, but it's clearly a unit that is not ready for prime time. At various points, I saw all 5 starters get beaten in pass pro, and they were absolutely terrible as run blockers. Branden Albert and Billy Turner, in particular, both had terrible games.

Tannehill had a typical "meh" game where it seemed like he would rather be somewhere else. Many of his completions were poorly thrown passes, and when he did put the ball in a good spot his receivers dropped it. Kenny Stills was the hero of the game, bailing Tannehill out on a 55-yard completion that was thrown to the sideline when Stills was wide open at the hash mark, and catching a TD pass that was thrown way behind him. Tannehill's ball placement has been an issue since day one, and it hasn't improved.

Ajayi looked very hesitant and showed me nothing.

The receivers sucked in the red zone, with Cameron, Parker and Landry (twice) dropping passes. Cameron just might be the most overrated player on this team. Parker looked very rusty, and still looks way too soft for a guy of his size.

The D was very unimpressive, allowing the Cowboys first two QBs (Romo and Prescott) to absolutely shred them. The run D was weak as well. I was very disappointed with the play of Maxwell, who was absolutely abused by Dez Bryant, and Kiko Alonso, who looks like Channing Crowder 2.0. Like Crowder, Alonso is always blocked out of the play and his many tackles occur 5-10 yards past the line of scrimmage. Alonso looks small and weak to me...not impressed at all. There was zero pressure on the QB, and I saw a lot of missed tackles.

Special teams...nothing to write home about. There were a couple of penalties, Grant did nothing as a returner, and Darr had a punt blocked. Not good.

Overall, this was an ugly effort by the Phins. They got some help from an awful officiating crew that seemed to hate the Cowboys, or the final score may have been even worse. Overall, right now this Dolphins team seems to be unfocused and undisciplined, and still has no identity - surely an indication that the coaching staff isn't getting the job done.

Oh yeah, forgot to mention...Tony Lippett looks like a practice squad player at best. This guy is not ready for the NFL...terrible game tonight against both the run and pass.

To continue...this DL isn't looking good right now. I'm not seeing anything from the DEs...Branch looked awful tonight, and Mario Williams looked like he was still in Buffalo where he pretty much sucked. Phillips again looked terrible. Suh is just one man...he can only do so much by himself. Someone else needs to step up.

And the LBs are even worse than I feared. I already talked about Alonso, but Jenkins and Misi were total non-factors tonight. Not good.

And at CB...please stop asking Bobby McCain to cover boundary receivers. He's an inside guy - period. Play to his strengths.

Not impressed so far with IAQ at safety...looks like he has no feel for coverage. That second safety spot will continue to be a problem, although Aikens does look improved.

Unless things change in a hurry, last season's 6-10 record is going to look damn good.

Well, I currently have Smokey and the Bandit 3 on, and even it is better than the game I just watched.

Stills looked good. Isaiah Pead is trying really hard to earn his way onto this roster.

Oh, and why the hell didn't we at least try to sign Alfred Morris?

Speaking of Morris, I was shocked to see that he's in his 5th season. Seems like he's been around a lot longer. I've always liked him...real strong runner. But Gase apparently wants a back that can catch, and that's not really Morris's strong suit. Still, I'd take him over any current Phins back - and I am a big Foster fan. A very good young back with no injury history??? Sign me up!

Pead has surprised the hell out of me - this guy looks like he can play. Hell, I'd put him over Ajayi right now. Pead hits the hole with authority...Ajayi is way too hesitant for my taste.

BTW - Dak Prescott looks like the real deal for the Cowboys. Two weeks in a row now, he's looked like a starter. I didn't really know what to expect from him, but he looks like he could be great. His confidence and poise are off the charts...looks like a veteran out there.

JMP wrote:Tannehill had a typical "meh" game where it seemed like he would rather be somewhere else.  Many of his completions were poorly thrown passes, and when he did put the ball in a good spot his receivers dropped it.  Kenny Stills was the hero of the game, bailing Tannehill out on a 55-yard completion that was thrown to the sideline when Stills was wide open at the hash mark, and catching a TD pass that was thrown way behind him.  Tannehill's ball placement has been an issue since day one, and it hasn't improved.

Just taking that part out to address.

Tannehill actually looked very good for the first time since the Tennessee game. Other than the one sack, which was his fault, his pre-snap reads were perfect, his throws were excellent, and his decision making was really, really good. I know I'm the "Tannehill Guy" around here, but you all know that I've been well past on the fence about him since last season. It's put up or shut up time, in my estimation. What I saw in this game was really good. As a matter of fact, that first-and-goal situation, he threw two perfect passes. One, we all know Cameron is a shit receiver now and must be cut, regardless of the cap issue, if there is one; and two, the pass at the front goal-line sticks to Landry. That was an amazing throw, but Landry slipped a little and didn't get his head around in time. The ball actually hit him right in his right hand.

The pass to Stills in the end zone that a lot of folks are saying was "behind him" was in the perfect position. Lead him out towards the safety and he gets Boldin'd in the endzone; lead the pass too far to the inside, it's broken up. He put it right where it needed to be.

I'm not saying one game a career can make, but I saw vast improvement, regardless of who he was throwing against. It brought out some optimism in me, and I was ready to give up on him.

God knows, I'm also worried that it's fool's gold, but perhaps Gase can do something with this kid. He certainly has the smarts, the ability, and the tools. It'd be nice if he had a fucking offensive line.

Seriously, who drafts a "franchise QB" and has no fucking clue how to build even a decent line?

Sorry guys, I'm back on Tannygoober's, which is what I think you mean to say JEG (instead of Tannygobber), bandwagon for the moment. If he continues this trend, we may have a cornerstone to build on.

You all know me, I'm a cynical fuck. Hell, I have Carlin as my avatar. If I'm seeing something that brings me optimism, best check my blood sugar, or BAL .

Seriously, though, most of the rest of the team sucks anyway, so any progression in the QB department is all I have right now. Even with a monumental leap in Tannehill's production (which would be pretty something considering his current stats to date), we may still only win 6 games.

I, right now, think 6-10 is a pipe dream with this current squad. They're not a good TEAM.

I've seen a lot of people say the same things about Tannehill's performance, but that's just not what I saw. I saw another mediocre performance, typical of his career. There were some good things, especially outside the pocket, but overall I didn't see anything special. Yes, the drops were awful and would have padded Tannehill's stats for sure, but I think he still struggles with ball placement/accuracy, pocket presence and reading the field. But, I guess we'll see...

Taking a second look at just the first half. Yeah, I know.

Tanny did look much better this week. He deserved better from Cameron.

The long pass to Stills was a great play, but better placement would have meant a TD. The end zone TD to Stills did look perfectly placed IMO.

Pead needs to start, actually. Looks like he is our best back.

Good Lord this defense is going to be terrible. I like Joseph but there just isn't enough talent to work with once you get past the LOS.

The Next Hole that the Starting OL makes for a RB will be the First One they have made.

This rebuild is growing more obvious daily.

I mean, it's becoming crystal clear to me that we have known, gaping wide holes all over the roster that were barely addressed. CB and LB are the most glaring, but there are more. The way this roster looks, the work was done from more a risk mitigation perspective, while structuring for long term salary impact vs "win now" building.

The 2nd starting DT looks like a huge question mark with Mitchell hurt and Phillips failing to progress. Mario Williams was handled by a TE, he is proving that yes, it's probable he really is "washed up". Who do we have at DE besides him? A 34 year old Wake coming off major injury, plus journeymen like Branch and Jones.

This isn't what a team does when it wants to contend right away. Not by a long shot. This is a team looking to build some footings, in preparation for building a solid foundation while preparing for a major roster overhaul.

Given this approach, hell keep McCain for his upside as a pass rusher. True he's weak against the run, but at least he can do one thing well. More than can be said for others on the team.