Two games and two games back of everyone in the division, including the Bills, that’s right the Dolphins are behind the lowly, undefeated, Buffalo Bills. After the first two games the Dolphins have proved that they are not prepared to take the next step to be a playoff team and actually seem to be moving backward. Granted there have been to very legitimate opponents in the Patriots and Texans, but the performance of the team has not been acceptable and the schedule doesn’t get any easier. Perhaps the most telling sign was when Coach Sparano said “It’s baffling to me, it really is. I don’t have any answers for it. We’ve got to do a better job.” A coach that was nearly fired in the offseason admitting that he doesn’t know what to do is very troublesome. He couldn’t pick out points to improve on next week during this interview, but just wants “to do a better job”. This should be a signal for the ownership that they need to reevaluate the coach that they just gave a contract extension after their attempt to fire him backfired. At this point it appears there is simply nothing left that Sparano can do and he appears to have thrown in the towel with his statement. If Sparano can’t get things together in the next couple of weeks, especially if they can’t beat the Browns next week a coaching change could be coming very rapidly (perhaps in the middle of the season).
The Bills are definitely surprising so far (although I'm not sure the Raiders and Chiefs are exactly an accurate litmus test), but you are absolutely right. The Dolphins need to step it up if the want to have any hope at a playoff run, and perhaps Sparano should have SOMETHING constructive to say. Maybe leaving Florida will treat the Dolphins well?
ReplyDeleteCan you get fired in the middle of the season?
ReplyDeleteYou can get fired in the middle of the season and it happens relatively often across all sports.
ReplyDeleteThis is something that always bothers me. So much of the time, the blame is placed on the coaches. Maybe it is Sparano's fault here in Miami, but is it Terry Francona's fault in Boston? He has been proven a genius for so many years. Is it the manager or merely intangibles and failings by the team as a whole?
ReplyDeleteI agree that there is always the natural inclination to blame the coaches and often times a GM or a star athlete (in the case of football the Quarterback) get the blame. However, it is at a point where Sparano hasn't produced as the coach and has lost the respect of his players. The Terry Francona situation is different because he does have a track record of success, while Sparano does not. There are many things that need to be changed inside the Dolphins organization and fair or not it is probably going to start with the coach as it normally does.
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