Pappy13
Uber Member
Posts: 8331
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« on: October 01, 2013, 09:04:18 am » |
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Announcer1: It appears the Saints have challenged the ruling on the field that the Dolphins are a playoff caliber team this year. Announcer2: Yeah I'm sure that Sean Peyton thinks that this one is gonna be overturned. Announcer1: Well I think we all saw that one coming. Announcer2: The replay official is under the hood, but it seems pretty clear that this isn't going to go the Dolphins way.
Replay Official: After further review...the Dolphins play stands as called.
Announcer1: What's this? Annoucner2: Well I don't know what the replay official was looking at because this clearly seemed like it was going to be reversed. Let's get an explanation from our expert official Pappy13...
Pappy13: The wording is important here 1 and 2, the replay official said the play stands as called, he didn't say the play was confirmed. That means that he didn't see enough to overturn the ruling on the field. That doesn't mean that the Dolphins ARE a playoff team, it simply means that this game doesn't prove they're NOT. The Dolphins are still 3-1 through the 1st quarter of the season and have played 3 good games and 1 poor game. Keep that up for the season and there's still a very good chance they win enough games to make the playoffs.
I really didn't expect Miami to win this game although I did hope for a closer score, but the game didn't really get out of hand till the 3rd quarter. So they failed this test, but there's still one test left for Miami to get a passing grade, that's Baltimore at home next week. Last year when Miami laid an egg against Tennessee, they let that bad game linger for a whole week and ended up losing a very winnable game against the Bills the following week. For Miami to show progress from last year and have a shot at the playoffs that cannot happen this year. Miami must forget this game quickly and get prepared for the next one. Come back and play well against the Ravens, a team that is clearly struggling themselves and go to 4-1 and there's nothing to worry about. Let this game carry over to the next and fall to 3-2 and then there's the possibility it all goes south on them.
All Miami has to do to right the ship is not to let this game define their season. They did some good things in the first quarter of the season including in the game last night, but they've also shown several weaknesses that must get better. The offensive line has to do a much better job protecting Tannehill. Tannehill must do a better job protecting the football and I'm not talking about interceptions, I'm talking about all the fumbles. I can live with the interceptions he has thrown as even last night a couple of those weren't all on him, but the fumbles MUST stop. Some of that is on the offensive line as well, but Tannehill has to have better awareness of when the pocket is collapsing and get out of there, get rid of the football or cover up the football with both hands. He did a good job of it last year, so it can be fixed.
So hold off all the negativity for at least one more week. If they stink it up again next week against the Ravens, then you can pick them to shreds, but not for this. Not in a game where the odds were so heavily stacked against them. In the Superdome, on a Monday Night, against probably the 2nd best QB in the league this year without their best pass rusher and without their 2nd best corner and his replacement for the 2nd half. This was a recipe for disaster going into the game, so don't be that shocked that it turned into a disaster. Next week however should be a different story and should have a much different outcome, if not then there will be reason for concern.
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