Early signs are that Garrard is the leading QB candidate.

[EKnight]

EK, what about the games that Moore did play in?  You know, the ones that Landshark just listed?

The ones that the defense couldn't hold a lead in? That's no different. Miami half leads in the fourth quarter in 6 of the 10 losses. The couldn't keep anyone from scoring late. Even the final Buffalo and Jets games they gave up tons of points in the fourth. You can't blame the QB when the defense doesn't keep people out of the end zone. The stats about the D were meaningless. No one cares that they were third against the run because no one runs the ball anymore. 6th in points allowed? So what if you give up 70% of your points late in the game and allow the other team to win. That has nothing to do with QB play. And don't give me the "turnovers led to bad field position" argument. If the D was as good as some people make them out to be, they would have held teams to FGs, not TDs even with bad field position. -EK

[Spider-Dan]

When your team loses 38-24 and gives up over 600 yards of combined offense to the opposition, you can blame the defense.

When your team loses 24-6 (with three turnovers by the offense, including a pick-6) and your defense held the opponent under 300 combined yards, you don't get to blame the defense.
When your team loses in OT 18-15 and your defense held the opposing team to 308 combined yards, you don't get to blame the defense.

You can easily remove personal opinion from the comparison.  Take a look at PFR's season summary page for MIA and look at the expected points differential for games that Moore started (higher positive numbers are better):

- of the 6 wins, the defense outplayed the offense in 4 of them
- of the 6 losses, the offense underplayed the defense in 4 of them

Matt Moore cannot point fingers at the defense.  Only a fool would look at the fourth-quarter defensive stats and ignore the fact that the offense had three quarters to build a lead (while the defense was suffocating the opponent) and instead chose to sit on their hands.

[EKnight]

A greater fool would blame the QB when it was the coach and OC running the plays. Moore isn't the one who was fist-pumping on the sidelines after FGs. Irrespective of your beliefs, Spider, my opinion is that the defense deserves blame for being a bottom of the league fourth quarter D. If they only gave up FGs, not TDs, I'd buy the argument. They didn't. They coughed up leads in 6 or 7 games. In what world did that mean they "outplayed" the offense? The only stat that matters is wins. When your team is 11-5 or 10-6 through three quarters, and blows leads in all of those games to finish 6-10, that's the defense, not the QB. -EK

[Spider-Dan]

A greater fool would blame the QB when it was the coach and OC running the plays.

You want to absolve the QB of the blame?  Fine.  But then he doesn't get credit for the wins, either.

Irrespective of your beliefs, Spider, my opinion is that the defense deserves blame for being a bottom of the league fourth quarter D.

And what, pray tell, was the offense's rank in the fourth-quarter?

If they only gave up FGs, not TDs, I'd buy the argument. They didn't. They coughed up leads in 6 or 7 games. In what world did that mean they "outplayed" the offense?

So wait... if the offense doesn't score, and the defense allows a score, the defense choked but the offense was just fine?

The only stat that matters is wins. When your team is 11-5 or 10-6 through three quarters, and blows leads in all of those games to finish 6-10, that's the defense, not the QB.

You know that there is more than one way to keep a lead, right?  If your offense actually puts points on the board in the fourth quarter, your defense isn't required to pitch shutouts to win.

[MikeO]

Name the "GOOD" team Matt Moore beat last year? He didn't. He beat an 8-8 Jets team at home that is his only "quality" win as a starting QB.

Every "decent" or "winning" team he played he lost to. NE, Dallas, Philly, Giants, Denver

Every "BAD" team he played he led the team to victory, Washington, Buffalo (twice), KC, Oakland

[MikeO]

When your team loses 38-24 and gives up over 600 yards of combined offense to the opposition, you can blame the defense.

When your team loses 24-6 (with three turnovers by the offense, including a pick-6) and your defense held the opponent under 300 combined yards, you don't get to blame the defense.
When your team loses in OT 18-15 and your defense held the opposing team to 308 combined yards, you don't get to blame the defense.

You can easily remove personal opinion from the comparison.  Take a look at PFR's season summary page for MIA and look at the expected points differential for games that Moore started (higher positive numbers are better):

- of the 6 wins, the defense outplayed the offense in 4 of them
- of the 6 losses, the offense underplayed the defense in 4 of them

Matt Moore cannot point fingers at the defense.  Only a fool would look at the fourth-quarter defensive stats and ignore the fact that the offense had three quarters to build a lead (while the defense was suffocating the opponent) and instead chose to sit on their hands.

Bingo! Great points Spider!! The blaming the defense act is very old too and its laughable, comical, and downright stupid!

When Matt Moore is turning the ball over vs Dallas and gives the Cowboys the ball on the 2 yard line and esentially gives the opponent a touchdown, blaming the defense for not holding them to a FG or for not holding them period is DUMB beyond belief. Especially when the final score is 20-19 and you lost! That is Matt Moore losing you the game, NOT the defense!

When Matt Moore in the 4th quarter of the Giants game leads the offense to 1st down and 4 total yards and is turning the ball over, and has the defense on the field for almost the entire quarter blaming the defense for eventually breaking and giving up a score or two late is DUMB!

When Matt Moore is turning the ball over in the red zone vs Philly, giving them the ball inside the 20 and near the 30 multiple times,  again blaming the defense for not stopping points is once again DUMB! Even the best defenses in the league will yield points when put into that circumstance.

The Dolphins defense was 6th in scoring defense (and we keep score in Points not yards) and 3rd in rushing defense (which is why the passing defense numbers aren't as good, teams gave up running on Miami because they couldn't, so of course the pass defense will yield more yards. Not to mention old man Bell couldn't cover anyone either.

With the facts laid out like that any rational football fan who still blames the defense and jumps to defend  Matt Moore if friggin clueless. Matt Moroe did OK last year. He is an OK back-up QB thrown into a tough situation and he played well vs bad teams. Played BAD vs good teams. That's what OK back-up QB's do.

The Dolphins defense was NOT an issue last year. They can only do so much and at some point vs GOOD teams they even need a little help from the offense!

[EKnight]

Bullshit. The offense put up nearly 500 yards against the Pats and they still lost by two TDs. Saying the defense was "just fine" last year, when they were 25th against the pass in a passing league and couldn't hold on to a fourth quarter lead is lunacy. They proved that even when the offense DOES go off, they still can't close a game. -EK

[mecadonzilla]

I will step in only to say our defense last year was extremely overrated.  The 6-10 record had as much to do with the lack of defense as any other problem.

I welcome a new coordinator with open arms.  Our defensive play last year was nothing any of us should be proud of.

[Spider-Dan]

Bullshit. The offense put up nearly 500 yards against the Pats and they still lost by two TDs.

When your team loses 38-24 and gives up over 600 yards of combined offense to the opposition, you can blame the defense.

You still haven't addressed the point: in the majority of Moore's wins, it was the defense that outplayed the offense, while in the majority of Moore's losses, it was the offense that played the worse of the two units.

[MikeO]

You still haven't addressed the point: in the majority of Moore's wins, it was the defense that outplayed the offense, while in the majority of Moore's losses, it was the offense that played the worse of the two units.

To add on.....Matt Moore had 3 fumbles (1 lost) and an INT vs New England on Christmas Eve, not exactly a banner day I would run and point too as a "good game". He couldn't protect the football to save his life in the 2nd half of that game.  MOORE is the reason the Fins didn't score in the 2nd half of that Pats game till just 2 min left with an essentially meaningless TD to make the score seem some what better than the game actually was. Moore's 2 turnovers in the 3rd and 4th quarters the lost fumble and INT led directly to New England POINTS!

Nobody is claiming the Dolphins defense is the Steel Curtain or the 85' Bears, but the stats don't lie.  You CAN'T run to one stat of being 25th best against the pass because its "fits" a weak/silly argument but then dismiss the 3rd ranking vs the run and 6th scoring defense stat as meaningless. Either you buy into ALL the stats or you don't buy into any of them. Cherry picking stats doesn't work.

The Dolphins defense isn't elite by any means. And nobody here or anywhere is claiming such. BUT if you want to point fingers as to why Miami lost games last year, few times it was because of the defense. And that's just the cold hard truth! The vast majority of the time it was because of the QB play and bad play on offense in general

[Landshark]

You know that there is more than one way to keep a lead, right?  If your offense actually puts points on the board in the fourth quarter, your defense isn't required to pitch shutouts to win.

And there you go.  The best way to protect a 21-17 lead is to make it 28-17. 

Bullshit. The offense put up nearly 500 yards against the Pats and they still lost by two TDs. Saying the defense was "just fine" last year, when they were 25th against the pass in a passing league and couldn't hold on to a fourth quarter lead is lunacy. They proved that even when the offense DOES go off, they still can't close a game. -EK

The offense put up 500 yards against one of the worst defenses in the league, which is why the Pats failed to win the Super Bowl and came within a mule's breath of losing the AFC Title game ON THEIR HOME FIELD.

A greater fool would blame the QB when it was the coach and OC running the plays. Moore isn't the one who was fist-pumping on the sidelines after FGs. Irrespective of your beliefs, Spider, my opinion is that the defense deserves blame for being a bottom of the league fourth quarter D. If they only gave up FGs, not TDs, I'd buy the argument. They didn't. They coughed up leads in 6 or 7 games. In what world did that mean they "outplayed" the offense? The only stat that matters is wins. When your team is 11-5 or 10-6 through three quarters, and blows leads in all of those games to finish 6-10, that's the defense, not the QB. -EK

The quarterback is supposed to be the field general.  Moore did a horrendous job.  A good quarterback can see a play failing as it develops and adjust accordingly.  Moore did a horrendous job of that too.  Regardless of who is pumping fists on the sidelines, Moore did not get the job done as a signal caller, which is why he needs to be replaced.

Name the "GOOD" team Matt Moore beat last year? He didn't. He beat an 8-8 Jets team at home that is his only "quality" win as a starting QB.

Every "decent" or "winning" team he played he lost to. NE, Dallas, Philly, Giants, Denver

Every "BAD" team he played he led the team to victory, Washington, Buffalo (twice), KC, Oakland

Bingo!!!  And even in the Jets game at the end of the season, he stunk up the joint.  One touchdown drive all day.  Nuff said.

[EKnight]

This is pointless. No, Spider, the defense did NOT outplay the offense in said games. I addressed the point by saying I disagree with you. Just because you insist something is true does not make it so. I watched a Colt McCoy led team march down the field and score a TD in the closing seconds on a play that a high school defensive back could have prevented. Moore wasn't even in that game, and the offense outplayed the D, 369 yards to 280. You guys can keep riding the jocks of the average D Miami had. If they were as great as you think, surely Miami would have won more than 6 games. Surely Nolan would have been kept around for his fantastic D. Those things didn't happen. The secondary was so bad, they made an other wise good defense pathetically average as a whole. If the record doesn't tell you that, and you believe it was all on the offense, then Miami should go 16-0 with the changes they made to coach, OC, and QB this year. At the end of the season when they're a top ten draft pick again, I will await your excuses. The offense had a 1000 yard receiver and a 1000 yard rushe for the first time in forever, but yeah, they were the cause for 6-10. -EK

[Landshark]

I watched a Colt McCoy led team march down the field and score a TD in the closing seconds on a play that a high school defensive back could have prevented. Moore wasn't even in that game, and the offense outplayed the D, 369 yards to 280.

And why did the Browns score the winning TD in the closing seconds?  Because the offense that supposedly had a "good game" kept settling for field goals.  They score touchdowns, this isn't even an issue.    The problem lies with quarterback play.  It's a passing league and the Dolphins didn't have any capable passers last season. 

Henne is gone, and hopefully come the end of training camp, Moore will be as well. 

[EKnight]

I don't understand the argument of "it's a passing league," so the offense is the problem, when the defense can't defend the pass. It goes both ways! -EK

[Brian Fein]

You people ALL need to come to the realization that all three QB's on the roster right now (Garrard, Moore, and Tannehill) will be on the opening day roster and will likely be on the roster all season.  They are our QB's for this year.  Done.

Tannehill won't see the field unless its either a 30+ point blowout or one of the other two guys gets hurt.  Not sure if Moore or Garrard will start - frankly don't care.  But I would like to see Moore get another shot.