Tag: Brian Hartline

Jimmy Graham to the Dolphins?

Mar. 03 Opinion

Alright Dolphins fans, we’re in the midst of “rumor and speculation” season. So why not jump right into it.  On Friday, Jimmy Graham was given the non-exclusive Franchise tag by the Saints.  What that means is that Graham can shop his services to another NFL team, but the Saints would have an opportunity to match a contract offer by another team OR take back 2 first round picks.

Photo Courtesy of Jeffrey Beall via Wikipedia.com

Photo Courtesy of Jeffrey Beall via Wikipedia.com

I’m here to tell you today that the Dolphins should make an offer to Jimmy Graham…a big one…and give up the 2 first round picks if the Saints don’t match the offer.  OH MY GOSH, 2 FIRST ROUND PICKS, ARE YOU CRAZY?!?!  Listen, I don’t think the Dolphins will do this, but I think they should. They already missed on Graham once when they picked John Jerry 22 spots ahead of him in the 3rd round in 2010.  They shouldn’t make the same mistake twice.

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Some TALL receivers the Dolphins could draft in the late rounds

Jan. 28 Opinion

 

By Julian (@Miami_Jules on Twitter)

The 2014 Senior Bowl was played this weekend and during the week of practices that preceded the game, quite a few players stood out and climbed up in the rankings. Not all players entering the draft played in the Senior Bowl, some because of eligibility or injuries, and others just decided not to participate. The rankings will change yet again in the weeks following the game and in order to stay current with these, I will be monitoring some of the more significant changes as they happen. Today I will concentrate on late rounds wide receivers only.

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Miami enjoyed a healthy amount of receivers signings during the offseason last year, which included the most expensive WR signing of free agency, Mike Wallace. NFL analysts predicted Miami’s passing game would become its new found strength, as a result of these pricy off season moves. However, the Fins only ranked 20th in passing in the NFL.

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Dolphins choke their way into the offseason with 20-7 loss

Dec. 30 News and Notes

 

The Miami Dolphins entered Sunday’s must win game against the Jets with a chance to reach the postseason for the first time in 5 years and the second time in the last decade.  They had that chance despite playing an ugly, emotionless game against the Bills a week before.  As I said in my Pitiful Picks (and all week), I expected the Dolphins to get the help they needed from the Bengals or Chargers.  But my concern was if the Dolphins could take care of their own business, especially coming off of their bad loss to Chad Lewis and the Bills.  As it turned out, the Dolphins got the help they were looking for in Cincinnati and San Diego, but they couldn’t help themselves.   They choked. Again.

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

This game started off pretty well for the Dolphins.  After a scoreless first quarter, the Dolphins took an early 7-0 lead on a Tannehill pass to Mike Wallace.  Little did we know, that was all the scoring our high powered offense would provide. A few possessions later, the Jets scored a game tying touchdown when Sheldon Richardson, a defensive lineman, ran it in from the 1 yard line.  On the very next possession the Dolphins went 3 and out and gave the ball right back to the Jets.  The Jets and their turnover prone quarterback marched 80 yards on 13 plays in just 2-1/2 minutes and scored another touchdown.

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Pitiful Picks: Will the Dolphins win & make the playoffs?

Dec. 29 Pitiful Picks

 

It all comes down to this Dolphins fans!  The Dolphins embarrassing loss last week seems like a distant memory, doesn’t it?  Thanks to a couple of games in other cities going there way last week, the Dolphins seem to have the best chance out of the 4 teams vying for the final playoff spot in the AFC.   By now you know what the Dolphins need to earn the 6th seed; They need to win AND they need EITHER the Bengals to beat the Ravens OR the Chargers to beat the Chiefs.  Pretty simple.

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Our final pitiful picks segment for the regular season will give you our thoughts on all of the biggest games that week 17 offers.  We’re 38-33 on the season and looking to close out the regular season with another good week. 13 of the 16 games this week will have some impact on what the final playoff brackets will look like.  I can’t think of a more exciting week 17 since I’ve been watching football.  I mean, 2 games are for their division titles with the winner hosting a playoff game next week and the loser going home and missing the playoffs…..there are 4 teams fighting for the last spot in the AFC playoff race….The current top 2 seeds in the NFC could both drop from having playoff byes to having to travel on the road in the wild card round.

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Lifeless Dolphins should be embarrassed after 19-0 loss to Bills

Dec. 23 News and Notes

 

We all saw this coming, didn’t we Dolphins fans?  I know I did and you can check my Twitter timeline if you don’t believe me.  I hoped this Dolphins team was different.  I hoped that this Dolphins team would avoid a big let down after a big win.  But this Dolphins team looked just like every other Dolphins team we’ve watched for the last 10 years (except for 2008).   The Dolphins, riding a 3 game winning streak and coming off of a huge win over the Patriots, with their playoff lives on the line, came out lifeless against the Bills on Sunday.  In fact, if they hadn’t come out to the stadium at all, they would’ve scored the exact same number of points.

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

To call this loss a disappointment is a disservice to previous disappointing losses.  The Dolphins, as they usually do, got all of our hopes up, controlled their playoff lives for 1 week…..and then proceed to take a crap on our hopes and dreams.  Happy Holidays folks!  The Dolphins offensive line, which has looked good for the last few weeks, blocked as well as a roll of toilet paper would block a scud missile.  The Dolphins running game?  They were only going up against the 23rd ranked defense in the league.  They totaled 14 yards on 12 carries.   I’ve run further trying to elude a bumble bee.

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Dolphins make big statement with win over Patriots 24-20

Dec. 16 News and Notes

The Miami Dolphins entered Sunday’s game, facing a crossroad.  Would they wilt under the pressure of a huge game against the hated Patriots.  Or would they rise to the challenge and make their presence known in the AFC playoff race?  The story of this game followed the same script as many games we’ve witnessed this season.  The Dolphins took a lead in the 4th quarter then watched the opponent march down the field for the go-ahead score.

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

The Dolphins took a 17-13 lead with a touchdown early in the 4th quarter.  But, of course, Tom Brady had an answer.  Brady marched the Patriots down the field and led them to the go-ahead touchdown, taking a 20-17 lead.  When the Dolphins got the ball back with just over 4 minutes left in the game, you had to think that the would play for a field goal to force overtime.  But Ryan Tannehill and the offense had bigger plans.

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Stayin Alive: Dolphins’ comeback in the snow to beat the Steelers

Dec. 09 News and Notes

The Miami Dolphins entered Sunday’s game in Pittsburgh with their playoff lives on the line.  The Dolphins were welcomed in by a snowstorm and a Steelers team that had been playing better than than their 5-7 record.  The Dolphins fell behind 7-0 early, but would rebound to take a 10-7 lead into halftime.  Ryan Tannehill was playing his first game in the snow and it showed in the first half.  He missed badly on a few passes and the offense looked out of sync.  However, the Dolphins came out of halftime strong and would take a 17-7 lead early in the 3rd quarter.

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

And then, things got ugly.  The Steelers drove down the field and capped off by a 43 yard touchdown pass to Antonio Brown.  On the very next series, with the game 17-14, Ryan Tannehill threw a pick-6 to Troy Polamalu.  That gave the Steelers a 21-17 lead and it looked like this game was going in the direction of so many games this season.  But the Dolphins responded immediately.  They drove the field and with some big catches by Charles Clay and solid runs by Daniel Thomas (yes, Daniel Thomas), the Dolphins capped off their TD drive with a beautiful catch by Brian Hartline, tip-toeing in the end zone.

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Dolphins passing attack heating up, using multiple WR sets with success

Dec. 05 News and Notes

By Matthew C. (@PhinManiacs on Twitter)

The Dolphins employed 13 different personnel groups throughout the game on Sunday and ran a total of 81 plays. In the first half, they ran 52 plays and had 34 passing plays and 18 running plays. In the second half, they ran 29 plays and had 13 passing plays and 16 running plays. As you can see, it was much more balanced in the last half of the game. For the game total, there were 47 passing plays and 34 running plays. Obviously, the Dolphins would like more overall balance throughout the entire game.

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Their two favorite formations were 4WR, 0TE, 1RB along with 3WR, 1TE, 1RB. Both formations were used 19 times each throughout the game. Their third favorite formation was 2WR, 2TE, 1RB, which was used 16 times throughout the game.

They ran the ball 15 times to the left, 12 times to the right, and 7 times up the middle. This shows balance between the left and right side, but seems that they don’t like to run it up the middle a whole lot.

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Dolphins very much alive in playoff race after dominating Jets 23-3

Dec. 02 News and Notes

The Miami Dolphins were facing what was essentially a playoff game on Sunday when they headed to the Meadowlands to take on the reeling Jets.  The Dolphins responded and completely dominated the Jets from start to finish.  Yes, the Dolphins bumbled their way through a frustrating first half, but still took a 6-0 lead into the half.

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

At the half, the Dolphins had outgained the Jets 265 to 39, in terms of yardage.  They also had 16 first downs in the first half, compared to 2 first downs by the Jets.  They were dominating the game in every way, except for the scoreboard.  After the half, the Dolphins came out and took control on the scoreboard, where it matters most.  The Dolphins moved the ball all day against the Jets defense, through the air and on the ground.

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Dolphins Offense is the key to a win over the Bucs

Nov. 11 News and Notes

The Miami Dolphins haven’t played a football game in 11 days and with all of the craziness that the last week has brought, it’s about time!  The Dolphins return to the field tonight to take on the Bucs in Tampa Bay.  The Bucs are 0-8, but if you look at their games and statistics more closely, you’ll see that they will be a tough matchup for the Dolphins.

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

The question that everyone is asking is how the Dolphins will respond to all of the drama surrounding the Richie Incognito and Jonathan Martin situation.  Will the effects of being under the media microscope hurt the Dolphins ability to focus and play?  Or will the team come out and play as a united team in an ‘us against the world’ moment?  We’ll know after tonight’s game.

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