*** DOLPHINS NEWS ***

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Dec 31, 1995: -- Olivadotti On The Way Out... --

According to reliable sources in Miami, Tom Olivadotti is definitely going to be fired from his position as defensive coordinator of the Miami Dolphins. He may stay on as coach of the secondary, but his days as the defensive coordinator are over.

This comes in the wake of Miami's disastrous 37-22 playoff loss yesterday to the Buffalo Bills, in which the Bills rushed for an AFC record 341 yards.

In his 9 year tenure as Miami's defensive coordinator, Miami's defense has ranked in the bottom half of the league for 7 of those 9 years, despite a 100% turnover of personnel.

Also in the rumor-mill is the possibility that Sam Wyche may come to Miami to replace Gary Stevens as offensive coordinator, although this is less certain.

My Comments:

The information on the Olivadotti firing is very solid, coming from knowledgeable sources in Miami. All I have to say about that is that after the debacle in Buffalo, Olivadotti must go. He used the exact same defense against the Bills in the game yesterday that he used 2 weeks ago when the Bills racked up over 200 yards rushing.

His failure to adjust the defense and make changes for the playoff game is the final demonstration that he is not a capable defensive coordinator.

The Wyche-for-Stevens rumor is still just that - a rumor. I'm less sure how I feel about that, but if nothing else, Wyche might bring a little fire to the team that Stevens lacks.