we won't see it in Orlando until after midnight.

Looking at the stats, it looks like Henne is having a really good game, but the O-Line is letting him down pass and run blocking. Also, how does Fields have such a high punt average?

first drive heene to marshall great play
after that...not so much

bush as the 1st and 2d down back, up the middle---a terrible idea, and to me is just another example of this coaches thinking they are SO clever that they can turn bush into something that he clearly is not

tons of penalties

no running game to speak of

OL looks horrible pass and run blocking

D looks decent but dropped at least 3 picks

all in all a very boring and sloppy game

The offensive line is woeful. With the first teamers in there, we ran for 15 yards on 10 carries. And that included a 9 yard run by Thomas. Bush had -1 yard on 5 carries.

Henne faced consistent pressure from both outside edges. They eventually had to give Columbo help on the right side.

Henne's stats could have been better with a big play from Gates but he got alligator arms on one with the safety coming over.

Marshall's fumble cost the team a chance to go up 13-3 or 17-3 headed into halftime.

Pouncey got blown up twice by a 370-lb NT on short yardage.

John Jerry was the second team LT for two series before moving back to RG. He has sealed his fate with horrible play at both positions.

Phillip Livas saw his roster chances cut to virtually nil, as he has done nothing on returns.

Marlon Moore has had a couple of nice plays, probably cementing a roster spot over Livas. Too bad he can't field punts well enough to trust back there.

how is the OL still so awful??

Meanwhile, NE is getting creamed by Detroit. Just goes to show that you can't read too much into the pre-season games.

It still sounds to me like this is on the O-Line. If they can't open holes for Bush, he's not going to go anywhere.

berkeley223 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> how is the OL still so awful??


Particularly disturbing was that we brought out our first team offense for a 7th possession, against the Bucs' backups, and we lost 20 yards on a sack and penalties, forcing a 3rd and 32.

Pouncey did ok, but was overmatched with the 370 lb Frank Okam. Murtha has plenty of issues, especially with penalties. Carey missed a number of interior blocks tonight. And Columbo had no chance against the fast Bucs' D-Line. That shouldn't be a surprise. He was awful the last 2 years in Dallas, so not sure why they thought he'd suddenly be good here.

I realize it's the second team, but Ray Willis did a nice job at RT while he was in there. He's had injury issues, but he's a guy with a lot of NFL starts. Maybe he can help.

I don't see how they could have missed on Jerry so badly. He doesn't do anything well. He fans on so many blocks that it's almost hard to believe. And this preseason, he's been missing those blocks against 2nd and 3rd string defenders. He has no chance of making this roster.

I think I'll watch the first drive and forget the rest.

Terrible offensive line . Murtha is Pityfull. Good news is that Jake long will be back soon. But Murtha is a Joke. So is jerry. So many penalties tonight. Even JT cost us a safty and 2 points. Hopefully they can correct this . They looked like amateurs at some points.

Jimmy Wilson is really looking good. Special teams finally looked special, and both Feilds and carpenter were kicking the Crap out that ball.
Saprano better get that Oline figured out. Thats supposed to be his Forte .

TreasurecoastPhinsfan Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Saprano better get that Oline figured out. Thats
> supposed to be his Forte .

It's getting so bad, it's like the Keystone Cops with the coaching staff. The personnel decisions have been head-scratching. The juggling of players at positions has been questionable (Carey at RG? Columbo and Jerry at RT?). We've dumped so much money on the O-Line in the past 3 years, and what do we have to show for it?!

montequi Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> TreasurecoastPhinsfan Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Saprano better get that Oline figured out.
> Thats
> > supposed to be his Forte .
>
> It's getting so bad, it's like the Keystone Cops
> with the coaching staff. The personnel decisions
> have been head-scratching. The juggling of
> players at positions has been questionable (Carey
> at RG? Columbo and Jerry at RT?). We've dumped
> so much money on the O-Line in the past 3 years,
> and what do we have to show for it?!

The thing with that is that the money spent on Smiley and Grove was well worth it based talent and performance. The issue is that they signed Smiley coming off shoulder surgery, and signed Grove in spite of a history of not staying healthy in Oakland. Smiley played at a Pro Bowl level for us in each of his two seasons. But, his shoulder didn't allow him to finish either year. And Grove graded out as one of the best centers in the league in 2009, but with no salary cap in 2010, that was their window to take the big hit on his contract.

They were still poor signings, just because of the injury histories of both players. But, at least in terms of talent evaluation, they were right about those guys. I don't know what happened with Jerry. The guy is awful at every aspect of the game.

We need to go sign Brian Waters and Shaun O'hara.....IMMEDIATELY!

---------------------

"When you suck long enough, you get a Hickey"

Andre Gurode is the man you should be watching...can you say cowphin... The cowboys sat him last night due to his contract, he will count 7 mil this year and 8 mil next agianst the cowboys salary cap if they keep him. They have asked him to take a paycut but people close to him dont think he will. If tyhat is the case he will most likely be cut. I can't see anyone paying a 32 year old who just had surgery on his knee that much atleast not with the cheap rookie wages.

Bringing him in would give the fins a chance to move Pouncey to RT and learn from a pro bowl center

Pouncey is not a Tackle. Your argument was legit until you said that.

---------------------

"When you suck long enough, you get a Hickey"

Henne is throwing the ball up to Marshall. Something he was afraid to do last year.

Resulted in a long td and two pass interference penalties.

Other than first drive this was a boring game. The cheerleaders were hot though. Lol...way too many penalties on both teams.

We tailgated and were able to find club level tickets for $25 each. Had a great time even though bottles of beer were $7.50!

Did I mention the cheerleaders were hot?

.....................................................................................
“I'm here" You're welcome!" - Kenny Powers

berkeley223 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> first drive heene to marshall great play
> after that...not so much
>

Are you referring to Henne and/or Marshall here, or the entire offense (serious question--I didn't see the game).

henne was good, the OL and RBs were terrible, and lots of penalties. the problem wasn't henne, it really was all on the OL.

I have read from multiple sources that we are now running a zone blocking scheme.

This is a bit puzzling since it usually employs smaller agile more athletic lineman. We still have some pretty big boys on the line.

Whatever the case....it doesn't seem to be working. Next test is Dallas who has been struggling on defense.

.....................................................................................
“I'm here" You're welcome!" - Kenny Powers

for those calling for the Brian Waters and Ohara signing i would say hold on a second. i read some kansas city reports of waters and they cut him because he has really degraded and his play slipped last season. he got the pro bowl based on reputation and when guards lose a step they become average or bad very quickly. waters may be better than carey (not even sure about that) but carey will get better. gotta give carey a chance since he is only in his 2nd or 3rd week at guard. ohara might be nice but he is getting old and his play might be slipping but i would take a flier on ohara over waters. also, there is a reason these guys are still FA, lots of teams have OL problems so if teams believed these guys are still starter quality i doubt they would be available. its the same old grass is greener strategy that fans of all sports like to subscribe to.

another point is why not allow some continuity of this oline, i mean its only one preseason game. lack of continuity really screwed the oline last season so i would not be so quick to mix things up this time around. long and pouncey are or will be very good. incognito is solid although he cannot pull. carey needs time and he may become a solid guard or he will not be on the team next year since his contract expires. colombo will no doubt be challenged by the other tackles on the roster but, for better or worse, sporano really likes him and he will get his chances. colombo is a weak spot that may cost us a few sacks but ultimately will not keep us from the playoffs all by himself. at the least daboll will recognize this and use a RB or TE to chip if Colombo has a poor matchup on any given week. colombo has an expiring contract so i think his signing was to see if he had anything left in the tank and he was cheap as well. dolphins didnt have a lot of options for the right side of the line and must have thought starting colombo at RT and carey at RG was better than starting Carey at RT and someone? (i dont even know who) at RG.

I have heard that the oline will employ a mix of zone blocking and power blocking. this is probably because neither of the guards can pull so zone blocking may work better for some situations.

so i think the right side of the oline may be a problem but they should get better with time and continuity and once we start game planning colombo should not look quite so awful. remember, pre season is all about individual matchups not scheme so obviously colombo cannot handle a one on one matchup with a talented pass rusher.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/28/2011 03:36PM by dolphin1423.

This is not one bad game for Columbo. He has been bad in practice as well. And according to profootbsllfocus.com, he graded out as the 76th tackle in the league last year. Only two were worse. He allowed 7 sacks, 11 qb hits, and 40 qb pressures. And he has picked up right where he left off. At this point, there is no reason to believe that he is not washed up.

As for Waters, he was the 12th best graded G in 2010. But, that may be misleading. He had a great grade for pass blocking, but was quite bad with his run blocking. So, KC may have had a good reason to let him go.

One thing you have to remember is that the Fins cut Vernon Carey's contract, in part, because they told him they were moving him to G. And they'd sign a G and ask him to move back to T? That may not fly too well.

Keep an eye on what happens with Ray Willis. He started a lot of games at RT in Seattle. And in 2009, he graded out 35th in the league, middle of the pack. He is just getting back into the mix, after an injury, but did pretty well in the second half against Tampa. A middle of the pack tackle would be a lot better than Columbo.

berkeley223 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> henne was good, the OL and RBs were terrible, and
> lots of penalties. the problem wasn't henne, it
> really was all on the OL.


got it, thx. Gonna *try* to stay up and watch the rebroadcast on NFL network. I'm interested in seeing the sieve that was our OL. I also want to see the shorter passes by Henne--how hurried he was, etc.

good points dolfanmark. i dont have a lot of confidence in Colombo but unless we have a marked upgrade i see no reason to reshuffle the oline. colombo is undoubtedly a good run blocker but not a good pass blocker. good point on carey, i dont think he would want to move back to T at this point without a little more money. Not to mention how idiotic it would make the coaching staff if they switched Carey back now. Waters is washed up I am fairly sure of it. I read multiple KC articles and no one batted an eye about letting him go. If his performance was that good then even if KC wanted to move on some other team would have scooped him up by now. The articles I read noted his tendency to whiff blocks especially in the run game. I think profootballfocus is a good site but i think their grades come with a grain of salt especially on the interior oline as it is hard to know what they are supposed to do on a given play. an interior olineman may look ok unless he is getting blown up or completely missing an intended target. i hope lydon murtha or ray willis can provide some more balance at RT with average pass and run blocking. judging from this point, i am sensing a RT early in the draft next year.

If we're going to play with a horrible RT the entire year, then this year is wasted. Hopefully Henne won't get hurt.

montequi, i disagre. one player does not make or break the season, except perhaps a QB. KC made the playoffs last year with a horrible RT. like i said earlier, colombo can be assisted by chipping with a TE or RB in the pass game. Also, Colombo is an adequate run blocker. it will be painful to watch at times but it is not so bad as having a horrible QB or horrible defense or even horrible LT. all told it is not crippling.

however, it is quickly becoming the biggest hole on the team. Colombo is obviously the worst starting player we have and because of that he will receive a lot of attention and criticism. im not saying its undeserved but it may be blown out of proportion at times.

If Henne is under pressure all year it's going to hurt him and, ultimately, the offense (and team). The QB is your most important player. If protecting him is not a top priority, then the team priorities are out-of-whack. I'd rather have a good PASS-blocking O-Line than a good RUN-blocking O-Line any day. That's what Marino had, and Daboll's offense is very similar to the one we ran with Dan.

I just finished watching the first half of the game, and I'm VERY impressed with Henne's poise and accuracy. He looked like a different player. That's 2 games in a row where he looked good. My opinion of him is changing, to say the least.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/28/2011 05:58PM by montequi.

How can Tony Sparano's so-called "forte" be coaching an offensive line, yet, since the moment he got here....it has been our weakest unit, year in and year out...


WTF IS THE PROBLEM!?!?!?!? This is ridiculous.

---------------------

"When you suck long enough, you get a Hickey"