First of all, let's dispel the notion that Marshall's stats somehow suffered in Miami, or that Chad Henne didn't get him the ball as much as we was used to.

Marshall was targeted every 6 offensive snaps in 2009, with Kyle Orton at QB. Marshall was targeted every 6 offensive snaps in 2010, with Chad Henne at QB. Marshall averaged 6.5 catches per game with Chad Henne, the same number he averaged for his career in Denver. Marshall averaged 12 yards per catch with Chad Henne, the same as his career average (and a yard better than he averaged with Orton).

Sparano and Daboll need to sit down with Marshall and get him on board with what they are trying to do. And they need to tell him that he's not going to get as many targets or catches. The team needs to get Reggie Bush the ball through the air, a lot. We're talking 50 catches, maybe more. The team needs to get the ball to Clyde Gates on deep routes, to keep the defense honest. He needs 30 catches as a rookie. Last year, the team got 2 catches from the #2 TE. That needs to change dramatically. They need to get 30+ catches from someone, whether it's Clay as an H-Back or someone stepping up as the #2 TE. Having 2 TEs as threats made a huge difference for Chad Pennington in 2008. And the team needs get back to the strong running game. A strong running game makes it a lot easier to score in the red zone.

They need to utilize all of their weapons. They need to create mismatches, and keep the defense guessing. This all adds up to fewer chances for Marshall. If you want to be a running team, and use a lot of different weapons in the passing game, you can't have one guy being targeted every 6 offensive snaps.

They need to tell Marshall that he may only be a 70 catch guy. But, they want to get him the ball more downfield, maybe get him averaging 13 or 14 yards per catch. And they need to get him on-board with this idea. He's going to get the ball plenty, but they are going to use their other weapons, too. And he needs to be ok with this. He can't be pouting on the sidelines or committing stupid penalties just because he doesn't feel he's getting enough targets. He needs to not be a diva. If he's triple covered, he needs to accept that it makes him a decoy, and they aren't going to force him the ball in those situations.

I really believe this is a big stumbling block for this team. They have added weapons in the passing game. According to Henne and Bess, even Daniel Thomas showed excellent hands in the offseason workouts. You need to throw him the ball, and Bush, and Clay, and Gates. Marshall needs to accept that he may not get his normal 6-7 catches per game. if Marshall is not on-board with this, I think it can derail what the entire offense is trying to accomplish.

Its very easy to see what type of player Brandon Marshall is.


But Mark, dont be blind....its also even easier to see what type of QB Chad Henne is too,


a 2nd stringer.

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

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

Aqua&Orange Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Its very easy to see what type of player Brandon
> Marshall is.
>
>
> But Mark, dont be blind....its also even easier to
> see what type of QB Chad Henne is too,
>
>
> a 2nd stringer.


It doesn't matter who the QB is. You can't have a guy demanding 7 catches a game, even if he's triple covered. And if he doesn't get his catches he starts committing penalties and arguing with his QB and coaches on the sideline. Since becoming a starter in Denver, Marshall has never been part of a winning team, and has never been part of an offense that ranked higher than 16th in the league. He needs to sacrifice personal stats for the overall good of his team.

The news that he sought treatment for BPD, and is being candid in discussing it, makes me think that maybe he has turned a corner in his personal life, and maybe he can change his attitude.

Yea, that BPD thing might take this thread in another direction.

But, I do think that his condition is directly related to his attitude/performance/needs on the field.

It looks like he is seriously going in the right direction. I hope he continues. He can become a great player for us and a good person off the field.

It's not the # of catches or throws that was frustrating ...it was the type.

To get Henne to throw to him we had to call 5 yard out routes.

When we are down at the goal line, Henne wasn't throwing a jump ball giving Marshall the chance to use his size.

Henne throws to a double covered Bess...but not a single covered Marshall.

And when Marshall did blow by the coverage and was wide open deep, Henne would mis-throw and either over-throw or under-throw him.


That is frustrating for me to watch. I can't imagine what it is like for Marshall to go from being the Alpha guy that the QB is looking for...to being the guy who is being used to draw double coverage so the QB can throw check downs.


Henne needs to go out on a limb and throw the ball to Marshall, even when he is covered. PLaymakers make plays...gotta give him the chance.

Another Broken Toy aquired by the Phins. People don't get rid of Playmakers without a reason.

realist Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> It's not the # of catches or throws that was
> frustrating ...it was the type.
>
> To get Henne to throw to him we had to call 5 yard
> out routes.

Perception vs reality. In Denver, Marshall averaged catching passes 8 yards from the line of scrimmage, and gaining another 4 yards after the catch. With Henne, Marshall's average catch was 10 yards from the line of scrimmage. We actually did a better job of getting him the ball further downfield than they ever did in Denver.

> When we are down at the goal line, Henne wasn't
> throwing a jump ball giving Marshall the chance to
> use his size.

Marshall himself admitted that fade routes in the endzone are not his strong suit. Look at the first Jets' game last year. Henne tried to go to him 3 times, and all 3 times Marshall either made no effort to get open, or no effort to make the catch. Henne threw him a fade route, and Marshall never left his feet.

>
>
> That is frustrating for me to watch. I can't
> imagine what it is like for Marshall to go from
> being the Alpha guy that the QB is looking
> for...to being the guy who is being used to draw
> double coverage so the QB can throw check downs.
>

And yet, the number of times he was targeted and his average number of catches per game were no different than what he had in Denver.

People have an unrealistic expectation of what Marshall is. 3 years as a starter in Denver, and Marshall averaged 6.5 catches per game, at 12 yards per catch. One year in Miami, 6.5 catches per game, at 12 yards per catch. The year he had in Miami was no different than the years he had in Denver, except that he missed 2.5 games. Expecting Marshall to make more big plays, and average 14-15 yards per catch, is expecting Marshall to exceed any level of performace he's demonstrated in the past.

I dont totally agree Mark, first off with more weapons like Reggie Bush, Gates, Hartline Healthy, and a better running game. Defense will no longer be able to triple cover Marshall anymore...
SO his numbers and oppurtunites might increase.
I will agree that last year in the redzone, Henne had a hard time getting Marshall the ball, and Marshall and Henne never seemed on the same page ,when it counted most... I believe , it was becasue both guys were trying to force it, and most of the time forcing the football just doesnt work in the passing game.

Marshall has always been one of those players you need to get involved in the game early. When we use to play him with denver, that was our whole game plan against him, dont let him catch easy balls early and contest everything.
SO the offensive game plans IMO, if Daboll is smart will be to get Marshall invovled early, whenever possible.
The running game also will be critical for Marshall and the DOlphins as a team to have a more successful year.
Last year our offense didnt dictate any defenses play calling, once you can do that through the running game, the offensive passing game will look completely different...

Marshalls interview, you should check it out, He talks about his life and mental healthy pretty openly and honestly and takes resposbility for his dysfunctional life and taking actions to fix it.. Never seen a Dolphins player press conference like this before, see it live, still going on now
Dolphins.com

typical Diva WR, but a bipolar one or wahtever he claims he suffers from.

Henne was definitley part of the problem, totally useless inside the 20, but Marshall was also. Hopefully he gets some meds or his production will diminish

watch the press conference it seems pretty honest to me

jlyell13 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> typical Diva WR, but a bipolar one or wahtever he
> claims he suffers from.
>
> Henne was definitley part of the problem, totally
> useless inside the 20, but Marshall was also.
>

Henne had a passer rating of 89.0 inside the 20.

ghotirule Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Aqua&Orange Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Its very easy to see what type of player
> Brandon
> > Marshall is.
> >
> >
> > But Mark, dont be blind....its also even easier
> to
> > see what type of QB Chad Henne is too,
> >
> >
> > a 2nd stringer.
>
>
> It begs the question: Are they both 2nd
> stringers?


&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
Marshall, yes. He has top tier talent and also, top tier mental problems....I wouldnt have him on my team.

Henne, no. Well, not on 29 or 30 teams in this league.

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

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

ghotirule Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Henne had a passer rating of 89.0 inside the 20.
>
>
> Thanks for pointing that out. 89.0 is far from
> useless, but some want to blame Henne for
> everything. This is just another example of the
> typical ignorant Henne bashing. Blame Henning and
> O-line first. Both have changed. Lets move on.

I don't think checking down to runs affects your passer rating. Henne's rating is due to the fact that he consistently "plays it safe" when he's in a critical situation. Pennington did this out of necessity, because of his weak arm, but he could make up for it with his intellect and accuracy. Most strong-arm QBs will take chances from time-to-time. The great ones (like Marino) will succeed most of the time doing that..the bad ones will fail. The problem with Henne is he's been too gun-shy to even try!! So, we still have no idea what kind of QB he is!