Dolphins grade poorly according to SI.com
Every magazine, website, blog, newspaper and radio show uses the turn at the halfway point in the NFL season to deliver its midseason report cards.
SI.com, the cyberspace outpost for the Sports Illustrated mother ship, is no different. And in his midseason grading, SI.com writer Don Banks, who I've known for 25 years and covered the Florida High School basketball state finals with two decades ago, takes the Dolphins to the woodshed.
Per Banks, the Dolphins win, er, lose by claiming the worst coaching hire award. He picks Cam Cameron and reasons it thusly: "The Dolphins are a train wreck, and it's certainly not all Cameron's fault. But at 0-8, you can't claim his presence has been a difference maker."
Cameron is not the only casualty of Banks' strafing run. His worst acquisition in the entire NFL so far? Joey Porter. "The Dolphins gave the mouthy ex-Steelers linebacker a five-year, $32 million deal, including $20 million guaranteed. It's those kind of calls that has Miami in the desperate condition it's in."
The runner up for worst acquisition? Banks picks Trent Green, who will be costing the Dolphins a fifth-round draft pick in April even though his only contribution was to lead the NFL in interceptions until he went out for the season with a concussion.
The Miami front office gets something of a reprieve in the worst front office category because Banks picks the San Francisco front office as the worst so far after signing duds Tully Banta-Cain, Darrell Jackson, Michael Lewis, and Ashley Lelie. But the reprieve is short-lived as Banks picks the Dolphins front office as the runner up for worst in the NFL.
It sounds harsh, but that is the national view of the Dolphins. And you thought this local guy was tough on the team?
SI.com, the cyberspace outpost for the Sports Illustrated mother ship, is no different. And in his midseason grading, SI.com writer Don Banks, who I've known for 25 years and covered the Florida High School basketball state finals with two decades ago, takes the Dolphins to the woodshed.
Per Banks, the Dolphins win, er, lose by claiming the worst coaching hire award. He picks Cam Cameron and reasons it thusly: "The Dolphins are a train wreck, and it's certainly not all Cameron's fault. But at 0-8, you can't claim his presence has been a difference maker."
Cameron is not the only casualty of Banks' strafing run. His worst acquisition in the entire NFL so far? Joey Porter. "The Dolphins gave the mouthy ex-Steelers linebacker a five-year, $32 million deal, including $20 million guaranteed. It's those kind of calls that has Miami in the desperate condition it's in."
The runner up for worst acquisition? Banks picks Trent Green, who will be costing the Dolphins a fifth-round draft pick in April even though his only contribution was to lead the NFL in interceptions until he went out for the season with a concussion.
The Miami front office gets something of a reprieve in the worst front office category because Banks picks the San Francisco front office as the worst so far after signing duds Tully Banta-Cain, Darrell Jackson, Michael Lewis, and Ashley Lelie. But the reprieve is short-lived as Banks picks the Dolphins front office as the runner up for worst in the NFL.
It sounds harsh, but that is the national view of the Dolphins. And you thought this local guy was tough on the team?
posted by Armando Salguero at 10:56 PM
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43 Comments:
Wow dude.
Maybe if we put that on a blimp and fly it over Hyzienga's office he'll get the point!!!
Two posts in one day. You are the man Armando.
Don Banks is a tool. Anybody who puts any stock in what he writes is a damn fool.
How do y'all objectively rate Randy & Cam ... I honestly rate them as a D+ (objectively w/o emotions).
- Green: mistake & gave up draft choice
- Welker: mistake & gave up a bonafide star for a 2nd rounder (a position above our 3rd round)
- Threw C-Pep value in garbage
- Paid Joey Porter & let our nucleus players walk
- D & O play calling pathetic (Cam even admitted to blowing calls)
- Few signings after Draft or after final 53-man roster cuts.. & we have holes!!!
- Draft is IFFY, BUT ... Satele good, Ginn NOT top 10, the rest are questionable (while #10 pick Amobe Akoye was D Player of the Month for September)
The team has gotten alot worse since last year by Randy's & Cam's actions.
How can I rate this higher than D+ ???? Please grade & explain!!
Go Phins!! Cheers, JerryD
Can Cam Cam!, Can Cam Cam!, Can Cam Cam! If everyone whould start writing just ( Can Cam Cam! ) It would be on E.S.P.N
You mean SI.com finally got something right? How about that.
OK we knew this was going to play out like this!! I said I was no longer Cam bashing and I'm not! But Randy Muller should have been at the TOP of the list for WORST GM EVER!! As Anonymous pointed out he is behind these IDIOTIC decisions being made. I finally realized Cam is a rookie head coach and should be expected to make mistakes, but Randy Muller should not have let him make as many mistakes as he has!!! Now all the Randy supporters are about to point out the fact he sign all the rookies from this years draft..............Let me tell you guys something HE'S THE GM ..........OF COURSE HE SIGNED ALL THE GUYS HE PICKED!!!!! That doesn't mean these guys are gonna be anything , further more he gave Joey that ridiculous contract FOR WHAT?? He should be released on that mistake alone!!!!You give one guy a $32 million dollar contract and let all of our players who actually where contributing on Defense go to other teams!?!?! I'll pause here for comments!
Are we supposed to hail Don Banks for writing about the obvious?
Isn't this also the same magazine that picked the Dolphins as their Superbowl team last year?
Gee, lets give Don the Pulitzer for perusing these blogs and basically writing what everybody has been griping about.
I will, however, still defend Cam Cameron, for the time being, and even though I totally disagree with his handling of John Beck. As has been previously stated, while our defense has wilted, our offense, without any major stars, sans Ronnie Brown, has been doing pretty darn well. I think its only going to improve.
HCD, I know Don Banks. He's a florida boy just like many of us. If you don't like what he's saying about your pathetic excuse for a professional team, go soak your head in an unflushed toilet.
Tampa Bay rules
Ever the ray of sunshine and hope, aren't you Armando?
Anything negative, you gobble it up, then make sure to pass it along.
What is there to be positive about? The team hasn't won in nearly a year?
Posters here are split into two camps. There are those who hate what the Dolphins have become and want heads to roll for it. There are those who preach patience and understanding and giving everybody from dave wannstedt to cam cameron one more chance to fix the problem.
And whenever the two sides can't agree, which is never, we take it out on Armando.
But what is most interesting is that no matter how you feel about each other, the Dolphins, or Armando, we all meet back here every day. It just boggles my mind.
SI was being nice to us. They only ranked us against this year. I'd say we have had the worst off season of anyone for the last 4-5 years.
Cam and Mueller should be looking for a real state agent to sell their house come January. They are done.
He forgot to mention the decision to pass on Brady Quinn and select Ted Ginn and his family.This writer hit the nail on the head our team stinks and so does our Coach and G.M.!!Also why is Joe Bailey never mentioned in all this talk? When since he was hired our team has gone from bad to the laughing stock of the league.
Vinny
to anonymous who accused Mando of being negative:
You OBVIOUSLY don't read EVERYTHING that he writes or talks about on his fins show.
Educate yourself so that your opinions can appear to be well informed.
I personally think the Fins should hire him, or maybe that should just be you,Pollyannna.
I hate SI... I have never been able to read it. Everything in there is sensationalism. I even put the swim suit issue back on the rack because it's another form of sensationalism. That said, how easy is it to pick on the Dolphins? We're 0-8 and all the moves look bad when you're a bad team and we are just plain bad.
The thing that I don't understand is what Capers role was in letting his defensive line get disseminated and what input he had on the Porter pick up. As GM Mueller is going to go to Capers and ask him what should we do? Who should we let go and who will make us better? Mueller does not make these decision in a vacuum. I'm not defending Mueller I'm just pointing this out.
As far as Cameron goes... It's certainly getting harder to believe he is going to be the guy who will turn this thing around. I've tried to be a good soldier but I just don't see any swagger in the guy. I would expect a coach of an 0-8 team to be livid on the sidelines. Getting in people's faces and demanding they perform like pros. I just don't see that fire in the guy, that confidence and I think it reflects in the team. Think about when Saban started losing (God knows I'm not defending Satan but...) he was jumping every ass he could find and guess what we won the last 6 games that year. Would Shula not be placing that jaw squarely in someone's face? Get some freaking balls Cameron, start getting freaking mad! Your players playing freaking dominos in the locker room of an 0-8 team! What kind of crap is that? We suck but we're still a happy losing family. It's time to kick some people straight in the ass!
SI is a buncha retards that picked the phins to win the superbowl last year and the Saints this year. Having them say bad things about us is nothing but a good thing because they are always wrong.
They called Wade Phillips one of the best coaching hires and Cameron one of the worst. Do you honestly believe that if Cameron was coach of the Cowboys and Phillips the Dolphins things would be any different? Phillips inherited a team that missed the superbowl last year because Romo botched a snap. They would have gone if that didn't happen.
oh ya and don't forget how last year they freakin pumped up Eric Mangini (Mangenius) as the next great coach because he won games his first year. Guess they blew that one to. SI seems to forget all the great coaches that had shitty seasons before breaking out...and the first year coaches that had great seasons before falling out of the picture.
I love Mike's comments about SI. So true: they are morons.
It's easy to dis Cameron and Mueller for their mistakes (and I'm not making excuses for them) but the team has a huge amount of draft picks, a young and effective offensive line, and not everything that's gone wrong this year was their fault.
Let's see how things shake out with Beck....
Is this the same SI that picked the Dolphins to go all the way last year?
How do I grade Randy Mueller as a GM?:
On a 4.0 college grade scale:
a)Olindo Mare for draft choice: 4.0
b)Signing Feely as kicker: 4.0
c)Signing JPorter: 1.5 (I don't know if he is declining or not being used properly. It would be a solid 1.0 if it were all Randy's fault)
d) Welker for two draft choices- 2.5. Why? First, one of the draftees starts and will anchor the O line for years. The other one is a promising young linebacker. Look at Welker's numbers some might say. And I say his success is a product of having Moss & Stallworth as stablemates. Yes, Randy traded a fan favorite, but he got more than a little something for it, so my grade for him is a little better than average.
e) Trade for Trent Green: 1.5. Why not a failing grade here? Because this was more about Cameron than Mueller.
f) Pick for Chris Chambers: 3.0
g) O-line acquisitions: 3.5
h) Martin for McMichael: 2.5 (got us cap room. Martin's no upgrade, or real downgrade, but he's LOTS cheaper)
i) Passing on high-priced Quinn: 3.0 Hey, there's no Quinn chatter, even in Cleveland. Beck may not be good, we don't know, but he was a helluva lot cheaper. And he may be great if you f'ers give Cam a chance to develop him.
j) Ginn: 2.5. PLEASE stop bitching that Ginn was not worth a #9. No one else was available that was worthy either, Houston said they would have taken him, etc. He ain't bad and Mueller did the best he could with what he had. And Ginn clearly is not a bust.
k) Drafting Fields: 3.5
l) Rest of the draft 2.5. Yes there are starters, but some we don't know, so it could be higher, could be lower. The sheer numbers of kids that made the team make this draft above average.
m) Having a plan, as opposed to past regimes: 4.0
n) Realizing Daunte was done and saving LOTS of money by terminating his contract: 4.0
And don't whine to me about how they treated him badly. Randy would have FAILED HIS DUTY AS GM by NOT trying to get a pick for him.
o) Having the BALLS to stick to his plan and weather the fair weather fans over popular choices that he disagrees with: 4.0
Total Average: 3.1, a Solid B with *LOTS* of upside due to Beck in waiting, Ginn in development, lots of cap room next year to spend on Defense and another O-weapon.
Matt in NC
Tampa Bay rules said...
"HCD, I know Don Banks. He's a florida boy just like many of us. If you don't like what he's saying about your pathetic excuse for a professional team, go soak your head in an unflushed toilet."
So what if Banks is from Florida? The guy is still a retard. Honestly, I think Banks just writes some off the wall crap, throws it out there, and for some strange reason decides to call himself a "writer." A group of chimps could churn out better material than that clown. If anybody needs to stick his head in a unflushed toilet, it's Banks. It's home for him, he's nothing but a big, stinking, smelly, steaming pile of crap!
Matt are you serious ?? No one avaiable at pick#9 ....... Hmmmmmm lets see there was this Defensive Tackle there named Amobi Okoye something we are DYING for right now and there was also a BETTER rec. there by the name of Dwayne Bowe!! These two alone are producing ALOT more than the Ginn FAMILY!! And yes Mr.Muller was behind the Porter signing he said this was a priority during the offseason that's why he and Cam flew Wayne's 747 jumbo jet to Porters hometown and signed him in hours!! And TE David Martin hasn't done anything except stay injured!! Stop grading Mr.Muller on a cruve system, He earned his "F"!!
Damn Matt in NC...what was pure poetic justice!
VERY well said. You took the thoughts right out of my head!!!
4.0 for you!
I'll add these little tid-bits to what you wrote...in the last 5 years what were the TWO things we Phin fans cried most for? #1...Offensive line improvement. CHECK!
#2...Some real SPEED at the WR position to get the safeties out of the box so our RB's could run run run. CHECK!
If you don't believe in these two you either haven't been a fan very long, or you weren't paying attention. Go look at the YPC for Ronnie and Chatman...WOW. Does anyone else remember when the ALMIGHTY RICKY was averaging 3.4?
You can thank the current O-line and the addition of Ginn for that!
I'm going to say it again...Cam and Randy are doing EXACTLY what we need to do to be a contender again. Build from the lines out. Getting the O-line, Ronnie, and Jesse running strong will be HUGE for when Beck gets the nod, and having game experience for Ginn will be huge as well. The two had no idea the D would fall from grace THIS fast, but they obviously had an eye on the future letting the old vets go in favor of Solia, R. Wright, and M. Roth. It's time this team got young again, and starting with the interior of both units was KEY.
PS...as you pointed out...Olindo, DC, McMichael, Minor, and Chambers were ALL smart moves! My ONLY beef with the Welker move was that he stayed in the division.
~JinVA
Hey Jdizzle...wake up dude and quit hating on Ginn. Have you watched the Chiefs any? Bowe didn't have a single catch last weekend, and was flat out invisible during the game. The only reason he has better numbers is because he was featured earlier than Ginn. He's a posession receiver like Chambers and Booker. We didn't need a WR like Bowe. You're just looking for excuses to bash the guys. Ginn is a SPEED receiver. If you can't see his OBVIOUS talent then you're a fool. Now that Chambers is gone...Ginn will start to shine, and prove better than any other receivers picked after him. Open your eyes and quit allowing your hate skew your eye to the future.
As for Akoye...sure...he's playing well, but WE NEEDED a SPEED receiver, and have for DECADES! PERIOD. Ted Ginn has speed you can't TEACH. You can't work with a player and teach him 4.2 speed. With his healthy foot Ted is probably one of the 5 fastest players in this league, and incase you hadn't noticed he can CATCH TOO.
If it were for two penalties he'd have one kickoff touchdown by now, and one other 56 yarder as well.
All this hate toward Ginn is all misplaced aggression because of passing on Brady. If you would have paid attention...EVERY draft "guru" had Ginn rated in the top 10! There wasn't a SINGLE publication ro website out there who had any of the receivers picked after him rated higher. Not ONE.
Get over your shock of not taking Quinn and start being happy with what will turn out to be a fantastic move in picking the next Joey Galloway.
JinVA
OH...and one more thing...I find it hilarious a Tampa fan comes on here talking trash about how bad our franchise is! LOL
Enjoy your slow decline back to basement of the league where you belong. Your D is getting old just as fast as ours is! How's Caddy workin' out for ya? How about that stellar pick of Pittman? How's Michael Clayton doing? How's your QB of the future doing...paging Mr. Simms...LOL!
JinVA
JDizzle, the David Martin thang was good because of how much less he cost than Randy McMichael. All McMichael did last year was drop passes. Linehan had a love affair so he signed him. He's really helped that team out huh? That was a great money saving move to get him out of here.
Jin Va you need to pay attention I've made no mention of Brady Quinn get your facts straight!! As for Bowe he had one bad game sure , but look at the progress he has made every other week! And we also NEED Defensive linemen and Okoye would've filled this spot perfectly!! You guys are giving Matt Roth honarable mention this guy hasn't been anything like we expected, but I bet you think he's the next coming of Jason Taylor !?!?! I keep hearing everyone say give Ginn more time, but thats what I'm saying how much time is it going to take???? D.Bowe has been showing his swagger since weeek 1, and so has Okoye!!! Ginn just got his first NFL TD in week EIGHT , and hasn't been nominated for rookie of the week NOT ONCE!!!!
Mike, good posts, but I take exception to the low 2.5 grade on the Welker deal. This is a no-brainer 4.0. Welker was and is a #3 wide receiver and Miami was able to come away with 2nd and 7th rounders! It was a steal. Welker, like many Florida Gators of the 1990's is now a product of the NE "system", playing with the best QB in the game and in the middle of a good WR and the best WR in the league. The Welker in other "systems" would be exactly who he was with MIami.
Everybody is ripping on the Dolphins, who I agree are bad this year, but how come nobody, and I mean NOBODY, ever mentions the equally winless St Louis Rams? Anyone remember the "greatest show on turf"? Wasn't Linehan also hailed as an offensive genius? Also, the Rams are struggling offensively worse than the 'Phins (99 pts scored to Dolphins 166). So, let's not be so hasty to name the 2007 Dolphins the worst team in NFL history.
Hey JDizzle. I account for at least 2 occasions, both against the Pats, where Ginn was wide open for TD's and Lemon overthrew him. One was a streak right down the center and he had the Pats secondary beat. Don't you worry, Mr. Ginn will contribute when we get someone who can throw to him. By the way, his first td catch was no easy one...especially considering the conditions. He was also not a proven receiver and wasn't really drafted because of his talents as one. He's learning how to be a good receiver this year and he seems to be coming along well. Can't rule him a bust for at least another year or two. Be careful always seeking that immediate gratification. It clouds your judgement.
WOW THAT PISSES ME OFF! These are the same jackasses that picked Miami to go to the superbowl last year because we landed Culpepper. Yeah, their credibility was flushed right down the toilet after that one, it's hard to take anything they say seriously. "blah blah blah, the Dolphins got Trent Green and that was a mistake". OH YEAH, who should the Dolphins have picked to be their QB?! And who in the hell are they to say bringing in Porter was a mistake! Last offseason our options were Porter and Spragan. Who in their right mind didn't think Porter was an upgrade? And I don't want to hear this crap about any other LB because what most idiots dont understand is that a player has to want to sign with a team...YOU CANT FORCE THEM! The Dolphins were 6-10 last year and changed coaches so it's not like people were knocking down the front door to get in. I can't take these one sided crappy opinion articles anymore.
Sports Illustrated is about as credible as the now defunct Weekly World News. The only use for Don Banks writings is using those pages for bird cage linings or wrapping fish. Of course, if you're running low on toilet paper you could always wipe your ass with it.
We can't blame Cam or Randy for their horrible draft and free agent aquisitions! Their just following Miami's GOLDEN RULE "What would Wanny do?"
The ram's lousy start has more to do with injuries! Miami's lousy start is because of the coaching staff and front office!
Some people blame Wanny/Speilman and Saban for this mess, but atleast their crappy teams competed! Wish I could say the same about this team!
Are you kidding me. You don't think our position right now has anything to do with injuries? St. Louis sucks just as bad as us...and Scott Linehan isn't a good coach. He was a good OC for us, but homebody isn't gonna have a job next year.
that is the same mgazine that have us in the super bowl last year. what do they know?
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED is the most overrated sports media co. they have no credible journalist anymore (they're all leaving for espn) all they have are glorified full-time bloggers, people with less than a year or two with experiance, these kids out of college who think because they went to an expensive college and took journalism classes thst they are experts on the NFL. . They are horrible at predictions, and they even had us in the super bowl last year! the thought that armando is taking anything from SI.COM as "credible" is laughable. Nobody reads SI anymore or buy the "swimsuit issue", that has a bunch of anorexic models. rick riley left,and the only way they can get subscribers is by giving away mini-footballs and mini helmets with your subscription! how lame.
wow what a surprise wake up wayne come january 2008 you better have cameron and mueller's bags packed and tuna or cowher on speed dial!bryan in ohio.
Maybe the Dolphins should hire Bryan in Ohio as the head coach/GM. He seems to know everything. Then again, maybe not. Nobody on the South Florida radio circuit takes him seriously. Why should anybody else? What a tool.
Anyways, SI lost their credibilty years ago. You can get more reliable information from the Onion, versus SI.
Don Banks is useless. I cannot believe he has a job on SI.com. He happens to be right on the Dolphins, but who wouldn't write that? Most of what he writes is redundant, middle-of-the-road, and completely obvious.
Excellent post Matt from N.C. Seriously, really well thought out. You are a true Dolfan. let's just hope the "powers that be" stumble across this.
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