Everybody hates the jets

It’s time for a little Jet hate poetry session…hope you enjoy.

Alright just listen a bit, it might take a while to click,

But Henne is better than Sanchez, the over-rated little prick.

But I don’t wanna get into that

I’m focusin’ on "fat"….

Mister scribble on your bus should get a little pat…

On his cave of a belly,

Dude has got to be smelly,

They sucked all those twinkies up like a bottle of jelly.

Fireman Ed couldn’t put out the fins flames,

Especially when we’ve dominated the last 3 games,

Cause the Jets can’t handle us, we do as we please,

By the 3rd quarter Rex is down on his knees,

Cryin’, beggin’ for it to stop,

Then he’ll make some excuse about why he got rocked.

"Soon to be champs", you think so, really?

What’s gonna happen when the weather gets chilly…

And Sean and Vontae make your QB look silly

As he’s throwin it right to ‘em but your score remains nilly…

None, yea I’m almost done,

I know its been fun, but guys I gotta run,

I’ll see ya when the season starts in just over a month.

Crispy

The normal dolphin rap but this time with video and audio!  The lyrics, bass line, and photos are all original, done by me.  Lyrics below:

 So it didn't end good, yeah we all know that,

The Jets made a run but Rex is still fat,

The sweaty ol' man started flippin' the bird,

The Dolphins swept you; well I guess you hadn't heard.

J. Peezy my man, quit screwin' around,

Keep talkin' like that, you look like a clown,

We don't need you and your big ol' ego,

You enjoy the Bucs game from the couch eatin' Cheeto's?

Free agency just fills me with glee,

We need help at receiver in a big hurry,

Skeptical right now, it doesn't seem to be,

The Trifecta is stubborn; Now that's just me.

The Colts and the Saints man it's gonna be tight,

If the Jets had snuck in it just wouldn't be right,

Manning is the king till someone knocks him down,

Could it be them bad boys from Mardi Gras town?

The draft is commin' but who to get?

Rolando seems like the likely pick.

But you really never know; but I cannot see...

Gerbil play another down of Free Safety.

Go Dolphins

Crispy

Hello to you all, how are you tonight?

Playoff hopes are there, but they're now much less bright,

The situation at hand is neither great nor grand,

We can't sit down, we need to fight and take a stand.

Santa Claus is nit-picky as Little Nicky proclaims,

Dear Santa will you please it's only 2 games!?

We didn't pout so help us out, you've got a job to do,

Our desire to make the playoffs; man, if you only knew...

Forget the mistle-toe, just let Cameron Wake go,

Matt Shaub, Big Ben, you best brace for the blow,

Cause these cats are ready, the season's on the line,

You say you wanna pass but you won't have the time.

Playoffs aren't all, there's more d'you hear?

Beastly Ronnie Brown better get more years,

Ricky's gettin' too old, Lex ain't got the touch,

If we don't resign him now we will miss him very much.

Chad Henne is a boss makin' that TD toss,

And Vontae got 2 picks on none other than Moss,

The world can't stop us cause we're built to last,

I can't wait to see the next amazing draft class.

So Santa listen up.  You know what we want,

I'd hate to see this season go all for naut,

When the Eve turns into the Day, and you gently sail away,

A January game is what we want to see 'em play.

Crispy

I'm gonna go over my day yesterday at the dolphins game in Nashville.  I was really mad to have forgotten the camera in the car; thus completely ruining my idea of a picture post.  Sorry.

I knew it was gonna be pretty cold so I had my clothes laid out over 4 days in advance.  I wore a phins t-shirt, dolphins hooded sweatshirt, ronnie brown jersey, all on top of the previous.  And a phins hat.

My family and I and also a friend and a uncle and a cousin went to the game.  We got on the road at around 7:10 central.  I live in Birmingham, Alabama so the ride up there is 200 miles and roughly 3 hours driving.  We stopped to eat at Hardees (yummmm) for breakfast.  We got to the stadium around 10:30 central.  I was really excited about getting into the stadium early in hopes of getting an autograph by going over to the tunnel.  Turns out, they have security there for people like me, who don't have a ticket down there but want to be close to the team.  So, that didn't go very well.  Me and my friend went over to behind the goalpost to watch DC$ and Bironas kick field goals.  That was pretty cool cause Fields was really close, practicing punting out of the back of the endzone.

Then we went up to our seats which were in section 309 on the second row, so we were basically staring right down into the field.  The seats were great!  It pissed me off having to settle for field goals on redzone possesions and turnovers were the thing that eventually killed us.  If only Henne had hit Hartline instead of leading him early in the game where he was wide open in the back of the endzone.  If only, if only.  There were too many "if only's".

The titans fans around me were pretty cool.  These people next to us got up seriously 12 times (both ways) going or coming from getting more beer.  That was the only annoying part.

Then we come back and I'm sorta already in depression mode being down 24-6, so I didn't truly believe we could do it until we got the ball back only down by 8 points.  And when Hartline made that lucky miracle catch, I thought it was destined that we would win the game.

Turns out not.  The sun came out at the 2 minute warning, just like our hopes came out at the same time.  But as we drifted into overtime, and Henne threw the final interception, the sun simaltaneously went away.  I thought that was wierd.

That Camarillo late hit call was bogus.  My understanding is that a player is not down until he has been touched by a defender to the ground.  Watch the videos.  The defender goes down without being touched.  The first person to touch him is Camarillo, but obviously he was called for the flag.  I'm not sure, however, if the refs blew him down like they do a kneel at the end of a game or a QB slide.  In those types of plays, players aren't downed.  But can a defensive back slide and be downed?  That's my only explanation that I can conjure.

As always they classy Titans fans showed their respect when exiting the building.  (SARCASM)

The shower of F-bombs and curses poured out like an Eminem rap song.  Really classy titans fans.  Really.

It took forever to get out of the parking lot.  We went to Carabbas Italian food.  It was alright.  Too fancy for my taste.

We got home around 8:45 central in time to realize that after being down 30+ points in my fantasy playoff game, that Aaron Rodgers had put up outstanding numbers to get me 43 points from him and a shot at a fantasy championship, as I am playing next week for it all.  The friend that went with me to this game was in the other semi-final fantasy game, but he needed Brandon Jacobs to score 9 fantasy points when he only scored 5.  So my friend lost by 3.

Go Pittsburgh, New England, and most of all Miami!!!

Crispy

Disclaimer: I am an avid Miami Dolphins fan that was recently part of an intense debate to who the "Titan's MVP" would go to.  This was the inspiration for this post.  I wished to provide an outsiders perspective on the way Tennessee's season is turing out.  

via www.babble.com

Vince Young is the Titan's MVP.

The definition of the MVP award is the "most valuable player" for the league, or in this case, a team. 

As you all know, the Titans began the season 0-6 and "undoubtedly" solidified their slot in suckage with the 59-0 outing vs. the Patriots.  However, many (if not everyone) spoke too soon.  The Titans are now 5-6.  The main difference:  Vince Young.

via masterprocrastinator.files.wordpress.com

Opposition to the previous argument was from the standpoint of Chris Johnson being the Titans MVP.  With stats this amazing it's hard to argue.

Carries: 217       Yards:  1,396       Yards per carry:  6.4   TD's:  9 (10 if you count receiving)

He is leading the NFL in rush yards by a whopping 276 yards. (2nd place being Steven Jackson, RB St. Louis, with 1120 yards.)

But here's the key:  Without Vince, they couldn't win.

After the embarrassing showing vs. New England, the ownership made the move to start Vince Young at QB after the bye week.  Here are Vince Young stats so far:

TD's: 4(+1 rush)  INT's: 2 (one of which was towards the end of the snowy debacle in New England)  Yards:  1,010 

Vince has also compiled a QB rating of 90.2 (tied for 12th in the NFL).  A respectable figure to say the least.

Here it is, it comes down to this:  Vince=wins.  Sure, if this were my "Titan heisman" award, then Chris Johnson would get it no doubt.  But it's not that type of award, it's the most valuable football player on a team.  And value for a team means wins, which is what Young brings.

You might think that Chris Johnson playing better could be the reason for the Titans' newfound winning streak.  

YPC (through first 6 losses):  6.16           YPC (through 5 game winning streak):  6.76

TD's (during losses):  2                      TD's (during wins):  7

Big differences, right?  To me, the increase in stats for Johnson has occurred because of the dual-threat that Young presents.  Defenses have to put a spy on Young because of his dangerous ability to run the ball.  Thus, opening up giant holes for Johnson to break through.

Also head coach Jeff Fisher has said that the team is simply playing the game with confidence and having fun with it now that Vince is the starter.  He said that they don't worry about the rest of the season anymore, they worry about the game at hand, because that's what their season is riding on.

Did you know?  No one else in the history of the NFL has rushed for 3 85+ yard carries in their career?  Johnson has done it this season alone.  Needing mention, two of them came with Young starting.

We know that the Titans couldn't win without Young for a fact.  But what we don't know is whether Young could win without Johnson.  This reason alone is enough for me to give Young the nod for my "award".

Visiting from The Phinsider,

Crispy

Dolphins@Patriots Week 9 Poem.  Previous weeks on profile.  Comments and critiquing are welcome.

That one hurt bad, we really had a chance,

On 4th and 15 Teddy let it glance...

Off his hands down to the ground,

Always makin' someone frown,

When will a break come our way?

Vontae's pick was wet, I bet mossin' on Moss was fun,

Not many dudes can cover eighty-one,

Rookie of the Year candidate anyone?

If I remember correctly we only got 2 sacks,

Pressure is just something we really couldn't lack,

I can't exactly point to one reason we lost,

It was a bunch of small things startin' with Moss.

That crucial 4th down mentioned above,

Was a really nice pass floatin' like a dove,

Can't blame it all on Ginn, there's more reasons we didn't win,

With Jason Allen at corner we were really pretty thin.

We can't lose another game cause the goin's gettin' rough,

Pittsburgh and the Pats again will be real tough,

We can't look over anyone we gotta come to play,

Gettin' 8 straight wins, man that'll be the day.

Crispy

In light of some recent comments made by Jets players, the first few lines are just plain anger exerted towards Jet fans.  But here is the second poem for a win over the jests.  Previous weeks on profile.

I hate the Jest for so many things,

For the scum at Gang Green and the trash they bring,

They're ignorant and arrogant, they can't seem to get a clue,

We swept the Jets baby, count 'em 1 and 2.

Alright I admit, it wasn't too pretty,

But you don't see me showin' no pity,

A win is a win and a sweep is a sweep,

Thank you very much I'll take that to keep.

The RxR stalled out but we still found a way,

I can watch Jason Taylor score TD's all day,

Ginn's not off the hook although it's lookin' a bit better,

He's made his first payment but he still owes his debtors,

That second return was all on him, his speed and agility prevailed,

The jest weren't ready and they didn't see it comin'...

No wonder they got straight up nailed.

Well I hope he keeps it up and stays right on track,

But it needs to transfer into WR stats.

A win over the Jest is always so sweet,

But we goin' to New England only next week,

It's gonna be a challenge, the offense will do more,

I wanna see Ronnie just score, score, score.

Get swept Jest!

Crispy

I waited a couple of days to get over this one (not fully) so here's the sixth installment of this weekly post.

The Saints came in undefeated, no opponent was even leadin'

We came in rollin' high, off a MNF win and a bye,

Most of the experts favored New Orleans,

How could you not with so much scorin'?

But Ronnie's been playin' well, our O-line was beginnin' to gel,

We were gonna run all over them as far as I could tell.

We got off quick, with a nice little pick,

Settin' up Ricky for the "easy" run 6,

Before I even knew it we were up by 21,

Braggin' at school tomorrow was supposed to be fun,

An untimely called timeout, made sean payton send 'em out,

I was pretty friggin' worried but our D-line is stout,

Not so much, Brees just hopped over top,

A stupid timeout just made our big lead drop.

I don't even wanna talk bout the 2nd half,

Let's put it this way; it made my saints friends laugh,

So many 3 and outs and a ton of dropped balls,

Not even to mention some of the terrible play calls,

Ted Ginn sucks he's nothing but a bust,

Couldn't catch a cold and his skills you can't trust,

Directly responsible for 14 points, maybe even more,

That we didn't have or gave the saints that opened the door,

To humiliation and suckination those drives coulda been scores,

Let's pack it up and move on out and try to reform.

Crispy

As I sat in front of the "dolphin screen" at Buffalo Wild Wings, I glanced around and realized something rather surprising.  Not instantly, but over time.  Field goal kickers aren't getting very many shots at 50+ yarders this season.

Last year and definately the year before, coaches would send out their kickers as far back as a 62 yarder. (If you're Rob Bironas)

Interested, I began to pursue this topic by searching for some field goal statistics at NFL.com.  Here's what I found.

2008 attempts over 50 yards:  104 (6.12 50+ attempts per week)

2009 attempts over 50 yards (so far) : 31, on pace for about 88 attempts total (5.17 attempts per week)

Some might say, pshh...only a 16 attempt difference, and besides, it's just an average.  Well, it is an average, but I think 16 attempt difference is a respectable amount.  But what is the reason for the decline in usage of FG kickers beyond 50 yards out? I'll take a stab at that.

I'll start off with the main point.  Offenses are better.  Coaches make the decision because they think that if they don't, the other team's high powered OFFENSE will outscore them.  Also, a coach just might be confident in his own offense.

You've probably heard either a CBS or FOX broadcaster talk about how the game itself is changing.  They are right.  The Wildcat is a prime example of how much the NFL has changed in recent years.  I know it was sort of ran a long time ago, but it hadn't been run for a while until last year.  Slowly but surely, offenses have taken hold of playcalling.  In order to have an advantage, agressive playcalling is necessary.  Thus, causing coaches to risk what would not be too much field position for an opportunity to keep a drive alive.  A substantial reward.

Perhaps kick blocking teams are becoming more and more able to block long field goals...

Perhaps kickers just can't make them consistantly anymore...

Whatever it is, the evidence is there, enough or negligible, it's there.  Offenses are controlling games and playcalling by taking advantage of a minimal risk.  Even though it's possible to get three points, they go for the first down, which could lead to a touchdown, because of the pace they have to match each week.

Vote your opinion below and be sure to explain in comments.

Crispy

The game of the year (at least so far) is only five days away after what seemed like an eternity caused by the inopportune bye week.

Drew Brees and the high-flying Saints come "marching" into LandShark Stadium on Sunday right off a statement game vs. the Giants last Sunday.  The matchup going in was a great one, to say the least with the weapons of the Saints on offense and the ferocious defense of the Giants.  Well, that matchup didn't turn out so well for the G-men.

Will it for us?

Here are five factors that prove that we can contend with the Saints.

-Wildcat-  No one has come close to shutting down this power running formation since last January.  And while the Saints are doing a noteworthy job at run defense this season, (83.4 yards allowed per game, NFL rank 5) they haven't seen what Ronnie and Ricky (maybe Pat) offer from this "gimmick to others, yardage and wins for us" formation.

-Henne having the best start of a career.  Out of anybody.-  Correct me if inaccurate, but on ESPN it was said that our Chad Henne's combined passer rating for his first two starts is higher than any other player's first two start combined rating.  Ever.  In the history of the NFL.  What a clown, right?  Enough on that.

-Rookie cornerbacks ready- ...or at least excited at the opportunity to go against these high-caliber receivers.  Sean Smith said in a recent interview that he was really excited about having another chance to solidify himself as a standout.  All talk?  Quite possibly.  Some truth?  You bet.  Our secondary will have to play the game of their lives to give us a chance to win.  And they can do it.

-Ginn for the win- As far as I understand, with Cobbs lost to injury, Ginn will be the primary kick returner on Sunday.  He will have the chance to return some balls because of the Saints outstanding scoring offense.  I see Ginn making some sort of dent in that aspect of the game, as well as receiver.  We all saw it eight days ago, we know Ginn can run.  But can he do it again for another score?  We'll see...

-Because we need it more-  The Saints are 5-0 and in first in their division.  With the Falcons slightly on their tail, they won't be completely unmotivated, but we need it more.  If we win, then we are going to contend for playoffs.  If we lose, we aren't necessarily "out of it" or anything, it's just hard to win 8 or 9 out of 10 to finish a season. (cough..cough..last year)

Continue reading this post »

I am an auburn tiger football fan and i went to the game yesterday vs. kentucky. As I got there, I exclaimed, "Ronnie might be here, the dolphins have a bye week."  Everyone i was with said not to count on it.

Guess who showed up in Auburn last night?

Reggie Torbor annd Ronnie Brown, both went to Auburn, were introduced as honorary guests! 

I can garuntee you guys that I was the only person in the entire stadium wearing a Dolphins bright aqua sweatshirt representing the Miami Dolphins!!

So that is what is going to get me through this bye week, seeing my favorite player, Ronnie Brown.

P.S. As I was walking back to my car, someone driving by rolled down their window and yelled, "F*ck the Dolphins, man!  Then I proudly retorted, "Guess your a Jets fan, huh?"...thought you guys might like that.

We rollin' off a win against the beat down Bills,

I know it felt good but I didn't get any thrills,

Big news out! The ORANGEOUT is coming,

It'll make Ronnie look even better when he comes a-rumblin'

It's a big matchup we got the Jets and Dolphins,

Primetime baby you know the world can't stop 'em,

Two young QB's are coming strong and fresh,

Sanchez and Edwards ain't got time to mesh...

or so i thought coming in...

The man got hands, at least better than Ginn,

Ground game got goin', and Henne hardly missed a throw,

He threw it up to Ginn on a fake-out, GO!

We couldn't do nothin' in the 2nd and 3rd,

We were mopin' around like a run-over turd,

Then we heated it up and started makin' some plays,

I'll remember that 4th quarter for years, not days.

Henne's passer rating was off the charts,

Hard to believe that was his 2nd start,

RxR X-press got goin too,

Rex Ryan's just too fat and crude.

No credit given at the conference,

The man so fat it made me wince,

All I know is that we're back in the hunt,

The Dolphins are here, we said it straight up, blunt.

Previous weeks on profile.

Crispy

Poem/rap for the bills game on October 4th.  Previous weeks available on profile.  Feedback and comments appreciated.

Pennington's out now everybody pout,

The man did what we asked, he never had a doubt,

Some said he was good, others said his arm was a squirt,

I appreciated Penne so much, I even bought his shirt.

The new era started, Henne's time is now,

Some people praised, some people scowled,

We'll always have Ronnie, don't worry bout a thing,

When he scores a TD, I scream "Cha-ching!"

Woops, oh no, Trent Edwards let it slip,

Vontae grabbed it like that really salty chip,

He took it to the house, then we ran it down their throat,

Things were just gettin' started, man they didn't even know.

Henne wasn't great, but he kept us goin' straight,

He never threw a pick, and we never hit the brakes,

Ronnie's too raw, he make defenders crawl...

off the field curled up like a ball.

With a win under their belt, the Dolphins probably felt,

A small amount of hope, we looked pretty swell,

And how could I forget to mention...

that the defense had superb intentions...

with 6 big sacks and 3 I.N.T.'s

The Bills couldn't touch us, you think?, Child please!

Crispy

This is just me trying to provide some poetic/creative/comic relief to the Phinsider.  Week 3 vs. Chargers.  Weeks 1, 2 are also available on profile.

We stopped their first drive, then we ran inside,

94 yards seemed like a glide,

The handoff got muffed, the offense got stuffed,

Turnovers, turnovers, we can't get enough...

The redzone scoring was terrible at best,

Just hand it to Ronnie and let him do the rest,

Name of the first half was defense alone,

The secondary sucks it just hadn't been shown.

Problems arise with Penne's demise,

It's Henne's turn, all he has to do is rise,

Screens here and there, we weren't going anywhere,

Right about now I started to get scared.

The deep ball kills thrown from River's wrist,

I swear he isn't human, he never ever missed,

Some small positives arose, it wasn't completely atrocious,

Sproles was contained and D. Bess showed game,

For the most part though, we were drowning in shame...

Of how we played, our record says 0-3...

But you think we're better than that, it's not just me,

But you're only as good as your record shows,

The playoffs don't care if you come close,

We're going back home for Buffalo next Sunday,

Let's hope our Phins come ready to play.

Crispy

We came in a little down,

then we bounced back off the ground,

The Colts, Dolphins match is a Monday night game,

Big Ronnie Brown is certifiably insane...

In a good way though, he has lots to show,

The wuss DB's scream a loud, "Oh no!"

Running the ground game for 2 big scores,

DC$, Please add some more.

Up by 3, I'm feeling pretty sweet,

The way things were going, I like this beat,

Here we are, running high, running free,

We had the better team, the Colts, the QB.

A little is a lot in the NFL,

A couple dropped passes and we might as well...

Be waking next morning with a win to tell.

That's not how it is, the road ain't right,

The path to the playoffs is looking very slight,

Ronnie, Ricky, and Ginn looked bright,

Look at it simple: We lost last night.

Crispy

I'm unveiling my week to week idea of having a significant rap for each game.  Sorry it was late this week, school's been stressful.

Me and my friend can't wait to begin,

a 2-hour journey to go see my phins,

Studyin' the stats and the depth chart too,

Man them Falcons better get a clue.

We arrive on time, then we get in line,

We're running down the ramp to try to get down low,

I just wanna see my team is that a crime?

The security guard seems a little slow.

Expectations high, kickoff gets started,

The offensive line looked a bit retarded,

Turnovers won't do, man I'll be so blue,

C'mon guys, we CAN NOT LOSE.

Now I guess I'll try to look to next week,

With the Colts comin' round I feel a little meek,

Maybe there's time to get it together,

The pain of this loss won't last forever.

Although it was lame, it's just one game,

After week 2 last year the dolphins came...

to redemption and glory and even a little fame.

Crispy

Turnovers trouble Dolphins in season opener

Dolphins lose opener 19-7

Most of the anxiety and joy of being at a Dolphins game (rare for me) was gone by halftime. No matter which way you look at today’s game, it all comes back to turnovers. Last year when I thought about the Dolphins, I thought about hard hitting defense and a lack of turnovers. Sadly, turnovers were more than present in today’s game. With three fumbles and one interception, I wasn’t watching the Dolphins I knew in 2008.

I hate to throw around blame, but there were specific units and players that were killing us all day. The offensive line was just plain horrid. As I watched Jake Long get completely beasted and called for holding on the same play, thoughts of a long season came to mind. However, it’s only the first of 16 games, meaning there is plenty of time to get things straight. Also, Anthony Fasano needs to hold onto the ball. Enough said on that.

Our trick plays worked very well. The falcons could not stop them, leading me to believe there were not enough run.

Stay with me for a minute and think about this: Pat White doesn’t overthrow that deep ball and we only turn the ball over 1 or 2 times. I guarantee we win if those things happened. Sadly, they didn’t.

After all the bad things that happened today, I was impressed by some aspects of the game. First of all, I was proud to see so many dol-fans at an away game. There was more cheering than boo-ing when the Phins ran out of the tunnel. That’s some good representation.

Ricky ran fairly well and got a touchdown.

Pennington had a high completion percentage at 72.4%.

But most of all, the front 3 were outstanding. Michael Turner held to under 3 yards per carry is a great sign for the run defense. Honestly, run defense was the only truly positive aspect of our showing.

The Dolphins need to put this one behind them and devote their energy towards a very good Colts team.

Sparano will get the O-line straightened out by next week. Hopefully, Fasano won’t dip his hands in butter before kickoff so we can avoid so many turnovers. Don’t fret dol-fans, our boys will get it together and have a much better performance next Monday.

Forget the past, BELIEVE in the future and now.

Crispy

The dolphins are my team,

When we score they make me scream,

Wildcat, CP10,

We gonna beat yo rear end

I really think Favre pushed it a little too far,

Wit da way he was getting hit he wouldn’t know when to quit,

Bell done make him fell, and Merling picked him off,

Go back to Mississippi where u eat from the pig trough.

Did you hear? Brady’s now a lady,

I always knew he was weird but never that shady,

But after week 9 he’ll be hurtin all the time,

Once he’s sittin on his tail, cryin bout a broken nail.

The Jets, the Jets, where to start?

After JT and JP, they’ll be rollin on a cart,

We’ll see who’s better, Cotchery or Ginn,

Ginn’s gonna prevail like the true-blood phin.

Crispy

Let me start off by saying that I’m a Miami Dolphins fan, not a Chiefs fan. I recently posted my division winner predictions on The Phinsider, and I selected the Kansas City Chiefs to win the AFC West. My main reason in defending my choice was the addition of Matt Cassel. In my mind, all the Chiefs needed was that extra bump to become a legit contender in the AFC West. The Chiefs lost 7 games by 7 points or less, and their most obvious hole was an inexperienced quarterback. Now that they have an experienced QB, my pick makes sense, at least to me.

Cassel is a story that I’m keeping my eye on in 2009. It just seems so possible that KC can thrive this season especially with Oakland and a quarterback-less Broncos in its division. With the addition of Tyson Jackson and Alex Magee, the defensive front will thrive next year with Glen Dorsey to plug up holes as well. While it can be argued that Cassel only had success because of his weapons, his play was just too good to just be his teammates. Trust me, I almost cried after losing to him and the Patriots 48-28 last year. (Talking about Dolphins). The guy has skill and is just what the Chiefs needed. Here are some of Cassel’s 2008 stats:

Yards:     TD’s:       INT’s:      Comp. %:        Rush yards:      Rush TD’s:

3,693       21            11             63.4                      270                        2

Those are some above average statistics for sure, and Cassel was in the top 10 for quarterback rankings with a rating of 89.4.

Well, I hope you fair well next season Chief fans. I’ve always had some respect for you guys. Good luck.

All stats at NFL.com

Crispy

So, I just clicked over to NFL.com and saw this:

BREAKING NEWS: Favre is staying retired.

That means as much to me as someone saying the Bills actually have a chance to win the AFC East. The man has toyed with retirement for far too long, and has simply lost the trust he might have had with any fan or spectator. It’s just crazy, and it’s frankly getting old. Once you see this headline your automatic reaction is anger and frustration towards a great QB in his prime, but now all he seems like is an attention-craving, undecided lunatic. Harsh but true. Even if he actually holds onto this decision this year, I won’t be certain that he is done for good because he will start craving the game again and give in to it and annoy any team’s fans that he tries to join. It says he’s going to stay retired, but I won’t believe it until I see it. For at least 2 years straight.

Crispy

Less than 2 months from kickoff so about time to pick the winners of the divisions, right? Picks will be based off of last year, off-season moves, and instinct. Just for the heck of it, I’m also going to put my super bowl champion pick on this post.

AFC East:

Miami Dolphins:

Although some of you might not think so after my post about Dolphin and Brown similarities, I do believe we can pull off another division title. Chad Pennington is somewhat inconsistent, but I believe he knows what he’s doing more here in Miami than with the Jets. Ronnie has a year under his belt after ACL injury and it’s a contract year so he will be looking to prove he deserves the $$$. The Young talent we had shine last year will only be better this year and we also got some new talent in the draft and free-agency.

AFC South:

Indianapolis Colts:

Peyton is the archer and his receivers are his bulls-eyes. The secondary will be one of the best as usual and Reggie Wayne is going to step up and have a similar connection with Peyton the way that Marvin and Peyton used to have. Colts win this division by at least 2 games.

AFC North:

Pittsburgh Steelers:

The number 1 defense in the NFL last year didn’t lose enough players not to be considered the best now going into training camp. Ben Roethlisberger is probably mad at how he was set up for the rape accusation and wants to prove again that he is a super bowl winning machine. Willie Parker is from what I hear, back healthy and if he stays that way, he could quite possibly return to the yardage machine that he is.

AFC West:

Kansas City Chiefs:

I’m sure most of the readers probably just laughed out loud at this pick but let me explain why. From my perspective, which of course is a fan perspective, is that the Chiefs were 1 step away from being 9-7 or 10-6 rather than last year’s miserable 2-14. I believe they’ve struck gold with Cassel. The dude comes out of nowhere last year and replaces one of the greatest QB’s of this decade and almost takes that team to the playoffs. He hadn’t started a game since high school, people, and now he owns respect from all teams and a starting job with the Chiefs. Cassel is what bumps the Chiefs over the hump.

NFC East:

Philadelphia Eagles:

They made it all the way to the NFC championship last year and added one of the best left tackles in the game, Jason Peters. Although they lost Dawkins to Denver, he was mainly an emotional leader, which however is valuable, can be replaced if one of the younger guys take the open leadership role. Giants run game is good, but Westbrook/McNabb combo are better in my mind.

NFC South:

Atlanta Falcons:

This was a hard one to choose because of the elite running game the Panthers have but I see 2nd year Matt Ryan winning the division by a tiebreak or only one game. Michael Turner proved himself to 99% alpha-male, 1% raw last year so teams will still have trouble with his power running style. My man Roddy White representing UAB is going to expand on his new-found success discovered last season.

NFC North:

Minnesota Vikings/Chicago Bears:

Let me explain. If this Favre thing goes down with Minnesota, and he starts for the Vikings, the Vikings will not make the playoffs and the Bears in their place. However, if Minnesota stays smart and doesn’t dig up Favre, I feel as if they have a great shot to win, especially behind Peterson. On the other hand, if the Vikes do get Favre the reason I picked the Bears is because of the new, young QB Jay Cutler. He’s a whiner, but the man raw.

NFC West:

Arizona Cardinals:

Kurt Warner and Larry Fitzgerald will be on the same page the whole season. They will continue to light every single DB up and there is nothing you or anyone can do to stop it. Nothing. Kurt Warner recently said that Anquan Boldin will indeed be playing for the Cards; it’s just a matter of how happy he will be. So, I don’t think Warner saw Boldin going anywhere.

Super Bowl:

Philadelphia Eagles vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

Drum………….roll…………….

Eagles win.

Crispy

Once again we look ahead to the 2009 season and make completely "educated" predictions on how our Dolphins will fair. This time I want people to guess at which unit will have the better ranking at the end of the season in terms of points earned/allowed. Take a look at last year’s stats:

Miami Dolphins Offense Points Earned: NFL rank 21st with 21.6 per game.

Miami Dolphins Defense Points Allowed: NFL rank 9th with 19.8 per game

Keep those stats from last year in mind while I look at key players on both sides of the ball:

Offense:                                             Defense:

Ronnie Brown                                  Joey Porter

Chad Pennington                            Channing Crowder

Ricky Williams                                 Cameron Wake

Ted Ginn                                           Jason Taylor

(A healthy) Greg Camarillo           Will Allen

Lousaka Polite                               Yeremiah Bell

Davone Bess.                                (Most likely) Vontae Davis

Now make your predictions on which unit that you think will rank better among the NFL by the end of the regular season and voice your opinion in this poll:

Stats at NFL.com

As we all know, our Dolphins placed first in the AFC East and made it to the first round of the playoffs. Expectations are high for 2009 and we want them to exceed even more than last year. But hold on there for a minute. Anyone remember the Cleveland Browns progression from ‘07 to ‘08?

With a record of 10-6 and barely missing the playoffs because of a tie-breaker, the Browns were the Cinderella story of 2007 and everyone expected them to excel in 2008 as well. But that didn’t happen and they ended up 4th in their division and finished with a record of 4-12. Sad as it may sound, there are some similarities (and differences) to the Dolphins expectations for next year and the previously mentioned Browns debacle of a season. Let’s take a look:

-Both teams during their good seasons played the NFC West.

-Dolphins got to play the AFC West as well with low-caliber teams such as the Raiders, Chiefs.

-Browns of ‘07 played the AFC East which contained at that point a Dolphins team that ended up going 1-15, a Jets squad that finished 4-12, and Bills who finished 7-9.

-Browns of ‘08 played the AFC South which they went only 1-3 against, and the Dolphins have AFC South this upcoming year.

Point is, once the Browns played elite divisions such as the NFC East and AFC South last year they ended up in last place. As many of you know, the Dolphins take on the AFC South and NFC South this upcoming season, and in my mind the NFC South is just as good as NFC East so there are some schedule similarities.

The Dolphins face much more challenging competition in ’09 than they did in ’08. There is no denying that. However, after pointing out a lot of similarities between the Dolphins and Browns schedule from the years mentioned above, there are indeed some differences with the two teams as well.

-THE TRIFECTA!!! Sparano, Parcells, and Ireland are one of the best front office/coaching groups in the NFL. The Browns had Romeo Cronell.

-We have unity, as far as I can tell. The players on the Dolphins actually want to be on the Dolphins and contribute to a winning organization. I received no notion of the Browns having anywhere near that chemistry.

All this is for is to make a point and not try to get caught up in the hooplah because there are similarities between the two teams, but hopefully the differences mentioned will be enough to keep the Dolphins among the elite in the NFL.

Thanks for reading,

Crispy