Pennington placed on Injured Reserve

So, the reality sets in. Chad Pennington is done. His shoulder is hurt again. This should not really be a huge surprise to Dolphins fans that have followed him for the past several years with the Jets. He was up and down it seemed all the time. Last year was the surprise, that he actually made it through the season without an injury.

OK, Dol-fans. Time for Chad Henne. I had my doubts about him being ready to lead the team until something amazing happened today. While I was expecting a veteran to be signed to add some experience and stability to the team, the Miami Dolphins instead traded for 3rd year quarterback, Tyler Thigpen from the Kansas City Chiefs. What did this tell me? It makes me believe that the coaching staff is convinced that Chad Henne can do the job. Why don't I get upset? Because last year they showed me that they know a little bit about how to do the job. Bill Parcells is a winner, and he brought in winners with him. Head Coach Tony Sparano is on the right track and won't give up. I doubt he has thrown in the towel for the season. Instead, he has simply shifted to plan B.

No time for tears. Thanks Chad Pennington for leading the team to a division title last year and restoring the franchise (and beating the Patriots too). Give the kids (Chad, Tyler and Pat) all the support you can and lets get some WINS!

Dolphins fall to 0-3 in loss to Chargers

I didn't get to watch the game since it wasn't shown here in Minnesota, but from what I heard and the stats I saw, it looks like the Dolphins have some work to do on defense. It was the second straight week where the Dolphins allowed 300+ passing yards. The Chargers only managed 69 rushing yards, once again showing Miami knows how to defend the run, but now teams know all they need to do is put the ball in the air. Unless they make some adjustments, next weeks game against the Bills could be Terrell Owens Day.

There are actually several teams that are 0-3 at this point. Are any of them worried? Cleveland, Tennessee, Kansas City, Tampa Bay and St. Louis are all winless. The only one that seems to be headed in the totally wrong direction (in my opinion) would be Cleveland. Eric Mangini seems to be doing and saying all the wrong things there. I would not be surprised to see a change there by mid season. Coach Mangini fined a player $1701 for not paying a hotel for a $3 bottle of water. I think his players will start fighting him instead of the opposing teams.

On the other end of the wins, who has a chance to go all the way at this point? Are the Jets for real? Rookie Mark Sanchez seems to have the poise and skills to take the Jets to a lot of wins this year. Denver is a surprise after the Cutler/Orton swap. Everyone thought they were getting the raw end of that deal. I guess they are laughing now! The Giants are undefeated, and not really a surprise. They have a solid team. The one that does surprise me is the Minnesota Vikings. I doubted having an aging veteran come in and do much more than manage the game and perhaps mentor one of the younger quarterbacks. After Brett Favre threw a bullet into the endzone to Greg Lewis with 2 seconds left to win the game against the 49er's, well I am a doubter no more. Favre is playing with the fire he had a decade ago, or even two seasons ago when he took the Packers to the NFC Championship.

Check the news page for updates on the condition of Chad Pennington's injury from todays game.

Dolphins dominate the clock, but lose the game.

The Miami Dolphins played their home opener last night on Monday Night Football against the Indianapolis Colts. They controlled the clock, had a good running game and were a much improved offense from their game against the Falcons. However, when the clock got down to about 3 minutes, it seems that it was the Keystone Cops on the field instead of the most efficient passer in the NFL. Chad Pennington seemed to lack a sense of urgency when it was crucial to take advantage of every second. They lost valuable time and despite a couple big plays, the clock that they had controlled all night was suddenly their worst enemy.

Not all is lost though. I have faith that the coaching staff will work on this problem during practices this week. They seemed to have overcome some of the issues they had in week one, and now if they can get the two minute drill down, oh and also improve the DEFENSE then we should see some wins.

Check the podcast page. Casey called in from tailgating and gave a great pregame report!

2009 NFL Draft

This is the first weekend I have been off work for the NFL Draft in several years. I was excited to watch, and it didn't dissapoint. If you listened to our radio show before the draft on Saturday you would have heard that Casey and I agreed that Vontae Davis would be the first pick of the Miami Dolphins. We were correct on that one, and I am excited to get a cornerback with his skills on the team. However, it was the second round that took most Dolphins fans by surprise. After last season, adding Chad Pennington, a veteran quarterback that helped put the team back on track and win the division and drafting Chad Henne as the "QB of the future", who showed his skills in preseason and got Dolphins fans thinking the team was finally solid at the QB position, the Dolphins drafted quarterback Pat White out of West Virginia with their first of two picks in the second round.

OK, so why would the Dolphins possibly want to draft another quarterback? Well, it does make sense if there is a quality player there when it comes time to pick. Chad Pennington might not be around very long if Chad Henne makes progress and is ready to start so there needs to be a solid option at the number 2 position. Maybe Pat White will be better and be the starter, then the Dolphins have Henne as the backup. However, in the short term it seems that Pat White, who can also play wide receiver could be lining up in the Wildcat either in place of Ronnie Brown, or at WR, where Chad Pennington was last year in the formation. The difference is that Pat White is actually a threat to run and catch a pass....and score! I think it adds another twist to an offense that had defenses scratching their heads last season.

The other pick they had in the second round the Dolphins used to take another cornerback, Sean Smith out of Utah. Then they went with offense and took two wide receivers. Overall it looked like a great draft. There weren't any situations like the draft with Cam Cameron when Brady Quinn was on the board and they took Ted "Touchback" Ginn. I am pleased with where the team is going and am excited for the season to start!

Be sure to sign up in the forum and tune in to the weekly radio show! We are getting some guests lined up for fall and it should be a lot of fun!

Dolphins Fanatics Online Radio

Today we kicked of the first edition of DFO Radio. Casey and I hosted, with a total of two listeners. Well, you have to start somewhere! 

We discussed the quarterback situation, which for once is not about getting one, rather how many will Chad Pennington play before Chad Henne takes over. It's a nice situation to be in for a change. Other topics were the offensive line, Ronnie and Ricky, and of course we talked about the Bills, Pats and Jets. The show only lasted a little over 20 minutes, but it was a great start for the show.

We hope to build up listeners over the next few months and be going strong when the season begins. We might add more shows during the season, depending on what time the games are on. I could see a post game show being fun to do.

Tune in next Sunday, at 9am EST. Just click the link on the main site.

The Offseason - slow news time

It's the offseason. We are in the middle of the NFL combine, and waiting for Free Agency signings to start and the upcoming draft. In the meantime, football fans everywhere are digging for news tidbits to post in blogs, forums and groups. I am doing the same thing today. I actually posted a story about Drew Rosenhaus speculating on what the Dolphins will take in the first round of the draft!

Don't worry though, there will be plenty to talk about soon. Free Agency starts in just a few days, on February 27. I think the Dolphins will make some moves on the first day, signing at least one playmaker. For the first time they don't have to worry about the quarterback position and that is great news for Dolphins fans.

Vernon Carey did get signed to an extension, taking  him off the Free Agent market, so that is more great news.

Other than that, let's just wait a couple days then there will be plenty of news to report, post and blog about!

Miami Dolphins Season Ends

The Dolphins lost to the Ravens in the Wild Card round of the playoffs. I am not going to go over the game since the media has already done that a lot! What I am going to do is share an article with you from the Palm Beach Post.

Tony Sparano opened his eyes at 3:30 a.m. Monday ready to do what he had been conditioned to do for the previous four months: get ready for the next opponent.

Except on this morning, it was simply time to say goodbye.

Sparano drove to team headquarters in the twilight like a coach whose Dolphins had defeated Baltimore on Sunday, instead of having lost 27-9 in the first round of the playoffs.

"I woke up expecting to go to work and play Pittsburgh," Sparano said.

He sat in the film room. He watched tape of the loss. He broke down the game the way he had the previous 16. And when the tape ended and the room went black, he had one question to ask himself: "What the hell do I do now?"

The morning after the final chapter in one of the greatest turnaround seasons in NFL history, Sparano had one more meeting with his players.

"I think they understand that they really have changed the culture here," Sparano said. "The bar is raised and there are expectations that come with that and that's something that we can look forward to."

He told them he was proud of them. And that if they were paying attention, they could see the fans were proud of them, too.

Sparano reminded his players that fans had greeted them at the airport after the Week 17 victory at the New York Jets. And that fans had cheered them as they drove out of the parking lot after Sunday's finale at Dolphin Stadium. And that fans had carried home-made signs to the team's practice facility Monday to thank the players for an incredible season.

"All of a sudden, people know them nationally and people know what we're all about and where we're headed," Sparano said.

He told his players Monday what he could not in the locker room Sunday night, when emotions were still raw, when eyes were misty. He told them he was proud of them.

But Sparano also told his players that they should give themselves only one day to celebrate or mourn.

"I give myself a 24-hour rule, too," he said.

And now begins the process of building toward next year. And it starts with looking at how the Dolphins lost to the Ravens, who forced five turnovers and held Miami to 52 rushing yards.

"My vision would be to win one of those ballgames like we were in yesterday," Sparano said.

This week - a week when the staff begins evaluating players, coaches and even the offensive and defensive schemes - should have been planned out by now, Sparano admitted. General Manger Jeff Ireland told him that an "exit strategy" should have been in place in case the Dolphins had lost to the Jets.

"I couldn't bring myself to do that," Sparano said. "I told Jeff that. I said, 'I apologize, but I'm not going to be prepared for that. I can't bring myself to do that.' "

The season is over for the Dolphins, but now we can start to look at free agents, the 2009 draft class and get ready for next season! I will post a list of UFA's in the forum, so if you haven't signed up there, please do so and give us your input and opinions!

Dolphins Fanatics Online Forum