competance

Griese and Fiedler: Controversy and Competance
FinHeaven Staff Writer Chris Kouffman

This is what an offseason should feel like. Fans debating with each other, taking sides, and firing at each other like regular soldiers in The Patriot. But there is an underlying theme among fans that the collective media does not seem to grasp: Optimism. Phil Simms, Boomer Esiason, and Brent Jones recently weighed in on the subject of the Fiedler-Griese debates. They focused on controversy. "This is a potential recipe for disaster" declares Boomer Esiason, while Phil Simms notes "People say competition is great, but if you say that, you know nothing about the quarterback position" Brent Jones, who was under contract in San Francisco during the Montana-Young controversy, said "Quarterback controversies can divide a team and be a big distraction. Jay has performed a little better than Brian, but Brian has more untapped talent" But controversy is not the only thing the Dolphins have invited to the dinner table with the signing of Brian Griese. They succeeded in acquiring competance as well. Competance and Controversy are the dueling forces that drive this entire debate on the merits of bringing Brian Griese down to Miami. Competance is not necessarily lost in the shuffle among the many editorials and arguments. Even Esiason said he understands the need for two guys. I think we all understand the need for two guys. But why was that need so important that it was necessary to invite this media frenzy to Miami? The Super Bowl. Call me a Dolphins Homer, call me whatever you want. Maybe I'm just delusional. But I firmly believe that there is a far better chance than not, that had the Dolphins had a competant backup quarterback such as Brian Griese in 2002 instead of Ray Lucas, the Dolphins would have been the team squaring off against Tampa Bay in the Super Bowl.

Most will remember the last 2 games of the season when thinking of the Miami Dolphins' failures in 2002. Sorry, but not me. The Dolphins have their problems, namely December swoons, and sure going on the road and getting beat by a not so good Vikings team then having the division foe Patriots come back on you to the tune of 11 points in the final 5 minutes is a recipe for an awefully bad taste in your mouth. Same old Dolphins right? Wrong. Every team in the NFL had their problems in 2002. If 2002 showed us one thing, its that the salary cap era has fully settled in and there are no more juggernauts who you just know will be in the Super Bowl before the season starts. The fact that the #1 seed in the AFC was merely 11-5 shows us that every team had their problems last season. The fact of the matter is asking the Dolphins to go better than 2-2 in the last quarter of the season has been an impossible task, even with the great Dan Marino under center. So what about the old addage that its not how you play in September, but how you play in December, that determines your postseason success. It stands to reason, but obviously there are exceptions. The Tennessee Titans were red hot heading into the playoffs. After having started off the season aweful at 1-4 (with owner Bud Adams openly questioning Head Coach Jeff Fisher's tenure) the Titans went on to win 10 of their next 11 games. They were perfect in December. Not so much in January. So if we disregard two very close road games in late December we come back to Ray Lucas...the Miami whipping boy. A lot of people stick up for him because they feel sorry for him, and I believe the media has come to an understanding to take it easy on the poor guy since his career might not be over yet. But lets not paint the situation into anything it should not be.

The Miami Dolphins went 2-4 with Ray Lucas at the helm, and had a competant quarterback played the game they could have easily gone 4-2. Ray Lucas started his first game for the Dolphins at home against Buffalo on October 20th. It was a disaster. The Dolphins lost the game 23-10. Lucas completed only 13 of 33 passes, with 4 interceptions and 2 fumbles. And it was not as if the whole team played badly. It was all Lucas. Turnover after disastrous turnover gave the game away to Buffalo even though its red hot offense could only manage to score 16 points on its own against a tough Miami Defense. Lucas not only couldn't get his offense to score more than 16 points, he handed 7 points to the other team. His quarterback rating for the game was 26.3 No wonder the Dolphins put in calls to Akili Smith during the offseason. After yet another disastrous performance against Green Bay, this time (in Lucas' defense) where the entire team played badly, Lucas started another game in NYC against the Jets. Looking at the statistics, one might come to the conclusion that Lucas played well but the rest of the offense could not help him out enough to pull the victory. One had to watch the game to truly appreciate how badly statistics lie in this game. Ray Lucas threw the ball into the hands of defenders no less than five times. It just so happens that Jet defenders pulled a McKnight every time it hit them (sorry James, I know your hands are better than people give you credit for). You truly had to watch the game to appreciate how much Lucas' blatantly aweful decisions, his ability to stumble over himself in his dropback without even being touched, and his penchant for fumbling the ball truly ruined this game. The Jets under red hot quarterback Chad Pennington, only managed to score two field goals on offense against the Dolphins stifling defense. Lucas, however, handed them another 7 points by fumbling the ball on Miami's own 6 yard line, setting up an easy 1st and Goal on the 6 where Curtis Martin ran it right in. The Dolphins lost the game 13-10. In the next two games, the Dolphins Defense (as if they hadn't done enough against New York and Buffalo) rose up in defiance of Lucas' ineptitude. They allowed Baltimore only one touchdown, and allowed a mere Field Goal from LaDainian Tomlinson and the Chargers.

In Lucas' defense, he played pretty well in those games. Insert competance at the quarterback position in all 6 games, and I'm 99% certain the Dolphins would have been 11-5 heading into the playoffs as the #1 seed with homefield advantage. So what about homefield advantage? No team felt it more than the Dolphins' defense. Teams scored an average of 12 points against the Dolphins in Pro Player stadium. They scored an average of 26 points against the Dolphins when playing in their own stadium. The only game the Dolphins lost at home was to the Bills, when Ray Lucas was personally turning the ball over 6 times and handing the Bills defense 7 points. This is why I am very confident that had the Dolphins indeed won those games against the Jets and Bills, they would have gone to the Super Bowl. Forget the December swoon. If the Dolphins showed one thing in 2002 it was that they were a far different team at home than on the road. Merely one week before their tragic loss at Minnesota, they were at home executing a perfect defensive game plan to beat the team that would go on to win the AFC Championship, the Raiders. Had the Dolphins had a competant backup quarterback, they would have found themselves playing two games at home, likely against opponents they have already played and beaten, for the right to face off with Tampa in the Super Bowl. So now that we have a good idea of just how important the issue of competance can be, what about controversy? I suppose it would be a bit like having your cake and eating it too for the Dolphins to find themselves a competant backup quarterback without inviting some controversy. Critics like Esiason and Simms point out just how incredibly alike Fiedler and Griese are as reasons for their cautions about quarterback controversy. Try this on for size. Because of Griese's and Fiedler's similar stature, there will not be any locker room controversy. You heard me correctly. You've got two guys, neither has the clear advantage in terms of physical abilities or career. Griese has posted ridiculous numbers with a ridiculous surrounding cast, and Fiedler has posted a ridiculous winning percentage and numbers very similar to Griese's in any other year besides Griese's pro bowl year. Advantage Fiedler. He's been in the Dolphins locker room for 3 years now winning over teammates and coaches alike with his gutsy performances and ability to shake off the most disrespectful of criticisms.

His teammates believe in him. And now, they know what its like not to have him in the game; they know what his absence could mean to a season. So answer me this: If Griese and Fiedler have such similar talent, how is the locker room going to divide? Who are going to be the players pitching tents at Camp Griese? You have to win over some teammates before they begin taking aim across the line the in the sand. The bottom line is this controversy is only dangerous in the eyes of the media and the fans. The players literally cannot be very worried about the controversy. They see two guys with similar talent and they naturally go with the guy who has been winning games with them since Day 1, not the outsider who blew his chances elsewhere. So forget all the debates over who should start and whether Griese should be given the chance to compete for the starting job. Its all moot. The only way Brian Griese will see action is if Fiedler gets injured. Its possible that the Dolphins go on a bad losing streak and Griese ends up in the game just to see if the Dolphins can get their ship back on course, but for that to happen two things must happen. Griese would have to show Norv Turner that he has something unique to offer to this offensive scheme in training camp that Jay Fiedler does not. So far, they look very similar. The second condition? Brian Griese has to show he's better than 3rd stringer Sage Rosenfels, which so far in Mini-Camps, he has not.