State Of The State Of Things

I'm not going to lie, the way the season ended for the Miami Dolphins led me to avoid all things Dolphins for the past week.  I just found out today about the Dolphins pursuing Stanford head coach, Jim Harbaugh to replace Tony Sparano.  I have not abandoned football altogether however, having watched 13 NCAA bowl games in the last week, leading up to the BCS National Championship, which ironically I may be the only Oregonian not planning to watch live.  I find it much easier to pay attention to individual players and their fundamentals by watching a recording and I've already found several players the Dolphins should keep an eye on leading up to the draft.  But more on that later.

For now, let's discuss the fact that for the second straight year, following a disappointing season, several players have 'called out' Tony Sparano and several players have called out the players doing the calling out.  One thing the Dolphins have been unable to do during the SpIreland/Trifecta era is to just disappear during the off-season and not be heard from.  Whether it be radio interviews, arrest reports, ego-stroking documentaries, or arrest reports (warrants mentioning twice), the Sparano-led Dolphins have been a fairly scandalous clan, full of infighting and verbal and physical abuse.

Add that to the product on the field and there's no question that Sparano should go.  The only question remaining is, if Jim Harbaugh takes the job, what happens to the rest of the coaches/management?  

Assistant Head Coach/Secondary Coach, Todd Bowles, is apparently in-line to become the Cowboys' Defensive Coordinator.  Offensive Coordinator, Dan Henning, would likely be out of a job even if he wasn't supposedly retiring.  Jeff Ireland seems safe for some reason that is beyond me.  In my opinion he's the guy who hired the people who failed, so he should go get in the unemployment line with Dez Bryant's hooker-mom too.

Of course, the biggest concern is what happens now with Mike Nolan, the Dolphins' defensive coordinator.  Was he offered the job of head coach?  Will John Harbaugh be given rights to replace Nolan?  Sparano didn't seem to be part of the decision making process that brought him here, but Harbaugh's reported salary of $7M a year suggest he'd have more power....or is it a high offer to convince him to take less power?

One thing is for probable, with Sparano leaving, so will certain 'favorites' like Patrick Cobbs, and Anthony Fasano and hopefully every ex-Cowboys offensive lineman.  But I don't expect a huge turnover in players.  In my next blog I'll talk about why I think the Dolphins have more talent than shows up on film in 2010, and why they can win the Division in 2011 with less change than one may think.

PS - I say my 'next' blog, but I will of course update with news on the coaching situation.