Adversity Will Aid In Breaking Or Making 2017 Dolphins
With the loss of the Bye Week, adversity has been dialed up to 11 for the 2017 Dolphins
Adversity either breaks you or makes you stronger
“Zero In” is the motto Adam Gase has attached to the 2017 Season.
For me, Buzz Lightyear’s motto with a slight twist works much better: “To Adversity and Beyond”.
Dolphins ongoing theme of extenuating and challenging circumstances has seamlessly continued into the 2017 Season with the official postponing of their Week 1 game against the Bucs to Week 11 on November 19th.
Yeah, Miami won’t lose a second home game; however, they will lose their one and only bye week. While losing a bye week isn’t the end of the world, football is such a violent sport that there’s no denying that the loss of a week of healing for weary players is a sizable disadvantage.
But, let’s remember what ole’ Friedrich said, ‘That which does not kill you makes you stronger’.
This is one of the primary reasons why I’m so excited for this season… my Miami Dolphins have the chance to be epic. And ladies and gentlemen, if they make it to the Playoffs this season that’s exactly what they’ll be: EPIC.
For decades I have sweated any added challenge because I knew in my heart of hearts that the coaching couldn’t handle even the slightest amount of extra adversity. For the first time since the very early years of Jimmy Johnson, I truly believe we have a coach that can weather whatever may come.
No ifs, ands, or buts: This is the season we find out exactly what Adam Gase and this regime is made of.
I’m so damn ready for some Dolphins football.
Greatness only come through adversity
We know the long, laundry list of issues that Miami has faced so far. Each and every extra bump will only make a successful season that much sweeter–if they overcome, of course.
But let’s be sober, this will be a long stretch of 16 games starting out with a trip to L.A., then back across to N.Y., and then across the pond to London.
Depth, depth, depth will be even more key to this season than it’s normal crucial value. Depth has been a weakness of the Dolphins and it will be THE reason they have success or failure in this long haul.
But before we go any further on trivial ‘football stuff’, let’s keep a proper perspective: Irma is a genuine nightmare on a real life level. People are going to, and have already, lost homes, their lives, and the lives of loved ones. So let’s stay grounded as we lament on the ‘adversity’ the Fins will face.
And as a second, and much less important, caveat to keep in mind: Despite the general dislike for Roger Goodell, this situation posed a real logistics, personal, and monetary quandary for him and the league to resolve on such a short notice, there’s no doubt.
If this game was moved to a neutral site then Miami would have lost a second home game due to the London game against the Saints, and players wouldn’t have been able to be with their family and friends through the storm. And then they may very well have had to wait days before getting home and communicating with them.
As a family man, that would be an unbearable hell.
Real life adversity trumps any difficulty in scheduling
Then there’s the cash consideration. Having to refund Week 1 and the loss of another home game, due to the London trip, is a lot of dough for even Steven Ross to eat. Of course, the word out there is that the London game was a trade off to host a Super Bowl… but who knows. And no matter what you say about Ross, he has zero history of being cheap or being primarily focused on turning a profit.
So in my mind, Ross gets the benefit of the doubt.
Then there was the option of moving the game up a couple of days. If they moved it to Thursday, it would have clashed with the champs opening the season, and maybe would have been too close to Irma’s arrival. To me this seems like the only real alternative to moving the game to Week 11. Players could have been with their loved ones, there would still have been a home game, and most fans may still have made the game.
Yet, given what’s barreling down on Florida, it would have been cutting it pretty close with a Saturday landing of Irma… So, I completely get it.
But in reality, no matter what the decision ended up being, it was a ‘pick your poison’ result. It doesn’t take the best bookie website software programs to figure that there wasn’t a perfect option available…
…And yet, I can’t help but feel that the discussion with Goodell was predetermined and went something like this scene from the movie Spinal Tap:
No matter how you slice it, this was a lose-lose situation
So now Miami will set their focus to week 2, where they will be facing the Los Angeles Chargers in LA. Miami will get one extra week to rest up and heal from any pending injuries. However, the Chargers will have the advantage of cutting their teeth on a regular season game, which should help them be a little crisper and sharper compared to the Dolphins.
But again, let’s remember, the higher the mountain the greater the feat and the greater the glory.
This is where my heart is–beyond the hope that Irma miraculously turns out to sea for a quick death: That all this adversity will be a springboard for the 2017 Dolphins prove they are of heroic bloodline.
Coach Gase is no stranger to adversity, and in a best case scenario, all these difficulties will be fuel to inspire the type of passion needed to achieve greatness. Go Fins!!! And pray for Florida!!!
Yo Yo Yo homies, hold on uno momento hermanos. Lets not write the Patriots off because of one bad game. We all know how many times they’ve been written off in the past only to win a SB. Remember SB vs Falcons?
Re the Fins…the context is set by watching this franchise over the last 45 years, and over the last 10-12 or so years most recently. Nothing major has changed with this club…at least nothing that will bring the Fins of old back meaning consistent playoff contender well into division and conference championship games.
This isnt a glass half full or glass half empty….there aint no glass here. They are just a mediocre team that has had a bad to mediocre record for the last 15 years or so.
This year won’t be any different.
I agree with you totally on the first part. Pats do look wounded, but a much clearer picture will happen against the Saint. Their death has been greatly exaggerated many, many times. Although, the Saints too look meh, so a win will be less valuable than a loss as far as gauging the Pats in 2017. But as for the second part, I disagree with you that it’s the same ole’ Fins from the last 2 decades. Not saying it’s Superbowl time, but the trajectory is much different. Of course, this week will go a long way to revealing where this 2017 Dolphins team is heading and if it’s a meh, blah, or a yeah team.
Safety first. Had to cancel my trip to the game so I’m bummed.
The points made by Dinner are valid. When will the Dolphins catch a break?
The Chiefs have given the league a blueprint for defeating the Patriots. Our Dolphins being division rivals have an excellent chance of beating them at least once this year.
At the end of the day, the team this year is a much better team and should be better prepared to handle adversity than in years past.
Go Dolphins!
Dunner…sorry
Sorry to hear it, Fritz… but on the bright side, your ticket will end up being at a much more critical stage and might end up being a better game to watch, given what could be on the line. I agree on the Chiefs. Pats have issues with speed as their Pass rush isn’t so great ATM. If you can give a QB time, and have a deep and fast core of Wr’s, they appear to end up more possessed than what would normally be the case when time in the pocket and speedy receivers meet a defense. Also, ATM they seem weak on the deep ball on O and their run-D seems off from last year. Still loads of time to remake themselves. They have 10 days before the next game, so how they look in that game against the Saints will be a much more truthful view of what their team will be… but wasn’t it nice to see them get beat.
Wow, I feel overdosed on cliches after reading this one.
Look, let put the cliches away and step into reality for just a second here. Miami has average to above average talent. Therefore Miami will have an average to an above average W-L record.
Aint no Super Bowl happenen any time soon bro, and if you’re talking PLAYOFFS!?….it’ll be another one-and-done.
Hows reality hittin ya now?
Now there’s the freak I know… not in full bloom, but close. First, never said Superbowl, said Playoffs– you need to respond to what I say. If they make it to the PLAYOFFS that will be a feat given all things considered… you must admit. If it’s a blow out then I agree with you it will be a bit of a let down, but still an accomplishment. IF it’s a close loss, then I would say it’s another step forward. And yes, given that most fans of the Dolphins are in Florida, this is a feel good piece, because they will have some hard times soon. And the only reality I’m concerned with hitting ATM is Irma. But, on a football note, not a snap ha been played. So how do you know what reality is? I think you tend to a more half empty philosophy and that’s understandable given Miami’s recent history. But if this an Avg. to Above Avg. squad and Gase is really as good as we hope, then Playoffs isn’t out of the picture and in the years that follow a continued rise as well. But we’ll have to wait till next week to get a gauge on this team… and I’m we are simpatico on not liking that.
OK Freak,,,, What about the Superior Patriots???? Did you see that swiss cheese defense???? You don’t know, you can’t evaluate Miami’s roster until the games begin. The Pats were supposedly STACKED, healthy Gronk, Cooks, and of corse Brady,16-0, not so fast. KC may have given the league a glimpse of how to beat the oh mighty Patriots. HUGE loss for KC when Berry went out w achiiles, bummer!
Now on to my rant.. Miami finally gets a late bye (week 11) and they get f**ked out of that. Now they (and Tampa) have to play 16 straight weeks without a rest (bye), and they talk about player safety, BS!!! I understand that Irma takes precedence over football, but the game could have been moved to a neutral site and played on Thurs., Sun., Mon. Now Miami has 3 straight road games to open the season, across country to Cali, up to NY, and over seas, again straight bulls**t. So essentially Miami has 1 home game in the first 5 weeks, and oh yea no bye for the entire season, again=BS. I pray for all in Florida and hope for safe outcome, but the Fins got some bad luck with Irma’s timing and got F**ked by the league with their poor decision. The game could have been played last night some where and then Miami and Tampa players could have attended to reality prior to Irma’s arrival, talk about precedence, the Pats and their big opening ceremony could have shared the spot light last to due to a unforeseen circumstance. NFL dropped the ball to appease the Pats season opening ceremony.
This is a real good Friday after last nights outcome. Did anyone almost turn the channel last night when the mighty Pats got up by 10? I came oh so close, I just couldn’t listen to Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth talk about how great the Pats are and Brady is the all time greatest, 16-0 such as 10 years ago,,, HA HA HA. Thank goodness I was patient enough to watch the rest of the game.
HUGE game next week for Miami. If, “if” they can go across county and get a win in LA and start the season 1-0, they could put themselves in a good position heading to the (supposedly) struggling Jets.
Good Luck to all of you down there in Florida, thoughts and Prayers.
I get Freaks point and don’t think he is nuts in anyway. But given the Pats game it does highlight that we don’t know much about much with any degree of certainty. You tend to be a half full guy, I feel like a half full guy because it’s what I see, but we’ll see what it is. Maybe it ends like Freak see it. Maybe it will end like we see it. Maybe we see the difference split. You can’t avoid the reality that physically the missed Bye will hurt the Dolphins chances. But sometimes I think Freak devalues the psyche / intelligence side of the game. This “cliche” he speaks of about adversity making you better, is in truth a reality, even if it is far too often used in a cliche. So tired of Pats getting hot air. You can’t deny they are great, but this era is far too much about hype rather than analysis. I think they take the Chargers handily. Their OL is beat up and their QB is still a rook. We will look much better than we did last year against them. Man will I miss seeing my Fins on Sunday… and yeah, this storm has softened a bit, but could be terrible for Florida… prayers and thoughts for sure.
…yeah, I started channel surfing early figuring it was in the bag …but then …bye bye 16-0 …in their opening game …at home and it turned into a rout …AND then the cream on top …Brady pissing all over his own team mates on camera …oh yeah, not as good as a fins win but I can live with it 🙂
…I’m pretty sure to be without power here come tomorrow so wont see the Bill-Jets game …and if things go like they usually do after these ‘canes, we little folks out in the boonies will be the last restored so it could be a while …actually rooting for the Jets on the basis that a fins win over the Chargers and then the Jets would set us atop the division to start the season …I could live with that, short lived though it may be.
…after a lot of growling, pissing, and moaning I’ve come around to the conclusion that the NFL made the only call it could …an early game in either Miami or Tampa simply wasn’t possible because stadium security requires huge overtime commitment from local police …and they were already invested in emergency preparations and evacuations
…playing in another stadium on such short notice would have been a logistical nightmare for everyone …but in the end, it was again security that was the killer …it takes time and planning to secure those games because they would immediately become a major terror target …and no one is willing to take that risk on such short notice
…so we get the short end of the stick …again …but given the alternatives, it was the least bad of the options available, imnsho of course …yes, it sucks …but that’s the weather, not the NFL being bad guys …you make your home in south Florida, you accept that every few years there is going to be a time when you wonder just how insane anyone is to live here …but then its over, you clean up, rebuild, and the sun shines …again
…looks like Tampa is going to take a direct hit now …I’m in the midst of boarding up, hoping its purely wasted motion …but two days ago Irma was going to hit my house in West Palm Beach and I boarded up there, only to watch the damn thing march clear across the state …and my house here in Indian Lake Estates is STILL in the f’n cone …que sera, sera
…dann Irma changed track again 30 miles to the west of us …which meant we spent the night in the garage in my Volvo with our 5 cats while things went bang in the night …the wind howl was unrelenting for hours on end …but all good things come to an end, the sun rose this morning, and besides losing a few trees and palms, all is well …except of course we have no electricity …plenty of bottled water and lots in the tubs and rain barrels …and I have a hand pump for the well if worse comes to worse …all the gas stations are down because the pumps don’t work without electricity and generator backup is not required this far from the coast
…and the Bills won …ah well, there’s always next week …did I mention we’re only half way through hurricane season 🙂
Nice, I’m real glad you fared well. Electric and all… man you see my prayers worked!! 🙂 No let’s see if the work for the Fins or the Freak will roast me 🙂 Glad you and yours are well sir!
My buddy is in Tampa said it wasn’t that bad… though he doesn’t have electric. Glad Irma didn’t meet expectations!!!