Trying to rise up
Coaches shoulder blame for team’s Week 1 debacle Recent history vs. Dolphins makes Belichick wary
DAVIE —There is a universal theme coming out of Davie this week, and it’s as refreshing as a glass of lemonade on a humid South Florida day.
And it’s something that needed to be said because the Miami Dolphins players needed to hear it.
The Dolphins stunk in every aspect of football in last Sunday’s embarrassing season-opening 59-10 loss to the Baltimore Ravens, and head coach Brian Flores acknowledged “that starts with me.”
“Obviously I didn’t do a good enough job of getting this team prepared to play,” Flores said.
In fairness to Miami’s rookie coach, it wasn’t like general manager Chris Grier handed Flores and his staff a complete roster full of veterans. Five players started their first NFL game for the Dolphins on Sunday, and 11 of the 13 newcomers added Patriots coach Bill Belichick will match up for the first time against former assistant Brian Flores on Sunday in Miami.
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Patriots at Dolphins
DAVIE — As the Miami Dolphins pursue their first victory under coach Brian Flores — and first since their “Miami Miracle” win over the New England Patriots last season — the Patriots are also trying to find their groove in South Florida heading into Sunday’s Week 2 matchup.
“Certainly give the Dolphins credit — when we look at it on our end, we have to coach and play better than we have,” legendary Patriots coach Bill Belichick said during a conference call with the South Florida media Tuesday.
“The matchups we’ve had against Dolphins haven’t gone in our favor.”
The Patriots have lost five of their past six games against the Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium, including last season’s heartbreaking 34-33 defeat in which Miami’s Kenyan Drake scored a 69-yard touchdown on a busted play as time expired. the Miami Hurricanes redshirt freshman defensive end Gregory Rousseau is in line to see more time on the field as he leads the team in sacks and tackles for loss in limited action.
to the team over the past week played in the game despite participating in just three practices.
Miami’s offensive line had worked together for all of three practices before playing one of the most physical football teams in the NFL.
But coaches don’t want to hear excuses for poor execution during game day. Neither do players.
That’s why, one by one, Flores’ coordinators followed his message Monday and fell on their swords. They reiterated Tuesday that the game plan against the Ravens was flawed, acknowledging that they didn’t make the appropriate adjustments during the game and that utilization of the team’s personnel could have been better.
Pair that with the team’s poor execution on offense, defense and special teams, and the result was the worst season-opening loss in franchise history.
“Overall, our execution can be better in a lot of areas,” said offensive coordinator Chad O’Shea said, who is in his first season as a play-caller. “We can coach better. We can play with better technique and better fundamentals.
“All of us can get better.”
An admission for their role in Sunday’s debacle was likely meant for the fans, media and, most importantly, the players, who have been looking at these coaches and the front office with a side-eye glance since Laremy Tunsil, Kenny Stills and Kiko Alonso, three of the team’s better players, got traded away a little over a week ago and numerous veterans who held starting roles got released.
Dolphins players are aware of the theory that the franchise is tanking this season for the No. 1 draft pick next year. What they need clarity on is whether or not Miami’s coaches are in on it.
They need to be certain Miami’s coaches
are putting the team in position to be successful each week, and the jury is still deliberating that topic.
“I could have coached better, there is no question about that,” said Patrick Graham, who is in his first season as an NFL defensive coordinator. “It’s a new day, and thankfully we have another opportunity this weekend to get better.”
In preparation for this week’s opponent — the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots — the emphasis will be placed on improving the fundamentals of football. The Ravens film is being used as an instructional tool to help the team grow and improve.
Graham reiterated flushing Sunday’s blowout loss and moving forward starts with the head coach, and trickles down to the coordinators and position coaches, and then the players, who are led by their four captains and quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick.
Graham said there’s an open line of communication inside the organization, and that was evident as defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick, who was involved on two Ravens touchdowns, and Flores were spotted sitting in the lunchroom having a seemingly animated conversation Monday.
“We are doing this thing together,” Graham added. “That’s a big part of it: having a clear line of communication and understanding what each one of us expects from one another.”
The Dolphins players want a fair chance to compete and a legitimate opportunity to win games this season, and that starts with the game plan and proper personnel usage.
“We’ve got to do a better job of getting them ready to play as a coaching staff,” Flores said. “That starts with me.
“Yeah, we had a lot of new faces, but again we’re not going to make excuses, we’re not pointing fingers, we’re not going to feel sorry for ourselves. The situation is what the situation is.
“We’ve got to make the best of the situation. We’ve got to play better than we did [Sunday].”